Paradoxical Composition
By: irish d' salmon luver
Author's Ramble: Warning: Full of crappiness and OOC-ness. I suggest you to NOT read this one because it's crappy. It contains only a tiny bit of ShunXJulie (well, maybe if you squint your eyes a little bit… and see it from a straw's hole). Maybe too much Facebook and lots of doujinshi did a severe damage to my brain and imagination…
Disclaimer: Let's see… Julie's still with Billy? Check. Shun's hair still short? Check. Shun isn't with Julie? Check. Well, as you guys can see, I don't own Bakugan.
XXX
Chapter 02: Of Summer and Haircut
The Brawlers were meeting via the chat room. They were discussing their next meeting, which would be held at Misaki's place, as usual. It was exactly one year after they saved the world from the assault of Naga and their separation with their Bakugan, and they haven't met face to face with each other since then. They decided to meet this very weekend, and as for anticipation, Runo gave a warning for the non-Japanese residence Brawlers, a.k.a. Julie and Alice.
"I warn you, it is summer in Japan, and it's so FREAKING HOT! I just hope that you guys can cope with the blazing temperature and adapt quickly, because it will be a drag to hear someone (she glared at the face of Julie) whining over and over."
"Eeeehhh?? But wouldn't it be, like, kinda hard for Alice and I to adapt with the heat while our long hair doesn't help at all to subside the heat??" Julie pouted as she took a hold of her untied (self-proclaimed) gorgeous, shiny, shimmering and silky hair.
"Now, now, I don't think my hair would be problem at all… We can always tie our hair, right, Julie?" suggested the peacemaker, Alice. It would be better for them all to put an end of it, before the princess wailed.
"But still—"
"If you find it hard, why don't you just cut your hair?"
The entire chat room went silent. Well, it was a good reason, because it was Shun who just said the last sentence. No one, and I mean NO ONE, ever suggested the prissy Julie Makimoto to cut her (self-proclaimed) gorgeous, shiny, shimmering and silky hair. It was the pride of the sliver haired girl, and they all knew that she would rather be dying than to have her hair cut. And now Shun just broke the safety line.
Their silence was cracked by a whisper from the Subterra Brawler.
"Shun… how dare you…"
Just for information, Dan, Runo, Marucho, Alice, and maybe even Shun, never saw or imagined Julie with this kind of expression. Sure she cried a lot and exaggerating everything, given to her drama queen abilities, but to finally see a Julie Makimoto glared while her bangs covered half of her face, showing only one of her murderous bloodshot eye while she gritted her teeth… even a mutated vampire could scare them less.
"HOW DARE YOU TOLD ME TO CUT MY (self-proclaimed) GORGEOUS, SHINY, SHIMMERING AND SILKY HAIR?!! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH IS THE SACRIFICE TO GROW MY HAIR TO SUCH LENGTH?!"
"It's just a hair; don't make such a fuss of it."
"Just hair, you said? Why don't YOU cut your hair, Shun?" Julie snickered while keeping her murderous look, making her looked more lethal than before. 'God, she snaps', thought the other Brawlers.
A drop of sweat trickled down Shun's face.
"W-what are you talking about…?"
The grin on her full lips just went wider.
"I said…" she spoke slowly, oh terribly slowly.
"…why don't YOU—" she pointed her finger to his direction (well, his picture at the monitor).
"—cut—" she made a scissor shape out of her fingers.
"—your hair—" her scissor-shaped fingers made a cutting gesture through her own hair.
"—Shun…?" she ended it with a flick of her fingers and a sneer.
—The ninjaboy51 has just logged off—
"Che, what a coward."
XXX
-The weekend-
"OMG, it's been, like, centuries since we last meet!! I really miss you guys!!" squealed the loudest girl in the Brawler, Julie Makimoto.
"Jeez, Julie, we just video-chatted four days ago," Runo sighed at the sight Julie hugging everyone, and she managed to dodge her deadly hug and deliver a blow to her head. "Serve you right," grinned the blue-haired girl.
"That HURTS, Runo! It seems that the only thing growing from you is just your power!"
"WHAT?!! SAY IT AGAIN!!"
"Hey, chill down, let us just wait for Shun," said Marucho, obviously trying to change the subject.
"I bet he just chickened out. There's no way he would cut his drop dead gorgeous long black hair—"
Julie was interrupted by a sound of opened door. But that was not the one that stopped her from talking. It was… the sight of the person who opened the door. A very unusual sight.
It was Shun.
No, it wasn't that Shun was unusual.
It was… the sight of short-haired Shun that was unusual.
—Dead silence—
"Umm…Hi…?"
XXX
"OMG SHUN YOU REALLY CUT YOUR HAIR!!" the Brawlers shouted altogether and soon gathered around Shun. His brand-new neck length hair became a petting station for everyone. He just grunted back at all those bombarded question they posed at him, but still, he noticed one peculiar person who just standing still, mouth gaped, eyes glued on his face.
Why the hell Julie stared at him like that? Supposed she admit her defeat over their silly 'dispute' back then, or maybe just laughing her guts off to take her words seriously, no? He might not want to admit it, but one of the reasons he cut his hair was to prove to her that he, Shun Kazami, would never, ever chickened out from a challenge. It would put a severe damage to his pride to do so, moreover from her challenge.
So why did he see regret in her eyes?
XXX
Everybody was having fun. Well, except for the sulking Julie and irritated-looking Shun. While the others were chatting happily and even make some fuss, the two were just sitting quietly at the corner, which was quite eerie, giving the credit to Julie as the bubbly and noisy princess. But after awhile, the said princess decided to break the silence. She just couldn't stand the tense atmosphere between her and her silent company.
"So, what do you want to talk about?"
"What?"
"Don't play dumb, Shun. You won't be sitting here with me without purpose. You can never stand my cheerful personality."
"…right…"
"So, shoot it."
"I'm just curious…"
"About what?"
"Well, about…" Shun flickered his hair a little.
Julie just stared at him. "About…?"
"This…" he pointed at his new hair.
"…what about it?"
Shun sighed. It was tempting for him to just blurt it all, it was no use to give in to his emotion and then cause a commotion here. He still had an image to keep.
"I'm just curious about what are you thinking, seeing me with this new haircut."
"Why does it matter to you?" Julie lowered her eyes, suddenly feeling a bit nervous about where this conversation might go.
"You were the one who challenged me to cut my hair. I at least deserve some feedback then."
She glanced at his direction, "It's nice."
One elegant eyebrow arched, "Nice?"
"Uh-huh."
"Just nice?"
"What? Do you expect more comments from me?"
"I'm kind of expecting you commenting of how brave I am to really cut down my hair over your silly challenge."
"Think so high of yourself… Well, if I must say, you're not brave, Shun Kazami. You're just a simple-minded simpleton," she fisted her hand.
"I am… a simpleton?" he gritted. This girl really now how to push his button.
Her fist trembled, "You took a silly challenge so seriously, how I can't call you a simple-minded simpleton?! The Shun Kazami I know would just shrug it off and told me to get lost!"
She looked thoroughly into his amber eyes.
"The you that I know… would never take me seriously…"
The silver haired girl stood up, "I'm telling what I'm really thinking about: honestly, I really think your old long hair suited you best."
With that, she walked away from him and joined the other, leaving Shun behind with his contemplation.
XXX
A/R: Just like I warned you guys before, this chapter is a CRAP. I actually made this chapter as a protest for Shun's new haircut. GIVE ME BACK THE OLD LONG HAIRED SHUN!!!!
Sorry about the lack of fluffiness. I want to make a full-fluffiness ending, but then it would be terribly long for a one-shoot…