Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice
Author's Note: Serious stuff this time. There's not much of crack moments here but nevertheless, I hope you guys will enjoy reading. This is for those who are waiting for MXN.
BLAZING ENCOUNTERS
Chapter Two
PART ONE: ALONE
When midnight struck and when my eyes started to blur from staring very long at the monitor screen, I decided to take a break from all the work. I excused myself from everyone and headed out towards the school garden, bringing two blankets with me.
The place was just what I wanted. Peaceful and tranquil. You will be greeted by a large expanse of grassland where you can sit down and gaze at the star. A couple of walks from the field will lead you to a gate of vines. The garden houses different kinds of flowers and plants and trees.
Securing a blanket on the grassy floor, I sat down and clothed myself with the other blanket. The sky looked so bright with the shining stars from where I was sitting down.
My thoughts drifted towards Natsume.
The boy was such a wonder to me that no matter how hard I try to eliminate his presence from my system, no matter how much anger I exude in order to hide the growing affection for him, I really fail in the field of forgetting him.
I sighed.
I'm such a two-faced idiot.
In front of others, I act like I hate him but when I'm all alone, all those kept feeling come rushing in.
Swear, I'm not bipolar or something. Yes, I like him and what I said about detesting him, as well, was true. I mean, his character was just something that can tick me off and I wasn't lying about that.
--
"Get lost, you freak!" the thirteen-year old Luna screamed at my face.
Sprawled on the ground after being pushed by the blonde girl, I looked up to see her horrible face—tear-stricken and she was huffing. It took me everything to stop my voice from breaking. Being bullied like this was something I didn't dream of. "Luna, it wasn't my fault."
"It was your fault that I swallowed an orange seed!" she yelled, rubbing a hand over her eyes. And I never dreamt that I would see the day that the all-mighty Luna will be acting like a street child. "You're such a menace here. I hope that you're not that stupid not to understand how much we don't want you."
A sensitive part of me was hit hardly by her words. Before Hotaru and the gang came into my life, I was an island. No one bothered to talk to me no matter how much I befriended them. And all those friends that I had before left me too.
This time, a tear fell down from my eyes. "That's not true."
"Yes, it's true. And you're going to pay if an orange tree will grow inside of me."
If the situation was much different, I could have laughed. People may brand me as a slow-thinker (which I think is not true), I'm not that stupid not to know about the real deal about swallowing seeds. And to think she's already thirteen years old and still, she believes in that crap.
A poke on my leg broke my thoughts. "Go away. You don't deserve everybody's time and attention."
"Shut up, Koizumi."
My eyes widened hearing that male voice of my partner for two years already, the partner that I had the moment I stepped on to this new school.
"N-Natsume-kun!" Luna gasped, rendered speechless.
I stood up slowly, baffled at Natsume's actions.
He glared at the girl. "Leave us alone, pest."
The last word that he uttered made Luna and me gasp with surprise. It made the greatest effect on Luna who scuttled away, appearing as if she was physically wounded.
Natsume sauntered towards me, taking slow steps.
"You look stupid," he said.
The pout immediately found its way on my face and I glared at him. "Thank you for the compliment."
"Hn."
Silence ensued after and I didn't know how to break it. Should I say 'thank you' for the palpable way that he defended me? But why would he do that in the first place?
Should I ask about that then? The reason why he defended me?
When I returned to reality, I saw Natsume staring at me intensely, his crimson eyes searching deep through my chocolate ones. Then, he spoke those words that I would never forget for another lifetime. "You deserve everything. It's even a question of us. Do we deserve you?" He closed his eyes in a moment and when he opened them again, I was lost. "Stop being an idiot. You even deserve my time and attention. But do I deserve yours?"
Then, he just walked away.
And I was left with everything unsaid.
--
Perhaps that was the time when I started seeing Natsume in a much different light. I noticed a lot about him. Things that he successfully hid from the rest of us. But I successfully saw through his mask of indifference and nonchalance.
After that day when he said those words to me, he acted like that moment didn't exist at all. And hell will freeze first before I will act that something really happened. That he said those touching and pensive words.
Another sigh came and it made me frown. It didn't come from me.
Turning around, I saw the profile of Natsume, his face glowing upon the endowment of moonlight. I blinked. It didn't come to me fully until now how handsome Natsume is. Girls have been on his feet since god-knows-when I never really realized the reason why. Yes, he was sort of good-looking but it didn't dawn on me how good-looking he is.
The real reason that I liked him was because of the kindness that I saw and the care—
His nose. The emphasized line of his jaw. His lips. God.
But what caught me was the beauty of his eyes. Crimson. And they seemed to shine. His eyes were enveloped in long lashes.
"What are you doing here?" he suddenly voiced out, retrieving me back to the world. To my surprise, I felt heat climbing up to my cheeks and looking down was all I could do to hide that fact from Natsume.
I heard the shuffling sound of grass as he sat down beside me, taking up the extra space offered by the blanket that I laid down.
Looking up, I saw him staring up into space, his mien calm and at ease. "Do you like the sky?"
He didn't look away from the sky upon hearing my question but he opened his mouth to answer.
"No."
"Why?" I asked softly, grimacing inwardly at how exact our opinions are regarding the sky.
He didn't give me an answer this time around. But I didn't need him to. Suddenly, I felt the urge to talk. To tell him about my thoughts. To spill what I feel.
