A/N: Hi! (: Well, I'm tired. No, seriously, I'm effing tired and aching T.T Soo, Imma keep this short but I hope you like it. ^^:
I own nothing.
Enjoy. x3
Anonymous
[[~*~]]
Chapter 12
–
Amu stretched out her legs as she yawned tiredly.
"Aw, is the baby tired?" a petite voice questioned, causing Amu to glare at the direction it came from.
"Shut up, I didn't get a lot of sleep last night," she explained. Rima rolled her eyes. She sat next to her in their usual round table during lunch hour. Amu positioned her elbows on the table, idly sipping from her milk carton.
"Well, you shouldn't have gone to that family thing out of town…for three days." Rima brought an eyebrow up slightly. Amu made a thin line with her lips, gazing down at her food tray.
"It wasn't bad, actually. It was nice to see some of my family," she defended with a smile.
Rima nodded, unconvinced. "Uh-huh. Or did you just go so you can avoid that person?"
"Why would I need to avoid that person?" challenged Amu mockingly. As she said that, from the corner of her eye, she glanced around the lunch area in uneasiness.
"Of course you don't need to avoid that person. Why else would you look like you're really about to jump out of your seat at any minute?"
Amu's eyes widened as she stared defiantly. "Your point?"
"Stop avoiding Ikuto!" Rima banged her fists against the table, making Amu flinched.
"SHH! Don't shout it!" Amu hushed her, covering Rima's mouth. Rima slapped her hand away instantly. "Freak! Don't touch me! I'm pissed off at you. How could you leave me for three days?"
Amu arched an eyebrow, perplexed. "Huh? Wait, you're mad about that?" She laughed. "Aw, it's strangely adorable." She patted Rima's head.
Rima glared, aggravation written all over her small face. "What's going to be strangely adorable is my fist pounding your face!"
"Rima, I was only kidding! Gosh, violent little—" Rima interrupted with a growl. Amu felt her glare strike her painfully. She shut up before she could finish. Rima raised her milk carton to her lips, lost in her thoughts as Amu did the same.
"Anyways," Rima finally started, snapping Amu out of her thoughts. "Let's get this straight. You're avoiding Ikuto for some reason that I think is pretty obvious—"
"Get to the point." Amu's tone did not waver. Amu clearly understood what Rima was going to say. Rima's tone continued to be almost bored and tired, like she was repeating herself way too many times.
"It is pretty obvious that you have fallen for Ikuto."
Amu laughed, but not because she thought that was utterly impossible or stupid, but because she knew that it was completely true, but was too stubborn to admit it or even consider thinking about it. It just made her head hurt and her heart ache, which was more painful than her headaches.
She just couldn't face the fact that she had fallen for him.
"You're in denial." Rima shook her head, her face grim.
Amu copied her expression. Her blank stare was directed at Rima. "You sound so sure that it's true, Rima." Amu's gaze burned madly. She was annoyed that she was so easily read. Rima's expressions were flat with no emotion, making her face hard to read.
"You don't?" Rima asked. Amu sighed in reply. "Look, you're obviously confused and I think you should tell him."
"Tell him?" She sighed again. "It's not that easy to do, Rima. I mean, It's…it's not normal to say. I can't just go and tell him…that. That thing I swear I regret and besides, I'm not planning on doing anything about it. I think it's best if…we forget this whole mess and move on," she tried to reason. Rima just stared at her, doubt in her features.
Amu's eyes fell. The crowded area of the cafeteria was starting to make her feel hot, even though she wore a pair of dark shorts and a tank top with a sweater. The hood was, like always, covering her hair.
"Okay, but it's not easy to move on, Amu. You just need to get over him." Rima grinned. "And I know just how to."
Amu's face brightened with hope. She really didn't want to live with this guilt and sadness for the rest of her life.
"All you need to do is befriend him." She leaned in as she told Amu her plan.
Amu raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "You're kidding, right?"
"Nope," she said, popping the p, her grin still intact.
"Ugh!" She threw her hands up in exasperation. "What the hell! Befriend him? Shouldn't I like get over it by, um, like getting a dog or—"
"No." Rima's eyes darkened with frustration. "Listen, no matter what, you're going to have to deal with him for the rest of the year," she pointed out. Amu growled. Great. Yes, Amu had thought about that but she always put that aside. It was too troublesome to think about and it made her head hurt.
"Whatever." She stood up. The heat was unbearable at this point. "I'm just going to get some air. But I will think about it."
"Okay, but Amu, I know 'befriending'," She air quoted the word with both her index and middle fingers, "him isn't going to be easy for you, considering your feelings and what went on between you two and—"
Amu growled impatiently again because Rima was rambling. She just rolled her eyes.
