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Just One Chance

Chapter 11

The Declaration

IT STARTED OUT AS a normal day at first, but when Jinno taught Math that fateful afternoon, it became the worst day of Mikan's life.

When she woke up from sleep, her first thought was: Bad Day.

Why do I feel a sense of foreboding…? Mikan thought, fear creeping in through her veins.

The day before, Hotaru, Ruka, Natsume, Kazumi, Sakurano, and Subaru found out about Mikan's true identity as a time traveler. At first, Mikan protested about letting her friends know, but unfortunately, they had their own ways to know her secret. Thankfully, they still accepted Mikan as the one they would protect until the end.

Natsume was a little reluctant to do so at first.

"Why should I protect that ugly girl?" he said, leaning his head on his fist.

"Who are you calling ugly girl?!" Mikan roared.

"You, of course."

"Wha…?!"

"You know, there's something I'm a bit curious about," Hotaru said with a glint in her eye. "Did Hyuuga fall in love with someone in the future?"

Mikan blushed different shades of red. Natsume stared at her, eyes wide.

It didn't take an idiot to know what the answer was.

"I see…" Hotaru said knowingly.

"No! It's not what you think!" Mikan cried, the desperation evident in her tone. "I haven't even answered yet!"

"I already know from the look on your face," Hotaru said patiently. "Oh, and by the way, what about bunny boy?"

"Eh…?" Mikan said, a little confused.

"Did bunny boy fall in love with somebody, too?"

The blush on Mikan's cheeks deepened.

Hotaru looked surprised for a fleeting moment, then her usual blank expression came back on her face. "That was unexpected…" she said slowly and thoughtfully. "So I was right. Hyuuga and bunny boy are fighting over yo—…"

"Hotaru!" Mikan cried.

"I—Imai…" Ruka said timidly. "Maybe you should just change the topic…"

Hotaru didn't have to look at his face to know that he was embarrassed. "Okay," she said indifferently. "So… Natsume died…?"

"Yeah…" Mikan said, hugging her knees. She lowered her head. "It was really… I just couldn't believe that he…"

Natsume stood up. "I've had enough of listening to this," he said. "I'm leaving." He turned his back on them and started to walk away.

"Ah, Natsume," Mikan said, lifting her head up to look at him. "Wait. I have something to tell you first before you go."

"Just hurry up, polka dots."

Mikan stood up from her seat and walked over to Natsume. "Maybe it's better if we should find somewhere we can talk in private."

.oo0oo.

"You're of the lifespan-shortening type, aren't you…?" Mikan said, her voice slightly trembling.

Natsume stared at her but didn't say anything.

"I know you are," Mikan said, her eyes slowly brimming with tears. "You… hid it from everyone, even from Ruka-pyon… You overused your alice and you had a severe wound… That was why you died… When I finally got to you, you… you were…" She couldn't bring herself to say the word 'died'. "That's why I don't want you to use your alice unless it's really important…"

"O—Oi…" Natsume said uneasily. "…Why are you crying…?"

"S—Sorry…" Mikan said, wiping her tears with the back of her hand. "I guess… I still can't believe that I was given this chance to keep you alive… for a long time…"

After a long moment of silence, Natsume spoke. His voice was quiet and soft. "You… really care for me that much…?"

Mikan's sad face suddenly transformed into a flustered one. Her cheeks turned into a deep shade of red. "Y—Yes…"

"…"

Mikan forced a smile on her face. "Hey, you don't have to look like that… Sure, we did have mutual feelings for each other in the future, but this is the past now. Things will change. The future will change, too. I'll make sure of that." A determined look spread across her face. "I will save this academy with my own power." Then she smiled genuinely at him. "Of course, with the help of my friends, too."

.oo0oo.

The next morning, Mikan found herself rummaging inside her bag. She found the bag of alice stones she found from the future and started to examine them one by one.

Overall, there were forty-three alice stones.

"Mikan?" Hotaru called out from the door. "Can I come in?"

"Sure!" Mikan said.

Hotaru opened the door. "I have something I want to ask—" She stared at the alice stones in Mikan's hands. "…Mikan, are you sure you didn't steal those?" she asked in a deadpan manner.

"No!" Mikan said. "No, I absolutely did not!"

"…I was just kidding." Hotaru went over to her side and helped her with examining the alice stones.

"I know only about thirty-one of them," Mikan said. "And I can't find the unusual rainbow-colored alice stone that sent me back to the past."

"Maybe it was inserted inside your body," Hotaru said.

"Maybe…" Suddenly Mikan thought of an idea. "Hey, what if I insert one alice stone inside your body?"

Hotaru's eyes grew wide. "No, Mikan. That's too dangerous…"

"No one will ever know," Mikan said. "Just try to hide it until the time comes. What if they find this bag? Then all of the alice stones will be gone and we will lose something valuable."