Maybe, this was the effect of my deep reflection earlier.
"I don't like it too. In fact, I hate the sky," I started with bitterness that made Natsume look my way. I diverted my eyes towards the sky this time. "It's so powerless."
"Why?" he inquired, his voice surprisingly gentle, very unlike his usual arrogant and harsh tone.
The corner of my lips turned down. "It doesn't have the power to stop the clouds from crying. And I detest it when clouds cry because it gives me a chance to cry too. It offers a disguise for my tears. It can make the tears be mistaken into rain. And—I—and, and I hate the sky from not being able to keep the stars within sight. Can't keep the brightness from fading away."
In an instant, Natsume was on his feet, staring down at me and the next thing I knew, he was offering his hand for me to stand up. "It can't keep the stars forever like how we can't keep people with us forever," he muttered in a very low voice.
Accepting his hand, I pondered about his words and remembered all those times when loved ones left me. When all those friends forgot about me. When my father and mother left me even before—
To my horror, a sob sounded in the air.
Through my cloudy peripheral view, I saw Natsume move uncomfortably. Seeing the tears in my eyes possibly made him discomforted.
He raised a hand and placed it on my cheeks—immediately heating it up and I inwardly cursed at him for making me feel this way. "You'll get uglier if you'll continue to cry."
Somehow, his touch made the tears fall faster. I don't know but suddenly, I felt the overwhelming force of loneliness. I've never realized how attached to the past I am and how afraid I am to the idea of people leaving me. I've never realized till Natsume said those words. And somehow, his touch comforted me and lifted my insides more than he nor could I anticipate.
His touch reminded me that there are people who'll wipe away my tears.
There are people who'll make me feel that I can lean on them even if they're saying nothing about it.
And wipe Natsume did. As the tears cascaded down my cheeks and collected on my chin, he wiped them off.
He leaned my body against his, drawing me into a hug that was hesitantly endeavoured but he did so anyway.
We stayed in that position for a while. Natsume didn't move away when I clutched at his shirt and he held me tight when tears wrecked my form.
He didn't utter a word but his actions were enough to ease the turmoil inside of me. Natsume may be a boy to hate but he was also the one who stayed with me through the years. Being his partner exposed the fact that I have a partner. That I'm not alone.
"You're going to wash my shirt when this is all done," he snarled at me but I knew better than be annoyed at the tone of his voice.
I moved away and we stood there, facing each other.
Smiling at him, I slapped his arm once.
"What the hell?" he growled, glaring daggers at me.
I stuck my tongue out at him and started to tread back towards the computer laboratory. My back on him, I murmured, "Thank you."
"Whatever," he responded. And in a second, he was walking beside me.
All of a sudden, I heard a squishing sound on the ground.
I narrowed my eyes in confusion, sensing that my shoes stepped on something very soft.
I lifted my right foot up and screamed. "Kyaa!"
Natsume was immediately before me and he was staring on my right shoe that I tried to elevate. Disgust was in his eyes. "Stupid and gross. Only you will step on dog shit."
"What the heck!" I screeched. I stepped on dog poo! "Natsume! What am I going to do?"
He rolled his eyes. "Just rub that on the grass and it'll be gone."
I stared at him in horror, my mouth agape. "And leave all this crap behind so that other students will be victimized? And that would be horrible to look at!"
"Does it look like I care?" he demanded, annoyance in his tone. Argh! Natsume was being a jerk again! "Hurry up or I'll leave you."
I huffed, not knowing what to do especially that Natsume was being uncooperative once again.
After thinking about it, for I was left with no choice, I took the shoe off from my right foot and hopped one-legged towards the garbage can nearby.
I sighed.
My balance proved to be below normal with two feet, what now with only one?
I did the whole predicament of hopping in approaching Natsume, and almost fell flat on my face three times.
"Stop hopping and just walk," he hissed, catching me when I almost fell once more.
I frowned. "I can't. Except for the garden that we just came out from, it's all pebbles and stones and I don't want to risk myself having injury."
Natsume stopped in his tracks. He sighed. "You sure have a way of making things complicated."
With that said, he neared me and I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. "What are you going to do?"
"Shut up and be still."
Before I knew it, his arms curved its way under my knees and had lifted me off the ground already.
"Put me down, jerk!" I retaliated, abashed at being carried bridal style. I wiggled my feet, trying to escape but his hold was so strong. "Put me down!"
"Stop screaming," he growled. "Another move or sound and I will accidentally drop you."
The warning in his voice was all it took to silence me and all I could do was to snake my arms on his neck, afraid of being put down in that harsh way after all.
Without nothing much to do, I took a deep breath. And that was a mistake.
Good. Damn good. He smelled damn well with that—with that indescribably smell of his...masculine but with a taste of something familiar.
Geez. My head spun and I clutched at Natsume's neck tighter.
He tensed for a second at the touch but relaxed in the end. When he spoke, there was a hint of arrogance and amusement in his voice. "Liked what you smelled?"
"I did not smell you!" I retorted hotly, my cheeks burning.
He snorted."Yeah. Everyone within a ten-mile radius could hear you sniffing."
"Yes, I was sniffing," I gritted my teeth. "And it was so stinky. You know, all I could smell was the stink from the dog shit."
"You're hopeless."
How was it?
Care to review?
Jessicha Therese