Merry Christmas to everyone! It's been a long time since I've updated and here's a Christmas special to follow up the countless dates since I've last posted or written a chapter/story. This story has an element of Christmas Carol, I hope you guys enjoy reading this work.
The Boy Under The Pink Umbrella
written by: ejo
Summary: Mikan Sakura, deceived and heartbroken, decided to have her revenge but everything got backfired when she got visited by three ghosts. Looks like she wasn't the only who got heartbroken.
The snow is getting heavier as each minute passes by, it took me a few hours to realize that my boyfriend stood me up on Christmas Eve for another woman – actually my best friend. Behind my back, both of them are secretly dating and not until a moment ago, another friend of mine confessed what she saw in a restaurant.
Both of them are snuggling near the elegant fireplace while I'm stuck here shivering violently from the cold. They'll pay, I'll make them pay for my suffering – the empty promises, my shattered heart, my empty wallet and my wasted time.
I, Mikan Sakura, will have my revenge.
"So, what are you going to do now?" Asked a child-like voice from behind. I glanced back and saw a little boy with a pink umbrella staring up at me.
He has the most unique pair of eyes I've ever set upon on yet it reminded me of someone. His brilliant red, clear eyes made me stare down at him and it was so clear that I could almost see myself as a reflection. His raven-coloured hair shimmered under the blinking Christmas lights.
He's wearing a greyish trench coat and his neck is covered with an expensive-looking white woollen scarf. He looked so mature with his clothing, he probably got lost and is trying to find his way back home.
"Are you lost little one?" I asked softly.
"You're the one who is lost Mikan Sakura," He answered back with a serious tone. I was taken back with his words and before I could utter another word, he spoke once again. "Your heart is wavering, you weren't like this when I first met you. You're not the type of girl who would think of revenge."
"Wh-Who are you?" I asked.
"I'm a part of your past," He replied as he closed his umbrella. "I'm the ghost of your Christmas Past."
"Huh? Excuse me? Is this a sitcom of Dickens' Christmas Carol? Are you seriously for real?" I asked in disbelief. It's been a terrible day for me and I'm no mood for a joke in front of the national television.
"Partially, I'm real but I'm currently a figment of your imagination that took form of a person you knew." He replied back.
"And who might you be?" I asked, raising a brow.
He gave out a sad and distant smile, "If you don't remember, then it's probably for the best."
"What do you mean?" I asked, quite bothered with his play of words.
"Seven years ago, while you were still fourteen, you and I met. And that was the start of series of heartbreaking events of a person named Natsume Hyuuga."
"Wait," I gasped. "You're Natsume Hyuuga?"
"Precisely." Then he snapped his tiny fingers.
The moment I closed my eyes, everything went black and I found myself in another location.
Seven years ago; Christmas Day
It was supposed to be a holiday but the students were forced to attend school because of a special school event.
"Mikan, is it true?" A girl asked to the brunette who was currently sitting on her desk, beside her is a pink umbrella. "That you and Ruka Nogi have started to date, so is it really true?"
Mikan curled the tips of her hair and flashed out a radiant smile, "Yeah."
And with this, everyone giggled including Mikan herself.
With this information, Natsume's ears perked a little bit. His current seatmate, whom he barely talked to, is currently his best friend's girl friend. He got this news first from his best friend himself yesterday during their break.
Natsume, in the very least, wasn't supportive with their relationship due to the fact he barely knew the girl but he's quite certain that this girl will make his friend happy indeed.
"Have you kissed yet?" Another girl asked, leaning her head forward in excitement.
Mikan, much to her embarrassment, kept quiet. Tinge of pink kept showing on her cheeks and she decided to look away from her friends. Her trail of sight landed on to Natsume's face. He averted his gaze from her and decided to help her out from her situation.
"Hey," He called to the group of females flocking around Mikan. "Would you mind a little bit of peace in here? Your voices sound drastically annoying to my ears."
The girls exchanged whispers and glances to one another and soon every one of them left. It was a moment of silence between the two. Both of them exchanged glances but neither one of them spoke a word. The deafening silence was broken by Mikan when she gave her thanks to Natsume. He didn't do anything but gave out a nod.
Now he found out that it was impossible for Ruka not to fall in love with this person. And so was he himself.
He knew from the very beginning that it was pretty much one-sided but still he can't control himself falling for her.
"This... This brings back memories," The current Mikan muttered. "Ruka Nogi's my first boyfriend you see and this is the time in my life where I never loved somebody as much as I loved him."
