Chapter 24: Let Me Fight For You
Monday, August 15th, 2016
The remainder of the lunch period passed without incident. After throwing away their garbage and returning their trays, the teenagers grabbed their schoolbags and split off into groups as they headed for their afternoon classes. With Natsume and Nonoko on either side of her, Mikan happily made her way towards Narumi-sensei's classroom for 4th period Japanese I. She chatted animatedly with the tall bluenette as they maneuvered the busy hallways, oblivious to the many looks aimed her way, some of them dirty, others merely curious.
Natsume strode confidently alongside the two girls, keeping close to Mikan as they went. He silently observed the great number of open stares and quiet conversations directed at his companion and noted that his crush was receiving even more attention than she had on their walk to school that morning. As usual, the handsome teen was receiving plenty of attention himself, but people were definitely taking notice of the caramel-haired girl beside him even before their eyes landed on him. He wondered if the sudden uptick in interest was due to the altercation she'd had with Kobayashi Mayuri and Suzuki Rima awhile ago or if it was simply the work of the rumor mill since she'd first arrived at school five hours ago.
He mentally sighed. Although he'd managed to calm down since the lunch incident, he was still agitated by the thought of it. It was only the first frickin' day of school and already his fan girls were causing Mikan problems. We'll make sure they regret it… That's what he'd said, but he couldn't think of how exactly he'd achieve such a feat if it became necessary. Even while keeping some semblance of a barrier around himself all these years, clearly denoting who was and who wasn't a member of his inner circle, he'd managed to maintain the upstanding reputation expected of him as the HDI and Hyuuga family heir. If the treatment Mikan had received at lunch was going to become a pattern, Natsume wasn't confident that he wouldn't eventually lose his temper and risk offending someone with a relationship to HDI.
Resolutely, he shoved his negative thoughts aside. At least for the next hour and a quarter, he could watch over her himself and he was hell-bent on enjoying their time together. Once soccer and his HDI training started up next week, he'd be incredibly busy, so lunch and Japanese I were his only real guaranteed times to see her each day. It sucked that she was actually here in Tokyo now and they'd still only have a limited amount of time together, but he was determined to take whatever he could get.
Maybe I can get her to keep working out with me before school…
When the trio made it to Narumi-sensei's classroom, Mikan and Nonoko laughed merrily at the sight of the handsome teacher standing in front of the whiteboard. He was wearing a Shakespearean getup complete with a boysenberry cape and the same wide-brimmed hat with the great white plume that Mikan had seen him in last week. His lilac eyes glittered brightly as he swept off his hat and offered them a grand bow.
"Welcome to my humble classroom, Natsume-kun, Mikan-chan, Nonoko-chan!"
Grinning broadly, Mikan skipped up to the blond man. "Good afternoon, Narumi-sensei! Did you change after the opening ceremony this morning?"
Plunking his hat back on his head, Narumi-sensei gave her a carefree smile. "I did! Principal Masachika would have scolded me for not looking professional enough in front of the school's guests if I'd worn this earlier, but it's much better than some drab old suit and tie for teaching writing and literature. May imagination flow freely and romanticism abound!" He glanced at each of her companions in turn. "How is your first day going? I see you've made a new friend."
"I've made two today! Nonoko-chan and Ogasawara Anna-chan."
"Excellent!" The teacher patted Nonoko's shoulder. "It's wonderful of you to welcome a new student so openly. You're a blue-eyed, blue-haired angel!"
Nonoko turned to Mikan, torn between blushing and giggling at the compliment. "I'm happy to have made friends with Mikan-chan."
Narumi-sensei beamed. "Fabulous! Feel free to sit anywhere you like. Good company makes time fly!"
As the teacher moved on to greet other incoming students, the trio headed for the rows of desks. The layout was a bit different than Mikan's other classes. The large wooden desks were two seats wide and spaced in a simple 4x4 grid for a total of 16 desks with 32 seats. Looking out over the mostly empty room, Mikan moved to place her bag on the front right desk closest to the windows, but stopped when Natsume pulled her back by the elbow. "Let's sit in the back."
Mikan blinked at him curiously. "Why? I want to sit near Narumi-sensei."
"The whole room can stare at the people in the front," Natsume muttered quietly so that only Mikan and Nonoko could hear him.
Mikan grinned. "Okay, Mr. Popular, we can sit in the back for your sake."
As they moved along the windows to the desks in the last row, Nonoko commented, "It's probably just as good for your sake, too, Mikan-chan."
Mikan sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. I do seem to be a bit of a novelty at the moment, don't I?"
When they reached the final row, Mikan looked at the two desks on the window side of the aisle uncertainly. Since each desk could seat a pair of students, whichever of her friends she didn't sit with would be at a desk alone. Before she could make a decision, Nonoko smiled understandingly as she took the second seat from the aisle. "You should sit with Hyuuga-san, Mikan-chan. This is your only class together, right? I'm sure he doesn't want someone else to get the seat next to him, and besides, we're still next to each other this way even if we're not tablemates."
Mikan grinned. "Thanks, Nonoko-chan!" While Natsume took the window seat, Mikan quickly sat beside him. She hung up her bag on the hook on her side of their shared desk before glancing around the room, her legs bouncing energetically beneath the tabletop. Thankfully, the front and sides of the desks reached all the way to the floor, providing modest cover for the skirt-clad girls.
"Ami-chan!"
At Nonoko's sudden call, Mikan turned her attention to a curly-haired brunette who was heading up the aisle towards them. "Hi, Nonoko-chan!" She glanced at Mikan and Natsume as she plopped into the empty aisle seat beside the bluenette.
Nonoko smiled brightly. "Mikan-chan, this is Ueno Ami from the volleyball team. Ami-chan, this is Sakura Mikan. She's new."
"Huh... so you're the one everyone is buzzing about." Ami's warm brown eyes sparkled with mischievous amusement. She smirked teasingly as she crossed her arms on the desktop and rested her chin in her palm. "You certainly don't look like a man-eating whore."
Mikan instantly choked, her eyes widening as her hand flew to her mouth in shock. Just as quickly, her shock melted into peals of laughter. She couldn't help it. The insult was so over-the-top and dramatic that she couldn't see it as anything but ridiculous. She snorted hysterically when she saw Natsume glaring silently at the newcomer.
Nonoko looked horrified. "Did someone actually say that about her, Ami-chan?"
Ami grinned. "Yep. I heard Suzuki-san and Kobayashi-san cursing her existence in the girls' restroom on the north side of the cafeteria during lunch. It was pretty funny to listen to, if I'm being honest. Those girls are pathetic."
Mikan wiped tears of mirth from her amber eyes as her laughter finally subsided. "Oh man… That really is pathetic. Their name-calling wasn't very nice before, but now that they're mad at me, they're stooping even lower behind my back? That's so immature it's hilarious."
Ami winked. "You got that right."
Nonoko shook her head, her expression a mixture of dismay and astonishment. "This is crazy. You haven't even been here a whole day yet, Mikan-chan."
Mikan shrugged, unable to be rid of the broad grin on her face. "Whatever. Their actions don't dictate mine and it's no use getting my feelings hurt."
"If you can help it," Natsume muttered so quietly that only Mikan heard him.
She glanced at him curiously, noting his scowl. It was unusual for him to be upset enough for it to noticeably show on his face. When she thought about it, she realized that it wasn't actually all that surprising. He'd been angry enough already at Rima and Mayuri's attitudes towards her at lunch, so it made sense that their latest insult just added to his ire.
She smiled. Although she didn't want him stressing about his fan girls' harsh attitudes, she appreciated that he cared enough to worry about her. She turned her attention towards the front of the classroom where Narumi-sensei was shutting the door as the bell rang signaling the start of class. Beneath the desk, she pressed her left leg against Natsume's right one, hoping that the discreet physical contact would soothe him. Sure enough, Natsume glanced at her before the wrinkle between his eyebrows smoothed away. She felt his leg press equally close to hers in response as he softly released a deep breath.
With a great swirl of his boysenberry cape, Narumi-sensei addressed the students. "Welcome to Japanese I! As you all know, I am your teacher, Anju Narumi, as well as your 1st Year Faculty Advisor. I'm here to guide you, support you, and challenge you as we all learn and grow together over the next four months. Think of me as your Gandalf as we embark on this remarkable journey.
"What a tremendous semester we have before us! You've all just started your high school careers, your minds are full of hopes and dreams for the future, and your hearts are blossoming with youthful romance. It's a spectacular season of life!"
Mikan grinned, finding the blond teacher's enthusiasm contagious. Beside her, Natsume quirked an eyebrow, neither impressed nor antagonistic towards the quirky teacher.
Narumi-sensei clapped his hands brightly. "Now, one of the basic rules of any adventure is to have a faithful companion to share in your triumphs and struggles, so the person sharing your desk will be your class partner. Partners will work together on various assignments, study together, share notes, whatever will help you all to succeed and get the most out of the course, so be sure to exchange contact information before the end of class today."
Mikan looked at Natsume with raised eyebrows. So they would be partners in this class, huh? She grinned, scrunching up her nose cutely. Natsume smirked, pleased by the unexpected news. When he turned to face the front again, he noticed several girls looking back at Mikan with distinctly irritated expressions. He grit his teeth, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. His fan girls had caused enough trouble today and he didn't want to let their jealousy taint his enjoyment of the new partnership with his crush.
Their teacher continued. "On that note, I have your very first assignment— sort of a get-to-know-you exercise. Over the next 10 minutes, I want you to learn as much previously unknown information about your partner as you can. By 'previously unknown,' I simply mean something you didn't know before. For example, if Shota-kun already knows that Ryuu-kun loves takoyaki, plays basketball, and has three sisters, none of that information counts. You must discover things about each other that is new to you. Keep in mind that while things like favorite color and favorite food are all well and fine, I want you to really get to know each other, to dig deep into each other's lives, hearts, and minds, so try to come up with something deep and meaningful in addition to the generic fun facts. Everybody ready? Begin!"
Many glances were exchanged as the students began pulling paper and writing utensils from their bags. Soon the room was full of the lively sound of chatting teenagers. Mikan tapped her pen on her notebook as she stared at Natsume, who was watching her with genuine amusement. She hummed. "What do we not know about each other?"
