Forever and Always, a shugo chara! fanfic

Disclaimer: I don't own Shuga Chara! I only own my love for crack pairings! :)

Enjoy!

The day of their graduation is a bittersweet one indeed. Everyone is laughing and crying and all Amu can think is: its over- overoveroverover. They, them, us. It was all over.

He meets her on the sidelines, a small smile on his face as he stands beside her, looking in on the happy people with their happy faces and their happy tears. And she looks at him; at his happy smile with his longlonglong purple hair and his prettyprettypretty golden eyes and she can't help but voice her sadsadsad thoughts.

We'll be together forever and ever, right Nagi? She asks naively. To which he replies just as naively back. Of course Amu-chan. He smiles. Always.

The day Amu gets the invitation to his engagement party leaves a sick feeling in her stomach. And as she runs to the bathroom, leaving the envelope to flutter to the ground, the world spinningspinningspinning around her wildly as she barely makes it to the sink before throwing the contents of her stomach up, she thinks to herself, forever is such a long time… And always is not the same as forever.

She goes to the party; against her better judgment she goes. She doesn't know why but she does.

He is so handsome in his blackblackblack suit and with his longlonglong purple hair and his prettyprettypretty golden eyes that he takes her breath away.

Nagi. She greets a smile on her face as if nothing has changed, as if they haven't changed. And she secretly wonders who they is?

Amu-chan. He smiles, his smooth voice causing the sick feeling in her stomach to rise.

Ah, that's right! Him and her. Her and him. That is what they means, Amu realizes. But then, was there ever really a they to begin with?

She stays to meet the bride-to-be. Against her better judgment she stays. She doesn't know why but she stays.

She is everything that Amu could never be. Elegant and poised and… All together boring. And she wonders how can he stand her? But then she realizes… He is not the same as before.

And as she watches him hold the blonde girl close to his side, an elegant smile on his elegant face; and as she watches him throw a reserved smile towards his fiancé she turns to leave; because she has seen what she needs to see, has seen this new Nagi, this man who would forsake his own happiness for others.

And that is what he is doing, making others happy; because she can see it in their eyes, can see the gleaming calculation as they watch him and her.

-Him and her not being her and him.-

Can see how they hunger for the engagement. And she can see the way Nagi is as stiff and as reserved as those haughty people in their rich and haughty clothes hiding their calculating looks behind their haughty fans.

-No. Scratch that. She does now.

She receives the wedding invitation on a Monday. A day that she had always loved, ever since her school days. For, Mondays were the days that she could see her friends again, her friends including him of course.

The letter is done up in fancy writing, in a fancy envelope with a fancy seal and with fancy words and fancy decorations. It is not Nagi at all. It smells of sickly perfume and of sickly fake love and the sick feeling in her stomach returns. Leaving the fancy envelope and the fancy letter with the fancy writing fluttering to the floor as she once again heaves her stomach's contents upupup into the sink.

Mondays, Amu thinks, are her least favorite days.

Amu-chan. He murmurs. Worried. Are you alright? I heard that you've been sick.

Yes. She smiles falsely through the phone. I'm fine; just a little cold is all.

She can sense the hesitation through the phone; can sense the words unspoken but she does not speak up as he lets out a resigned sigh, his voice weary and sadsadsad as he speaks next. Well, I hope you get better soon Amu-chan.

Of course! She beams, her voice falsely happy. As if it wasn't his fault and that elegant and poised fiancé's that she was in this state to begin with. I'll be better soon!

She hangs up the phone and knows with a heavyheavyheavy heart that nothing will ever be fine again, not without him.

She looks through her old photos with a heavyheavyheavy heart. Looking at how they used to be.

–They meaning, him and her. Her and him.-

And tears fall downdowndown from her sadsadsad eyes and onto the clear pages as she looks at how they used to be.

She slams the book shut with a sob and leaning against her bed Amu wonderswonderswonders why she even tries?

She goes to his wedding. She knows why and she knows that she shouldn't, but she goes.

She puts on a prettyprettypretty dress and puts on prettyprettypretty makeup, covering the darkdarkdark bags under her eyes. And she puts on a happyhappyhappy smile as if to tell the world that she is alright, that this is alright.

But it is not.

He meets her in a hallway of the bigbigbig church, and he once again takes her breath away with his blackblackblack suit and his longlonglong purple hair with his prettyprettypretty golden eyes.