"This is also the time where I fell for you but you didn't even notice me at all." The little boy said sadly as he continued to watch the flashes of memory stored between him and Mikan.
"I never knew you liked me that way," the current Mikan stated bitterly. "I thought that you only dared to talk to me was because I'm your friend's girlfriend."
The little boy gave out a sigh.
Then the scenes started to move forward speedily. It stopped during the part where it started to rain and Natsume was chasing after Mikan who was crying madly. Both of them are soaking wet, almost to the point that you could see their skin through their wet clothes, but neither one of them stopped running.
"Mikan ," He shouted while running after her, his breathing has reached its capacity. "Stop right there!"
"Don't tell me what to do Natsume Hyuuga," She shouted back, running forward and not even looking back at him. "You should have told me in the first place that Ruka is growing tired of me and his feelings for me have already faded."
Natsume reached out his hands and it managed to grab hers. Both of them stopped running and were panting furiously.
"How can I tell you something like that? I don't want to hurt you." He said softly.
"I don't want to talk to you anymore," She hissed as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "Just leave me be. I'm sorry I got you soaking wet but in the first place I didn't ask you run after me."
He kept staring at her. He wanted to hug her tightly badly right now but now was not the right moment for it.
"Let's avoid each other from now on, I don't want to see you anymore. Y-You remind me of him and I want to forget everything that happened between Ruka and I, including knowing you." She said as she turned around, her back facing Natsume.
"My umbrella..." She said softly. "I left it at the classroom. Please give it back to Ruka, he gave it to me as a gift. I don't want to see it anymore as well." Then she walked away from him, leaving him all drenched under the rain.
"I love you," He muttered with raindrops pouring all over him. "That's all I wanted to say from the very beginning." He sank from his spot and closed his eyes tightly.
I bowed down, looking at my brown boots, and bit my lower lip in shame. I never knew he had all these feelings all along for me. I never thought of him for the past few years and this event made me remember him. I've always focused on myself. And it made me wonder: how's he throughout these years?
"Hey N-Natsume," I called to the little boy who turned to me happily. Was he happy that I called his name? "How's the current Natsume doing? What's he doing for the past few years?"
His smile turned into a frown. His face told me that something was up.
"He's doing okay, I guess," He said softly. "He changed... a lot."
"Huh?"
"You got to help him Mikan Sakura, you have to."
Then the little boy opened his pink umbrella and then out of the blue he suddenly vanished into thin air. My surroundings changed and I was back in the real world. Everything felt like a dream but I knew from the bottom of my heart that it wasn't.
"Hey," a deep male voice called. "Are you done dreaming now? Let's get going. I don't have time to dawdle around here."
I turned and saw a man taller than me by a few inches. He's wearing a black slick sweater that showed his muscles and well-defined body. His pants are dark in colour and it probably makes him warm. In his right hand, he's grasping a closed pink umbrella.
He also has the same red eyes from the little kid I met. Could he be...?
"Are you...?" I trailed off.
"I'm the ghost of the Christmas Present." He said as he placed his hands inside his pants' pockets.
"So," I spoke softly. "Are you what the current Natsume Hyuuga looks like?"
He didn't bother to answer back. He went to an alley and I followed him from behind. It's a dark creepy alley and street cats are located in one corner. Moss covered the garbage bin and the foul stench continued to linger in the air.
He stopped from his spot and turned to face me. He had the same features of the Natsume I used to know but somehow he looked somewhat different, probably it's the way he acts and behaves.
"Are you prepared to face the current Natsume Hyuuga?" He asked while looking straight at me as if he could see right past of my soul.
It was hard to answer his question. I couldn't give a yes or a no at it. I'm not sure if I'm ready to face him, I gave him a very big scar and it was only now that I knew that I did such thing.
I gulped. I only knew that there could only be one answer to this question and that would be a...
"Yes," I replied solidly. "I'm ready."
He gave out a smirk and snapped his fingers. Everything went black like what happened earlier but this time I could hear voices in my surrounding.
Right now; 10:57pm; Christmas Eve
"Sir," A man pleaded. "Can I take my leave now? My family's waiting for me outside the building. I promised them that we would be together celebrating Christmas."
"Can I take my leave?" He mimicked in a low and mocking manner. "DEFINETELY NOT."
"But Sir..."
"No buts," The raven-haired male stated firmly. His fiery eyes continued to glare at his secretary. "I won't give you an excuse in being a lazy bone. Now sit on your chair right now if you don't want to be fired."
