Disclaimer: I'll say this once so I don't have to say and type the same thing over and over again as disclaimer on the next chapters after this;

I DO NOT OWN GAKUEN ALICE NOR ITS CHARACTERS D:

I just own this plot and the new characters; which I create them myself.

...

01 Us

"I like you! Please go out with me." A five-foot girl bowed her head down, her black hair trailing down her scarlet red face and her hands were trembling by her sides.

Natsume Hyuuga looked at the said girl and mentally sighed with a groan. His right hand unconsciously reached the back of his neck as his fingers slowly began massaging it. It's a habit he recently developed, he found out, every time he had to handle troublesome matters, which happen to start only recently. "I'm flattered," his deep voice rumbled, "but I'm sorry." He tried to be nice but he didn't even know who the girl is.

The girl snapped her head up and her eyes slowly began to tear up. "No, it's okay." Natsume had to give her some credit because he could see she was forcing herself not to cry. "I'm sorry.." she spoke again. He mentally frowned, 'or maybe not,' he thought as he watched the girl's started to sniff terribly, "for taking your time." She started to bawl before storming off, leaving him completely baffled.

Natsume exhaled a tiring sigh as he looked at the box he's currently holding in his right hand. He bet it'd be chocolates inside the wrapping. He should have given it back to her before she ran off. But he didn't expect her to run off that quickly after getting rejected. Supposedly return it back to her would be impossible now since he didn't know who she is, let alone which class she's from. "What am I supposed to do with this now?" he muttered to himself. He didn't particularly like sweet things. Should he throw it away?

"Let's just eat it together." A head popped out from the window. "It'll be a waste if you throw it away." She ducked her head down and disappeared from his line of sight. To be honest, he wasn't really surprised to see her there but certainly he didn't expect she would be there at this time.

Natsume went to grab for his bag inside the empty class and climbed up the open window before sliding down the wall below the window, settling next to the brunette, placing his bag on the marbled ground next to him. He straightened out his long legs and handed her the box of chocolates. "I didn't know you would be here."

Mikan Sakura pushed her brunette tresses away from her face as the wind continuously to blow them in her eyes. She turned her head to her side and smirked. "So one of our sacred place now got invaded by other girls too huh. Well, aren't you a little too famous, Natsume?" She asked sarcastically as she took the box from him. With a swift motion, she pulled the ribbon off and threw it somewhere beside her, not caring where it landed. Wasting no time and tearing up the wrapping paper, she threw it away following the fate of the ribbon, and opened the box.

He leaned his head against the wall and looked down at her. With both of them sitting down together like this, she's a head shorter than him. He watched her scrutinizing the chocolates in the open box. "I thought you went home already."

"Well, I didn't." She took one that shaped like a heart and threw it inside her mouth. Her face crinkled a little as her tongue slowly got used to the taste. She took another one and offered it to Natsume. "Here, have one. That girl must had done her research. She knows you don't eat sweet stuff because this one is dark chocolate. She had good sense."

Natsume looked at her and when he didn't seem to respond, she startled him by shoving it inside his mouth, smudging his lips in the process. "See, it's bitter isn't it?" She asked with a wide grin as she reached out and softly rubbed off the smudge on his lips with her thumb. Skin contact. Not only that, sitting at a very close proximity too. They're gotten so used to these that it no longer feel awkward. In fact, between Natsume Hyuuga and Mikan Sakura, all of these were like their daily routines. Skin contact is so normal thing for them.

With the remnants of chocolates sticking to her fingers, she licked them clean before wiping them off with a handky. Natsume silently stared from the side, completely intrigued. "Some of it got a bit melty but the taste is just how you like it," she trailed off, looking at another chocolate to take from the box. He watched her took another one—she found the one that didn't melt—and popped it inside her mouth. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I thought the class was empty because nobody is inside," she suddenly added.

"No matter. It's no big deal anyways." He reached out and took another chocolate, careful not to get the melty ones. Now that he tasted another one, it didn't taste bad at all. Actually, the chocolates tasted better than what he usually had. He shrugged and added, "I hardly know her."

"You mean, you don't know her at all," she corrected him with a laugh. "She's what, the 13th girl confessed to you this week?"

Natsume stared at her. "You've counted?"

The corner of her lips curled up and the gleam in her eyes twinkled. "Random guess."

Natsume sighed. "Don't bother. I don't even know. They just continuously came to me," he grumbled before adding, "It's not like this at all last week." He suddenly smirked. "Then again, you're good at fending them all off, Mikan."

The brunette snorted and she didn't even try to cover it. She had passed the 'ladylike' phase with Natsume. Now she could even barf while bawling her eyes out in front of him without a care in the world. "Yeah right," she rolled her eyes sarcastically, "It's just that you've been a bit warm lately. That's why they keep on coming." Mikan tapped her chin lightly, pondering on something. "If it's you three years ago, nobody would even dare to come near you." Excluding Ruka of course. But even their friends would be thinking twice to jump on him at a joke.

Natsume snickered. "Whose fault do you think why I'm like this now?" He raised his perfectly arched brows tauntingly at her.