"He's going to notice if you start avoiding him or act weird," she revealed. That never occurred to her. She was just worried about passing the year without any trouble.
"Awesome," she breathed, blowing the bangs out of her face. "I'll keep that in mind." She felt her eyes roll. Now she was completely annoyed. She finally exited the cafeteria since she felt like she was burning inside the lunch room. Finally on the school grounds, she saw the sun, burning brightly as ever.
She watched a group of younger students walk pass her, feeling them glare at her back. She headed deeper in the path of trees, avoiding any students. The area was finally silent, with only the occasional sound of birds singing and wind blowing. Sighing, Amu couldn't stop herself from thinking about the one thing that have been nothing but on her mind for days: Ikuto.
It was bad enough to always have him in her head 24/7. She found it impossible that becoming friends with him will make it better. Wouldn't it just make it worse? But then again, if Ikuto noticed something was up, he would confront her and…what will she do then? She didn't know what was right from wrong right now. Her mind was in complete turmoil.
She thought her mind was playing tricks on her because right in front of her, she saw a blue and black outline lying on the ground. She instantly froze. As she focused her eyes, she looked again. They didn't lie to her. Sleeping on the ground without a care in the world was Ikuto.
Oh, yes. Just what she needed. The last person she wanted to see was lying here, taking a nap. This was going to be harder than she thought. But instead of walking away, she just stood there, and stared, almost gawking like an idiot. The way his hair shined a brighter azure was a different view and his eyelashes—she never noticed how long they actually were. His face looked so peaceful and childish that she had to hold back a giggle. She had to admit he was cute. She continued to study him five feet away, most of her body hidden behind a tree. He was in a deep slumber.
Or so she thought.
The steady rise of his chest stopped and his eyes lazily opened. He blinked as the sun hit his eyes. Amu started to get nervous. She should have left when she had the time. She mentally cursed at herself. She held her breath.
"Stalking me, eh?"
Amu jumped as she heard the deep voice come closer from behind. Ikuto's mouth was right on her ear. She felt her face brighten in color. She sputtered, "W-what! N-no! Wh—"
"Lying and stalking. That's even creepy for you, Goth Girl." The childish look was gone and he stared hard at her but his eyes were almost empty. His face didn't even play a smirk. There was nothing. It was blank mask.
Amu gazed back with an oddly similar expression despite her blush. "Oh, so we're back to that name?"
"That's what you are, no? Goth Girl," his voice teased bitterly, making Amu grow angrier.
"And aren't you a non-social player only looking to please himself with women?" she retorted with a sarcastic grin, despite noticing the icy color of irritation in his eyes. She started to push herself up from the ground when she felt a hand seize her wrist painfully.
"Ow! What...? Let go!" she ordered as Ikuto pulled her back to the ground again, their eyes locked in a dangerous stare.
"What did you just say?" he questioned, his face dead serious.
"You heard me, want me to rephrase it?" Amu sardonically suggested.
"I'm not like that."
"Sure you're not," she scoffed. "And I'm not Goth!" she said. Realization hit her a little too late.
"Your clothes say the exact opposite," he pointed out. Amu shook his hand off. His stare was icy. "So, you lie about who you really are? You hide under a dark façade."
For once in her life, Amu had let herself slip and Ikuto already got her all figured out so easily. She blamed herself for even letting herself be taken off guard, especially in front of him. She stood silent, unable to respond.
"See, you're not so frightening after all. You're a total lie."
Amu's felt her fists ball up. "And you're a jerk." With that, she ran away. Ikuto watched her, immediately regretting his words. But he just watched her go, not bothering to even try to catch up to her. He heard a faded ring of a bell in the distance, signaling lunch was over. Ignoring it, he returned back to his sleeping spot and closed his eyes, ignoring his surroundings.
[[~*~]]
Befriending him was completely out of the question now. She can't see herself even being close to him in any way. She needed a new plan.
Amu walked into the school with wariness, but when she finally reached Rima's locker and spotted her tiny figure in the crowd, she almost ran toward her direction.
Closing the locker, Rima met Amu's eyes. Her stare was uninterested but she asked, "What's up? Why so red?"
"I'm not doing your…your method," she told her, completely disregarding her question.
"And why would you say that?" she questioned, unsurprised.
"I'm just not going to," Amu lamely retorted.
"Okay." Rima shrugged, her face plastered with an amused expression. "Fine, but do you know what I think?"
"W-what?" Amu could see the glow in Rima's eyes but ignored it.
"I think you're not going to be able to resist." Rima's grin was really freaking Amu out, as a blush crept onto her cheeks.
"You're out of your sadistic mind."
Rima's grin became lazy. "Oh, but it's the truth. Do you know why? 'Cause he's already a part of you and you know it too."
