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Chapter Eleven – The Broccoli, Belle and the Party Clown

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"Mikan, where are you? The party has already started." I heard how my mom's voice's tone changed from sweet to worried, from worried to mad and from mad to sweet.

Great, I have missed the party's start. I know I shouldn't have watched 'Raise Your Voice' at Sumire's house and at five-thirty come home just to take a shower and dress in Sumire's pink dress.

"I'm coming mom, relax." I said, stopping beside the traffic light, letting few cars flow down the street.

"At what street are you?" I sighed, breathed in and started to count from one till three. That always helped when I needed to relax my nerves.

"I'm at… why are you asking, mom?" I asked, knowing that she would tell me that it's already seven thirty, I needed to be at the party, dancing with my "future husbands", not walking down the road where a lot of drunken man could took me in their cars, drive to the nearest park and rape me.

"Darling, you know that it's already seven thirty, you were suspect to be here at six o'clock."

"Mom, it's not twelve in the midnight, I'm sixteen years old, for crying out loud."

"Mikan, you're always going to be our little Miki." I could feel how sweet, warm feeling flied in my stomach. No, they weren't love butterflies, they were family love butterflies.

The traffic-light colors changed and few pair of cars stopped, to let people pass the street.

"Yes, mom, I know, and don't worry about me, I just need to visit Sumire before the party, don't worry, she will come too. I invited her personally."

"Who's Sumire?"

I sighed and started to tell her all biography about Sumire Shoda, when was her birthday, who's her parents, where she lives, which is her zodiac sign, which is her favorite food, drink, color and guy. Well, the last part skipped.

"Hmm, I would love to see her at the party."

"You will see her, definitely." I giggled imagining Sumire with her green dress, knee high green socks and green shoes. It would be hard to miss such a perfect clothes combination.

"Okay, we will be waiting. Bye." I smiled and put my phone back into my jeans pocket. After three minutes I stood in front of pale house where Sumire and her family were living.

I ringed the doorbell and heard some noise from inside. I heard someone walking closer to the door and asking "Who's there?"

"Am, it's me, Mikan, is Sumire there?"

"Yeah, she is." The door's opening reliving me a black haired guy with green eyes. He was grinning at me, showing his perfect teeth.

"And who are you?" I asked.

"My name is Shane, I'm Sumire's cousin." He smiled and turned around to yell at the bathroom. "Broccoli, your friend is here."

The doors swing open and Sumire come out, holding her green mini bag.

"Haha, very funny Einstein," she sighed, and looked at me, "ah, you're here, I started to lose my hope that you will ever come."

"Hey, I'm not a ditcher." I said, "And besides, we're late, so hurry up." I turned slowly away and began my walk toward the door that would bring me outside.

"I know that you aren't. Hey, wait up." She said and started to run closer in her three inch high heel shoes.

Another thing that showed how more womanly she was. While I was walking in my white shoes and she in her greens, it seemed that she was five inch taller.

"You are too tall with these shoes." I said, pointing my index finger at her shoes.

"And you're the small Mika-chan." She smirked at me and swung her green mini-bag to her shoulders.

"Whatever."

oOo

"Are we already closer to that party place? These shoes are going to kill me!" Sumire whined as she walked down another street with me.

"Perm, we have been out only for five minutes!" I raised my eyebrow as I was looked at her face. Her face showed gracefulness and pain. I could see the pain more.

"So what, these shoes are going to kill me! How will I dance with boys?"

"You want to dance with boys in tree inch high heel shoes? Are you nuts?" I asked, stopping beside another traffic light.

"I should listen to Shane. He already told me that these shoes are going to kill me!" She groaned and stopped to walk.

"What are you doing?" I asked through clutched teeth, if she's going to continue whining and groaning then I will explode.

"I'm not going to step any step further with these shoes."

This time I groaned, "Shoda, what's wrong with you?"

"I can't walk in these shoes, Sakura." She whined more loudly, catching other people attention.

"Sumire, we're at the street where every normal people are going, and now you make those people stare at you."

"I don't care, Mikan Sakura."

