Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice.

As always, unedited.

Side note: The plot may get much darker and less silly. I tried my best to keep it light, but I have to be real.


Four years ago, they were ten years old. Mikan's mom, Yuka, was best friends with Natsume's mom, Kaoru, and the two families lived happily next door to each other.

It was generally well known that Mikan Yukihira had two best friends: Hotaru Imai and Natsume Hyuuga. Which actually wasn't that strange considering both best friends had almost identical personalities that were opposite to Mikan's bubbly nature.

It was also generally well known that one day, maybe, Mikan and Natsume would grow up to fall in love. Natsume had very few friends, and she could make him open up like a blooming flower. They were often found stuck to each other's sides, walking to buy some howalon with their hands entwined or reading the same book at the same time in the corner of the elementary school library. Mikan maintained a state of high, high energy most of the day, every day, and Natsume could make her calm down like a soothing balm on a rash.

However, it was also generally well known that Natsume was not happy.

Natsume Hyuuga wasn't just unhappy; he was also chubby. He wasn't fat by any means, but… He was chubby.

Just chubby enough that he had bullies, that he had a blazing, fierce, determined Mikan defend him and protect him on walks home, that he had to see a counsellor every so often to "talk about his feelings."

Natsume had other friends besides Mikan, of course, like Ruka and Yuu and by proximity, even Hotaru could be counted on as a partner for projects or to show up to birthday parties, but it was more than just being chubby that the bullies picked on. He didn't like to talk. He was lazy. As a child, Natsume had a natural "Resting Bitch Face" that highlighted his freakishly short eyebrows and made him look constantly constipated. Any flaw of his, they latched onto and ridiculed.

Mikan made it better. She didn't seem to mind his laziness, his desire for solitude, the inability to keep up with her sometimes, huffing and out of breath. Even before he had decisively fallen in love with her, he sometimes wondered how he deserved her in his life, how he was even worthy of having her attention, how he even managed to be so lucky as to have her as a friend, much less a best friend.

But no matter what, even if Mikan made his life better and made him smile and made him feel good, Natsume was still unhappy with how his life was, how he looked, how he felt. He became even more unhappy when Mikan's parents decided they had to leave.

But now that she was back and now that he was no longer chubby, Natsume should have been happier.


They only shared three out of six classes together so Natsume was nearly ecstatic when he saw Mikan walking toward the cafeteria during his lunch period.

Mikan hadn't reacted as well as he had hoped to his "welcome back I'm completely in love with you and now that you've returned let's resume where we left off" kiss in homeroom. He knew she had questions, but he and she both knew they didn't want to hash out their personal life in front of their classmates, though some of them probably already knew what was between them.

She let him keep his arm around her, but she insisted she sit next to Hotaru and the other nerdy girls with the colored hair for homeroom, a long ways away from his seat in the back.

He stood by her as she talked to the other classmates, who sent Natsume poorly concealed sly looks as he held her next to him. The reciprocated hand on his back told him that she would talk to him later, but he didn't even know when he would see her next.

Until, finally, lunch!

Unfortunately, Natsume bought his lunch instead of bringing one from home so he had to go through the line, which thankfully did not take a long time due to his reputation and the respect he had already earned, even as a first year student.

And thankfully, Mikan was a friendly talker who loved to say hi to just about every living creature, even the dogs and the bugs.

He spotted her right as he received his lunch. He gently collided with her, his bigger, stronger frame directing her away from her intended path.

"We sit over there," he said, his tone heavily implying the we as in "We, you and me, Mikan, are going to sit together for lunch." With a lift of his chin, he gestured toward a table where Mikan could see a line of athletic boys, some wearing soccer jerseys.

She looked at him without a smile. "We sit over there." She pressed against him and bumped toward a table where Hotaru and some other classmates were already sitting.

They were at a standstill, both their bodies pushing against one another to go different directions.

She stared intensely at him. He stared her down.

She shifted her head to the right and lowered her chin.

He smirked and hummed a little.

She narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips.

Then he smiled at her again, a familiar one that she recognized from long ago.

"I know a place," he said simply, transferring his tray stacked with food to one hand and grabbing her empty hand with his free one.

And off they went.


"I thought it would be okay," he said softly, almost whining. He wanted to kiss her again, but she only let him have one on the cheek when they arrived at the largest cherry blossom tree, tucked away in a corner of campus.

Mikan rolled her eyes as she ate another piece of beef from the box in her lap. "Not in front of everyone, and especially not on the first day!"

"What about now? Just you and me here," he said quickly. They sat close to one another, his legs spread so his right leg was behind her while she sat in between, her own legs slung over his left.

She stuffed her mouth with a large bite of rice, then glared at him before looking back at her food. He felt to the urge to kiss her anyway, but she most definitely said no, and he knew better than to test that boundary.

Instead he settled for playing with the ends of her hair.

He had seen the pictures of her and her family that were sent to his family throughout the years, but it was a whole different experience to have her right in front of him, the details of her face so sharply defined.