Amu was shocked. Rima was in her weirdest moment yet. Amu just couldn't respond to that. Amu pushed past her, leaving with a thoughtful expression. Rima turned as she watched Amu run away. She shook her head with a disappointed sigh. "Running away isn't always the answer, idiot."
[[~*~]]
"And it rains in your bedroom, everything's wrong. It rains when you're here and it rains when you're gone. I was there when you said forever and always…"
Amu read softly to herself, confirming that she wrote the lyrics correctly in the black book that was on her lap. Her lips pressed together in a tight line as she went into deep thinking. It had been two days since she last spoke to Ikuto, and Rima was not at school today so she sat alone during lunch.
Amu stood up with her tray in her hand and the black book in the other hand, still reading the rest of the paragraphs. She didn't look up as she made her way to the trash can. She bumped into someone, but was lucky to not spill anything.
"Watch it, freak," someone warned with disgust coloring her tone. Amu rolled her eyes. The voice made her blood boiled. She hated how the voice dramatized the word "freak". Saaya, along with two other girls, stared at Amu with pure revulsion.
"Well, maybe if you move your fake butt, then we wouldn't have this problem, don't you agree?" Amu said in a very calm voice. Saaya's emerald eyes glared daggers at Amu.
"What did you just say?" Amu met her eyes with a hard gaze. Saaya's cronies stepped back but Saaya glared challengingly.
"Did I stutter? Never mind that, I'm not going to repeat myself to a moron," Amu backfired. She's been holding this anger in for a while now and Saaya was a prefect target.
"That just did it, freak." Saaya gripped Amu's hands, making Amu drop her book. Saaya reached for it before Amu had a chance to recollect herself.
"Hmm, what is this? A journal? Hoho, let us take a look, shall we?" The devilish smile on Saaya's face made Amu want to beat the crap out of her. But never mind that, she had her book. Amu made a jump for it but that only resulted in her failing as Saaya brought the book higher in the air. Amu tried again.
"Give it back, you—" Suddenly, the book was out of her hands and Saaya brought her hand down in confusion but that soon turned to dumbfound. Amu glanced up, meeting dark empty indigo orbs.
"That's enough," said Ikuto, holding Amu's book out of Saaya's reach.
"Ikuto!" Saaya shrieked. Amu covered her ears with her palms, protecting them from Saaya's high-pitched voice.
"This is incredibly low, even for you Saaya."
"And who asked you to help?" Amu's voice echoed the area since the room was silent, only with the three standing as they glared at one another. She continued. "I don't need your help. She's not much of a fight."
"Hah! You think you're so tough, huh?" Saaya spoke up as Ikuto drew himself closer to Amu. "Let's see how tough." Saaya inched closer as Amu did the same, raising her hand for an attempt to slap Saaya in the face. But Ikuto stopped her action.
"No. Are you dumb? You'll only end up in trouble."
"I said butt out, idiot! She's asking for it!" shouted Amu. She kept her eyes on the green eyed girl. "You want your ass beaten?"
"What's going on here?" The people in the cafeteria turned towards the voice that quickly caught the attention from all around. The voice was unrecognized to Amu though it had a familiar ring to it. But it didn't matter until she saw who it belonged to.
"Well?" a long haired blonde with two ponytails questioned. Her brows were set, making her fearsome violet eyes more intimidating as she exchanged glares from Amu to Saaya and then finally Ikuto. Following behind her was the familiar brunette, Kukai, who seemed to barely acknowledge the situation. His eyes shot from the blonde to Ikuto. Ikuto met his gaze.
The violet-eyed girl glanced once again toward Amu, who felt Ikuto's body tense up beside her. He stepped away, making himself hidden from the dilemma. She wondered about his sudden discomfort.
Now irritated by no one replying, the blonde faced Saaya with a disdainful gaze. "Saaya, it's so nice to see you again." She added a charming smile. Saaya crossed her arms, uncomfortable under the blonde's stare. "It's good to know you didn't change at all. After all, you do jump from guy to guy. But from you, nothing changed, right?"
Saaya gasped as the blonde grinned, quite satisfied. Saaya's two followers went up to her but she just waved them away. Her eyes gazed at Amu one last time before she walked away with her two poor partners following close behind.
"Tsk, and I had more to say. What a shame."
"Utau, why did you do that?" Ikuto finally brought himself to be noticed.
"It wasn't for you, of course," she answered. She then brought her eyes to Amu. "You." Utau pointed at her with a demanding manner. "Tell me your name." One of Amu's eyebrow rose. Blunt much?
"Hey, Utau," Kukai finally spoke from beside her. "I don't think she will—"
"Why would I tell you?" Amu interceded, restating what Kukai was going to say. Utau stared in disbelief.
