az: XD Thanks for the reviews. To think that I almost forgot how good it feels like, getting instant reviews. XD Thank you… but I already thanked you guys personally. Tell you something… It's been SO LONG since I wrote a hetero pairing! XD Last time was the Magna Carta thing and after that all BL. XD And no one noticed I typo one word. orz
I think I'm more a guy that a girl. Serious.
Yes, fluff is good. But since this fandom has its dark theme you honestly can't imagine me NOT adding that bit of darkness eh? Actions do lead to consequences after all. I'll try to balance everything. But then again the angst gonna ruin the fluff... XD... and omg, I hadn't even start much on this, already I'm thinking of the angst sequel. XP Perhaps... foreshadowing here first... XD
Else I'll forgot the Character details XP
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Disclaimer: Gakuen Alice the anime and the manga is solely owned by the mangaka Tachibana Higuchi and the respective companies. I'm just borrowing the fandom.
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Flirting Mischief
Chapter 2: Second Flirt
by honou-no-izumi alias Izzu alias Izumi Ishtar
o
o
Natsume glanced towards Mikan. Hmm… not bad really, Mikan in a ponytail is also cute in his book. But… would have been better if—aah! Stop thinking about that!
Natsume shrugged as he leant over his seat. It's already been three years… huh? Since Mikan arrived to the academy and into his life. Gosh, he still held that one particular memory fondly. Natsume grinned. It's been three years after since that incident. And now, despite him telling himself to stay away from being too close with the girl beside him at the moment... he never actually managed to keep to that word.
Other than that, he was very much surprised that he was still alive till this day. Was it god's will… to prolong his life, or the Academy gave the final word to not allow him undergoing further missions or the fact that they might delay the inevitable until they finally decided the further use of his Alice; he doesn't even care anymore about it. Or even the notion that Persona might have possibly found another Alice to do his dirty works.
Well... no use thinking about that. He should be appreciating the current peace that he is in at the moment. Since such things rarely last long, he should enjoy it when he could. Until the day when that inevitable time arrives…
xxx
'Natsume… hey, Natsume—'
Natsume blinked, as he jerked himself awake towards the sound of Mikan's voice. He scratched his head as he realized he had dozed off. And the class had ended, with some of the classmates loitering around the room.
'Haaaa…', sighed Mikan. 'And I thought I could ask your help in class…', she said as Natsume frowned at her.
'Hey, I've tutored you during all of the other extra free times! Give me a break… Mikan—'
Mikan paused as her face turned red. Natsume grinned. He can always make the girl be so flustered. Mikan blinked, breaking away from her trance as she heard him laughing. She fumed as she looked away from him.
'Baka! Don't play with my name and say it so carelessly! And to think I had already gotten used of you calling me an ugly pig, polka dots, strawberry panties and all sorts of insults—!'
Natsume leaned closer to her. 'What? Do you want me to call you with those nicknames more? Flowery panties...', he whispered as he took the opening to kiss her ears.
Mikan jumped as she scuttled away from him.
'Na-Na-Natsume pervert!', she cried, stuttering. 'I never said that!'
Her face grew an ever darker shade of red. Even her ears turned red in embarrassment. Some of the remaining students turned towards their direction as Natsume returned towards his cold demeanor.
Natsume looked up towards the others, as they started asking what's wrong. He raised his brow at them.
'What? This idiot always calling me names before, don't tell me you guys are still surprised at hearing that?', he said aloud as Mikan glared at him.
'Oh... it's just Natsume and Mikan—', said some of them as they continued to head out of the room.
Natsume showed his tongue at Mikan after the last of their classmates had left the room. I won this round!, his expression clearly said it to her face. Mikan continued glaring at him as she gathered all of her stuffs into her backpack.
'You're impossible!! I guess I shouldn't have stayed and try waking you up to ask you to join us for lunch. Idiot Natsume...', said Mikan as she rose and started to leave. But she paused as she felt her hand being pulled back.
She turned and cried aloud.
'Natsume, wha—!'
'Don't go off without me... idiot Sakura.', said Natsume as his words left her being speechless.
Mikan tried to mouth out several words back at him but her voice refused to come out. Natsume smirked as he slowly approached her.
'Ha-aa, interesting. Are you always going to be so flustered every time I called your name?'
Mikan pouted a little before glaring at him. 'No! Who said I'm flustered?', she snapped back as she glared towards Natsume. Natsume held out his hand as he pulled off Mikan's hairband again.
'Then why is your face so red now? If you are not flustered by my words, why are you so embarrassed about?', asked Natsume with a serious tone as he leaned closer to her to the point that their nose touched each other.
Mikan blinked nervously as she backed away. She shook her head in denial.
'Mikan---chan, do you like me?', teased Natsume again as Mikan fought to reclaim her hairband. Natsume grinned as he stole another chance to wrap his arm around the girl he loved so much. Mikan gave a cry as she hit Natsume's back in frustration. Considering that they were quite alone in the class, Natsume never wasted any chance to be particularly… naughty.
'Okay… okay, calm down.', said Natsume as he made Mikan sit on a table. And he straightened up as he eyed Mikan from hair to toe and frowned. Mikan noticed that look and asked.
'What?'
'You've forgotten what I've told you before—'
'Huh?'
'I already told you before to not keep your hair tied up in that stupid twin pigtail any more when you've grown up.'