"Can I at least go down for a while and tell them to stop waiting for me?" He asked softly, hoping his boss will allow him.
"No," He stated. "Now get your lazy ass off my face. Shoo."
His secretary went back to his table with a disappointed look etched on his face. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't hide his expression right now. He could message them right now but his wife doesn't have a cell phone.
Right now, Natsume Hyuuga is considered as a rich bachelor. He owns two car companies and one loaning agency. He's what every man could dream of. Rich, powerful, handsome and sexy. He has everything except love. Sure, he had a couple of women by his side but none of them was loved back by Natsume. The only woman he loved, he dreamed can never be his...
...That's what he thought.
"He changed so much throughout the years," Mikan said to the Ghost while looking at the current Natsume. "How can a man change so much?"
"Well, some stupid girl broke his heart to bits then, poof, something inside of him made him change." The Christmas ghost said resentfully.
"Who?"
He looked at her and eyed her from head to toe. He gave out a scoff and just continued to stare at her. There was an awkward silence exchanged between the two of them.
"Oh." Mikan uttered.
"I hate to see myself becoming like this – a cold-hearted bastard who just doesn't care anymore." He said with a distressing tone.
"In your point of view, what can change him back to his old self?" Mikan asked. "What do you suggest?"
"Meet him."
"H-How can I possibly do that? All these years, I've probably become nobody in his life. He probably resents me." Mikan answered back softly but firmly.
"How can I answer that? I was just created by your imagination but then again I took form." The Ghost said.
"What do you suggest then?" Mikan asked.
"Follow your heart. Trust it." The Ghost said while opening his pink umbrella. Soon he started to walk away while carrying the umbrella. He twirled it around and soon everything went black again.
The moment I opened my eyes, I found myself back in the dark alley. I was all alone and the Ghost was nowhere in sight.
"Meet Natsume..." I muttered softly under my breath. "Should I?"
I'm not sure. I'm not ready. Yes, I'm a coward. How could I face him? What will he think if I decided to show up in front of him after all these years? Questions, nothing but questions. All I want are answers, not questions.
Will he think I'm haughty to believe that I'm the one who can change him back? God, what are those Ghosts making me think? What do they know? Just like what they said, they're just a part of my imagination – a figment and nothing more – how can they possibly know that meeting him is for the best?
I went out of the alley and continued to walk in the streets. I passed by different shops with different things on display. The smell of bread lurks slowly in the bakery, the sweet sound of the singing children echoed in my mind and the cold weather, for me, turned warm.
"Hey little girl," An old cackling voice called. "Would you mind coming with me for a while?"
In my front, an old woman is standing before me. Her hair is tied up in a bun with pins supporting it. She's wearing a white laced blouse and black skirt to match everything up. A greyish furry shawl covered her entire upper body. In one of her arms, a big black handbag is hanging around. In her other, a long silver cane to support herself at her walks.
Her face is covered with wrinkles but still she looked beautiful and she gave off a bright aura around her. In my perspective, she's what I can call: young at heart.
"Um, do I know you?" I asked, almost raising my brow.
"Let's just say I'm the Ghost of the Christmas Future." She said while trying to beam out a smile, showing some of her brown teeth and false ones.
"So, what are you going to show me next?" I asked as I crossed my arms, waiting for an immediate reply.
She stared at me for a while and smiled, "Your future, my dear."
Finally! It's been all about Natsume, I want to find out about me more. I want more Mikan Sakura, thinking about Natsume Hyuuga creates butterflies in my stomach.
"Oho," The old lady cried. "Are you tired of hearing Natsume's name? You'll hear more of it in your future."
Ugh.
"Ready dear?" She asked.
"Yes."
She snapped her fingers and everything went black like before.
Fourty-four years past; Three days after Christmas
In an empty field, a bunch of people wearing black and white are gathered together. Mikan recognized some of their faces, some she did not. The familiar faces which Mikan recognized are Ruka Nogi's, Natsume's secretary's (and he probably brought his family with him) and some of her classmates.
"What are they doing?" Mikan asked to the old woman.
"Check it out, go ahead and find out for yourself." She replied with a gloomy tone.
Mikan walked forward and joined the crowd. No matter how much she nudges and pushes the people around softly, she was just simply ignored. In front of the group, she found the same old lady wearing a white dress she met standing and shedding a tear or two. Beside her is another old woman wearing a black dress who kept on comforting her.
She continued to walk and found a plaque which caused her to be shocked.