Amu, after grabbing the book from Ikuto's hand, started to leave the threesome who watched questioningly.
"What do you see in her?" asked Kukai as he glared at Ikuto. He said nothing, simply tailing Amu.
[[~*~]]
Amu ran toward the exit door as Ikuto called out to her, hoping to catch her attention.
"You know, you could have gotten in trouble," he noted, catching up to her. She didn't stop walking, though it wasn't hard for him to keep up with her pace. He halted her with a hand on her shoulder. She then looked up, seemingly surprised to see him. Her eyes grew with wonder. She was probably too distracted to have heard him. He removed his hand when he noticed the shade of pink on her cheeks. His uneasiness grew dramatically.
"Sorry," he apologized. She shook her head, glancing away. Her body tensed as she rubbed her arm. He swore he could feel the awkwardness.
"Whatever," Amu brushed off, daring to meet his eyes. "I, uh, guess I should thank you for what you did… But I think I should also thank the blonde for showing up. She really pissed her off, huh?" Amu didn't hold back a laugh. The sound of her voice made Ikuto question his own strange behavior. He felt himself slowly relax.
"Yeah, I guess." His voice was far from any emotion. He was still regaining his sense.
"You know each other?" Amu questioned curiously. He stifled a laugh.
"Oh, I know her. She's my sister." He started walking ahead.
"She's your sister?" Amu followed him. Unaware of the surprise in her own tone, Ikuto noticed it.
"You honestly didn't know?" he asked, stopping to stare at her. She answered with a shook of her head, also halting.
As she wiped her forehead, Ikuto observed that her face was flushed from the heat. "Don't you think it's a little too hot to wear that? Do you want a heat stroke?" He pointed at her sweater. Even though it was short sleeved, Amu had her arms covered with laced gloves and bracelets.
Amu blinked, shrugging her shoulder. "Yeah, I guess," He raised an eyebrow, amused since she wasn't taking any action to take off the sweatshirt. "I mean, it is hot," she added and then she sighed. Reading his anticipating expression, she removed her hood and lifted the sweater up and over her head.
As she fingered through her hair, Ikuto examined her more closely: black ripped shorts with long, knee-length black boots and a metal belt looping loosely around her hips; and on top, a pink tube shirt underneath a pink and black splash-painted T-shirt, matching oddly well with the pink tint on her cheeks. He cocked his head, looking down at her. He noted that she was a foot shorter than him and had a well developed chest, not to his dismay, of course.
"Ew! Perv!" Amu apparently noticed his stare. She slapped him repeatedly with her sweatshirt.
He laughed at her reaction. "What, did you want me to look away?"
"Uh, duh. It's called privacy!"
"There's no such thing as privacy here. We're on school's grounds."
"Hmph." The pink coloring on her cheeks was more visible as she crossed her arms. "Still, pervert."
His face cracked a smirk. But it fell faster then she could have noticed it. He sighed, letting his head fall in shame. 'What's wrong with me?'
The burning on her face had finally faded and her head snapped up towards Ikuto. Furrowing her eyebrows, she chewed on her lower lip, contemplating about something nagging her mind. And then she realized that she was mad at him.
She whacked him again.
"Ow! Now what was that for?" he whined, confused.
She glared. "For being a jerk."
He stared, almost annoyed. But instead of arguing, he sighed, lightly flicking her forehead. She flinched away. "Don't do that. Your eyebrows look funny when you do that." he explained with a dull tone.
"Your face looks funny," she retorted, touching the spot where he flicked her.
"Cute."
"Shut up," she told him, her voice showing irritation. He chuckled.
"Do you know what else is cute?" he questioned. Amu stared with colored cheeks, waiting for him to continue but he didn't. He just watched her with a tight mouth, his eyes observing her up and down.
"Perv!"
He laughed.
Inside, Ikuto felt his chest fill up with a little more life.
[[~*~]]
A/N: Done. ;3 But, eh, had to rewrite the ending. The original ending wouldn't have work for the next chapter... and this chapter was 10 pages not 5 =.= …
GUESS WHAT! I'M GOING TO MEXICO! :PP HAHAHHAHA! FUCK NO. T.T Justkidding ;) my sister is though and I'm so effing happy cause of that. Haha, NO, IT IS NOT MEAN, OKAY! I just don't like her right now. Having her always calling me: "freak" and I'm replying as "Prep" gets old. ._. two weeks! Woo! :P
E/N: LOL XDDD Hoped you readers enjoyed this awesome chapter. :D More reviews equals more motivation and faster updates for Diamond-chan. Right? *evil glint in eyes* Hehe~ ^_^ REVIEW! :D
Song (I do not own): "Forever and Always" by Taylor Swift. Please review! :D Like Beta-chan said, faster updates (:
