Dead End

Mikan, now nineteen, has long since escaped the grasp of Alice Academy. She has left that world of deceit and lies behind her for good; Alice Academy, and her life there, never existed. But even she knows that no-one ever escapes the Academy.

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Prologue

Mikan sighed, dragging another full-to-bursting cardboard box from the wardrobe. The edges of the box were frayed, and it looked as if it might split open at any moment. She took a moment to glance up at the mess that littered the room; who knew her grandpa had had all this junk?! She shook her head. He'd always kept things, even useless things, insisting that he may someday find a use for them. Honestly, her grandfather had been so optimistic – too optimistic.

"Woah, Mikan, is this you?"

Mikan glanced up from her rummaging for a photo to smack her in the face. She clasped her nose, yelping. Throwing an irritated look at her friend, who was curled up by a similarly abused box, surrounded by an army of papers and brick-a-brack, she peered down at the picture. A little girl with pigtails and sparkling brown eyes grinned up at her, not a care in the world. She couldn't help but smile back at the child. It was her, age nine, lined up with her classmates, the teacher standing at the sidelines. Those were the days…

"I didn't know you were such a cutie!" declared the red-head now peering over her shoulder.

"Could you be suggesting that I'm not a cutie now?!" demanded Mikan, feigning offence. She gave her friend a shove, resisting the smirk that tugged at her lips.

"Pfft, yeah right! Who'd call you cute?!" she threw back, scrambling back to her boxes, her emerald eyes twinkling mischievously.

"Yeah, you'd better run, Emi!" she murmured, throwing a teasing glare at her friend.

Mikan returned her attention to the photo. Her nine-year-old self was still beaming up at her, her arm around another girl's shoulders. She felt distant memories stir at the sight of that face, with those deep violet eyes staring emotionlessly at her. That unsmiling girl had been that bubbling nine-year-old's world; her best friend. Hotaru…

Shaking her head, she pushed the photo away and continued picking through the rubbish her grandfather had left her. She didn't really want to be doing this; her grandfather's death had been such a great blow that she hadn't wanted to disturb any of his things. Perhaps that was a kind of denial; leaving his home as if he were still here. Whatever, she knew he was dead – it was just hard, even now, but she couldn't afford to keep this house anymore.

She pulled out a rather battered brown envelope, the corners reduced to tattered holes. She couldn't help but purse her lips. What was he holding onto this for? But the envelope was thick with whatever was inside. Barely even curious, she tipped out the contents. Letters streamed out, sprawling across the floor. The gasp escaped before she could stop herself. He'd kept all these letters? Fingering one tentatively, she scrutinised it with her soft brown eyes.

"Oh, Grandpa…"

She could feel herself tearing up. What had that been like for him? Alone, knowing his granddaughter was unhappy and being unable to help. She bit her lip.

But there was still something else in the envelope. She slipped her hand in, producing a crisp certificate when her hand re-emerged. It was the acceptance letter from Alice Academy… By the time her grandfather had got this, she was already gone. He'd never had a chance to say goodbye… Oh, how could she have done that to him?! A tear splashed onto the card.

"You went to Alice Academy?!" breathed Emi, startling Mikan.

"Unn, yeah…" Mikan brushed away her tears hurriedly, sniffing.

"But if you went there… You must be a genius?! What are you doing beinga-?!" she asked incredulously, but she was interrupted before she could finish.

"Look, Emiko, I don't want to talk about it."

Something about Mikan's tone made Emiko realise her mistake. Her eyes widened in realisation, before seeming to darken as understanding dawned on her.

"Oh, Mikan…"

She wrapped her arms around her friend as Mikan began to sob, clinging to Emi as if her life depended on it. Emi had known this was going to be hard on Mikan, but she didn't realise quite how hard. Now she understood why Mikan had avoided this for so long. She frowned, glancing at the certificate. What could have happened at Alice Academy all those years ago?

*

"Mm, how about a chocolate shake and…" The brunette glanced over her menu at her friend, her expression quizzical.

"A latte." replied the other girl, handing her menu back to the waitress.

The waitress smiled warmly at the girls, assuring them their drinks would be with them shortly, before hurrying back to the counter. She leaned on the surface while she waited for their drinks, fiddling with her nails. Breathing a sigh, she peered around at the packed café; practically every seat was occupied by students chattering away about whatever their professor had said about their assignment, or whatever that girl had done to that other girl. She couldn't help but shake her head; such trivial concerns, but even so, a smile had softened her eyes; she hoped that it would stay that way.

