Authors Note; Thank you for the reviews! As usual, I sent reviewers with FF accounts PMs! I'm glad you liked the previous chapter! :) Hopefully you'll like this one too! :D
Disclaimer; I do not own Gakuen Alice
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Out of This World
By Keiko Oda
:Chapter Four:
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Beep! Beep! Beepppp!
Natsume flung his hand over his bedside alarm clock and slammed his fist over the snooze button. He rolled over and rubbed the sleep grit off his eyelids. Sitting up, he felt through his bed sheets for his manga and cell phone. Once he took hold of them, he got up, stretched, and flipped open his cell phone; which had five new missed calls and a message from Ruka.
From: Ruka Nogi
Received: 5:26 am
natsume!!!! wer r u man??? dnt u remember that we have a big game against nemuro 2day 8am?? coach says 2 get ur ass over here in lyk 10 mins or u are DEAD MEAT 2 him!!!
Holy Shit! Natsume thought as his eyes flickered to the clock, It's 7:30!
He had no time to think! Natsume rushed to his closet and undressed as fast as he could. He threw on his long-sleeved cerulean blue jersey, white shorts and knee-length socks. He quickly snapped on his shin guards and put on his soccer shoes in a hash. He hurried out of his room, ignoring the fact that he had left his shoes untied and he had put on his jersey the wrong way.
He dashed out of the front door and ran to the garage to get into his black pickup.
Where was it!?
"CRAPCRAPCRAP!" Natsume yelled, as he fished out his cell phone from his pocket and dialled his mom's number.
There was no answer.
"Fuck this useless phone" Natsume hissed and threw his phone on the grass. He turned to the front door and found a yellow Post-It attached to the knocker.
Natsume,
My car broke down so I borrowed yours. I'll be home by 6pm
Love, Mom
Natsume crumpled the note and shredded it to pieces. "How the hell am I supposed to get to the game?!" he said out loud. He picked up his phone from the ground and wiped some mud off the screen. He checked the time. 7:50 am.
"Damn it," he muttered and returned to the garage to figure out his transportation. He weighed the options between his old red and black longboard, a pair of rollerblades he's had since he was eleven and his rusty, silver bicycle which was much too small for him.
Natsume touched the bicycle's tarnished handles. It would have to do.
He pulled out the bicycle from the pile of forgotten junk and led it outside the house. He felt like an idiot. He hadn't used this piece of scrap metal since he was fourteen – when he was much shorter than he was today.
He got on the bike and looked around. He was paranoid and humiliated. If anybody saw him on this little kid's contraption, he wouldn't know what to do.
Natsume pedalled. The bicycle creaked and screeched. "Shut up," Natsume told it, even though he knew it was useless to, "Shut up or I'll chuck you into the goddamn incinerator"
He biked as fast as he could; pedalling his way through the scarlet tainted streets of Hakodate City.
He was already half way to Hakodate High when another biker pedalled over next to him.
"What are you doing here?" Natsume murmured, not bothering to look to see who it was. He already knew anyway.
"Ruka-pyon invited me to watch your game," replied Mikan, whose honey-coloured hair was held up high in a bright green scrunchy. "I didn't know you biked"
Natsume rolled his eyes and overtook her. Mikan simply caught up.
"That bike is awfully small for someone as tall as you" she commented.
"Go away" he said to her and pedalled faster.
"You want to race, don't you?" Mikan cheerily called out.
"No, I just need to get to my freaking game!"
"You've got your shirt on the wrong way"
"Do you think I give a shit about that?"
Mikan caught up with him once again. "And your shoelace is untied"
"Tell me something I don't know, baka" Natsume muttered, his eyes fixated on the road.
"Okay I will," Mikan said, "Did you know that if an octopus gets too hungry it will eat its own legs?"
"Bullshit" Natsume told her and biked further. Mikan followed him.
"No, really," she chirped on, "They do. And an octopus' pupil is rectangular shaped"
"Oh jeez, Mikan, do you honestly think I care about OCTOPUSES?"
"Octopi," Mikan corrected, "And you called me by my name!"
Natsume felt his face grow hot. He didn't say anything. He took a left turn and saw Hakodate High, towering over the rest of the small buildings and shops, approaching. He accelerated and biked faster. He could hear the cheers and chants of the school pepsquad coming up. The smell of energy drinks and sweat blew into his nose.
"Your game has started" Mikan shouted from behind.
In a minute, Natsume reached the football field. Without braking, he jumped out of his bicycle, disregarding the detail that the bike immediately rammed into a trash dumpster. He jumped over the fence and ran over to the benches.
"HYUUGA!" he heard his coach yell from his back.
Natsume turned around. "What, coach? I'm already here!" he shrugged.
Coach Li looked at him exasperatedly. "Dammit, Hyuuga, tie your shoelace and put on your jersey properly – AND GET YOUR ASS ON THAT FIELD!"
