Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters.

Can`t Stop Loving You

I remember tears streaming down your face
When I said, "I'll never let you go"
When all those shadows almost killed your light
I remember you said, "Don't leave me here alone"
But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight

Just close your eyes
The sun is going down
You'll be alright
No one can hurt you now
Come morning light
You and I'll be safe and sound

Don't you dare look out your window, darling,
Everything's on fire
The war outside our door keeps raging on
Hold on to this lullaby
Even when music's gone
Gone

-Safe and Sound

Lub dub, lub dub, lub dup…silence. The soothing sound of the heartbeat was now a faint echo in my memory. I glanced at the time as a tear rolled down my cheek. I looked in disbelief; it was exactly twelve am. January 1, the beginning of my birthday started with my mother's death.

I was 8 years old when my mother died. I still remember the day she told me about her condition. My parents and I spent the whole day having fun at an amusement park. When my mom tucked me in that night, I knew something was wrong

"Mikan Yukihira, you are a very special girl and I love you very much. Never forget that. Compassion is what makes us human. If don't have that, what do we have. You have a pure heart and that's a very rare thing. Your love is your superpower. Promise me no matter what happens, never stop loving." She whispered.

I started crying

"Mommy, are you leaving us? I heard you and daddy talking about you going away. Mommy, don't die. I promise I won't eat cookies for breakfast and I'll never annoy daddy when he's working. I won`t even sing the monkey song anymore. I don`t even like that song anymore. Just please don't go." I begged.

Tears started filling her brown eyes.

"My love, I can never leave you. I'll always be with you, watching over you. It's true, I am dying but I'm not really leaving. Whenever you need me, look outside and find the brightest star; I'll be there for you."

"Then I promise, Mommy. I'll never stop loving."

Till this day that was one of the best and worst memories of my life. The whole experience was like building a snowman. You have so much fun when you're building it and it just melts away. After that night, the world I knew melted away.

My best friend moved to a different city right before the death. She didn't even tell me until the hour before she was leaving. Apparently, she didn't think I need the extra worry of her moving away with my mother dying. Losing her was almost as bad.

My father Izumi Yukihira, was a brilliant artist; he renowned worldwide. My mother Yuka Azumi was the owner of the family business (The Sakura Empire). They had many different departments all over the world.

After my mother died, my father had to take over. Little by little, he started to spend more time at work and less at home. Time passed and he became a workaholic. I barely saw him and whenever I did, it was only for a few minutes. Life started to go somewhat smoothly for me once again but my dad made a horrible decision.

I was twelve when I met her. She had ivory black hair, pale white skin, and a fake smile I despised immediately. She had my father wrapped around her finger; he was too much in love to see her wicked intentions. They met at a business meeting and for my father it was love at first sight again. A little while later, they got married and had their first child.

They named the baby boy Youichi Hijiri (my stepmother wanted him to have her last name). He had the perfect light gray hair that was just past his blue eyes. As much as I would like to deny it, I loved him. We had a true sibling bond.

My stepmother made me take care of Youichi. When I came home from school, I found her having manicures and pedicures while Youichi was crying of hunger. Sometimes the evil woman beat him up to make him stop crying. I learned how to use makeup to cover his bruises and cuts. The foster system would be even worse for him. In those few years, I took care of Youichi as if he was my own. I fed him, taught him, and dressed him. When he got old enough, I started to drop him off at daycare and preschool while I was at school. My father was always at work or business trips, so he never knew. When I tried to tell him, he would beat me up merciless; my stepmother told I was lying. At that point, I knew that man had changed; he was no longer my father that once loved.

I felt sorry for Youichi; he never had a real childhood. At least I had 8 years of love, care, and joy but all he had was hatred, pain, and sorrow. I tried to give some happiness in his life but Youichi only matured with time. He always kept a poker face and he kept his true feelings inside. This made me realize that Youichi deserved better. The place we were living at wasn't a home, it was a prison. My goal become to get Youichi in a better place and to make sure he git the love he needed.

Years went past and I was now an 18 year old girl. I graduated from grade twelve and gained freedom from my stepmother. I also finally had full custody over my little brother (I had my lied to my stepmother and had her sign some documents). For years I have been saving all my money for this moment. I booked a bus ticket for me and Youichi to go to a new city. When we reached there, I was going to find a job, rent an apartment, and get Yo Chan in a good school.

So now here I was at 10 o'clock at night with Youichi, waiting for the bus. I hadn't told anyone we were leaving. If my father and stepmother found out they would make a huge scene. If anyone found out that their two children ran away, that would ruin their good reputation.

There was a slight breeze and I saw Youichi shiver. I picked him up and gave him a warm hug. He gave a small yawn and snuggled into my arms. We split a suitcase between the both of us and had a backpack each. We had tried to pack light but miserably failed. Light flashed across the road as the bus slowly screeched to our stop. I gently let Yo Chan down and picked up our small suitcase. Youichi climbed on first and I.

As I showed our bus driver our tickets, I paused. I looked back and remembered all the memories I had of this place. The bus driver looked at me suspiciously and asked "Are you sure you want to do this?"

I looked back at him and grinned "I've been waiting my whole life for this."

I walked over to where Yo Chan was sleeping on a seat; I smiled and sat beside him. Nothing could go wrong now, I thought. Boy was I wrong.

This is a story I've been thinking about writing for a long time. I finally decided to publish it, so here it is. Tell me if I should continue or not and if you liked it, in the comments. Was it boring? If you like it, I'll update in a few days. Sorry for all of those who were waiting for Natsume and the others. They will all be introduced in the other chapters.

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-FireAlice14789