After a moment of contemplation, a sly twinkle entered Natsume's eyes. Scooting his chair closer to hers, he kept his voice quiet as he leaned towards her. "What's your bra size?"
Predictably, Mikan reddened. "Pervert!" she hissed lowly.
Natsume smirked. "You already knew that, so it doesn't count."
Mikan rolled her eyes. "I wasn't stating it as a fact for the assignment, Natsume. Come on, be serious for a minute. There's got to be loads of stuff we don't know about each other."
"Like what?"
Mikan bit her lip as she wracked her brain for something they could use. "Oh, I know! Do you want to have kids?"
"You already know the answer to that."
Mikan sighed. "You're right. Oh! But I don't know how many you want, so tell me that."
He shrugged. "More than one. You?"
"I think four would be nice."
He regarded her thoughtfully. "Yeah, I can see you wanting a big family after growing up with just you and your grandfather."
Mikan smiled brightly. "I want our kids to have playmates year round instead of just during the summer like I have."
Natsume smirked, cocking an eyebrow. "Our kids, Polka Dots?"
Mikan blinked, then blushed when she realized that she had indeed said "our" instead of "my." She refused to look away as she quickly came up with an explanation. "Well, sure. There's a chance that we'll end up having kids together, and even if we don't, my kids will play with your kids, so either way, it's our kids playing together."
The pair were huddled so close over Mikan's notebook in an effort to not be overheard by their classmates that they could see the unique flecks and swirls in each other's eyes. Cheeks still pink, Mikan waited to see if Natsume would accept her explanation.
"Hmm… I like the first option better."
Mikan's heart tripped in her chest. Quickly turning her attention to her notebook, she began writing as she muttered, "Okay, moving on."
Beside her, Natsume smirked. She was always so cute when she was embarrassed. He'd only spoken the truth though. With the way things were between them right now, he much preferred the idea of her having kids with him than watching her marry and have kids with some other guy. Briefly, he acknowledged that it was possible his feelings would change before they finished growing up, but it was true for now.
The two teens continued to search for things they didn't know about each other. Much to Natsume's annoyance, when the 10 minutes were up, Narumi-sensei began calling the students up one pair at a time to introduce each other with their lists. He had no problem with public speaking; he just didn't like having his and Mikan's personal life details made public. For her part, Mikan enjoyed listening to the various facts that people had come up with. Sometimes the introductions were quite comical, sending a wave of giggles and laughter rippling through the class. When Nonoko and Ami had finished introducing each other, Mikan and Natsume made their way to the front of the room as the last pair. A new tension seemed to fill the air as vividly interested eyes studied the perky new girl and popular boy with his hands shoved in his pockets.
"Hello! This is Hyuuga Natsume. He wants to have more than one kid someday and defeated Chronos Force 4 in eight hours."
"This is Sakura Mikan. She wants four kids, once got to pet a sea turtle, and has never been to Starbucks."
After a moment of silence, Narumi-sensei inquired curiously, "Is that it?"
Mikan gave the teacher an apologetic smile. "We tried to come up with more, but it was really hard to think of things we don't already know about each other."
Narumi-sensei grinned. "Ah, that means you must be very close! Let's put the two of you to the test then, shall we?" With a dramatic flourish, the teacher plucked a large pink rose out of a vase on his desk and brandished it towards Mikan like a pointer. "Mikan-chan, what is Natsume-kun's favorite color?"
"Red," she answered without hesitation.
The theatrical teacher waved the rose at Natsume. "Is that correct?"
The teenager nodded silently, not at all thrilled to be playing 20 questions in front of their audience. He cherished his privacy and a number of girls in the class were looking a little too interested as they watched and listened.
"Alright! Same question about Mikan-chan."
Blandly, Natsume replied, "All of them."
Narumi-sensei blinked. "Pardon?"
Calmly, Natsume explained. "She doesn't have a single favorite color. She likes all of them."
"Yep!" Mikan chirped with a grin.
Narumi-sensei smiled. "Okay then, Natsume-kun, what is Mikan-chan afraid of?"
"The occult."
Narumi-sensei turned to Mikan for confirmation. She winced. "Supernatural horror freaks me out."
The teacher smiled. "Understandably so! Now then, what is Natsume-kun afraid of?"
Confidently, Mikan replied, "Not being able to protect the people he cares about."
Natsume glanced at the caramel-haired girl beside him. He couldn't recall ever saying that to her directly, but she definitely hit the nail on the head anyway. When Narumi-sensei quirked an eyebrow at him inquiringly, Natsume simply nodded.
The teacher grinned broadly. "That's quite noble of you, Natsume-kun! Alright then, let's try a trickier question. Mikan-chan, what do you think Natsume's life motto should be?"
Mikan turned to study Natsume's face thoughtfully. He met her amber eyes stoically, ever conscious of their classmates watching them closely. He could tell the moment she thought of her answer by the way her eyes lit up and the corners of her lips curled reflexively. She turned to Narumi-sensei with a light blush. "I've thought of one, but… Is it okay if I say a bad word?" Curiously, Narumi-sensei nodded. With a grin, Mikan chirped, "Natsume's life motto should be 'Do no harm, but take no shit.'"
Instantly, a number of the boys guffawed at her audacious answer, most of them admiring her choice and all of them amused by it. The girls' reactions were more varied, with some of them raising their eyebrows at her daring language while others studied Natsume's face intently to see if he would approve of her answer. The handsome teenager quirked an amused eyebrow at his friend's self-satisfied grin. "You got that quote off one of my pajama tops."
Mikan's head bobbed in acknowledgement. "I think it works for you."
Natsume shrugged. "Well enough."
With his keen sense of hearing, he caught one of the girls sitting nearby stage-whisper disapprovingly to her tablemate, "She's seen Natsume-sama in his pajamas?" Silently, Natsume cursed himself a fool for his brief slip.
Narumi-sensei beamed. "Excellent! Final question to you, Natsume-kun. What should Mikan-chan's life motto be?"
Holding back his irritation, Natsume answered blandly, "Eat more cake?"
"Natsume!" Mikan objected, slapping his arm. Several girls inhaled sharply, their eyes narrowing in offense at her action.
A small smirk flashed across his face. "Fine then, how about 'Have courage and be kind'?"
Mikan cocked an eyebrow. "From Cinderella?"
Natsume nodded and turned to Narumi-sensei. "That's her life's motto."
"What say you, Mikan-chan?"
Mikan smiled, her eyes sparkling merrily. "I'll take it."
"Spectacular! Well done, you two. You certainly do know each other quite well. That makes you the perfect candidates to help with my next demonstration, since the two of you are already up here." With a twirl of his cape, Narumi-sensei turned to his desk to plunk the pink rose blossom back in its vase. Moving to the dry erase board on the front wall, he selected a red marker and wrote "WORDS" in large, bold lettering. His voice rang with passion as he addressed his students.
"In this class, you will study many things and complete many tasks, all of which you can read about in your course syllabus, but what you will actually learn in Japanese I—what you've been learning since birth and will continue to learn for the rest of your lives—is the power of words. Yes, indeed, I said power. There is no greater power we humans possess than words, than advanced, complex, detailed language. It's what separates us from animals, what allows us to collaborate and advance. Words, whether written or spoken, give us the power to exact authority over one another, to organize civilizations, to create new technologies, to express love and rage, to pass down our histories, to share with one another vast worlds that only exist in our minds.
"Have any of you ever heard the tale of the Tower of Babel? In the story, the people banded together to build a great tower, thinking that they could make it tall enough to reach Heaven. Knowing how foolish their venture was, Kami-sama took action to end the tower's construction. How? With armies of angels? With great bolts of lightning? With a weapon of mass destruction? No! All Kami-sama did was mix-up their language. According to the story, everyone on Earth had spoken one unified language before, but then suddenly they were all speaking in different tongues and couldn't understand each other. Without an effective way to communicate, the project ended and the people migrated apart into the early ethnic landscape that shaped today's world. What a brilliant story of the power of words!"
Returning to Natsume and Mikan, Narumi-sensei gripped their shoulders to turn them towards one another. "Face each other, please. Now, with Natsume-kun and Mikan-chan's assistance, we're going to demonstrate the power of words. Open your minds! Broaden your imaginations! Get your creative juices flowing! Think of your favorite stories, whether they came from books or movies or you lived them yourselves. Think of magic spells, proclamations of true love, death sentences, and heroic deeds! Think of the happiest you've ever been and the moment you were at your lowest. Fill yourselves with the infinite universe of possibility as you listen and observe. I want you all to feel the power of words."
Mikan bit her lower lip to keep from giggling at the teacher's dramatic speech. Narumi-sensei was definitely her favorite teacher so far. Natsume met her eyes stoically, apprehensive about what exactly the unconventional teacher was about to ask them to do in front of everyone. Across from him, Mikan grinned, correctly guessing his thoughts and eager to find out what Narumi-sensei had in store for them. Natsume resisted the urge to roll his eyes, choosing instead to glare lightly at his cute friend.
Narumi-sensei took a step back and addressed the pair directly. "Now then, think of this exercise as a competition, a game you're playing against one another. I'm going to give you a prompt and your job is to say things back and forth based on the prompt. Your goal is to choose powerful words and not run out of things to say before your partner does. So for example, the first prompt is an easy one: Questions. One of you will ask a question, then the other will ask a different question, back and forth, back and forth until one of you fails to come up with something new to say or I change the prompt. Remember though, you're trying to say something that could be considered powerful in some context or scenario, so think of emotionally charged language, phrases that could have tremendous consequences or influence over people or the course of events. Your responses can play off each other or be completely independent. Take a moment to think about it, then Natsume-kun, you start."
The two students nodded before facing one another, eyes locking as they both pondered the initial prompt. Although creativity and imagination were definitely Mikan's forte, Natsume was confident that he was clever enough to keep up with her. Given their current task, an idea quickly came to his mind, so he delivered his first question easily. "Do you think this is a game?"
"Will you marry me?"
Scattered gasps emanated from around the room. Natsume raised an eyebrow at the impishly smiling girl before him, her amber eyes glittering mischievously. Despite the reactions from their classmates, he couldn't help being amused by her choice of questions. That aside, he hadn't expected her to fire one back so quickly. Not to be outdone, he promptly pitched another. "What exactly were you hoping for?"
"Was it all a lie?"