Her hair color lightened, and she no longer wore her hair in two pigtails but rather free and flowing. But her eyes were the same, the freckles on her face so recognizable, the curve of her lips so familiar.

She was Mikan; four years hadn't changed her.

She swallowed her food before asking, almost cautiously, "So what's new with you?"

"I joined the soccer team," he replied absentmindedly; it was what most of his classmates couldn't stop mentioning about him. "Probably going to make varsity this year, which is pretty shocking apparently, for a first year."

"Yeah, I saw that on your Facebook," she said automatically. This conversation didn't feel like the one they should have been having; it felt like they were skirting around something deeper. "So are you super into sports now or….?" Where was she even going with this? What was she trying to learn? She scooped another bite of rice into her mouth just so she didn't have to talk.

He shrugged casually, his bright eyes firmly attached to the sight of her. Mikan felt Natsume's fingers continuously twiddle with her hair. "It fills up my time, and I got people looking out for me. Some of the seniors, though… " He shook his head, unable to finish that sentence, a small chuckle bubbling in this throat.

Mikan stopped eating and looked at him, and he knew what was coming next. Mikan was direct and honest and open; four years hadn't changed her.

"Natsume, really, I want to know what you've been up to. You never wrote back, and I've barely seen you these last four years. You look different." She took another opportunity to really search his body with her eyes. He sat up straighter. " You've changed. I knew you had lost some weight and everything, but… Are you happy now?"

"Do you like it?" he asked nervously, puffing out his chest and completely ignoring her last question. "Change is good. It's okay that I'm a little different."

A bit irked that he had glossed over the most important thing she wanted to know, she said, "As long as you're still the same Natsume I know, but are you happier now?"

Smoothly, he leaned forward and rested his chin on her shoulder, "I'm happy with you here again." Mikan tilted her head so she could rest her head on Natsume's, both of them supporting one another. She sighed, her shoulders dropping a little.

"I'm happy with you, too, Natsume."


He was not the same Natsume Hyuuga she knew, the one she had left four years ago. Mikan knew by the way their shared teachers reacted when Mikan and Natsume walked into their next two classes: eager friendliness for Mikan, surprise and delight for Natsume.

Mikan could deduct from those little clues and from the little birds chirping in her ear how this new Natsume behaved. He was lazy, but in his academics and no longer in his personal life. He skipped classes or he took naps during class, but he still performed well, frustrating his teachers over the misuse of his potential brainpower. He had garnered respect from his fellow classmates by force, but he wasn't known to be... violent.

His social life revolved around soccer; he introduced Mikan to soccer player after soccer player, some of whom she recognized vaguely from elementary like Mochu. He had acquaintances on the other sports team, and apparently the team really connected him with the upperclassmen.

Suddenly, it seemed as though everyone felt they had the right to be involved with Natsume Hyuuga's personal life whereas the young Natsume was barely acknowledged except when he was being picked on.

Countless girls had approached her and told Mikan how lucky she was to snag the "almighty hottie" and expressed their envy. Apparently, nobody had ever seen Natsume so affectionate to any person, not even the supposed plethora of girls he had dated.

"But he totally didn't. We all knew he was and still is totally in love with you," explained Nonoko unconvincingly during chemistry. "That's just a rumor. Natsume, the new Natsume, would scare off any girl who talked to him. He's just so… gruff."

"I cannot confirm anything for sure, but many hearts have been broken by your homeboy," Sumire wrote back on the note Mikan had discreetly passed to her during history class.

"Find Tashiro and ask him what he thinks about Natsume now," Hotaru texted back ambiguously, reminding Mikan of the existence of Natsume's former bullies.

Each little piece of Natsume Mikan managed to gather and put together painted a very different image of him than she could have ever imagined.

Mikan had grown very wary of him by the end of the day; he wasn't just her childhood friend. Sure, he hugged her and smiled at her and chatted with her like her second best friend would. But he most definitely was not the Natsume she had to leave behind four years ago.

He disrespected teachers.

He started fights.

He had a scary reputation.

Bluntly stated, he was the "bad boy hottie."

And Mikan Sakura did not like bad boys.


He watched her rearrange her things in her locker, waiting patiently and leaning against her neighbor's locker. It was the end of the day, other students swarming around in the halls to leave or to make plans with friends.

"How are you getting home?" Natsume blurted out suddenly, eyes still focused on Mikan's careful hands shuffling about.

She glanced at him for a moment. "I can take the bus or wait for Uncle Kazumi, whichever."

"You could wait for me to finish soccer practice," he said almost pleadingly. Mikan wondered if she turned to look at him at that moment, would she see a charismatic trick he used on other girls?

She frowned slightly. "You can't drive, Natsume. You're only 14 and don't have a car."

"I know people," he answered vaguely. "Will you come watch me practice?"

Mikan finished organizing her locker and packing the books she needed for homework later. She closed the locker and faced Natsume with his innocent face.