Mikan rolled her brown orbs at him. "Don't put the blame on me now, Natsume. You're the one who just naturally fell in my pace." She didn't even have to pull him in. He came in on his own.

"And you're a black hole who just suck everything and everyone in." Included him. Good lord, three years with her had changed him. Even his brother was amazed of Mikan Sakura's craftsmanship in changing and re-creating Natsume Hyuuga to the now Natsume Hyuuga.

Mikan smacked his arm with a pout. "You're the one who voluntarily came to my side."

Natsume laughed. "Yeah I did. I actually forgot that." He watched Mikan pulled out her phone after hearing it beeped and with a hiss, she shoved it back in after reading a text a second after that. "Another one bothering you?"

Mikan nodded tiredly. "I swear to god they're relentless."

"I should've punched the guy when I saw him in the toilet the other day," Natsume spat out in dissatisfaction and irritation. He never liked the lot of them, this one particular group of second years. He had heard the news flying around and Mikan was the least bit happy about it.

Mikan gave him a mild shook of her head. "You'll end up in another brawl. I don't want that. I'm glad you didn't anyways." She smiled up encouragingly to him, probably to ease the invisible burning fire flaring on top of his head. "I just have to change my number again."

"You have it rough huh." She's being chased around a lot these days. He had heard. Then again, so was he.

"You too." She grinned cheekily. Apparently, she did hear something as well about him because that deep knowing grin of hers only meant she knew what's going on so he needed not to beat around the bush.

Natsume smirked. "Don't be cheeky, little brat. It doesn't suit the mood right now."

Mikan just laughed it off and taking another chocolate, she took her time slowly this time to savor the taste. It was bitter and she wasn't the one who's fond of bitter taste but Natsume liked it so her tongue had gotten used to the taste by now. However, right now, bitter is all she could feel. She stared up at the open blue sky and took her time getting herself comfortable with the warm weather as she leaned against the wall.

Natsume's phone blared off with his Linkin Park's Numb going on full volume. He fished it out and groaned. "Your brother?" Mikan asked from the side. "Did he run out of toilet papers again while shitting?" She tried not to laugh. That did happen before. Two times to be exact. Natsume, even if he cursed his heart out for having a stupid useless brother—exactly how he put it—he still ran out and bought him tissue papers.

Natsume shook his head and showed her his phone. Mikan furrowed her brows, staring at the name appeared on the screen. "Hotaru? Why is she calling you?"

"Probably because she couldn't reach you," Natsume replied with a mild glare at her. The person at the receiving end, who was chewing another chocolate in her mouth, only snickered her response. "After all, you keep on changing your phone number lately," Natsume emphasized with a scowl as he dragged a finger on the smooth screen to cancel the call. "Imai is both persistent and ruthless," he commented with his eyes narrowed at his phone as he waited. Just in time, a second after that, his phone dinged with a follow up text from Hotaru Imai.

From: Imai

Subject: REJECT MY CALLS ONE MORE TIME, HYUUGA AND YOU WILL EXPERIENCE MY BLOODY WRATH. YOU BETTER PRAY GOD WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE WHEN I SEE YOU LATER ON.

"See what I meant?" Natsume showed Mikan the text only to get a dismissal wave from her after she read the text. "And this doesn't happen once. She called me many times already." That ice woman had gone crazy it seemed.

But Mikan, she was the least bit interested in what he's saying for she kept on eating the chocolates without the care in the world. Natsume's vein twitched. Putting his phone back in his pocket, he reached out and flicked Mikan's forehead and the girl doubled over with a groan. He clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Fucking hell Mikan, can you just contact her at least once? That girl is already crazy enough as it is but you're making her even crazier than any normal human could possibly get." He would've told her the side effect of her actions had gotten Ruka tortured in the process but then again, Ruka's ego and pride would both be scarred if he knew that Mikan knew Hotaru Imai was torturing him because of her. After all, he felt sorry for his best friend for being a sacrificial French lamb for Imai The Butcher.

Mikan rubbed her sore and pounding forehead. She sat back up again and looked at Natsume with a teary eyed. "You're mean, Natsume."

"Would you rather me kick your arse for real then?" He raised one brow at her. "Like what I did to Koko and the rest of the guys?"

Mikan shrugged, getting the whole picture in her mind. "Point taken." She saw how Koko flinched at the after effect of Natsume's kick and it ain't pretty, the look on the face of that dirty blonde haired.

Natsume sighed at her lack on participation in the matter. Her effort in changing the subject didn't go pass his eyes though. "She's coming back soon."

"I know." She's fully aware of it, to be honest. She turned to look at him. "And Ruka?"

"They're flying back together."

"Hm, okay."

"Stop playing around and call her." Before he really looses his life to Hotaru Imai for rejecting another phone call from her, Natsume sent a silent prayer to the above. International call is bloody expensive; he didn't know why she kept on calling when it's clear he won't pick up anymore. He picked up once and swore he would never again. Let's just say, she really lived up to her name as Hotaru Imai.

There was a pause before she gave him a short reply with an impassive look on her face. "I'll consider it."

TBC.