Summary: It's because they are young and delusive and so in love that they do not understand the complexity of their relationship. (Down. Down. And down they fall.) Oneshot.

Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice does not belong to me.

Author's Notes: This author's notes may contain spoilers depending on where you are in the manga. Because I'm curious to know whether or not Mikan's other alice affects her well-being. But this is just me being completely delusional. Well, who knows?

Innuendos ahead (nothing which threatens your innocence, perhaps?), you have been warned.

Schadenfreude
-shackled wisteria-

They think it is alright, for now.

Time refuses to stop and so for them, everything is alright. As long as the moon keeps its sovereignty over mankind whilst they slowly ravish the depths of their emotions - raw and untamed, time will not stop. It won't. No, it shouldn't.

They dance and smile with hands entwined, like vines which weakly creep along the balustrades of a deserted mansion under the influence of the cold wintry night. The moonlight shining on them casts an image of a grand piano playing silently (playing a tune which they so ardently desire), smoothly as if signalling the bliss in their existences - alive and breathing. (Are they still alive or just barely existing?)

To exist is to be born without a purpose. To live is to love and be loved in return, up to the point where love merely becomes a disease. Malignant. Terminal. (Is this goodbye?)

A thin line still exists between them, despite the mixture of their scents, their voices, their words. Like water and oil, they cannot merge. As if one is denser than the other. As if their flesh continues to clash with fear (in silent cajolery) of being infected by a disease - coarse and unsightly.

There's a thin line. (But what do they know? They are young.)

We'll fall. Down. And down. We'll get hurt.

There's fear in their eyes. But there's love in their scents, in their voices and in their words. There's brevity in their complaints. There's affliction in their whispers. Tremulous. Time still refuses to stop. There's nothing that they need. Nothing at all.

But as the moon wanes into the horizons, waving a white flag to and fro, they realize that Time has been cruel. Too cruel. Because…because…

Both of them have just begun to wallow in the immensity of their emotions. They have just started living. Why now?

(But what do they know? They are young and delusive and so in love that they do not understand the complexity of their relationship.)

"Maybe we were not meant to be," she whispers longingly as she untangles herself from him.

"Perhaps. But I try to think that we are. I want to think of it that way." (He tries. He yearns.)

She begins to cry. She feigns innocence. (You're already eighteen, you know?)

"Natsume, I still cannot save you."

He takes her hand into his callous ones, carefully as if both are delicate people who still wander at night. He feigns innocence. (You're already eighteen, you know?)

"Hmm? One day is more than enough. You've suffered enough."

She loves his voice, his touch, his scent and just his mere presence. "Is this goodbye?"

He nods at her, smiling like an innocent boy he once was. "Perhaps. Don't forget me polka dots or I shall torture you once we meet again."

She grins at the familiarity of his teasing voice, "Id-iot. I told you to stop calling me polka dots, didn't I?"

"But I still can't help it," he coughs a little. (Can't you hold on?)

She wants time to stop. But it can't. It won't. "Goodbye?"

He smiles at her, boyishly as if life has just started infusing with his senses. "Ahh, see you again at some other place, at some other time."

"Ne, Natsume. I love you, you know?"

(He knows. He loves you too. So much. So much.)

So when she searches comfort from his cold body for one last time, everything begins to unwind. Cruelly. She closes her eyes and wait until the sun fully regains its throne, until the emotions she's been keeping for so long fade merge in the sunlight.

6:00 in the morning.

A knock on the door.

"Mikan?" Hotaru peeks in to see her best friend tangled with the cold man she knew would cause her (Hotaru) pain at some point in time.

The auburn-haired girl stares back at those amethyst eyes with confusion. "Who are you?"

Hotaru kneels down and cries.

Author's Notes: I have no idea about how on earth did I come up with such fanfic. Do not ask me why on earth did I write it this way because I don't know why either. My hands were unconsciously typing the thoughts flowing into my head.

If you think that the parentheses ruin the narration, kindly tell me and I will fix it once I find the time to do so. Hehehe.

Constructive criticism is very much appreciated. Thank you!

P.S. I'm halfway done with Folie a Deux's third chapter so please be patient as I continue squishing my brain cells for ideas.

Words: 665
07/05/2007