A Cure for Boredom
Boredom. That's what he was experiencing right at the moment. He looked out the window trying to mute the teacher's babbling and the giggling that the girls in his class were making whenever he so much as sighs. He could feel their gaze on his back, how the teacher is glaring at his impassive form and how the girls (and some guys) sneak dreamy glances on his way when they think he doesn't notice. But he does. He always does.
With nothing else to do, he resorted to the only thing that he could do and always does—observe. He didn't find it entertaining but it did stop him from reaching the complete mental shutdown his boredom was causing him.
Lazily, he turned his head away from the window to look at the class. He didn't miss the way the girls stifled their squeals and the way the teacher gave himself a whiplash as he abruptly craned his neck to avoid eye contact. Being the son of a successful businessman didn't come without its advantages—and disadvantages, he noted as he cringed at the stifled squeals the girls made.
He glanced at his best friend who was seated beside him and noticed the faintest of blushes on his face. He shrugged it off as one of Imai's blackmail pictures. If he didn't know any better he'd say that she actually had a thing for the blond boy—but he knew better not to say it so he'll just think it. His eyes darted to his other classmates; they seem to be paying good attention to the teacher. Pfft. That was because they knew he was looking at them. He wasn't stupid. He knew how the girls want him to notice them. And how the guys wish they could be him. It wasn't new. The moment he looks away they'd be sparing him glances again.
Back to his best friend, it barely occurred to him that the blond boy was more tense that usual. Strange, he mused. He noted the way his friend was sitting stiffly and that the way he usually pets his rabbit gently has become more close to strangling the poor thing.
This is new, he thought curiously. It is rare that something be different in the mundane activities of his every day. He wouldn't ask his best friend what was bothering him—not until he finds out for himself. His crimson eyes lazily scanned the room for anything else that might be different and he was mildly surprised to see the blackmail queen looking annoyed? Happy? She was annoyed alright but she couldn't hide the light aura she was emitting in place of the killer-intent she always had. Something was definitely putting off the balance of things. His usually calm friend, tensed? Imai, happy? What's next Narumi not gay? He scoffed silently.
That was when he heard an unfamiliar sound. Humming? It was a sweet tune surprisingly coming from somewhere close to where he was. He didn't want to move from his comfortable position, arms stretched feet raised, so he craned his neck backwards to look past Ruka.
A girl. It was a new girl. Since when has she been in this class? He pondered for a while and vaguely remembered Narumi ranting something about a new student. He was probably too occupied looking out the window when she was introduced. He finally figured out why some guys (more than usual) where sparing glances at his direction. They were looking at the possible new play thing. Typical.
He had to admit the girl was cute. Not I-think- I-like-you 'cute', it was more of a kiddy type of cute. And she was every bit unappealing to him as every other girl in his class. He noted her pigtails and mocked her silently for being so immature. Who does that in high school?
He continued observing the girl for the rest of the period. There was one thing striking about her, he had to admit. Not once had she spared him a glance not even when he pretended not to look. It wasn't as if she knew he was watching her—it was the opposite. It was as if there was nothing special about him to notice. That was a first in the history of his lifetime and he wasn't used to it. Why, even the stoic Imai spared him occasional glances of curiosity during her first day at the academy. Although those were out of curiosity rather than admiration, the point is he was noticed.
"Can we share your textbook? I sort of don't have one yet." He heard her ask Ruka in that sweet singsong voice of hers.
He would have laughed at the way his best friend nodded robotically had he not been pretending not to pay attention. "S-sure, S-sakura-san"
Correction. There were two things striking about her: the fact that she knows not of his existence and, the way her eyes sparkle when she smiles. For a moment there he almost—take note "almost"—thought she was beautiful. Again 'almost'.
The period was over and before he knew it the next teacher was already in. It was funny, how he hadn't noticed how fast the time was going by today. But he couldn't notice it. Not when he was frustrated to no end. He still wasn't noticed. He stretched, he yawned, he faked a cough, and he even went as far as accidentallydropping a pen only to pick it up himself but nothing could make her even take a glance at him. She was too fixated on staring at Imai, mumbling things about being with her best friend and being accepted into the academy.