Natsume blinked. Two seconds ago, Mikan was radiating happiness, but now she was frowning with an angry wrinkle between her brows and hurt evident in her eyes. Even her voice sounded heated with painful accusation. He swallowed, momentarily thrown off by her acting. Thinking quickly, he once again played off of her line. "Why couldn't you ever trust me?"
"Will I ever be enough?"
The broken whisper breathed from between trembling lips made the hairs on the back of Natsume's neck stand up. He knew she was just pretending for the sake of the assignment, but his heart instantly rejected the question from the girl he cared for so deeply. Licking his lips, he focused on the task at hand. "Will you forgive me?"
Mikan grinned delightedly. Just as quickly as her countenance had become heartbroken, it was now jolly and brimming with energy. "Shall we go on an adventure?"
Natsume smirked. "How much innocent blood is on your hands?" He got a kick out of the shocked and horrified look that crossed Mikan's face at his question. Several boys in the audience snorted, amused by the exchange.
With a determined frown, Mikan countered him flawlessly. "How could you say that?"
"Excellent!" Narumi-sensei interrupted. "Really, that was quite splendid! Were you all able to imagine how each question could bear great power in the right situation? A proposal of marriage, a plead for forgiveness, an invitation to a life-altering journey— all fantastic examples of powerful words!
"Let's continue. Wonderful job saying it like you meant it, Mikan-chan! Natsume-kun, let's try to liven it up a bit with this next prompt, shall we? Don't be afraid to inject some emotion into your words. Your second prompt is three words. So again, you're trying to come up with powerful statements, whatever you like, but only in three words— no more, no less. Mikan-chan, you start this time."
Amber met garnet as the pair thought about this new prompt, which was considerably more constraining than the last. Based on how the previous round had gone, Natsume decided that responding naturally to whatever Mikan said would probably work out fine. He grew curious when she hesitated, her cheeks flushed a light shade of pink. He watched as she cleared her throat and brushed her thoughts aside before declaring her first statement boldly.
"I love you."
Natsume bit his tongue to suppress a grin, ignoring the quiet sounds of their audience reacting to her words. So that's why she was blushing. Call him a fool, but Natsume couldn't help being pleased, despite knowing that it was just an assignment, so it didn't really count. Ever since their relationship had turned romantic, they had intentionally avoided the phrase knowing that it would mean something entirely different now than when they'd truly been "just friends," so simply hearing it spoken out loud by his crush was enough to lift his mood.
Going with his plan to simply counter Mikan's statements, he scoffed. "I hate you."
Mikan pouted. "I always have."
"I never will."
A grin flashed across Mikan's face as she recognized Natsume's chosen tactic. Schooling her features into a look of betrayal, she hissed vehemently, "I trusted you."
Natsume shrugged. "I warned you."
Mikan continued with an air of resignation. "I need help."
"I'm done trying."
Mikan blinked. Natsume was getting really good at this. She gazed deeply into his eyes as she spoke fervently. "I need you."
Stoically, Natsume shook his head. "I just can't."
Mikan's expression melted into one of sadness and regret. "I'm so sorry."
After a brief pause, Natsume whispered, "Don't you dare."
The class inexplicably found themselves watching the exchange with baited breath. Mikan's enthusiasm had proven engaging, but now that Natsume was responding in kind, the tension formed between them was captivating.
"I'm begging you."
"I'm done waiting."
"We'll never survive!"
"We'll make it."
"Please don't go."
"Stay with me."
Once again, Narumi-sensei stopped them. "Wow! That was fantastic! I think you two have done one of the best jobs with this exercise that I've ever seen! Let's do one more, the take-all end-all, the round of champions. You only get one answer each, so make it count. This one's really tricky. Your prompt is one word. Say something powerful and impactful, emotional and meaningful, something that could change your lives and the course of history forever, and say it in only one word. Natsume-kun, you go first."
Mikan looked at her partner wide-eyed. A single word powerful enough to change history? She studied Natsume's face as he gazed back at her intently. She thought about their many years together, the growth of their friendship over time, the feelings they felt for one another now, and suddenly it came to her, a single word that could change everything. She took a deep breath and waited to see what Natsume would say first.
His voice was soft. "Please."
More than a few girls felt their hearts flutter at the sound of Hyuuga Natsume pleading (or his version, anyway) in a hushed, subdued tone. He was gazing steadily at his partner, his garnet eyes appearing dark and shadowed. His onlookers shifted their attention to Mikan. How could she possibly top that?
Natsume knew he'd come up with a good one, but he wasn't confident that it would be better than Mikan's, not when she was gazing at him so uncharacteristically coldly, almost stone-faced. No, wait— was that a tinge of sadness in her eyes? He felt strangely apprehensive as he waited for her final answer. When she finally spoke her single chosen word in a calm, clear voice, Natsume felt it shoot straight through his heart.
"Goodbye."
For a moment, no one spoke, no one breathed. Then Narumi-sensei startled everyone out of their momentary trance with his enthusiastic clapping. "Bravo! Bravo! What a finale! Everyone, please give Mikan-chan and Natsume-kun a round of applause as they make their way back to their seats. Fantastic job, you two!"
Amidst the clapping of their classmates, Mikan and Natsume made their way up the aisle to their desk. As Narumi-sensei continued to espouse the value of words to the class, Mikan found her eyes and attention wandering to her partner. Natsume's face was completely blank, his posture stiff and tense. Mikan frowned. She knew he was bound to dislike their previous activity since he wasn't really keen on putting himself on display for his fan girls (or anyone he wasn't close to really), but now that it was over, he should be back to his normal self.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to her. Is he thinking about my last answer, "goodbye"? Her lips twitched into a small smile as a familiar warmth filled her chest. She knew her friend's distress shouldn't make her happy, but she recognized what it meant; Natsume cared about her and wanted her with him enough that the very idea of her leaving—saying goodbye—was upsetting. She couldn't help that the reminder made her feel special. Still, she didn't want him to feel sullen. Carefully, she shifted her chair closer to his, mindful not to make any noise that might draw attention to them. Eyes trained on Narumi-sensei, she reached out a hand and placed it comfortingly on Natsume's thigh. Beside her, the boy blinked, his blank expression cracking. When he reached to grip her hand, he squeezed it tightly.
As class continued on, their clasped hands resting on his leg slowly melted away Natsume's tension. Eventually, he even smirked, thinking that these enclosed desks were quite nice. Mikan had already taken advantage of the privacy they provided twice, a fact which Natsume found gratifying. It seemed that Japanese I was going to be his favorite class this semester and it wasn't going to have anything to do with the teacher or curriculum.
When Narumi-sensei finished his long speech, he gave them a reading assignment from their literature textbook to be discussed the following day and a self-reflection essay due Friday. Natsume didn't mind when Mikan pulled her hand away so they could get out their textbooks; as soon as they'd both reached the right page and started reading silently, he simply reached over to take her hand again. A subtle glance at his partner showed that his action had made her smile.
They read the assigned short story contentedly. Once the majority of the students had finished, Narumi-sensei gave them permission to socialize until the bell rang. Mikan chatted happily with Nonoko and Ami while Natsume conversed with a couple of old teammates who approached him about the upcoming soccer tryouts.
When the period ended, Natsume followed Mikan and Nonoko out the door before pausing to say goodbye. "I have Fine Arts Survey next, so I'm headed this way."
Mikan smiled. "Okay. I'll see you after school! Say hi to Hotaru, Sumire-chan, and Wakako-chan for me, please!" Natsume nodded silently before setting off down a different hallway. Mikan watched him go for a moment, counting no less than four girls greet him before he'd even made it 20 steps. She shook her head with a sympathetic smile. Poor Natsume. He really can't catch a break from them, can he?
As they made their way to their last class of the day, Mikan and Nonoko continued chatting happily. They were enjoying getting to know each other, both of them pleased to have made a new friend. Mikan loved Nonoko's genuine friendliness and admired how boldly she'd stood up for her at lunchtime even though they'd only just met that morning. Similarly, Nonoko was irresistibly drawn to Mikan's bubbly cheerfulness and sincere optimism. They grinned and waved when they passed Koko and Anna, whose afternoon schedule was the exact opposite of theirs. A few minutes later, they were right around the corner from their destination when a pair of arms unexpectedly draped around the girls' shoulders.
"What's up, ladies?"
Mikan grinned. "Hi, Kitsu-kun!"
The incorrigible boy returned her grin. "Long-time, no-see."
Nonoko cocked an eyebrow at him quizzically. "We just saw each other at lunch, Akeshi-san."
"Kitsu," he quickly corrected, "with an optional –kun. I feel like I'm about to get scolded when someone calls me Akeshi-san."
Nonoko smiled. "Okay then, Kitsu-kun it is."
"Where are you coming from, Kitsu-kun?" Mikan asked.
"Mochu and I just had Biology with Misaki-sensei." He turned to look over his shoulder, then frowned in confusion. "He was right behind me a second ago…"
"I'm right here, you idiot."
Mikan and Nonoko giggled at the astonished look on Kitsu's face when he whipped back around to see his tall, muscular friend with buzzed eggplant-colored hair standing by the door of their next class. "How did you get in front of me?!"
Mochu regarded his friend stoically. "By not stopping to flirt."
"Hey now, there's no harm in a little casual flirting among friends, am I right, ladies?" Kitsu quipped, winking at the two girls as he dropped his arms so they could pass through the doorway in a single file. Mikan and Nonoko exchanged an amused look, stifling their giggles and choosing not to respond as they entered the large, tiered lecture hall.
"Mikan-chan! Ogasawara-san!"
Mikan looked to her left and grinned. "Iinchou! Ruka-pyon! You're both here already."
Ruka nodded. "We had Fine Arts Survey together last period."
The Class Representative smiled from the empty back row. "I hope you don't mind sitting in the back. I'd like to be near the exit so I can leave promptly on days I have Student Council activities after school."
"This is great! We can see everything up here," Mikan chirped brightly as she and the other new arrivals chose their seats. She and Nonoko took the end seats beside Yuu while Kitsu and Mochu sat down on Ruka's left. "Thanks for saving us seats!"
"Yes, thank you, Iinchou," Nonoko added.
"Of course! It's my pleasure," the dirty blond answered kindly. He adjusted his glasses as he glanced between the two girls. "How was Japanese I?"