For a moment they are silent, looking downdowndown at the happyhappyhappy people with their happyhappyhappy smiles and their happyhappyhappy laughs. And she can imagine a time when it was just them.

-Them being him and her. Her and him.-

But then he talks in a sadsadsad voice that Nagi should never speak in and it is brokenbrokenbroken. Just like her heart.

Amu-chan... I- He looks so unsure so afraid and sadsadsad. And she wants to hug him to say that it will be okay and that everything will be finefinefine, but it will not so she stays silent.

He takes a breath, closing his eyes only to open them to reveal his prettyprettypretty golden eyes as he brushes his longlonglong purple hair out of his face. Amu-chan I need to ask you something.

She looks at him curiously, at this new Nagi, and cant help but wonder what happened to the old one? What is it Nagi?

He takes another deepdeepdeep breath. About the wedding, do you think-

But she never gets to hear his question because the music begins to play and a haughty person runs up, saying the haughty guests are in their positions and that the wedding is about to start. She walks off with Nagihiko, throwing a haughty glance back; and Amu has to fight the urge to reach out and say don't go. Because he is already gone.

She finds her seat and ignores the disapproving looks from the haughty guests as they all stand and look towards the bride's entrance. Amu follows with a sinking stomach.

She is right to be hesitant. The bride is just as elegant and poised as she was before, floating down the aisle with her head held high and Amu looks to Nagihiko to see his reaction.

The breath catches in her throat when she sees there is nothing there. His face is emptyemptyempty and his lips are quirked into an elegant smile. And she is reminded that this is not right, that it is wrong. And her heart stutters and thumpsthumpsthumps.

Everyone sits.

He takes her hand in his, his figure stiffstiffstiff, not Nagi-like at all, and Amu closes her eyes as the preacher begins to speak.

Dearly beloved we are gathered here today…

Her heart is beating in her chest and the blood is rushing to her ears as she tightens her fists to controlcontrolcontrol her self.

In holy matrimony…

No! Her heart and mind scream at her as sadsadsad tears build up in her eyes and she blinks fastfastfast before looking at him.

His back is straight his longlonglong purple hair falling downdowndown to brush his knees, and he looks steadily ahead. But his prettyprettypretty eyes are dead- deaddeaddead.

If anyone has any reason why this couple…

Run. Her legs whisper to her cracking heart. Run! Runrunrun! She does.

Speak now or forever hold your peace.

She stagers upright, her chair falling backwards causing all eyes to fall on her and the haughty people with their haughty looks begin to whisperwhisperwhisper. And she shakes, her nails digging into her hands as she fightsfightsfights to get control.

And then she hears it.

Amu-chan…

She runs. Hard and fast and farfarfar. Away from the bigbigbig church and the haughtyhaughtyhaughty people and the boringboringboring bride and his prettyprettypretty eyes.

She runs. Farfarfar away.

Amu. Her mom says through the phone, her voice happyhappyhappy. Guess what? Nagihiko-kun didn't get married!

The phone drops downdowndown as the contents of her stomach go upupup into the sink.

Silently she thinks to herself. That is not a funny joke.

Amu-chan. He speaks, looking at her frozenfrozenfrozen form as she stares as his longlonglong purple hair and his prettyprettypretty golden eyes.

N-Nagi?

I… That question Amu-chan… The one I never got to ask you… He murmurs; his eyes brightbrightbright like the old Nagi, and she nods mutely.

He takes a deepdeepdeep breath before smiling a happyhappyhappy smile. Do you ever think about forever and always?

Her eyes widen and her jaw drops downdowndown as a breathless gasp leaves her throat. Yes.

And he grins a happyhappyhappy smile as his prettyprettypretty eyes shine like lights. I do to.

And she smiles a happyhappyhappy smile as she hugs him closecloseclose because…

Forever is a very long time and always is pretty danm close.

Well! That was quite long wasn't it?

I decided to try something new and I actually really like it. I've been meaning to write a Amuhiko fic ever since I fell in love with the couple about a year (?) ago but I never could think of the right plot, so when this idea came to me whilst I was trying to fall asleep I was quite excited!

So with that said…

Please review and tell me if this experiment was a success!

Oh! And please take a look at the pole on my profile! :)

-TMTMFD