It was not that he wanted another fan nor was it because he was an attention seeker. It was just so unusual for anyone not to notice him. So perplexed was he that he made a mental checklist of the reasons why people never miss acknowledging his presence:
He's rich and famous.
He is the son of the country's richest man (according to the latest magazines) and he himself made it to the top ten list for the world's wealthiest people. This is a fact most people never forget whenever they meet him.
The only people who wouldn't know of him would be those that have no access to TV or even newspapers. But even still, the girl must've seen him in billboards, right? Perhaps she lived in a cave? In the slightest of chances that she does live in a cave, he moved over to the next fact on his list.
He's gorgeous.
No, he isn't vain or narcissistic. You just can't deny it. It's not his fault that he is so good looking that girls faint if he so much as looks at them. It's all in his genes. Ironic how such imperfect genes gave way to such a perfect form. The shade of his eyes, the tint of his hair, he knew they were brought about by genetic abnormalities. If not interested in his wealth, it's usually his looks that comes next in drawing people towards himself.
Maybe she had an eye condition? Or maybe she's one of those who don't fall for looks? Pfft. Whatever. Everyone gives attractive people second glances (at the very least first glances), he argued. Even he does so himself. He decided to go with the first reason—she must have really poor vision. Poor girl. Hasn't even spared him a single glance…
At the off chance that maybe she just didn't appreciate looks, he moved on to his next quality.
He's a genius
Come on. Everyone knows him because of his intelligence. He was even dubbed as this generation's most brilliant child prodigy. She should be curious enough to want to talk to him because of this, right?
He sighed. He really doesn't care but… Natsume had always hated puzzles. He hated it when he didn't know things. This girl, who in his opinion was absolutely nothing special, was getting the better of him.
He's kind?
He felt his nerve twitch. He knew he wasn't kind but no one else knows about that. Maybe she was a one of those past fan girls that he had been extremely rude to. Logical—yes. That was his most valid theory at the moment. He smiled a small smile to himself now that he's finally found a reason. Now he can get back to ignoring everything else again.
The teacher had left them and promised to return after a few minutes. They were asked to answer the exercises in their textbook. He flipped the pages of his book lazily and scanned the questions there. Too Easy…
"Pssst…"
He turned his head lazily and was mildly surprised that it was the girl calling him. He smirked inwardly and decided to ignore her. All that trouble for nothing… She's noticing him now. She must be the type who doesn't want to get in trouble with the teacher so she waited for him to leave. Ha! It was so simple. He amused himself by overlooking this detail.
"Mister… Pssst…"
He frowned. He did not just here her right.
"Mister red-eyes… Pssst…"
He could barely hear Ruka's stifled laugh through the state of shock he was in. Mr. Red-eyes? He narrowed his eyes and glared at her.
She seemed oblivious to this and just smiled at him and said, "Can you pass this note please?"
He continued to glare and swiped the note harshly from her hand. He barely heard her mutter a thank you as he looked at the note.
To Hotaru
It made sense that she gave it to him and not to Ruka. Imai was seated two rows in front of him after all.
Under normal circumstances, he would have just ignored her and the note. He wasn't someone that people could just order around—he was the one usually giving orders. But this was a special case. She just disproved his earlier theory. She doesn't know him. Or perhaps she could be just shy? She didn't look shy. Maybe she was pretending not to know him. It was an effective fan girl strategy but he doubted it since she didn't seem to care whether he felt insulted when she called him Mr. Red-eyes.
He opened the note and read it silently.
Hotaru!
I missed you so much! Isn't it great that we could be in the same class together? And at the same school!!!
You will show me around school right? After class maybe?
Nothing interesting. He glanced over at the girl busy with her book and right back at the note. He smirked. Perhaps he could change that. He grabbed his eraser and pencil.
Later on, Mikan would wonder why Hotaru was giving her weird looks and why her reply note didn't make any sense. That and other questions…
Who's Natsume Hyuuga? Why would I want to date him?
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A/N: This is my present for Mother… My Hopeless Romantic
To mother: I'll try to finish this before your birthday mother… I'm not sure whether this should be a two-shot or a one shot… You tell me… This is your present… I hope you like it…