Nonoko grinned as she pulled her long navy ponytail to drape over one shoulder. "It was great! Narumi-sensei is really entertaining. He's obviously quite passionate about what he teaches."
"You've got that right," Mikan tittered. "It's definitely been my favorite class so far! Of course, I've always been better at classes like Japanese, art, and P.E. I'm really no good at technical stuff like math and science. I'm not bad at remembering events in history because I try to think of it as one big story, but I struggle to recall details like dates."
Yuu smiled encouragingly. "That's okay, Mikan-chan. Everyone is wired differently and you're certainly not the only one who's more naturally inclined to the creative arts."
The teenage girl perked up. "I was really good at English, too, at my last school anyway."
Yuu nodded. "Yeah, English is only a required course through middle school. It's still available as an elective in high school, we just don't have any elective openings in our class schedules until our second semester as 2nd Years." Lowering his voice, he asked gently, "Has anyone given you any more trouble since lunch? I still feel horrible that Suzuki-san and Kobayashi-san picked on you like that."
Mikan waved her hand dismissively. "Don't sweat it, Iinchou. You're a much better representation of the 1st Year students than those two. Everything has been fine today apart from them." A second later, she grimaced. "I take that back. Jinno-sensei's math test was worse than them."
Yuu smiled, his light brown irises tinged with relief. "Good. If you ever find yourself feeling uncomfortable with any of our fellow students, please let me know. I'll support you however I can."
Mikan grinned. "Thank you, Iinchou! You guys are the best! Did you hear Nonoko-chan stick up for me earlier? She was great!"
Yuu smiled at the bluenette on Mikan's other side. "I did. It was very kind and courageous of you to stand up for a new student, Ogasawara-san. I was impressed."
Nonoko blushed and shifted in her seat. "It was the right thing to do. I know how Anna has felt when people have implied that she isn't as valuable a person or doesn't belong at Alice Academy as much because of meaningless things like wealth or power, so I just couldn't be silent seeing it happen to Mikan-chan." Smiling, she added, "You were impressive, too, Iinchou. You really kept your cool. I could tell why you're such a good leader."
Yuu felt his face grow warm at the praise. He opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the bell. He turned his attention studiously to the front of the room. Beside him, Mikan peered curiously down at the stage-like platform where Noda-sensei stood behind a wide podium equipped with a computer and a microphone. On the wall behind him was an enormous whiteboard, above which she noticed the apparatus of a retractable projector screen. The majority of the room was filled with a semicircle of tiered rows split in half by a carpeted staircase and descending from the entrance at the back to the platform at the front. Each tier was fitted with one long desk that was bolted to the floor with chairs spaced along the aisle behind it. Mikan was grateful that the front of the desks reached the floor, preventing any inappropriate views for people looking back. A quick glance around the lecture hall showed that this was easily the largest group of students in any of her classes.
As with most of her classes that day, Japanese History proved to be uneventful. After greeting them and taking roll call, Noda-sensei reviewed the course syllabus, which revealed that the semester was going to be very straight forward and consistent. They would read a chapter or chapters from the textbook over the weekend and complete any included assignments, then Noda-sensei would lecture on the content on Monday. This pattern would repeat for most of the week, but end with studying Thursday night for a test each Friday. Although weekly tests seemed like a lot of work to Mikan, she appreciated that she wouldn't have to remember more than four days of material at a time. She was particularly thrilled when Noda-sensei explained that instead of exams, the mid-term would be a research paper and the final would be a group project.
The students spent the rest of the period reading the first two chapters of the textbook and answering the comprehension questions and multiple choice review questions that accompanied each. Happily, Mikan finished the last one with four minutes to spare. Since she'd completed the reading assignment in Japanese last period, she didn't have any homework left for the evening.
As she packed up her belongings, she glanced at the work Yuu was doing beside her. Her eyes bugged out of her head at the complicated math problems. Apparently, he'd moved on to other homework after finishing the history assignment. When he noticed her look, he flashed her an amused smile.
"It's calculus," he whispered.
Wide-eyed, Mikan shook her head. "Thank goodness I'm only taking algebra," she whispered back.
As she sat quietly waiting for the bell to ring, Mikan thought about the sweet, intelligent 1st Year Class Representative. He was her first new friend at Alice Academy and had been so kind and friendly to her since they met for her campus tour last week. She chewed on her lower lip as the thought reminded her of their upcoming date to the Sakuradia. She still needed to clarify with him about it. She felt a ball of nerves twist in her stomach as she worried that she might end up hurting his feelings, but Natsume was right, she needed to be honest and Yuu seemed like the kind of person who would appreciate being told the truth.
When the bell rang, Yuu quickly put away his schoolwork. As he swung his satchel's strap over his head, he offered the two girls a warm smile. "Congratulations on making it through the first day of high school, Mikan-chan, Ogasawara-san. I have a Student Council meeting now, so I'll be heading out first."
Nonoko smiled. "Thank you, Iinchou. Um… you can call me by my given name if you'd like."
The teen smiled. "Likewise, Nonoko-chan." The bluenette nodded, her cheeks tinged a light shade of pink.
Mikan quickly stood up. "Wait, Iinchou! I need to talk to you about something. I know you're in a hurry, so may I walk with you to your meeting?"
Yuu blinked in surprise before smiling amiably. "Sure, Mikan-chan. Let's go."
Mikan waved to Nonoko and her other friends as she followed Yuu out the door. "I'll see you in art tomorrow, Nonoko-chan! Bye, guys!"
As they made their way through the busy corridors of the High School Division, the pair stuck close to each other's side. "So what's on your mind, Mikan-chan?"
"Well…I…"
Mikan frowned. This really wasn't the private setting in which she wanted to have this conversation. Even though they could hear each other just fine over the hustle and bustle, it would be only too easy for passersby to overhear what they were saying. "On second thought, I'll tell you when we stop."
Yuu nodded. "Okay."
Mikan followed her friend faithfully, having no idea where the Student Council Room was located. After weaving their way through the school to the third floor of the main building, they finally ascended a short staircase that led to the middle of a short, empty hallway. Large windows at each end filled the hall with sunlight. Directly across from the staircase stood a grand pair of double-doors, but instead of approaching them, Yuu glanced around. "We can talk over here," he offered. After stopping by the window at one end of the hall, he turned to face her. "Is this okay?"
Mikan returned his smile. "This is fine." She fidgeted self-consciously. "So… I want to talk to you about the Sakuradia."
Yuu immediately became earnest. "I owe you an apology, Mikan-chan. It's come to my attention that I didn't make my intentions clear when I asked you to be my date or stop to think about how being asked out by someone you just met might have come across to you. I want you to know that I'm only expecting us to go as friends. We hit it off really well the other day, so I invited you because I sincerely want to go with you, but I don't want you to think that I was asking for anything more serious or romantic. I apologize if I made you feel pressured or uncomfortable."
Mikan blinked in surprise, then laughed with relief. "You don't have anything to apologize for, Yuu-kun! It was really sweet of you to ask me to go with you even though I'm new here. I'm glad to hear that our expectations are the same though." She winced. "I have to confess… when you asked me to go with you, I didn't actually know what the Sakuradia was, so I didn't realize until later that you were asking me on a date. I assumed the Sakuradia was just some place on campus that you were offering to show me sometime. I should have confirmed with you instead of making assumptions."
Yuu looked puzzled. "You didn't know…?" A moment later, his eyes widened with realization. "Of course! You're brand new. I should have realized that you might not have heard about the Sakuradia. I'm so sorry, Mikan-chan." He ran his fingers through his hair agitatedly. "Man, I really did a bang-up job of asking a girl out for the first time. Now that you know, please don't feel like you have to go with me if you don't want to, Mikan-chan."
Mikan quickly waved her hands and shook her head. "No, no, no! Please don't misunderstand. I still want to go together and I'm truly looking forward to it. I just wanted to be honest with you and make sure that we're both on the same page about going as just friends. I would feel terrible if you thought that we were going together romantically only to find out later that I'm not looking for anything more than friendship right now."
Yuu chuckled. "It sounds like we were both worried about the same thing."
Mikan grinned. "Sounds like it. I really do think we'll have a lot of fun! We never had super formal events at my last school, so I'm looking forward to experiencing something new."
"I'll do my best to be a worthy escort," Yuu promised.
"I'm sure you will be." Mikan glanced towards the staircase when she heard footsteps. An upperclassman appeared and headed straight into the Student Council Room without sparing the pair by the window a single glance. "I'd better let you get to your meeting. Thanks for letting me steal a couple minutes of your time!"
"Of course, Mikan-chan. I'll see you at lunch tomorrow."
"Bye-bye!"
Mikan briskly skipped across the hall and down the stairs, heading for her locker to put away her textbooks. She felt relieved that she'd been able to set the record straight with Yuu without hurting his feelings. On top of that, she'd survived her first day at Alice Academy and even made two new friends. She was feeling quite cheerful as she moved through the corridors and down another staircase. When she reached the bottom, her smile faltered as she looked around. Wait, this isn't right… She didn't recognize the hallway at all.
"Maybe I took the wrong staircase…?" she muttered faintly to herself. She quickly stepped out of the way when a trio of boys came down the stairs behind her. Pressed against the wall, she bit her lip. There were only two options: wander around until she saw something familiar or ask for directions. Everywhere she looked, students were either moving on, eager to leave now that the school day was over, or holding conversations in small groups. She really didn't want to interrupt them…
There! She spotted an upperclassman leaning against the wall looking at her cell phone. As least she wasn't going anywhere and wasn't actively engaged in conversation. Mikan approached the girl with deep pinky-red hair.
"Um, excuse me?" When the girl looked up, Mikan offered her an apologetic smile. "Could you tell me how to get to the front door? I'm totally lost."
Much to her relief, the older teen offered her a friendly smile, her warm brown eyes regarding her kindly. "Sure thing. You must be a 1st Year." Mikan nodded. "Don't worry, the High School Division is big, but it's well organized, so you'll get used to it soon enough. You're actually really close to the front already. Just take that staircase as far down as it goes, then turn right."
"That's it? Thank you so much!" Mikan bobbed a cheerful bow, flashing the upperclassman a grateful smile before turning back towards the stairs.
"No problem!" the redhead called after her.
