"Amu-chan, when are you going to get a car?" Miki snickered as my face flushed.
Luckily, Ran spoke up for me. "She doesn't need a car! Running's the way to go, right Amu-chan?"
"Uh….sure?" I agreed, glad that I had someone to protect me from Miki's scrutiny, but not super-duper into running.
"Chara- Change!"
Wait, what?!
Immediately I began to sprint down the sidewalk, Ran cheering me on, Miki grumbling about what airheads we were, and poor Su trying to catch up.
Somewhere deep down inside of myself, I screamed, I DID NOT ASK FOR A CHARACTER CHANGE!
But, on the outside, I giggled as I ran, feeling wonderful about everything in life and humanity, as well as exercising. Ran's cheering only pushed me forward.
Half a mile and ten minutes on the ground gasping for air later, I stood and grabbed Ran by her tiny little body.
"WHAT in the name of CRAP made that OKAY?!"
"Amu-chan! Stop…choking…"
I let go of Ran and was about to totally cuss her out, but she looked like she was about to cry. I decided to let it go.
I took a deep breath and began to walk again, but I realized something: the roads and grass were covered in only frost, not snow. How were we going to have a snowball fight with no snow?
"Amu-chan? What's wrong? Desu," Su asked, still breathing a bit heavily.
"How are we going to have a snowball fight with no snow?" I wondered aloud to them.
"I didn't notice that," Ran said, tapping her lip with her tiny index finger.
"Me neither. Desu," Su agreed.
Miki said nothing.
I ignored her and shrugged. "We should go anyway. It's the first day of winter break."
The two Charas nodded. I turned to Miki, who was still ignoring us, and got the tiniest bit agitated. At least, I was agitated enough to ask, "Miki, have you gone deaf and mute in the last five minutes? What are you doing?"
She reluctantly turned around and shrugged. "Just thinking about Yoru," she answered.
"Wait- really?" I stared at her in disbelief; Ran and Su shared a surprised look.
Miki snickered. "No. I was debating whether or not to tell you that your hair is still messed up from when Ikuto-kun nuzzled it." She giggled; I frantically redid my hair, face flushing.
"Is it better now?" I asked.
Miki nodded. "It's fine, Amu-chan."
I gave a sigh of relief. "Now I won't be embarrassed when I see Tadase-kun. Or Kukai."
I realized what I'd just said, and self-hatred filled me. "WHY DO I HAVE TO HAVE SO MANY LOVES?! WHY CAN'T I BE NORMAL?!"
"A woman is not a woman unless she has at least two loves," Miki said with a smirk. "The more, the merrier."
I stopped freaking out and stared at her. "Okay, you're just a player."
"And I'm proud of it."
I ignored her and checked my phone for the time.
"Holy crap, I'm late!"
I ran down the sidewalk, forgetting to ask for a Character Change. I was about to turn the corner, but I slipped on the ice. Thankfully, however, someone caught me.
"Oh, thanks," I said with a smile. It faded when I looked up to see who had caught me.
Surprise, surprise.
Tsukiyomi Ikuto.
"IKUTO! WHY ARE YOU STALKING ME, PERVERT?!"
Ikuto set me upright and shrugged. "'Cause you're hot?"
My face blazed, and I shouted, "GO AWAY!"
Ikuto slipped his cold hands through my hair and gently held my face, lightly skimming his nose behind my ear. "But you're so warm, Amu-koi. Don't make me stay so cold."
I shoved him away. "PERVERT!"
He stood and smirked, pulling me into a tight hug. I heard a few passerby sigh in a collective "Aw!", and my blushed deepened. I shoved Ikuto away. "I have somewhere to be, if you don't mind. Now leave me alone, perverted cat!"
I started to run again, but he grabbed me by the waist and held me bridal-style. "Tsk, tsk. You shouldn't be running on icy sidewalks, Amu. It's dangerous."
He Character Changed, his adorable cat ears popping up along with a slim blue tail, and jumped onto the nearest roof silently. He then proceeded to leap from roof to roof.
I stared at his adorable cat ears as they flicked this way and that, picking up sound and flicking away debris. They really were the cutest thing about him; I found myself giggling.
"What's so funny, Hinamori?" Ikuto asked without looking.
"Nothing. Your cat ears are just too cute."
Ikuto gave me a look, rolled his eyes, and said, "Whatever" as we landed onto the icy sidewalk.
"Thanks," I said as I began to walk across the street to the park. Unfortunately, I slipped again.
This time, however, when Ikuto caught me there was no smirk, laugh, or any trace of lightheartedness to be found on his features as his eyes flicked behind me and his breathing slowed (had it accelerated in the first place? I hadn't noticed). He actually looked…scared.