"Well, but I care, here are a lot of handsome boys." I smiled as she looked up from the ground, with sparkling eyes.

Bingo!

"You're right, Mikan Sakura, I can't whine in front of these handsome boys, I can't!" She smiled at me and started to walk.

"Now that's the Sumire Shoda I know!" We both giggled and continued the way to the party.

After passing ten busy streets, we marched toward our goal – the gigantic mansion, or rather, the gigantic mansion's gates.

"So, Koizumi's own this place?" Sumire looked at the gates being fascinated how large they were.

"Yes, they own this mansion." I sighed, 'Why couldn't my mom or father own something glamour as this mansion?'

"I feel pity for their maids, too large territory to clean." I giggled as Sumire said and stepper closer to yell, "Sesame, open up!"

"You're not going to get these gates open just with yelling. Hit them!" I laughed as Sumire slowly hit the gates. Not rough but gentle.

"Sesame, open up the gates," she hit them one more time, "open up."

"Sumire, you're destroying their gate's color." I took few steps closer to the gates.

"Maybe we need to push some special button to let them know that some visitors are outside not inside the mansion?"

"Sakura, do you see any button?"

"No, but there…" I couldn't continue because Sumire hissed, "You think that I wasn't having the same idea in my head, you think that just with 'Sesame, open up!' I will make these fucking gates to open up?"

"No, but…"

"Shut up, Sakura, I don't have the stamina to argue with you." She yelled.

Suddenly some noise started to come from the gates and, slowly, they started to open up.

"What's happening?" Sumire asked, looking how the gates made a wider gasp.

"Have no clue." I answered, being amazed how the gates reacted to Sumire's little outburst. The gates stopped, making 'ching' sound. "Shall we go?"

"You first," she gave me a sly smirk.

"Okay," I said and stepped few steps closer to the place where the gates were previously staying.

"Go, Mikan, you can do it!" Sumire laughed and fallowed me.

"Maybe they have some watchdogs here?"

"Well, watchdogs would smell stranger's scent at their territory and your scent is hard to miss."

"Hey, I don't stink!"

"I didn't say that you stink, Mikan," she smiled at me, "I said that they wouldn't miss your and mine scent."

"But that means…"

"Mikan, yes, that means that we both stink." Sumire started to laugh and I joined her. We were laughing in nonstop for more then two minutes.

"Okay, stop." Sumire's smile died and was replaced by a large scowl.

"Wow, you're having really big mood swings!"

"Shut up, my shoes are killing me and you make it all more badly."

"Then take off your shoes."

I turned around to see Koko walking toward us with a sly grin on his lips.

"Oh, hello, what are you doing here?" I asked, looking at him. Unknown to me, Sumire was gurgling with anger.

"Natsume invited me because Ruka didn't wanted to go here, men, he's such a loser for not coming here."

"Oh," I said, lowering my gaze to see the pavement. Somehow I wasn't having any idea what to say next.

"Why are you here?" My thoughts get interrupted by Sumire's voice.

"To get drunk and forget about my pointless life." He looked at Sumire and smiled.

"Koko…," Sumire's voice cracked and I heard a sad tone in her voice, "your life isn't pointless."

"It is, just look at me, I'm all alone in a party. Somehow that doesn't fit together, right?" His smile died as he finished his question.

"Right, it doesn't fit with you." I said and smiled as a sly grin returned to Koko's lips.

"Ehm, can we stop crying over his pointless life? I want to go inside the mansion, not be an outcast and stand here." Sumire said and whined.

We both started to laugh, being amazed how Sumire's scowl could be cute and charming.

"We will, right Bella?" Koko smiled at me, making me blush.

"Ye-ah, Koko, we will."

"Okay, so move your little bottoms here." Sumire looked at us and walked further.

"Yes, miss Broccoli." Koko grinned as Sumire gave him deathly glare.

"In your place I wouldn't argue with her, Koko." I whispered to him.

"Don't worry, she won't kill me," he smiled and took few longer steps to catch Sumire, "right, babe?"

"Don't forget that I'm still angry about that fight."