Sure enough, when Mikan turned right at the very bottom of the staircase, she could see the building's entryway at the far end. The 1st Year lockers were on this hall, so she quickly found hers to put away her textbooks. There was no sense hauling them home when she'd already finished her homework. As she pulled them out of her satchel, she glanced around. Although plenty of students were still milling about or making their way out the front doors, it wasn't nearly as busy as it had been between classes, so a lot of students must have already left. She wondered if she'd manage to find her friends again or if she'd end up walking home alone.
After putting her books away and shutting her locker, Mikan turned to leave when she nearly bumped straight into another student.
"Oh, excuse me!"
Natsume's gaze swept the campus. He nodded stoically when a gaggle of passing girls called out greetings to him, his eyes never pausing in their search. Behind the High School Division, the vast grassy quad spread out like a lush green blanket. Wide walkways circled the cluster of buildings and cut through opposite sides of the quad before disappearing into the distant tree line as they continued west to Central Town. Natsume was leaning against one of the lampposts that lined the walkway on the quad's left, hands shoved characteristically in his pockets. Beside him, Hotaru, Sumire, and Wakako sat chatting on a black wrought-iron bench. The four of them had Fine Arts Survey together 5th period, so they'd stuck together after dismissal. Hotaru and Sumire had each texted their respective boyfriends telling them where to meet. Since Mikan, Mochu, and Kitsu had 5th period with Ruka, they trusted that the message would get passed along.
A quick glance at her cell phone showed Wakako that the time was now 4:22. "Good grief! Class ended over 20 minutes ago. What's taking them so long?"
Sumire rolled her eyes. "It's the first day of school. Koko's probably stopping to talk to every person he sees."
"Yeah, but that doesn't explain what's taking my brother and the others so long."
"They're here."
At the sound of Natsume's low voice, the girls looked up the path towards the high school where Ruka, Mochu, and Kitsu were heading their way. A light crease formed between Natsume's brows.
As soon as the trio reached them, Hotaru raised an eyebrow at her boyfriend. "What kept you?"
Ruka leaned down to peck her cheek. "We hit the restrooms after stopping by our lockers. Sorry we took so long."
"Where's Polka Dots?"
Ruka turned to his best friend with a mischievous grin. "She's with her date." He chuckled at Natsume's deadpan expression. "Relax, man. She went with Iinchou to the Student Council Room so they could talk. My guess is she wanted to set things straight with him about the Sakuradia."
Sumire perked up. "Oh! That reminds me that I need to see if she's free to come by Eternal Sakura later this week to pick out her dress. Iinchou will need to know the color if he wants to coordinate."
Ruka quirked an eyebrow curiously when Natsume and Hotaru exchanged glances. "What?"
Hotaru's violet eyes peered straight into his. "Presuming that Iinchou has a Student Council meeting, he'll be staying behind in the Student Council Room when Mikan leaves."
Ruka blinked. "So?"
Beside him, Mochu frowned as he studied Natsume's tense countenance. "So Mikan-chan will be alone."
Realization crossed Ruka's face.
Kitsu clasped his hands on the back of his head in a carefree manner. "Is that a problem?"
Wakako gave a low whistle, as if giving a wordless commentary on the boy's stupidity.
Sumire clicked her tongue. "It will be if Natsume-san's fan girls notice her by herself."
"Oh… OH!" Kitsu's eyes widened. "Well, shit, should somebody go look for her?"
"Excuse me, Hyuuga-sama?"
Seven pairs of eyes turned to see a short brunette looking earnestly at the handsome teenager from several feet away. None of them were particularly surprised by the girl's sudden appearance or her unusually fervent expression. They all recognized the look of a girl wanting to pull Natsume away for a confession, which had been a common occurrence over the years.
Natsume silently cursed. He was so not in the mood for this right now, not with Mikan being alone somewhere on campus, but he knew better than to thoughtlessly blow the girl off. He quickly scanned his memory. Takagi Emica… daughter of Takagi Taji, government official and client of HDI's Private Security Division... likes me, but doesn't usually make a nuisance of herself…
After years of practice, Natsume had perfected the art of maintaining his composure in these types of situations. He kept his face and voice neutral as he addressed her calmly. "Yes, Takagi-san?"
Emica glanced at his companions, her hands gripping the strap of her school satchel. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but I'd like to ask you something… if I may." Natsume nodded silently. "I feel rude asking something that's none of my business, but I hate the uncertainty of gossip and would rather just ask you for the truth directly. Is that new girl, Sakura Mikan, your girlfriend?"
Surprise registered on most of the teens' faces. Even Natsume hadn't been expecting the girl's inquiry. His tone remained casual. "No, she's not." His keen eyes noticed the way her shoulders relaxed with relief.
Emica smiled. "Okay. I'm glad I asked. Thank you for indulging my selfish curiosity!" She offered him a grateful bow.
From her seat on the bench, Sumire spoke up. "Takagi-san, what made you think that Mikan-chan might be Natsume-san's girlfriend?"
Emica's eyes traveled around the group. "I heard that Sakura-san confessed to him in front of Narumi-sensei's Japanese class this afternoon. Rumor has it that she even proposed to him, so people are wondering if that means she's actually his girlfriend, especially since a bunch of people heard him call her by her given name without an honorific at lunch."
Brows rose as all eyes turned curiously to Natsume, whose aura had noticeably darkened at her words. Ruka was the one who opened his mouth to question his best friend. "What's she talking about, Natsume?"
Natsume exhaled slowly, the hands in his pockets fisting irritably. "Narumi-sensei had us do a demonstration on the power of words. Polka Dots used 'I love you' and 'Will you marry me?' as examples of powerful phrases. It was just an assignment, Takagi-san. Sakura Mikan and I are just friends— close friends."
Emica blushed embarrassedly. "Oh… okay. I guess the rumors were false then. I apologize for bothering you about a simple misunderstanding. Please enjoy the rest of your day!" With another deep bow, she quickly took her leave.
Hotaru shook her head. "What. An. Idiot."
Ruka blinked down at his girlfriend. "I don't think Takagi-san is stupid for not knowing whether or not to believe the rumors."
Hotaru returned his gaze blandly. "Not Takagi-san. Mikan. The baka just had to open her mouth and say something to further ignite the ruthless gossip of Hyuuga's fans."
"As if she isn't already their newest bone to chew on," Wakako chipped in with a frown that belied her concern. "Just wait until Suzuki-san and Kobayashi-san hear about it, if they haven't already. I'm sure they'll have a whole speech for her about how unacceptable it is to speak romantically to their precious Natsume-sama."
Kitsu exchanged a glance with Mochu. "So basically any of Natsume's fan girls who've heard this latest rumor are probably out for Mikan-chan's blood and she's alone somewhere in the High School Division and we don't even know exactly where?"
From her seat between Hotaru and Wakako, Sumire noted the increase in Natsume's agitation— the stiffness of his posture, the tightness in his jaw, the minute wrinkle between his brows, and the dark glow in his garnet eyes. Deftly, she pulled out her cell phone. "We'll know where she is soon enough."
The group waited silently as Sumire held the phone to her ear. A few seconds later, she hung up and tried again. When her second attempt failed, she frowned at Hotaru. "She's not answering her phone."
Hotaru shrugged. "She probably still has it on silent. Text her where we are. The boys can go look for her while we wait here in case she shows up."
Without wasting another moment, the four boys set off to search for their caramel-haired friend.
"Oh, excuse me!" Mikan exclaimed in surprise.
The petite girl she'd nearly bumped into was fair-skinned with strawberry blonde hair framing her face in delicate wisps, her nose and cheekbones covered in a light dusting of freckles. She quickly waved her hands apologetically. "No, no! It's my fault. I'm sorry I startled you. Um… you see… I… um…"
Mikan blinked as the girl fidgeted nervously. Glancing behind her, Mikan noticed a group of girls in the background watching them closely, obviously waiting for something. Internally, Mikan rolled her eyes. So they wanted something they weren't willing to ask for themselves and sent this shy girl to get it for them, huh? Well, she'd promised herself to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, so she smiled kindly at the girl and bobbed a quick bow. "I'm Sakura Mikan. Nice to meet you!"
The strawberry blonde blinked before smiling shyly. "I'm Fujita Fumika. Pleased to make your acquaintance." After a bow of her own, the girl bit her lip lightly, the fingers of her clasped hands twiddling anxiously. "Um… I'm sorry if it seems rude to ask something like this when we don't even know each other, but… um… are you Hyuuga Natsume's girlfriend?" Her cheeks flushed pink as she finally managed to get the words out.
Without hesitation, Mikan chirped brightly, "No, I'm not."
Instead of looking relieved, Fumika appeared confused. "Oh… um… okay… so… he rejected you then?"
Mikan's expression immediately became even more confused than the other girl's. "I'm sorry, what are you talking about?"
Behind Fumika, a girl with a long braid of rich brown hair draped elegantly over her shoulder rolled her eyes and huffed before resolutely crossing the hall to join them, clearly dissatisfied with Fumika's performance. The rest of her group rushed to follow. In a matter of seconds, Mikan found herself with her back against her locker surrounded by a semicircle of teenage girls.
Crossing her arms and cocking her hip, the brunette gave Mikan a hard stare. "I'm Ogata Yumi. Hyuuga-san has been an important classmate of ours since kindergarten and we want to be clear about your relationship with him. You say you aren't his girlfriend, but we heard that you openly professed your love for him in Narumi-sensei's class this afternoon and even boldly asked him for a promise of marriage. We'd like a clear explanation."
The girls frowned when Mikan laughed out loud. She just couldn't help it. "Really? There are rumors circulating about that already? We're in high school; shouldn't we all have learned by now not to trust in gossip? While I did say the words 'I love you' and 'will you marry me' to Natsume in class today, it wasn't real. It was just an assignment Narumi-sensei had us do. Everything we said to each other was just made up on the spot for the activity."
"So you don't love him then?" another girl in the small posse hastily inquired.
Mikan gave her an innocent smile. "Of course I love him. He's one of my best friends."
Yumi narrowed her dark brown eyes. "Don't play dumb, Sakura-san. We're asking if you're in love with him. We've already seen and heard enough ourselves to know that you really are friends with him—"
"Which is how you get away with addressing him so informally…" one of the other girls muttered.
"—but what we want you to state clearly is whether or not you like him romantically."
