Hey. This is like my second fic this week! Gosh, studying 6 hours a day ironically increases my creative juices. Lol.

Anyway, this is an AMUTO one-shot, randomly written at one a.m. in the morning lol. Hope you like it xD

Enjoy!

He took a breath and closed his eyes. Fingers gliding swiftly over the surface of the smooth wood, pressing gently along the soft strings of his violin, Ikuto's melody resounded through the silent air. The notes were warm and familiar, yet they held an edge of melancholy and regret. Behind closed eyes, his mind drifted to a certain pink-haired girl who so often occupied his thoughts.

Hinamori Amu. He didn't know what to make of her. She was a strong girl; she'd endured far more than what an average child would. Then again, so had he. She faced her problems head-on, and though she crumbled easily, she put on a strong facade to protect the ones she loved. Unlike him, who had constantly worn that cold and distant mask, who had always believed that that mask would protect others when in actual fact, it only protected himself. Amu was just the opposite of that, so needlessly selfless, constantly caring for those around her. Despite her being known for giving off an intimidating first impression, Ikuto had always thought of her as a cute, easily-flustered kid who had eventually matured into a fine woman.

Yes, mature she definitely did; both mentally and ahem, physically. Despite his constant jabs at her flat chest, Ikuto had to admit, she'd really grown. Now a proud C-cup, she would often complain to Ikuto that boys kept looking downwards when talking to her. Oblivious girl, couldn't she see that he'd been trying his best not to as well? So sue him for being a pervert, he was known for being one anyway.

Amu had also let her hair grow; those gorgeous locks now went past the middle of her back and swayed with every step she took. Her once-innocent, seemingly clueless, honey-golden orbs had taken on a darker shade of brown, reflecting how much wiser she'd become over the years. And her lips, damn, he wanted a taste of those. Though he'd never thought much of it when she was younger, he'd came to realise how much he wanted to kiss her. Kiss her until her face turned red, until her lips bled, until he was thoroughly satisfied to mark her as his.

When had these feelings begun? He could still remember the first time they'd met; he, a mindless slave for Easter, and she, a lost child who'd just discovered the existence of guardian characters. He'd never forget how she'd charged at him, screaming madly for him to return her eggs before recklessly jumping of the piece of construction they had been standing on. To say he was surprised would have been an understatement. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't intended to catch her before she could, but most definitely didn't, fall to certain death. Of course, this was not the case in her subsequent accidents, which mostly involved him swooping down to save her like some superhero, cat ears and all. But their first encounter ended off differently, with a certain princely character (don't call him that though, he'd go crazy) going to her rescue that day.

Ah, Hotori Tadase, aka Kiddy King. Ikuto remembered that had definitely been a period of time when they'd been at loggerheads, for more reason than one. He'd always been sentenced to the term "thieving cat" when in fact he hadn't stolen anything from our dear Kiddy King – yet. Tadase definitely had a crush on Amu, maybe "has" would be a more fitting term; how he blushed whenever he talked to her, and how she would sometimes blush back, much to Ikuto's annoyance, indicated that she was still the one who made his heart race and his hands clammy. (ew!) Recently though, Amu had claimed that she no longer held any feelings for the boy (yes, she did like him before) and that blushing when talking to him was simply out of habit. But Ikuto could never be sure. Though the two males no longer bickered every time they saw each other, they'd always be on their toes, watching the other through beady eyes...

"Here you go, Amu-chan. Have a seat"

-blush- "Thank you, Tadase-kun."

'So the Kiddy King wants to play "prince charming" eh? I'll show you "charming" you little..!'

And that's how their afternoons spent together went, a constant battle for Amu's attention.

Of course amongst all the fun and laughter, there had been sad times as well. Ikuto knew that he'd hurt her, more than he would have liked, when he revealed to Tadase that he'd been crashing at Amu's house to escape from Easter. Before running after her prince, she'd glared at him, hurt evident in her eyes and screamed at him for being so cruel. His eyebrow furrowed at the thought. But she still came back to save him, and for that he was grateful. When he'd been zombified by Easter's boss to extract X eggs from children, she had done all she could to breathe life back into him. She'd broken through the unwanted walls that were built around his mind and had embraced him, the lowly, impure stray cat he once was. He remembered being filled with warmth that had overflowed and had seeped out of his eyes as he wound his arms tightly around her as well; seeking comfort in the radiance she gave off. It was then when he knew that she was the one, the one who'd constantly pull him out of any form of darkness, big or small, and the one whom he wanted by his side until the ends of time...

"That was beautiful."

Ikuto opened his eyes. Sitting silently on the porch was Amu, dressed in a white sleeveless night gown, her eyes reflecting the gleam of the moon in the night sky. Her expression was one of serenity, a slight blush donning the pale skin on her face. Ikuto lowered his instrument, his arms dropping to his sides as her stared at her. A few moments passed, and Amu grew self-conscious.

"Err... Ikuto..?"

He blinked snapping out of his reverie. He then returned his violin back into its case, and moved to sit beside her on the swing. His right arm went around her shoulders and she leaned back, resting her head against his. They sat for awhile, rocking back and forth, neither talking to the other, just drinking in the tranquillity of the moment. Ikuto watched in fascination as Amu played with her fingers, stopping to stroke the ring on the fourth finger of her right hand. Burying his head in her hair, he inhaled deeply and breathed in her strawberry scent, before brushing his lips against her ear.

"What are you thinking?" he murmured, causing her to look up at him. He then gave her a small smile, which she returned before looking back down at her fingers.

"That song... What's it called?"

Ikuto smirked as he sat up, invoking a sense of confusion in the girl beside him. He reached up and cupped her face with his left hand, stroking his thumb lazily over her soft cheek. His eyes softened as he whispered his reply in her ear.

"It's called... Amu."

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