"Relax babe," he smiled and wrapped his left hand around her shoulders, "I was just saving my best friend's little sister from fourteen year old jock."

"You were fighting with fourteen year old guy?" Sumire's surprised squeak made me shiver. "Loser, he made your nose bleed."

"Hey, I'm not loser, he was just too… lucky."

"Ehm, was he strong?"

"Sumire, how the hell should I know?"

"You felt his punch, didn't you? So, was he strong?"

"Probably," Koko stopped to walk and looked at Sumire with raised left eyebrow, "why do you want to know?"

"Because then I would tell my mother how my boyfriend got bleeding nose by two years younger teenager, who was stronger than my boyfriend." Sumire, with her elbow, punched Koko in his stomach.

"Hey, that hurts." Koko whined, faking how his stomach was hurting by Sumire's punch.

"Well, that's your problem, darling."

He mumbled something that I couldn't hear. All I could hear was Sumire's words: "Loser", "you wish", "Na-ah".

I smiled at their bickering, no matter how much they were arguing they still liked each other. 'Will I ever found such a nice guy as Koko?' I thought and sighed.

'No, of course not, which guy would like to spend his time with all teachers lovely student?'

The answer was simple.

No one

I felt how my eyes started to burn and a tear rolled down my cheek, destroying my make-up.

'Comical,' I sighed, 'I'm here, in Sumire's pink dress, without any partner.'

"Mikan, why are you standing there?" I heard Sumire's voice and laughs as Koko said something.

"Hey, you pervert, you can't eat me just because I look like a broccoli." Sumire punched his stomach with her elbow again.

"Hehe," I said and started to run closer to them.

"Ah, finally she understood us, Koko."

"Yes." He smiled and wrapped his hand around her shoulders.

"This time you won't get a kiss, so don't try."

"Aw, you hurt me." Koko smiled and whispered something to Sumire, which made her blush.

I smiled and looked at the mansion that was coming with every step even nearer and nearer. We even could hear the music. The basses from some hip-hop music were echoing through the vole garden.

"They are having hop-hopies there?" Sumire asked to Koko.

"Yeah, at last not old country hits." Koko looked at me and asked, "What kinds of music do you like, Mikan?"

"She likes pop music. Her favorite artists are Avril Lavigne, Katy Perry, Kelly Minogue and other poppy singers?" Sumire answered in my place and smiled at Koko. As an answer Koko leaned closer to Sumire, not breaking their eye contact.

I turned my head away from the couple to keep their privacy. Right now we were in the middle of the Koizumi's mansions garden, walking on their black pavement driveway.

"Guys, shouldn't we walk a bit faster?"

"What did you say?" Only now Koko leaned away from Sumire, breaking their eye contact.

"We need to walk faster, it's almost seven, and my mom will scold me if I will come there at seven or even seven thirty."

"Mikan, chill, you're a big girl now." Koko only grinned at me.

"Tell it to my mother," I sighed, "and besides, she will never listen to you."

"Aw, aren't we such a party poppers?"

"No, we aren't." I rolled my eyes and sighed. "Can we, please, walk a bit faster? I know that it's hard for teenagers, who are in love, control their hormones."

"Aw, aren't we jealous?" Sumire smiled at me the bitchy-smile.

"No, I'm not jealous."

"Yes, you are."

"Can we just walk faster?"

"No, we can't."

"Ugh, forget it." I said and started to walk faster, getting away from the lovely couple. I was so mad at them. They were- ugh- I can't even describe how annoying they were. As I was walking, I heard one of the sweetest songs - 'Love Story'. But it wasn't coming from the mansion. It was coming from another house that was still in Koizumi's property, the servant's house.

Yep, they were having a house for servant, which was really sweet from them.

"Mikan, is it you?"

A girl's voice cut out me from my thoughts. She was standing ten meters away from me.

She had long blond hair and blue eyes. She wore black cottons dress with black jacket on the top of the dress. Her black boots matched her outfit.

A smile was lingering on her pink lips.

"Who are you?" I asked, raising my right eyebrow.

She giggled and smiled, "My name is Luna, don't tell me that you forgot me."

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~LCG