Mikan didn't flinch. "I'm afraid you won't get a straight answer from me. Something that deep and personal should be shared between the two people themselves, not gossiped about with the general populace."
While the other girls exchanged glances, Yumi scowled. "That's the same as admitting you like him."
Mikan shrugged. "You can think what you want."
"That's really manipulative," the girl beside Yumi accused, "getting close to him under the guise of just wanting to be friends when you're really trying to steal his heart." On Mikan's left, Fumika winced, clearly uncomfortable with the way the conversation was going.
Before Mikan could respond, another girl chimed in fiercely, "We won't just give him up to you, you know. Our feelings aren't that feeble."
Mikan frowned. "Natsume isn't a possession for you to give up or not, nor is he mine. He's his own person and can do what he wants."
The girls immediately bristled. Fumika quickly interjected, trying to smooth things over. "Please don't misunderstand, Sakura-san. We're not trying to be mean, it's just that we've all admired Hyuuga-san for so long and were really looking forward to seeing him today after being apart all summer, so… we just weren't expecting… it caught us off guard to see… you…" she faltered.
Mikan surprised them when she smiled understandingly. "I get it. You missed the guy you like and you're disappointed to learn that he's close to a girl you didn't know about. I understand your feelings, I just don't think mine are anyone else's business. Besides, it's not like my existence changes anything on a practical level anyway, regardless of how I feel about Natsume."
Yumi's fingers gripped her crossed arms tightly. "You're right, you don't change anything. We don't care who you are, good or bad; you could be the Queen of England and we still wouldn't back down. We all like Natsume-sama and want him to choose us. We all know it and respect each other for it, so no matter what you do, we're never going to stand aside for you and give up."
To the shock of all, Mikan grinned. "It's a pity that the guy you like really just wants to be left alone. If you were talking about something else, I'd actually quite admire your dedication and conviction, Ogata-san."
For a moment, Yumi looked stunned. Blushing, she glared at the perky new girl. "Sakura-san—"
"Mikan-chan!"
All heads turned to see Koko bounding down the now mostly empty hallway wearing a broad grin. "Hurry up! We're late!" Smoothly, he slipped between the wall and the girl on the end to wrap his arm around Mikan's shoulders. "Pardon me, ladies." Without further ado, he gently guided Mikan past Fumika and towards the exit.
"It was nice to meet you all!" Mikan called lightheartedly over her shoulder, wrapping her arm around Koko's back as they went. She pranced merrily by his side until they'd passed through the front doors into the warm August sunshine and down the wide stone stairway.
As he led her down a path that formed a wide loop around the left side of High School Division, Koko gave a low whistle. "Wow, Mikan-chan, you certainly know how to make a first impression. I thought the things I was hearing after lunch were pretty incredible, but then I heard what happened in your Japanese class. Did you really declare your love and intention to marry Natsume in front of the entire class?"
Mikan rolled her eyes. "Of course not, Koko. It was just a demonstration that Narumi-sensei had us do and now the rumor mill is making it sound like something it wasn't."
Koko nodded with a grin. "You'll find that Natsume's fan girls do an incredible job of that."
Mikan gazed at him questioningly. "How have so many people heard about that when it just happened a few hours ago?"
Koko reached into his pocket and held up his cell phone. "With this. Gossip spreads faster than wildfire thanks to these, plus people talk in the halls, in the bathrooms, and in classes, then other people repeat what they've heard. My guess is that some of your classmates were texting their friends about it almost as soon as the words had left your mouth."
Mikan sighed. "Well, that's unfortunate."
Koko squeezed her shoulders encouragingly. "Cheer up, Mikan-chan. Gossip at Alice Academy may be quick to spread, but it's also quick to burn up. People will get bored eventually and you'll be old news."
Mikan gave a humorless chuckle as the quad came into view. "It really doesn't bother me on a personal level, but it is pretty exhausting."
Koko grinned before nodding ahead of them. "Well, there's something that ought to give you an energy boost."
Mikan followed his gaze and grinned happily when she spotted Natsume, Ruka, Mochu, and Kitsu heading towards them on the path. Farther behind them, she could see Hotaru, Sumire, and Wakako sitting on a bench off to the side. As they caught up to each other, she failed to notice the way Natsume's eyes quickly darted across her face and over her body, searching for any sign that something was amiss. "Hi, guys!"
"Mikan-chan, you're alive!"
Mikan laughed quizzically at Kitsu's relieved exclamation. "Uh, yeah, were you expecting otherwise?"
Ruka quickly explained. "We were worried that you might have gotten into another confrontation after parting ways with Iinchou."
Before she could respond, Koko enthusiastically answered for her. "She did. I came across her being devoured by a herd of wild females, so I swooped in and saved her."
The other boys immediately looked at Mikan in concern. She rolled her eyes. "I wasn't being devoured, there weren't nearly enough of them to constitute a herd, and they weren't being wild. They just wanted to know if I'm Natsume's girlfriend or if I like him romantically." Meeting Natsume's gaze, she huffed. "Apparently, they heard about the demo we did for Narumi-sensei and some of the stuff I said to you was less than appreciated by your fans."
Ruka winced. "Yeah, we just heard about that ourselves."
Suddenly, Kitsu grinned. "It was pretty ballsy of you though. I kind of wish you had meant it."
Slipping away from Koko, Mikan continued on towards the waiting girls. "Yeah, well, I can't honestly claim that I said any of that out of bravery since I wasn't even thinking about Natsume's fan girls at the time."
The boys followed her until they reached the bench were Hotaru, Sumire, and Wakako had been watching them. Sumire arched a perfect eyebrow at her boyfriend. "So you found her first, huh?"
Koko beamed. "I rescued her from certain death!"
Mikan lightly slapped his arm. "Koko, stop exaggerating! Compared to those two lions at lunch, these girls were just kittens."
When Sumire gave him a hard stare, Koko knew she wanted a more detailed explanation. "You have to picture it from my perspective, Mikan-chan. There I was, walking along minding my own business, when I come around the corner and spot you with your back against the wall surrounded by half-a-dozen girls who are all glaring at you like you stole their lunch money."
Mikan blinked. "Oh… yeah, I can see how that probably looked bad, but I promise it wasn't anything major." She looked around the group, her voice sincere. "Really, I wasn't talking to them against my will or anything and they weren't really picking on me. They were just asking me questions."
"About your confession to Hyuuga this afternoon?" Hotaru asked blandly.
Mikan sighed, unsurprised that the girls had also heard about it. "Yes, about what I said to Natsume in class this afternoon and about the nature of our relationship."
"What'd you tell them?" Wakako asked curiously.
"Not much. I told them those things I said were just part of an assignment; I'm not Natsume's girlfriend, but I do love him as a friend; and falling in love with someone romantically isn't a topic for gossip, it should be shared between the two people directly."
Wakako snorted. "That's more than 'not much.'"
Sumire crossed her legs and leaned back against the bench as she studied Mikan's face. "Since you neither confirmed nor denied liking him romantically, they're bound to assume that you do."
Mikan nodded. "They did. I told them they can think what they want, but my feelings are my own business, so I refused to give them a straight answer."
"Sounds like you told them off." Unexpectedly, Mochu reached out to firmly pat Mikan's back. "Good for you."
Mikan blinked up at the tall boy in surprise at the small display of familiarity before smiling broadly. "It's not like I scolded them or anything, but I'm not the type to back down when someone's picking a fight with me."
"I thought you said they weren't picking a fight with you."
Mikan frowned at Natsume's dark tone. She searched his garnet eyes and didn't like what she saw. "They weren't."
"Do you know their names?"
She immediately averted her gaze. "No, I didn't get all of their names."
Natsume's eyes narrowed. "Do you know any of their names?"
Mikan shuffled her feet. She really didn't want to tattle to Natsume because she knew that he would hold it against the girls and she didn't want to create trouble for them or for him. She caught Hotaru's stare, hoping for a bit of sympathy for her dilemma. When her best friend remained completely impassive, Mikan sighed.
"Only two of them introduced themselves… Fujita Fumika and Ogata Yumi." When Natsume said nothing, she quickly added, "Fujita-san was actually really nice though! Even Ogata-san wasn't particularly mean; she was just passionate about her feelings for you. Some of them sounded like they really like you and will genuinely get their feelings hurt if you end up with someone else. They didn't talk to me like those two girls at lunch, like I'm somehow unfit to be here or be your friend because of my social status."
Natsume stared at her stone-faced. "Are you sympathizing with them, Polka Dots?"
Mikan held his stare unwaveringly. "I'm asking you not to judge them for their feelings. Judge them for their actions. If they bother you, then you have reason to be upset with them, but if they leave you alone, you can't hold a grudge against them purely for being attracted to you."
Unmoved, Natsume countered, "Can I be upset with them for accosting you just because you're my friend and a female?"
Mikan was becoming exasperated. "That's what I'm trying to tell you! They didn't accost me. They talked to me."
As the pair argued, their friends glanced at each other. They all knew Natsume well enough to know that the emotionless facial expression he was wearing was just the mask he used when he was positively seething underneath and Mikan's good intentions didn't seem to be helping matters. Ruka took the lead on his best friend's behalf. "At the very least, it sounds like you're okay, Mikan-chan. Now that we're all here, why don't we move on? Since soccer practice doesn't start until next week, we have more free time than usual for the next few days, so does anybody want to do something?"
"How about we grab a snack in Central Town? I'm starving," Kitsu suggested eagerly.
Wakako rolled her eyes. "You're always hungry." Standing up, she slung her satchel over her shoulder. "I want to change out of this uniform though, so Central Town works for me."
Mikan perked up. "You and Sumire share an apartment in the high school dorm, right?"
Wakako nodded. "Our families own condos downtown just like the Nogis. The commute is heinous, so we stay on campus during the week and whenever we don't feel like going home on the weekends."
Sumire stood up beside her. "You should come over one afternoon this week. By the way, are you free on Thursday to come by Eternal Sakura to pick out your Sakuradia dress?"
"Sure! That sounds great!"
Sumire smiled at her enthusiasm. "I'll text Anna-chan and Nonoko-chan to see if they're free then, too. I got their numbers at lunch. We can all ride there and back together."
Koko moved to wrap his arm around his girlfriend's shoulders. "So how about it? Are the rest of you coming to hang out with us in Central Town for a bit?"
Natsume shook his head. "I'm going home. I've spent enough time on campus for today."