Here Lies Our Fellow Beloved,
Natsume Hyuuga
"The Next Life Is The Next Step To A New Beginning."
"We have gathered here today to escort our beloved, Natsume Hyuuga, to a new meaningful life. May he find peace in the Lord's arms. Amen." The priest said as he blessed his grave with holy water.
"Mikan, dear, don't cry anymore," A voice said. Mikan turned her head around and saw the old lady wearing black telling it to the old lady wearing white. "Natsume wouldn't like seeing you cry especially if it's because of him."
The old Mikan replied with a shaky voice, "I should have told him long ago that I've fallen for him as well. Now, I regret it so much... so much. Now everything is too late and I can't do anything but cry my ass off."
The other old woman kept patting her back and didn't say a word anymore.
Then everything went black.
"What happened?" I shouted loudly.
I felt trapped in some void. Everything I could see is nothing but a black space. I couldn't see anyone or anything at all. Plain nothing was in sight.
"Only in death, people will realize their regrets," A voice spoke in the darkness. And from the darkness, the old lady Ghost emerged with a serious look. I've never expected for her to be my future self. "I don't want you to experience the regret and sadness I've felt."
And from her handbag, she took out a pink umbrella. She slowly gave the umbrella to me.
"He gave it to me," She said while looking at the umbrella on my hands. "Natsume gave it to me."
I gazed at the umbrella for a while. After all the years, it's still good as new. Natsume must have taken care of it carefully throughout the years. I unwillingly shed a tear and felt a small pain in my chest.
I tightly hugged the umbrella and suddenly all of my tears came out. I couldn't control it and now I found myself having a tear-stained face.
"My dear," My older version of me said softly. "For this Christmas, do you want me to give you something as a gift?"
I could barely give out an answer so I just nodded at her. Even though my eyesight is blurry from all the tears I shed, I could still see her beaming out a smile.
"Let me rewind everything." She stated then she snapped her fingers.
I flashed out a smile. Soon, everything went black. Like a reflex action, I already knew what's going to happen next.
Seven years ago; Christmas Day
It was supposed to be a holiday but the students were forced to attend school because of a special school event.
The moment Mikan opened her eyes, she found herself in this situation once again, making her smile happily.
"Mikan, is it true?" A girl asked to the brunette who was currently sitting on her desk, beside her is a pink umbrella. "That you and Ruka Nogi have started to date, so is it really true?"
The first thing she did is that she glanced at the raven-haired boy who's trying to sleep. She looked at her friends and flashed out a smile – it was neither a happy one nor a sad one – it was just a simple smile coming from the bottom of her heart.
"Yeah, we're dating." She said sadly but she managed to hide her emotion very well.
And with this, everyone giggled excitedly. She continued to stare at her male seatmate without saying a word.
With this information, Natsume's ears perked a little bit. His current seatmate, whom he barely talked to, is currently his best friend's girl friend. He got this news first from his best friend himself yesterday during their break.
Natsume, in the very least, wasn't supportive with their relationship due to the fact he barely knew the girl but he's quite certain that this girl will make his friend happy indeed.
"Have you kissed yet?" Another girl asked, leaning her head forward in excitement.
Mikan didn't answer back. She was busy gazing at Natsume. Tinge of pink kept showing on her cheeks and she decided to look away from him but she couldn't help herself but glance once again at him. Her trail of sight landed on to Natsume's face who was staring back at her. He averted his gaze from her and decided to help her out from her situation.
"Hey," He called to the group of females flocking around Mikan. "Would you mind a little bit of peace in here? Your voices sound drastically annoying to my ears."
The girls exchanged whispers and glances to one another and soon every one of them left. It was a moment of silence between the two. Yes, silence filled the atmosphere but it was a comfortable one. Both of them exchanged glances but neither one of them spoke a word. The deafening silence was broken by Mikan when she gave her thanks to Natsume. He didn't do anything but gave out a nod.
He felt a weird sensation swelling inside of him. He felt very... happy.
Now he found out that it was impossible for Ruka not to fall in love with this person. And so was he himself.
Surely, from the looks of it, it's not one-sided anymore. Now, both of them have a mutual feeling to one another. And surely, everything would turn out to be well in the past, present and future.
"Hey," Natsume called out. "It's snowing madly outside. And I forgot my umbrella at my home, would you mind sharing me yours?"
Mikan smiled. "I won't mind at all."
The End
And the rest is just the beginning.
Merry Christmas! Happy Birthday Jesus! Review please? :*