"Maybe another day. It's been a long first day, and I still have to finish unpacking."

Natsume nodded, deciding to surrender this argument for now. "I can swing by after and help you move in."

She smiled brightly at him, and he couldn't help but to smile back. "Thanks, Natsume, I would appreciate the help."

"See you later then?"

Mikan readjusted her backpack and nodded, preparing to bid farewell. "The front door will be unlocked so just come in whenever you get back home."

"Oh, wait, that reminds me," Natsume said, starting to walk with her down the hall, "you and your parents are having dinner over at our place tonight. Mom says you haven't bought groceries yet so you don't have anything prepared."

Mikan laughed. "Oh yeah, that's right! Thank you, Hyuugas." She placed her hand over her heart jokingly and made a mock sincere face. "What would we do without you."

Natsume laughed a little, too, but then his face became serious again as they stopped at the intersection of hallways, Mikan needing to go to the front office and Natsume needing to go to practice.

There were fewer students in the hall, but the ones who were still present simply flowed around the two of them like a river parting around a rock in its path.

He stepped closer, and Mikan knew from his eyes what he was going to ask. She was a little suspicious, but allowed herself to look back at him almost stubbornly.

The rumors had to be wrong, she thought as she saw Natsume's lack of confidence and trepidation. A smooth player would have easily asked what he was about to ask. Or was it simply a ploy to make himself appear heartfelt?

"Can I kiss you again?" he breathed softly, almost shyly.

He wasn't the same Natsume; he had a bad boy persona, according to the rest of the school. But Mikan trusted her own judgments rather than the words of others and of gossipmongers. She hadn't decided anything concrete, but she knew to trust her gut instinct.

She smiled, put one hand on his shoulder, put one hand around the back of his neck to pull him in, and stood on her tiptoes to peck his right cheek.

"See you after practice, Natsume!" she said as she turned and went to go find her uncle, leaving the new Natsume with his new smirk-smile.


Ruka bounced a ball on his knees, alternating left and right, as he drew his knees high. The vigor made him puff for air as he focused intently on the ball going up and down.

"Hey."

He merely greeted Natsume with a nod of the head as his best friend came to stand beside him in line for warm-ups. In the corner of his eye and just through feeling, he could sense Natsume begin the same warm-up, the black and white ball floating in and out of his vision.

There were several moments of silence between the two, filled by the background noise of other boys doing drills and practicing. The coach stood by, arms crossed, eyes keen, ready to correct any sign of weakness.

Natsume couldn't contain it any longer. "Mikan's back," he burst out, but coolly and with as even a tone as he could muster.

"Yeah, I heard," Ruka said flatly.

His eyes didn't stray from the ball, going up and down.

Natsume turned and looked at Ruka carefully, unwaveringly, his own ball still being bounced out of muscle memory.

"You talk to her yet?"

Ruka let the ball drop to the field, one food holding it still and down on the ground. He looked at Natsume.

"I don't know. Can I?" he challenged, almost mockingly, as he looked directly in the eyes of his best friend.

Natsume stopped the pretense of trying to practice. "Are you going to try to break us up again?" he asked unequivocally. A soft but sure, sharp intake of breath betrayed Ruka's discomfort and anger over the topic.

"I wasn't - " Ruka shook his head and resisted the urge to roll his eyes, already so done with the conflict. "I was trying to help both of you."

"You separated us. You made her leave for four years," insisted Natsume almost childishly.

"And now she's back," said Ruka emphatically. "We've talked about this. I didn't want to see Mikan go either, but you both needed the space. You were only ten years old."

He looked at Natsume, and Natsume looked back at Ruka, their entire past communicated in their gaze.

Four years ago, much like Mikan, Natsume had two best friends: Mikan Yukihira and Ruka Nogi. Obviously, he had developed strong romantic feelings for Mikan, and Ruka knew about that. Ruka also knew that Natsume was precocious for his age, thinking with a more mature mind than the rest of the class, knowing things.

But sometimes Natsume tended to be short-sighted, so wrapped up in his own thoughts and in his own emotions that he forgot how other people felt or how other people perceived him (though more than one older kid had made it clear what they thought about him); more importantly, how other people perceived him and Mikan.

Four years ago, Ruka made it clear that Natsume would have to stop living in a bubble and reconnect with the world. He had to stop ignoring the fact that he was being bullied, the fact that he depended heavily on Mikan and Ruka, and the fact that they were only ten years old when Natsume started demonstrating how he felt about Mikan.

Natsume turned away from Ruka's unshakable gaze and grumbled, "Yeah." He knew Ruka had made a valid decision four years ago.

A few feet away, the coach blew the whistle, signaling for all the players to gather together.

On their way over, Ruka clapped a hand on Natsume's back amicably. "Come on now. Let's focus on playing."

Natsume nodded in acceptance. Ruka was his best friend; he kept Natsume moving on and on.


Note: There's been a lot of change since the original plot. Please let me know if something does not make sense or if there is a continuity issue. Thank you!