His refusal to join them didn't bother anyone; they knew he just wanted to get away from his fan girls. They were more surprised when Mikan also declined with an apologetic smile. "As excited as I am to explore more of Central Town and visit with you guys, I'm feeling pretty drained from my first day. I think my brain is suffering from information overload, so I'm going to head home, too."
Ruka looked at Hotaru, who reached for his hand as she answered Koko. "Ruka and I will come."
With Mochu's agreement, the plan was set. After exchanging goodbyes, Natsume and Mikan parted ways with the rest of the gang. The two walked silently side by side across the campus towards the East Gate. Although they passed significantly fewer students than they had on their way to school that morning, a fair number of them still paused to greet Natsume just as before. If possible, the popular teenager was even more passive than he had been previously.
Mikan found herself constantly glancing at him as they went. He was a good four or five inches taller than her and moved with a steady, even gait, hands shoved in the pockets of his yellow plaid trousers. Although his expression appeared indifferent, Mikan recognized the telltale signs of his bad mood. Internally, she sighed. She knew what was bothering him, but knowing didn't make her feel any better. Truthfully, she wasn't even sure why he was taking the rough treatment she'd received so hard. She really didn't think anything she'd experienced today had been all that bad, but clearly he thought otherwise.
Natsume remained quiet and sullen as they passed through the East Gate, nodding at the security guard on duty, before heading down the long street to the Imai-Hyuuga estate. Mikan couldn't focus on her surroundings enough to admire the pretty sakura trees spaced along the sidewalk. She was far too distracted thinking about the boy by her side and what she could possibly do to alleviate his mood. When they reached the first of their homes' two gates, Natsume punched in his access code and the gate automatically swung open, then shut behind them.
As they walked down the long driveway, Mikan made up her mind. She wasn't going to let this issue go another moment without simply talking about it. Grabbing Natsume's hand, she pulled him down the path into the garden between their houses, grateful that he didn't resist. When they reached a white gazebo deep in the lush landscaping, Mikan led him inside where she tossed her school satchel on a bench seat and turned to face him. Crossing her arms over her chest, she gazed resolutely into his fiery garnet irises.
"What's wrong?"
Natsume frowned, finally letting his guard down now that it was just the two of them. "You know what's wrong."
Breathing deeply, Mikan rephrased her question. "Yes, I do, but what I don't know is why it's upsetting you so much. We knew things were going to be this way. We knew that there would be people who wouldn't like me because I don't meet their standards or expectations and we knew that your fan girls were going to freak out about you having a close female friend they didn't know about. Today wasn't anything unexpected, so why are you moping?"
"Because you deserve better!" Yanking his school bag off, Natsume chucked it onto the bench beside Mikan's before raking a hand through his hair in frustration. "Because it's the first damn day of school and you're already being mistreated by those simpering leeches… and because as much as I want to tell them all to go shove it, I can't because HDI does business with most of their families in one way or another. It's infuriating!" In a fit of temper, he turned to one of the gazebos' columns and struck it hard with the palm of his hand. With his back to Mikan, he gripped the wooden railing and bowed his head. "I've spent weeks promising myself that I would do whatever it takes to protect you, to ensure that you have a good experience at Alice Academy and here in Tokyo, but how am I supposed to do that with my hands practically tied behind my back?"
"Why?"
Natsume turned to frown at her in confusion. "Why what?"
"Why have you been telling yourself that you have to protect me?"
Natsume stared at her silently for a moment. When he did answer, his voice was calmer, but still firm with the strength of his conviction. "Because you're important to me… because I care about you…" Taking a step closer, he looked her dead in the eyes and stated emphatically, "I, Hyuuga Natsume, care about you, Sakura Mikan, a hell of a lot more than any of those prima donnas at the academy."
Mikan flushed self-consciously at his words and couldn't stop her lips from curling up in a pleased smile. "That's not what I meant. Why do you feel like you have to save me from everything?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, memories flashed through her mind: the two of them standing in this very garden as Natsume vulnerably, honestly confessed his fear that she would regret coming here… the dark ire that had filled his eyes at lunch when she was being picked on by his fan girls… her own words to Narumi-sensei that being unable to protect the people he cared about was Natsume's greatest fear… his agitation at her use of "goodbye" as a powerful, life-altering word…
In quick succession, her mind connected the dots. When she considered his protective nature and how worried he was that she wouldn't be happy in Tokyo or at Alice Academy and decide to go home to Makikawa, what at first seemed like an overreaction on his part suddenly made more sense. With a deep breath, she relaxed her posture and spoke more gently.
"Last week, you told me you're afraid I'll regret coming here. Do you remember what I said back? I told you I'm not going anywhere. You think those petty fan girls are enough to scare me off? That I'll cave under the pressure and want to go home? I'm not that fragile, Natsume. I can handle being looked down on and even being bullied a bit if I have to."
"But you shouldn't have to," Natsume growled, his speech still heated. Mikan watched as he turned away again to pace back and forth across the gazebo like a lion trapped in a cage. "You think I don't know how strong you are? How kind and forgiving? How many second chances you're willing to give people? How damn selfless you are? I do know and it doesn't matter. Just because you can take it better than most people doesn't make it right. You shouldn't have to suffer because of other people's jealously, prejudice, and megalomania, and you certainly shouldn't have to choose which path to take in life because of it."
Mikan swallowed a chuckle. "I don't know what megalo-whatever means, but I'm sure getting mad about it isn't going to solve anything."
"I'm not expecting it to solve anything," Natsume muttered, coming to a stop. His hands were balled into fists by his sides as he stared out into the garden. "Maybe there isn't a solution."
Mikan studied him quietly, understanding softening her heart towards him. After a moment, her amber eyes lit up as an idea formed in her mind. When she closed the distance between them, Natsume turned to face her, watching her closely as she reached out to straighten and smooth his tie. Her eyes focused on her task while a mischievous smile played around her lips.
"You're right. No matter how much I try to convince you that I'll be okay, it won't make you feel better about it, so I guess that only leaves us one option." She met his gaze, her tone casual. "You should just give up on me, Natsume. This environment obviously isn't good for me and I'm not worth you having to deal with all of this pressure and stress. I'll just pack my bags, go back to Makikawa, and we'll go back to being just friends. A romantic relationship working out between the two of us was a long shot anyway."
Natsume blinked, completely caught off guard. Like being dowsed in cold water, the unexpectedness of her suggestion coupled with his powerful aversion to the idea jerked him forcefully out of his angst. As he stared, the sly twinkle in her eyes and impish smile on her lips easily revealed her true intentions. Against his will, his lips twitched. He tried to glare reproachfully at his crush as she fluttered her eyelashes innocently, her expression resembling a kitten with a ball of yarn between its paws, but it was useless. He smirked and shook his head, unable to hold onto his negativity after she put their situation into such clear perspective with her teasing. "You trying to tell me to suck it up, Polka Dots?"
Mikan tilted her head cutely. "Maybe. Or maybe I'm just trying to make a point. I'm either going to tough it out and stay or take the easy way out and go, and I think we both know which option we'd rather live with."
He knew she was right; even if they couldn't perfectly change their circumstances, they were going to face them regardless, so they might as well make the best of it. It was her signature optimism at work once again and he'd be lying if he said it wasn't one of the things he liked about her. He reached for her hands and entwined their fingers. "You're such an idiot."
Mikan grinned, pleased by her success. Squeezing his hands tightly, she deliberately pressed herself against him as she stretched up for a kiss. She felt him release a heavy breath, what remained of his tension leaving his body as he relaxed into her. He wrapped their arms behind her back, allowing him to hug her to him without releasing her hands. Their kisses were languorous and comfortable, peaceful and affectionate, clearly meant to soothe him. When Mikan tilted her head back and opened her eyes, Natsume was almost smiling.
She steadily met his gaze, her voice warm with assurance and strong with conviction. "You said it yourself, Natsume, today was only the first day of school. There's still a long road ahead and we're going to have to face it because I am not giving up. This is my life and my chance for a brighter future, and part of that is us getting the chance to figure out if we want to be together. Things will get better eventually, but in the meantime, we just need to be there for each other. Both of us. If you expect me to let you fight for me, you have to be willing to let me fight for you, too. This is a two-way street; either we walk it together or not at all."
Natsume gazed silently into her amber eyes for a moment before his forehead dropped gently against hers. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. "Okay." A second later, the corners of his lips twitched upwards. "Why do you always have to be so good?"
Mikan chuckled. "You can blame Jii-chan and my parents for raising me well." Smiling contentedly, she turned her head to press her face against his chest. Being held so snuggly against her lifelong friend put her at ease, filling her with a sense of safety and security. Drained from all of the ups and downs of the day, she yawned widely.
Natsume looked down at her in amusement. "Do you need a nap, Polka Dots? You're such a toddler."
Mikan lifted her head to glare halfheartedly at him. "I'm just tired from dealing with your crazy fan girls all day." Against her will, she yawned a second time. "I do want to lie down for awhile though."
Natsume smirked and kissed her hairline. "Let's get changed first, then you can nap on my couch."
After collecting their bags, the pair strolled hand in hand out of the garden before parting ways to enter their respective backdoors. Mikan leisurely changed into a simple tank top and comfy shorts before heading next door. As promised, Natsume was waiting for her on the couch in his bedroom, having already changed out of his uniform and chosen a manga to read. Mikan grabbed a soft blanket and settled down comfortably with her head on his lap. With one of Natsume's arms draped lazily around her while the other hand held his manga, she quickly fell into a deep slumber that lasted until dinnertime.
As it turned out, the evening meal was being served for both families in the Hyuuga's family dining room, so that's where the two teenagers headed that evening. When they walked through the door, Mikan was delighted to see Hatsuharu-san seated beside his wife. He'd attended their families' last-day-of-summer-break dinner the night before, but since today was a weekday, she hadn't expected to see him again, knowing he often came home late from HDI. She greeted the couple cheerfully as she skipped up to the table.
"Hi, Hatsuharu-san, Kaoru-san! You two look so nice! Are you going out later?"
The middle-aged father nodded, his gentle hazel eyes regarding her with paternal affection from behind his "in need of a trim" champagne colored bangs. The rest of his hair was pulled back in a short ponytail as usual and Mikan thought he looked quite suave in a khaki suit with a white linen shirt. "We're meeting some of HDI's military contacts during cocktail hour tonight. I have some extra time before then, so I thought I'd come home for dinner and hear about you kids' first day of school."