The clack of cups landing on the counter dragged her out of her reverie. She snatched up the drinks and a straw for the milkshake and hastened back towards the booth in which the two girls were sat.

"Hey, Mikan-chan!" called a voice.

The waitress paused, half-turning to see what was wrong. The boy serving drinks was smirking at her slightly, his eyebrows raised.

"No matter how good-looking I am, you can't be day-dreaming when it's this busy!" He stuck out his tongue cheekily as a blush rose to her cheeks.

"Ha! You? Attractive? I don't-"

"Mikan! Would you help me?! I'm dying!!" shouted a fellow waitress – Emiko – who was balancing three trays precariously on her arms, each overflowing with plates, drinks and cutlery. Just at that moment, a fork clattered to the floor, splattering the poor girl with spaghetti.

Mikan's mouth fell open in a small 'o'. She bit her lip guiltily; she really was too easily distracted, and she was clumsy enough without the added danger of walking around in daze. She braved a sheepish smile at her friend, before throwing herself back into the world of waitress-ing, in which she was constantly under the risk of flying cutlery, falling crockery or raining beverages, and normally, each of these things occurred before her shift ended.

Finally, her break arrived. Traipsing over to the drink counter, she pulled off her apron, exhaustion hugging her every movement, and, with a sigh, heaved herself onto one of the tall bar stools.

"Gimme a shot of your strongest vodka, Akira-kun!" declared Mikan, resting her head on her arms. This had to be their busiest day, ever. The customers had had her running around like their dog, back and forth, to and fro, from ketchup to mustard. She felt like she'd been run over by a bulldozer!

"You couldn't handle it, Mi-chan!"

His words were accompanied by a pat on the head. She pouted; even at nine-teen he insisted on treating her like a three-year-old. Peering up him, she tried to give her most menacing glare, but, as per usual, failed.

"You're so cute!" he cried, emphasising the word cute in an attempt to humiliate her further. And it worked; crimson flooded through her face like a tsunami. She sat bold upright, opening her mouth to give him a piece of her mind – how cute!

"You should've seen her when she was nine!"

Emiko leapt up beside Mikan, beaming, only to be met by a look that probably could kill – perhaps the same look Medusa had worn when she turned people to stone, only Emiko didn't turn to stone – she laughed.

"You got to see her when she was nine?! I'm jealous!" Akira whinged, his blue eyes round and glistening like those of a lost puppy. Mikan rolled her own dark eyes; she was immune to that look now.

"I know you-" Emiko suddenly broke off, her face a mask of absolute horror. Akira froze up, rigidly casting his eyes behind him. A sense of impending doom hung over him as he anticipated the evil monster that lurked behind with an axe. Instead, there was a clock. "IS THAT THE TIME?!" shrieked Emiko, gathering her possessions and scrambling down from the chairs. "I'M GOING TO BE LATE FOR MY LECTURE! AAAAH!" She fled the café, the door chiming as she did so.

Mikan and Akira exchanged glances.

Emiko was a very busy and studious girl. On top of her studies at the nearby university, she worked here at the café regularly as well as tutoring. And, much to everyone else's horror, she had actually signed up for the additional English lectures with the university's most infamous professor. Mikan just couldn't believe it; where did she find the time?

Mikan didn't go to university. She was the only one working at the café that didn't go to the local university, except for the owner, of course. Everyday she would see and hear the happiness that the students were enjoying, the bright future they hoped for. Sometimes, she wondered if she'd made a mistake, but when she was truly honest with herself, she knew no university would want her. She could barely scrape together any decent qualifications, not to mention the fact that she had left school at sixteen. What university wanted that?

However, there was another reason. A deeper reason. If she went to university, her details would be logged. They would be able to find her again. There was no way she'd ever let that happen, so, ever since she'd left the Academy, she'd been jumping jobs, struggling to support herself, living in constant fear.

Yet, here, in this little bustling café, she'd found a place she could call home. She hoped, beyond belief, that it would stay that way.

But things never worked like that. The Academy was never going to let her go.

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How was that for the first chapter? I know it was kind of short, but it ended better there, besides, it was a prologue. Anyhow, this is my first Gakuen Alice fic, and it takes place in the future, but it's not actually AU or anything. :) I prefer writing non-AU stories.

By the way, I don't know how often I'll be updating; school starts again soon, so I'm sorry if updates take a while. I can't promise anything.

Either way, I hope you enjoy this fic; I'll be happy to hear your thoughts. ^^

~Chaos.