Mikan blinked as memories of the past three years returned back to him. 'B-but… you said that I should when I've turned fifteen. I'm thirteen now! I still have two more years…'
Natsume shrugged. 'Well… I just wanted to see how it would look on you. Just in case I would miss seeing that in the future. But well, that's not really important—'
'Natsume—'
The lad just glanced back at her to see her looking worried.
'—your body, your health is still good… is it?', asked Mikan as she glanced at him with concern. Natsume frowned as he flicked his finger on Mikan's forehead. Mikan gave a cry before looking back at him to see a kind smile on Natsume's lips.
'Of course... silly. Else who is it now standing before you? A ghost?', asked Natsume as Mikan gave a nervous laugh.
'Of… course! Silly me…', said Mikan as she scratched her head. 'But, Natsume... I, well… I'm not used to letting my hair down fully—', she spoke out again shyly as Natsume chuckled.
'Is that so—?'
A hand brushed the side of her head as she glanced up towards Natsume. The lad smiled. Without any words said, Natsume proceed to make a twin braid on both sides of Mikan's hair and tied them together with the hairband that he had swiped; while leaving the rest of Mikan's hair loose on her shoulders. The lad shrugged to himself.
'Hnn… not bad—', he said as Mikan brightened up, '—my work. Hehe…'
Mikan jumped in alarm as Natsume caught her hands before she could ruin the hair.
'I knew it! You made me look horrible! Let go… baka Natsume!', cried Mikan as Natsume laughed again. A very welcoming sound that she thought she could only dream to hear every day.
'BA—KA! I'm just teasing you… you looked like an angel.'
Mikan blushed as suddenly Natsume made a silly face at her. 'Haha… so easy to get you so worked up—', exclaimed Natsume in amusement. That earned him several punches.
'Ah… do we need to wait a little bit longer outside till you two are finished?'
xxx
'Ah… do we need to wait a little bit longer outside till you two are finished?'
Natsume and Mikan jumped as they turned around towards the voice. Mikan cried aloud. 'Hotaru! Ruka-pyon! Ah, sorry—! I almost forgot that you guys were waiting!', cried Mikan in alarm as her northern accent leaked out from her speech.
'It's okay—', said Hotaru as she tried stifling her giggles.
'What a cute couple...', she said again as Natsume glared at her. Ruka chuckled as Hotaru waved her new digital camera towards the couple.
'I am gonna be so rich!', she said aloud as Ruka laughed. It was a welcoming thought indeed to at least not being the target for his girlfriend's deadly camera once in a while. And he was secretly delighted to have a chance to tease both of his friends over their apparent attraction to each other. It surprised him to no end when even after three years, Natsume and Mikan never admitted that they loved each other so much. Even after he had clearly declared to Natsume during last year's Alice Festival that he'd given up on Mikan. Being his closest friend for so long, he cannot help noticing how much Mikan had changed Natsume's life. Being kind-hearted as he was, Ruka whole-heartedly let go off his crush in favor for Natsume. But silly Natsume, he still hadn't made any real move on Mikan. It amused him how both of them still remained in denial over their relationship.
'Ruka… you wanna see?', asked Hotaru as Ruka glanced over to her side.
At least now, Ruka had another reward in store for him after he let go of Mikan. Come to think about it, Hotaru Imai was not such a bad person after all. You just have to get to know her better…
'Aaa… I had to admit, you are good! ', Ruka and Hotaru glanced towards the direction of the voice as Natsume stared at the pictures of himself and Mikan with interest.
'Eeeh! Natsume—!', cried Mikan in alarm as her pleas were ignored.
Hotaru smirked. MONEY!
'What? Are you interested? I'll give discounts!', said Hotaru as Ruka could not help himself but laugh.
Natsume grinned. 'Give me the full album and I won't even charge you interest if you plan to sell those to other people. A thousand rabbits if you want me to pay for it, I will!', he said as Mikan wailed aloud.
Hotaru grinned. 'I give you discount! 800 rabbits!'
'Deal!', chorused both of them as Natsume and Hotaru shook hands. Mikan shouted at Natsume in despair as she punched him several times.
Hotaru put her digicam inside her bag and pull out her Polaroid camera instead.
'Natsume-kun…'
'Hmm?', he turned towards her as he was greeted by a flash of light. Hotaru took out the film as she put away the Polaroid camera. The Polaroid film gradually flashed out the picture as she smiled in triumph. She immediately shoved it towards Mikan.
'There, keep it. It's free from me.'
Mikan blinked as color gradually rose up to her face. Natsume grinned as he leaned to look at the picture.
'Ah! That shot showed your boobs better!', he said casually as Mikan threw herself onto him again. Natsume evade as he teased her again.
'Well, if you don't want that picture I want it. I looked particularly handsome in there—', he said as Mikan shook her head at him and kept it inside her pocket. 'No! I'm not giving it to you… you pervert!'
Natsume chuckled. 'Admit it, you wanna keep it because it had my charming face in it!', Mikan's face turned scarlet as she continued denying the obvious. Ruka and Hotaru laughed as the pair started wrestling with each other. Natsume looked up towards then as he managed to grab hold of Mikan.
'Ah, we were going to have lunch… weren't we? What are we waiting for? It's high time we put some more meat in this girl. Especially in the boobs—', he said aloud as Mikan gave a cry. Natsume immediately ran out of the class as Mikan chased him right after. Ruka and Hotaru laughed heartily as they ran out to catch up with the pair…
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az: I had writer's block. And I was struggling not to insert too much angst in this chapter while keeping the darkness near. Tell me how I fared?