However, as he looked back to me, he went from scared to….something else. Something undecipherable. I gave up on trying to decipher it when I found myself wandering in the depths of his sapphire eyes. I got this strange feeling. It was a sort of…warmth, I guess. It was almost as if the bottomless depth of his eyes was extracting all other thoughts and emotions from my mind and feeding it that wonderful, wonderful warmth that was even better than the comfort that I'd felt that morning. I didn't want to look away.
-Ikuto-
I didn't want to look away.
It was as if the beautiful, comforting, golden color of her eyes was pulling me in, surrounding me in a feeling that I never got over. It made me want to stay exactly where I was, with her, forever.
But the moment was interrupted…
-Amu-
…by the sudden realization that I was becoming late again.
I righted my position and cleared my throat, the warmth leaving me with nothing to show for it but a warm face.
Ikuto removed his hands from my back and head and replaced them in his pockets, his expression seeming a bit reluctant. But for what?
Suddenly, he looked up into the gray sky and smiled, revealing his cute teeth pattern (you may be wondering: how can a tooth pattern be cute? Well, most of it has to do with his sharp canines, like a cat's, but the rest is somehow cute, anyway. Don't ask me).
"Hold out your tongue," he ordered.
"Why?" I asked, surprised by his sudden, strange request.
"Just do it. Now."
I rolled my eyes. "Weirdo," I said before holding out my tongue.
Ikuto took my shoulders and placed me a few feet from him.
What are you doing, you perverted neko?
Before I could get up the irritation to ask him exactly that, something cold and icy landed on my tongue I blinked in surprise as it melted, and then pulled my tongue back in.
"Hinamori Amu gets the first snowflake," he said with a smirk. I felt myself blush.
"So, where's my thanks?" he asked.
Before I could think about it, I kissed the same corner of his mouth. When I pulled back, I saw that Ikuto looked about as surprised as I felt. We both knew that I hadn't character changed, and there hadn't been any incentive.
I'd never kissed Ikuto before- not anywhere, not even on the cheek- without an incentive, or without him giving me blackmail. We both knew that it wasn't that way between us; Ikuto always joked about being in love with me, and I brushed it off as a stupid joke that he really needed to give up on. He liked to sexually harass me almost every day, and I'd yell at him for it. That was how we were to each other: good friends. Granted, good friends that liked to yell and sexually harass, but good friends, nonetheless.
So WHY had I done that?!
Before I could really ponder the answer to that excellent question, Ikuto kissed me on the corner of my mouth. His wasn't like mine had been; his kiss wasn't just a quick peck. He pressed his lip slowly to my skin and rose back to his full height calmly.
He smirked, not betraying an ounce of that surprise that I'd just seen a moment ago. "Later, Amu."
I waved and began to walk again. However, as I did, I stumbled over something.
I looked to see what had just tripped me, realizing that this was where I'd slipped.
It was a broken beer bottle, with sharp shards of glass surrounding it.
My eyes widened. Had I really almost fallen…..onto that? Had I really been in that much danger?
"I-Ikuto?" I called, wondering if he'd just saved my life for the billionth time since we'd met.
When I turned around, however, he wasn't anywhere in sight.
Typical.
"Ran, Miki, Su!" I called. My three Charas flew over to me cheerfully (Where had they been, anyway?) and floated along as I jogged across the street, careful where I stepped.
As I entered the gates of the park, I looked one last time at the broken glass on the road. It was amazing that, out of all of the dangers I'd faced, that one little thing could've seriously harmed me. Just that random, out-of-nowhere everyday thing.
However, like every other time I'd been in trouble, Tsukiyomi Ikuto had saved me.
I was forever indebted to him, wasn't I?
Thereyago, Chaptah two!
Sorry this took so long to update. I've been having a crappy week. L
Ikuto: so, uh, Amu almost died…from a beer bottle?
Me: Yup. Pretty much.
Ikuto: She's so vulnerable…
Me: Where is she, anyway?
Ikuto: Oh. Speaking of vulnerability. She needs some time to cool off.
Me: From what?
Ikuto: From what I did to her after the last chat. You should see her face; it's even more pink than her hair.
Me: That poor girl. Are her clothes at least still on?
Ikuto: Yeah. That is, what's left of them…..
Me: O_O
Ikuto: *smirks* anyway, review, people. Review.
August: WHAT IS WITH EVERYONE AND STEALING MY LINE?!
Me: There, there, Prince Augustus. *strokes adorably soft, shaggy hair* *whispers* there, there.
August: O_O uh….*whispers to Ikuto* help!
Ikuto: *shrugs* Sorry, bro. REVIEW!
August: Where's Star when you need her? Staaaaar! Juli's getting al cuddly agaaaaaain! And Ikuto stole my liiiine!
Star: Hi, guys. August, let Juli release her love. And Ikuto hardly ever gets to say the line. Calm down. I'll make you some bacon after this.
August: BACON.
Ikuto: *review* *now* *NOW* *NOW* *now.*