Author's Note: A hundred reviews?! :O Thank you so much, guys! Love ya! (To the reviewer who said, 'Please update, it's summer!', it's summer all year round for me so I don't actually have a three-month long summer holiday. :( Sorry for the late update, I kept rewriting this chapter and it still feels weird, to me.

Disclaimer: GA doesn't belong to me.

Head Over Heels

Chapter 10: Burning

"How can you do this to me?" Mikan wailed, slamming her fist down on Hotaru's tabletop and causing the Xena the Warrior Princess figurine on top of Hotaru's computer screen to wobble.

"For your information, I did not, nor could I, decide who to employ as the new managing editor," Hotaru said calmly. "And I didn't know that she is the woman your fiance is screwing around with. Speaking of which, I think you should confront that Mouri dude."

Mikan knew that too. She knew she had to thrash things out with Reo sooner or later, but she didn't have the guts to. What if it was true? What if Reo was really cheating on her? She was afraid to face the truth. She was afraid of finding out that her boyfriend did not love her enough to not cheat on her.

"I know that," she whispered weakly.

Hotaru looked directly at Mikan as though she knew what she was thinking. She probably knew, Mikan thought. Hotaru had always been kind of psychic.

"You're afraid," she announced. "Sheesh."

"Well, wouldn't you be?" Mikan exclaimed in a pathetic attempt to defend herself.

"I told you not to date that shithole," Hotaru sighed. She rustled around in her desk drawer and came up with a namecard, which she pushed across the table towards Mikan.

"I&N?" Mikan raised an eyebrow at the unfamiliar name printed on the stiff white paper.

"My new restaurant." Hotaru nodded, the look in her purple eyes sending Mikan a 'Don't ask' vibe.

"Right. The one you opened with Ruka Nogi, of all people," Mikan replied coolly, as though opening a restaurant with one of the top supermodels was as normal as brushing your teeth every morning. Then again, Mikan thought better than to judge Hotaru. After all, she was the one who managed to get a supermodel infertile, and end up being his slave. Jesus.

"Anyway, we've planned a small welcoming party for the new managing editor tonight at the restaurant. I&N has not officially opened, so it will be a private event. Invite Mouri along, even though the thought of that vermin stepping foot in my restaurant makes me want to retch. Confront him during the party, and if he dumps you, you won't feel that bad 'cause you'll be in a gorgeous dress and there will be many handsome, single men willing to lend you a shoulder to cry on at the party," Hotaru explained.

It sounded like a good plan to Mikan. After all, Hotaru was the one who came up with it, and she had always been good at plans. Well, except for that one time when Hotaru plotted a scheme to crawl over a fence of a fruit farm to steal the delicious-looking cherries, and Mikan ended up lying on the cold hard ground face-down in the soil. That was, however, when they were kids. Mikan was pretty sure Hotaru had gotten better at plotting schemes.

Reo was avoiding Mikan's calls again. Frustrated, Mikan put on a fake, sweet voice and said after the stupid beep, "Hey, darling. Hotaru's having a really cool little party at her new restaurant. There'll be supermodels, free booze and food there. Let's go together! I'll text you the address. See you there at 7!"

Mikan knew the mention of supermodels and free booze would get him. True enough, the little weasel texted to say that he would meet her there. Mikan rolled her eyes as she turned on the faucet and let warm water flow into her bathtub. After taking a heavenly soak in the peach-scented bubble bath, she got dressed in the strapless black cocktail dress she'd bought on impulse after work. She would be surrounded by beautiful models, and she wanted to look presentable. Most of all, she wanted to show Reo what he was missing out on by dumping her, if he did. Mikan squirted the Chanel perfume she'd borrowed from Hotaru on the insides of her wrists, spent about an hour perfecting her make up and another hour doing her hair.

"You ready?" Hotaru called.

"Almost!" Mikan shouted back, glancing at her reflection in the mirror one last time. Her chestnut brown hair was curled and put up in a chignon. On her slender neck hung a silver necklace with a heart pendant, which Reo had given her for her birthday. She looked okay. Maybe even pretty. She looked at the framed picture of her and Reo, which was placed on her messy dressing table. She hated herself for still loving Reo, after all he had done. Sucking in a deep breath, she turned away from the picture and walked out of the door.

"You look good," Hotaru said as they rode the elevator down.

"Thanks, you look gorgeous too," Mikan smiled. And she did. A silver hair band adorned Hotaru's short black hair, and the deep purple of her dress brought out the colour of her amethyst eyes. She looked radiant.

As both women settled into Hotaru's black Toyota Corolla, Hotaru asked, "Are you ready?"