"Then you should insert one inside Hyuuga and bunny boy, too."

Mikan smiled. "We should find an alice stone that is compatible with you, then."

.oo0oo.

After they found a compatible alice for their bodies, a stone suddenly fell to the floor. Mikan picked it up and she unconsciously inserted it inside her. She yelped in surprise.

"Eh?" she said. "What kind of alice stone is inside me?"

"Looks like you can't control your insertion alice very well," Natsume remarked.

"I—I know that!" Mikan stammered. "I'm still learning how to control it." She picked up the alice stone that is compatible with Natsume. Then, before her very eyes, it duplicated in her hands.

"Huh?" Mikan cried. "What's going on?"

"That's the duplication alice…" Ruka said slowly. "I heard about it from Narumi-sensei. A student from long ago had that alice, but due to his comatose state after he was in the academy for a year, he was starting to cross the border towards death so his alice was taken from him."

"How was his alice taken from him?" Mikan asked curiously.

"I'm not sure…" Ruka said. "Narumi-sensei didn't mention it to me."

"In the past, my mother was ordered by the ESP to steal the alice of the people who are near death," Mikan said. "It was horrible. The alice stones were placed in a jar inside a room. It was like a collection."

"Maybe this alice stone is what your mother stole from that student," Hotaru spoke up.

Mikan shook her head slowly, then smiled. "Ah, let's not talk about that anymore. Come here, Natsume. I'm going to insert this inside your body and keep the duplicated one just in case."

Natsume walked closer to her and watched as she inserted the alice stone inside his body.

"There, done!" Mikan said happily. "You're next, Ruka-pyon!"

After inserting alice stones inside Hotaru and Ruka's bodies, Mikan heaved a sigh. "Okay, that's all. Can you guys tell what kind of alice you have?"

"I have the Clairvoyance alice," Hotaru said.

"You know, Hotaru, you had the Stealing alice in the future," Mikan said. "You saved your brother's life because of it."

Hotaru stared at Mikan. "My… brother?"

"Yeah," Mikan said, nodding. "Imai Subaru-senpai."

"Well, it isn't surprising since you come from the future…" Hotaru said. "But… we didn't get along well, right?"

"Yeah, but you two became very close after some time," Mikan said, smiling. "Just like real siblings."

Hotaru lapsed into silence.

"Um… I don't think I know what my alice is," Ruka said slowly.

"Well, that's all right! We'll know it sooner or later," Mikan said. She walked over to Natsume and looked at him straight in the eyes.

"Using a temporary alice won't affect you, right?" she asked hopefully.

"It won't… probably," he said. Then he unconsciously brushed her bangs away from her face.

Mikan's eyes widened.

Suddenly a flash of scenes began to emerge Natsume's mind. He staggered backwards, his hand touching his forehead. What the hell is going on? he thought. These scenes… They seem to be her memories!

"Natsume?" Mikan said in a panicked state. "Natsume! What's wrong?"

"Ugh…" Natsume grabbed Ruka's shoulder, which was near him, to regain his balance.

"Natsume, what happened?" Ruka asked worriedly.

"I…" Natsume said slowly. "I have the Memory Processing alice…" He stared at Mikan, whose eyes were as wide as saucers. "Just like my mother."

"Wait, wait a minute," Mikan said, panicking. "You read my memories?! Then… Then you know everything now?"

"I read all of your memories," Natsume said, his hand still touching his forehead. "I was just… a little surprised by the impact on my brain…"

"Then…" Mikan said slowly. "You… saw how you died…?"

Natsume was silent for a moment.

"Natsume?" Mikan said in a worried tone.

"I… proposed to you…?" Natsume said uneasily.

Hotaru and Ruka's eyes grew wide. Mikan blushed furiously.

"D—D—D—Don't just blurt out those kind of things w—without thinking! I—Idiot!" Mikan stammered, obviously embarrassed.

"I didn't know you were that bold, Hyuuga," Hotaru remarked, amusement glittering in her eyes.

"Shut up," Natsume said, annoyed.

"A—A—Anyway," Mikan said, her face still red. "Do you also know a—about the ESP?"

"Yes," Natsume said, gritting his teeth in anger. "How dare he…"

"Hotaru and Ruka-pyon can't understand, huh…" Mikan's eyes suddenly lit up. "Ne, Natsume, maybe you can transfer my memories to them!"

"I can do that?" Natsume said, bewildered.

"I don't know," Mikan admitted. "But it's worth a try!"

After a few tries, Natsume succeeded.

Hotaru blinked. "Older brother…" she muttered quietly.

Ruka's face turned red.

"Ruka-pyon?" Mikan said. "What's the matter?"

He looked at her for a mere fraction of a second, then looked away hurriedly. "Nothing…"

I actually fell for Sakura…? he thought, flustered. I even confessed to her…

An aura of gloom was suddenly emitted in the atmosphere. It took them only a moment to find out that it came from Ruka himself.