Natsume nodded and tied his shoelace quickly. He removed his jersey, and, ignoring the infatuated squeals of Sumire and her posse, put it on the right way. He ran to the centerfield, where he played as a striker.
"Hey!" he heard Ruka, who was on defence, say, "You made it!"
Natsume turned around and grinned. "Can't pass up the chance to kick some Nemuro ass!"
The ball was currently in the feet of Nemuro's Number Five. Natsume instantly headed for it, and saw Kokoroyomi running a few metres next to him. Their eyes immediately met and Natsume gave him a knowing nod.
Kokoroyomi darted at Number Five and skidded past him, stealing the ball in the process. He turned over and thrust the ball to Natsume's feet. It was his turn now.
Natsume steadied his feet between the ball. He was able to evade most of the strikers, but agile Number Nine stole the ball from him and went in for Hakodate's territory.
"BASTARD!" Natsume yelled, and flashed the finger at him.
"HYUUGA! Time out! Get back at the benches!" called the referee, blowing his whistle.
"Go to hell!" Natsume hissed and marched off to the benches, where the substitutes sat; eagerly watching the game with hungry eyes.
"Damn, Hyuuga, you've got yourself a potty mouth" commented one of the freshman players.
Natsume shot him dagger looks. "Do you want my fist to meet your little chatty trap, huh, freshie?"
The boy froze and remained silent, as if an invisible thread stitched through his lips.
Natsume turned over and watched the game. Nemuro and Hakodate were neck to neck now, and Natsume could tell by the look on his teammate's faces that they were on the verge of throwing a ballistic tantrum. Ugh crap, he thought, if that jerk of a referee hadn't gone all biased on me, I would have scored a win by now.
His gaze averted to the bleachers, where possibly the whole student body of Hakodate High was crammed in. He saw Mikan standing in the front row, dressed in a purple pea coat and fuchsia leggings. She was cheering her head off, pumping her fists into the air and screaming like a wild chimpanzee. She was the most enthusiastic out there, and she carried a canvas banner that had: HAKODATE HIGH WILL OWN YOU! painted on it in rainbow colours.
She had probably seen Natsume staring at her, because she placed down her banner and waved at him happily. Natsume looked away at once. And then he was called back to the field.
The score was 3-3. It took four points to win. Natsume clenched his fists. He wasn't about to let Nemuro steal the trophy from Hakodate, OH HELL NO.
Nemuro's Number 14 had the ball, and glided through the field confidently. Natsume trailed after him, but immediately switched to Number 8 when the ball was passed to him. Number 8 headed for the goalpost. Natsume saw Ruka at the corner of his eye, bending his knees and positioning to block the opponent.
It took only a second for Ruka to kick the ball out of Number 8's feet. Natsume moved in and took the ball. He concentrated really hard and ran through the field. He skilfully dodged past the Nemuro strikers, and reached the defenders. He took a deep breath and moved in for the kill. He angled the ball in his feet and lifted his leg.
SLAAAMM! The ball rapidly flew past Nemuro and smashed into the goalpost. The crowd went wild and Nemuro went hysterical! Natsume pumped his fist into the air as the win was called to Hakodate! His teammates howled and lifted Natsume into the air.
Every Hakodate supporter streamed out of the bleachers and cheered for the team, especially for Natsume.
"Hey kids!" Sumire cried out to everyone, "Party at my house tonight!"
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"AWOOO! AWOOOO! HAKODATE HIGH IS JUST SOOO AWESOME!" cried out a very drunk Kitsumene, as he gulped down a mouthful of beer.
"Easy, man," Natsume said, ruffling Kitsumene's wheat-coloured hair. "Take it easy on the drinks"
"Damn, Hyuuga," Kitsumene said, "You were just too incredible out there!"
It was already two in the morning, and the party at Sumire's place remained wild and loud. The whole school was practically there – dancing and drinking. It was good that Sumire's house was humungous or else it would have exploded with the number of people packed in. Loud rock music blared out of Sumire's surround sound stereo system, and dripping, cheesy nachos were passed around along with cans of Kirin and bottles of beer. People were sprawled on the couches, sliding down the stairs with mattresses (don't ask HOW they got them) and attempting to climb the roof. It was so out of hand. It was insanely awesome.
"Duddeeeee!" Ruka said, coming up at Natsume from behind, "We're SO kicking Abashiri's ass next!"
He gave Natsume a high five and handed him a beer. "Oh yeah, man," he said, "Mikan's here"
"That weirdo was invited?"
Ruka flicked open his beer bottle. "I'm going to go look for her, man, she's so cool"
"Drunkard" Natsume muttered and gave him a shove. Ruka absentmindedly walked off and disappeared into the crowd in search of the pigtailed brunette.
Natsume turned around and almost jumped when he found Sumire grinning up at him. He could smell the stench of her foundation. He held his breath.
"You were great out there Natsume-kun!" she said to him, batting her eyelashes flirtatiously. Bits of her mascara chipped off and rolled down her cheek.
Natsume shrugged and started walking off. He didn't want to make conversation with that creep.