Mikan knew what she was talking about. "I guess so. Do you think I'm stupid for still loving him, Hotaru? He'd always been a flirt, a player. I thought I was different when he asked me to marry him, I really did. I thought he was ready for commitment with me. How stupid was that? A leopard never changes its spots." Tears pricked her eyes, but she refused to cry.

After a minute or two, her best friend answered, "Well, you've always been dumb. Remember how you always thought trees gave off cold air because you felt cooler standing under a tree? But I want you to know that I'll always be here for you."

Suddenly, Hotaru's dig at her IQ didn't matter. At that moment, the tears slipped down Mikan's cheeks.

"You're the best, Hotaru. I love you!" she sobbed, wrapping her arms with much difficulty around Hotaru's waist.

"Watch it, I'm driving," her best friend snapped, "and wipe your tears. You look twice as ugly when you cry."

Mikan just smiled.

The party was already in full swing when Mikan and Hotaru arrived. The spacious restaurant was crowded with people grinding on the makeshift dance floor in the middle of the room and people standing around, sipping champagne and eating. The tables and chairs had been pushed to the sides of the room to make space for the dance floor.

"This is beautiful," Mikan breathed, looking around at the room. It was decorated in various shades of pale blue, white, ash grey and light brown wood.

"Thank you. We wanted a friendly, warm, family kind of theme," Ruka Nogi appeared out of nowhere and smiled at the ladies.

"Nogi," Hotaru nodded in acknowledgement. "How's the party going?"

"Great. There was a little blip with the caterers but..." As the pair wandered away to talk, Mikan strolled to a waiter who was carrying a silver tray full of champagne flutes. She took one and gulped it down, letting the little bubbles of sweetness explode in her mouth. She couldn't help but feel a bit lost without Hotaru. She was way out of her depth here. She didn't belong in glitzy places like this. She was just an ordinary, nothing-special girl. She scanned the room for Reo's reddish-brown hair but almost yelped in surprise when she spotted a head of familiar black hair. Natsume Hyuuga. Oh God. That kiss popped into her head again.

It had just been a mere peck on the lips, nothing more, but it had made her toes and a few other places in her body tingle like she had just been electrocuted. She had almost heard angels descending from the heaven singing around her ears. It was a mind-shatteringly good kiss. Her heart thumped and she felt like she was thirteen all over again, looking at her crush from a distance.

"Mikan," a voice said, and Mikan was jolted out of her embarrassing thoughts of a certain red-eyed supermodel.

"Oh, um, hi." It was Reo. "Er, actually... I have..."

"I have to talk to you," he said softly. "Let's go out for a bit."

Feeling dumbstruck, Mikan weaved through the crowd and followed him out of the restaurant.

"So..." she prompted, observing how the light from the streetlamps shone in Reo's hair and picked out the gold strands.

"I know we're getting engaged, so I want to be completely honest with you," he started, staring at his feet and fiddling with his leather watch. "Look, you have to believe me. You can't get angry. It was just a stupid mistake, I swear. The one I really love is you..."

Mikan's mind went on red alert, and her heart started thumping like a freight train. Her head throbbed as she forced out the dreaded question, "What?"

"I... You have to promise me you'll believe me, darling, babe. You're the one I love. It was a moment of folly..." Reo stuttered.

"Just tell me!" Mikan almost screamed, her cold and clammy hands clutching at the strap of her handbag.

Reo looked up, and his eyes looked dull. "Shina is... she's... pregnant."

Mikan thought her heart would shatter into a million pieces literally. She clutched her bag so tightly she was sure it would break. Tears blurred her vision.

"What?" She had thought it hurt when she thought she saw Reo kissing Shina. But now it was unbearable. She was not only certain they'd kissed, but Shina was... pregnant. Pregnant.

"My ex-colleague, the one you saw me at the restaurant with... she's pregnant. By me." He added, as though Mikan was stupid and didn't get the message, adding insult to her injured heart. "I swear, it was a mistake, babe. I swear."

Lifting her hand, Mikan gave him one tight slap across his right cheek. Her hand trembled as she put it down. Burning gasps were coming out of her mouth and tears like acid slipped down her cheeks. Her world had come crashing down around her.

"What the f... Babe, babe, I know what I did was wrong, but did you have to slap me?" Reo looked so shell-shocked, cupping his cheek and glaring at Mikan as though she was the one who was in the wrong.

Even until now, he didn't see the gravity of the issue. He was still the self-centered, narcissistic jerk who put himself before others.

"Don't. Call. Me. Babe." Mikan managed to grind out, roughly swiping away her tears. She turned around and stomped away, her heart breaking further with every step she took.

Rushed update, I'm going to watch The Croods in about... half an hour. Yep. Review! :) (Not edited)