He probably found out that he was in love with her… Natsume thought.

Mikan looked at Ruka, unsure of what to do.

.oo0oo.

"I FEEL SO PATHETIC… Everyone trusted me so much—that I am the only one who can protect Sakura right now…" Ruka said, kneeling on the ground.

"Ruka-pyon…" Mikan said worriedly.

"If I think… That after this… I wouldn't be able to see you again," he said softly, a small, sad smile making its way over to his face. " I wish that, even for just a moment, time would stop right now…"

Silence lapsed between them for a brief moment before he broke it.

"I can't believe that I can even think of something like this at such a critical time… Because it's the first time that I've loved a girl so much…" He looked up at her. "And that's you, Sakura…"

She was looking at him, not knowing what to do.

"I'm sorry…" he said. "I had really no intention of saying it, but…" Tears started to flow down his cheeks.

Ruka-pyon… she thought, her eyes also brimming with tears.

"I'm so pathetic to cry like this…" He raised his head to look at her and smiled. "Even if we're all apart, I will always pray that one day you and Natsume will see each other again…

"I will always… I will always support the two of you. Wherever you will be, Natsume will definitely find you. When that time comes, please notice Natsume.

"I believe that both of you will definitely meet again…"

Ruka-pyon… Ruka-pyon…! She kneeled in front of him and hugged him tightly, silently thanking him for his support.

"Sakura… You're treating me like a kid…"

"Ah!"

He stood up slowly and offered his hand to help her up. He was still smiling so kindly, so genuinely. "Sakura. I'm all right now. I'll protect you no matter what happens. I will make sure that you can escape to the outside world."

.oo0oo.

"RUKA-PYON," MIKAN SAID, WALKING over to him. She then gave him a big smile. "I didn't get to thank you for your confession, right?"

Hotaru had an evil glint in her eye. Ruka noticed this and gulped.

I—Imai… I think I can tell what you're thinking right now… Ruka thought despairingly.

I've gotten a lot of useful, interesting information… Hotaru thought, smirking evilly on the inside. It will certainly come in handy for blackmailing…

Imai, please don't… Ruka thought pleadingly.

Hotaru noticed the desperate look on Ruka's face and smiled sweetly. Oh, yes I will… she thought happily.

Mikan, having the Telepathy alice, overheard their thoughts and sweatdropped. They don't get along really well… she thought.

"Sakura." Ruka's voice snapped Mikan out of her thoughts. "You… don't have to thank me."

"Oh, but I should!" Mikan insisted. "Besides…" An embarrassed expression appeared on her face. "…It's my first time experiencing love… I never even thought about it that much… I just thought I was too young for that. But when you and Natsume came along…"

Ruka smiled. "It must be really wonderful… Having mutual feelings with the one you love."

Mikan smiled back. "Yes! It definitely is!"

Natsume glanced at her. Hotaru did the same.

"Oi, Mikan," Hotaru said flatly. "Don't you feel a little awkward when the one boy you two are talking about is right here in this room?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

.oo0oo.

IN THE AFTERNOON, MIKAN felt very sleepy. She had exhausted herself from using her insertion alice.

All right, the insertion of the alice stones was the first step, she thought. The second step is to talk to uncle again when I have the chance so that I can tell him my plans.

Hmmm… Maybe I should consult with Hotaru, Natsume, and Ruka-pyon, too… They're obviously smarter than me and more rational…

"Is my class that boring for you to just nod off, Miss Sakura?" a very familiar voice said.

Mikan was suddenly wide awake. "Ah, Jin Ji—I mean… Jinno-sensei!"

Jinno's eyebrow twitched. "What did you just call me?"

Mikan felt very afraid. "I—I just called you Ji—Jinno-sensei…"

"I meant the name before that."

Mikan gulped. "Jin Jin…?"

Suddenly it felt like thunder was clapping outside. For Mikan, it was absolutely terrifying to get electrocuted.

"Jinno-sensei…!" Mikan said, trying to calm him and herself down. "I—I'm sorry!"

A trash can went up in the air and headed straight for Mikan. She ducked it reflexively.

"Hey, what was that for?!" she cried. "What did I do…?"

She felt a dangerous aura coming from someone in particular and gasped. Oh no…! Don't tell me it happened again…

She slowly turned her head and saw the horrible sight that filled her instantly with dread. Uh oh… Goodbye, world… Goodbye, howalon…

Jinno lifted the can up slowly from his head. "Miss Sakura…"

Mikan was sweating profusely. "Ye—Yes…?"

"You are demoted to a no-star for one month!" he boomed.

Mikan felt like the whole world was crashing down on her. The world must be ending… she thought dazedly. This can't be happening… Not again!

END of CHAPTER 11

TO BE CONTINUED