Sumire simply tagged along. She took his hand and intertwined it with his. Natsume immediately shook it off.
"Shouda-san!" he sneered.
"Call me Sumire!" Sumire giggled, "Or Sumi or Mimi or whatever you like!"
Natsume didn't reply. He quickly pushed his way through the party, hoping to lose Sumire on the way.
Apparently, it didn't work.
He felt her arms wrap themselves around the back of his neck. "Is there anything I can do for you, Natsume-kun?"
"Uh, Go away?" Natsume said, and peeled off her arms off his shoulders.
"Gomenasai, Natsume-kun, I can't do that" Sumire said, her words seeping out of her lips like sticky caramel. She then faced Natsume and planted a wet, gummy kiss on the edge of his lips. It only took a split second for Natsume to react, and he immediately pushed her away and wiped his mouth with his sleeve.
"Why don't you try that again – WHEN YOU'RE SOBER?" he yelled and stormed out the door.
Once he shut the door behind him, he zipped up his jacket and shook off all the Sumire cooties that had rubbed off on him. He could still feel the acrid taste of her cheap lipstick pasted on his lips. Ugh. He decided to walk it off.
The night was bitterly cold, and bit through Natsume's skin like icy shards. He rubbed his hands together and walked down the street.
Sumire's house stood near a lot of shops. There was a pet store, several clothing boutiques and a few restaurants all lined up by the sidewalk. Most of them were locked up and closed – except for a small ramen booth at the end of the block.
As Natsume approached it, he saw a girl come up from the other end of the street and sit on one of the revolving seats.
It was Mikan.
Natsume stopped walking, and watched her as she placed an order of shrimp ramen. She was wearing something different again. She was dressed in an empire cut floor-length dress. It had a batik type of print, and she wore several layers of gold necklaces around her neck.
As she waited for her food to come, she brought out a silver rectangular shaped gadget. Natsume had never seen anything like it. She pressed a single button and a hologram appeared out of the small black screen. A small person appeared on the hologram. It was a girl with jet black hair and –
All of a sudden, Mikan hastily whispered something to the hologram and it immediately shut off. Mikan stuffed the gadget into her brown, leather messenger bag and turned to Natsume; whom she apparently saw staring at her.
"Spying on me, ne, Natsume-kun?"
"What was that thing you were holding?"
"My cell phone," Mikan said, "I left the party. It was boring"
"Not like your usual Tokyo bashes, huh, city bitch?" Natsume said, taking a seat next to her.
"I'm sorry, what?"
"You're from Tokyo right?"
"Tokyo?"
Natsume didn't say anything. Mikan looked at him closely, with a confused expression splattered on her face. It took about a few seconds before it sank in and her eyebrows shot up like a rocket ship.
"OH, Right, Tokyo!"
"Weirdo" Natsume muttered.
The booth attendant approached him from behind the counter. "Yes, sir, can I get you anything?"
"Kirin" replied the raven-haired boy.
"You don't like ramen?" Mikan asked him.
"Do I have to?"
"Yes"
The attendant brought over a clay bowl filled with piping hot, hearty ramen. Mikan picked up three pairs of chopsticks from the chopsticks jar and began eating with all six chopsticks (three on each hand!) with much gusto.
"Three pairs of chopsticks? You don't eat with only one?"
Mikan mirrored his words. "Do I have to?"
Natsume smirked. "Yes"
He watched her chow down the whole bowl of shrimp ramen in less than five minutes. She wiped her mouth with her sleeve and placed her hand over belly. "Oh God, that was really good" she said to herself, and then turned to the attendant, "Can I have one more please? No, make that three!"
Natsume raised his eyebrows. "Are you effing serious?"
"I have a big appetite" Mikan informed him.
"Fatso pig"
"Don't you like eating, Natsume-kun?"
"Do I have to?"
Mikan laughed. "Do we HAVE to play this Do-We-Have-To game?"
Natsume shrugged. "Aren't you cold in that?" he said, pointing to her dress; which was made out of very thin material.
"If I was, I wouldn't have worn it"
The two of them talked for a long time – most of the while Mikan did the talking. She talked about so many things. She talked about octopuses – octopi (the two of them argued over the plural form) again, different kinds of sandwiches (from the traditional peanut butter and jelly to a rubber shoe sandwich) and the evil, evil gooey black ghosts that haunt her dreams at night.
Natsume stared at her in awe. He had never seen anything like her. She was strange – she was peculiar – she was out of this world.
It was pushing five in the morning when Natsume returned home. The sun was already peering behind the tall purple mountain peaks, but Natsume didn't feel sleepy at all. Talking to Mikan sort of energized him and he suddenly felt like he could swim across the Pacific Ocean.
When he reached the doorstep, he found the day's newspaper rolled up by the doormat. He picked it up and entered the house, unfolding it as he did so.
As he went up the staircase, he read the front cover.
GIANT METEORITE DISCOVERED IN ABASHIRI, HOKKAIDO
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End of Chapter
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