"It was great!" Mikan chirped as she sat down across from Aoi. Natsume fought the urge to roll his eyes at her choice of adjectives as he took the seat beside her. Before she could elaborate, Saki-san, Hotaru, and Ruka walked in and exchanged greetings with everyone. As they chose their places, Saki-san informed them that Tohru-san was working late again that night. A short while later, they were all enjoying the delicious meal and chatting about the school day.
"Maki-sensei made everyone introduce themselves and some girls started snickering when he told Nobara to speak louder, but Yo-chan shut them up with one of his killer glares." Aoi's brow wrinkled indignantly. "Really! What's so funny about talking quietly? Keeping your voice down is usually considered polite."
Saki-san smiled maternally as she offered the preteen some encouragement. "Nobara-chan may be a bit shy, but she's so very sweet. Public speaking is a perfectly normal fear that I'm sure many of your classmates share. It's nothing for her to be embarrassed about. She's lucky to have friends like you and Yoichi-kun to stand up for her."
"Does Nobara-chan get picked on often?" Mikan asked with concern.
"I wouldn't say often, but it definitely happens sometimes," Aoi answered honestly. "There are girls who are jealous of how pretty she is, so they've called her mean names like 'Ice Princess' or even 'ghost girl' because of her pale skin, and her hair and eye color. She doesn't do well during outdoor gym classes because of her sensitivity to the heat and they've poked fun at her for that, too. Yo-chan and I don't stay quiet about it though, so those girls usually leave her alone."
Mikan frowned. "That's ridiculous. Those aren't reasons to make fun of her—not that there's ever a good reason—and they could really hurt her feelings making fun of her like that."
"You would know, wouldn't you?" Hotaru tossed out blandly as she lifted her water glass to her lips. Natsume and Ruka stilled at her words, both boys studying her face as they quickly guessed her intentions. Mikan blinked curiously at her best friend.
The adults glanced between the two girls questioningly before Saki-san addressed her daughter with a light frown. "What does that mean, Hotaru-chan?"
Aoi's head swiveled back and forth as she looked around the teens faces. Suddenly, she gasped. "Mikan-nee, did you get picked on today? I knew it! It was Natsume-nii's fans, wasn't it? Those girls are just horrid! They didn't make you cry, did they?"
Mikan was taken aback by Aoi's rush of concern. Before she could respond, Kaoru-san's voice drew her attention. "Is that true, Mikan-chan?"
When she saw the parents' worried looks, the teenager quickly opened her mouth to deny the speculation, but Natsume's leg knocking against hers beneath the table halted her. The denial died on her tongue at the hard look on his face. Turning back to the three adults, she twiddled her thumbs in her lap self-consciously. "A little bit," she admitted.
"What exactly happened, sweetheart?" Kaoru-san probed gently.
Mikan hesitated. Seeing the stern warning in Hotaru's violet eyes, she finally sighed. "I had a really good day and even made some new friends, but there was a small instance at lunch. A couple of girls sought me out to question me and they didn't like my answers. It really wasn't a big deal though. It's not like they hurt me or anything."
Across the table, Ruka's sapphire eyes regarded his friend reproachfully. "They called you an 'orphan charity case,' Mikan-chan." When she winced, he added, "If I recall correctly, they also referred to you as 'low caliber' and accused you of blackmailing our families into getting you into the Academy and paying your tuition."
On Hotaru's other side, Aoi's jaw dropped.
Kaoru-san raised a sardonic eyebrow at the princely blonde's words. "Well, that's absurd."
Mikan rushed to reassure her. "They were just spouting nonsense because they like Natsume and didn't like that I'm friends with him. I didn't take anything they said to heart."
"Ah… the fan girls," Kaoru-san nodded understandingly.
Mikan's eyes widened in surprise. "Kaoru-san, you know about Natsume's fan girls?"
"Oh, yes, we know all about the fan girls. What Natsume-kun doesn't tell us about them, Aoi-chan does. It's really nothing new. Things were the same way when we were in school. Particularly popular boys and girls are often fawned over by large numbers of their peers." Turning to her son, she asked, "Who were they?"
"Suzuki Rima and Kobayashi Mayuri."
She nodded. "I wondered if it was them again."
Mikan's expression turned curious. "Do you know them, Kaoru-san?"
She nodded. "Their names have come up repeatedly over the years as two of Natsume-kun's more bothersome admirers. We've also met them several times. Both of their families have connections to HDI that would make a marriage with Natsume-kun particularly advantageous for them, so their parents have been intentional about bringing them to social functions where our paths can cross."
Mikan's eyes widened as she looked back and forth between Kaoru-san and Hatsuharu-san. "You'd never try to force Natsume into an arranged marriage though, right?" Beside her, Natsume smirked reflexively at her concerned tone.
Hatsuharu-san smiled. "Not a chance. Arranged marriages aren't very common nowadays, but even if they were, we would never consider arranging one for Natsume-kun or Aoi-chan. Choosing a spouse is far too important a decision to have someone else make it for you."
Kaoru-san's scarlet eyes gazed seriously into Mikan's amber ones. "Did those girls say anything else inappropriate or unkind to you?"
Mikan fidgeted in her seat. "Yes, but I can't remember what exactly."
"Listen hear, you little rat." Mikan turned to Natsume wide-eyed as he recited Rima's dialogue word-for-word in a monotonous tone. "We've known Natsume-sama and his friends practically our whole lives and they've never once mentioned you, so don't think for one second that you can just waltz in here claiming to be anything more than a parasite taking advantage of their families' philanthropy. I don't know how you weaseled your way in here, but whatever it was doesn't put you on our level. We're the best of the best here at Alice Academy and if you tarnish Natsume-sama's reputation or our school's in any way, you'll be out of here faster than a race car on the Audubon."
Mikan blinked, stunned. "How can you remember all that?"
"It made an impression."
"So you witnessed the conversation?" Hatsuharu-san questioned his son, a small wrinkle between his light brows.
Natsume nodded. "Most of it. Ruka and I showed up a bit late, but we were there by the time it turned ugly. Polka Dots asked us to let her handle any challenges she might face by herself as much as possible, so we stayed out of it at first, but I admit I lost my temper and stepped in after Suzuki-san made those comments."
Hatsuharu-san held his gaze steadily. "What did you say?"
Natsume answered his father honestly and respectfully. "I just confirmed that Polka Dots really is a close family friend. I had a lot more to say, but didn't want to risk offending their parents."
Hatsuharu-san nodded, accepting his son's answer, but before he could comment on it, Mikan flushed red with worry beside him. "I hope I didn't cause any trouble for you. I had no idea their families were connected to HDI until Natsume mentioned it after school."
The father's eyes filled with warmth as he reached out to pat her head comfortingly. "Don't worry yourself about things like that, Mikan-chan. We're under no illusions about the attitude those girls and others like them have, and you're far more important to us than any tantrums they might throw to their parents. While it's true that we try to stay on good terms with people for the sake of the business we do together, if we can't protect and provide for our loved ones, then there's no point to any of it. Besides, we know you well enough to know that you show kindness to others equally, so it probably wouldn't have made a difference even if you had known at the time."
Mikan blushed, not just at the compliment, but at the paternal affection. She had often thought that if her father had lived to meet Hatsuharu-san, the two would have been good friends. Kaoru-san and Saki-san were smiling at her just as warmly, filling her with reassurance. Her heart swelled with love for her friends' parents. "Thank you."
"I'm disappointed to hear that a fellow classmate would say such discourteous things to you, Mikan-chan. Those girls both come from good families and should know better. I'm glad you responded well on your own, but please be sure to tell us if anything happens that you don't feel like you can handle yourself," Saki-san cautioned the teenage girl.
"Yes," Kaoru-san immediately agreed, "we can let this incident slide since you don't seem overly concerned about it, but we want you to know that we are always here if you need us. We know you're very capable and have all of your friends to support you, but some situations require an adult and we never want you—any of you—to feel like you can't ask for our help. You may be just a few short years away from being legal adults, but we're still your parents and guardians, and will support you as such."
Mikan grinned. "Yes, ma'am!"
After taking a sip of her tea, Kaoru-san changed the subject, her scarlet eyes sparkling excitedly. "In other news, I have something important to share with you, Mikan-chan! Your visit to Kusunagi-sama's house has been set for the afternoon of Saturday the 27th."
Mikan blinked in surprise before smiling. "I'd forgotten about that! Yes, of course, that's perfect. That gives me almost two weeks to practice the kind of rituals he might request. Since I've performed them all before, I really just need to brush up on a few."
Kaoru-san nodded towards her son. "I arranged for Natsume-kun to attend with you. I think Kusunagi-sama will enjoy the time with you young people. His wife wasn't able to have children and they never adopted, so he pours out his love and affection on kids of all ages. Both he and his company, Lotus Prime, support quite a few children's charities and are major donors of the academy. He does have nieces and nephews though, such as Kimura Kenta, who was with him the other night."
Natsume stiffened subtly. "Will he be there?"
"Kimura-san? He wasn't mentioned," she mused before taking another sip of her tea.
Mikan glanced at Natsume. She definitely preferred that the older teen not attend and potentially sour their visit with his snobbery, but she smiled optimistically anyway. "I'm looking forward to it! From what I've gathered, Kusunagi-sama has been good to HDI, so I'm happy to have the chance to show my gratitude. I hope I'm able to be of service to him."
Kaoru-san beamed. "I'm sure you will, dear."
Dinner continued peacefully after that. The teenagers and preteen shared various bits and pieces from their school day while the adults listened with a mixture of interest and amusement. Eventually, the table was cleared and Mikan suggested going for a swim in the warm summer evening. Hotaru, Ruka, and Aoi quickly agreed. When they rose from the table, Mikan happily fell into place beside her best friend, chattering away in her usual bubbly manner as they filed through the dining room door.
As she made her way around the table, Aoi noticed her brother still sitting in his chair. "Nii-chan, aren't you coming?"
"Later. I'm going to have some tea first," Natsume answered simply.
Aoi and Ruka exchanged glances. Over the years, they'd come to understand that when Natsume said he was going to have tea after dinner, what he really wanted was to talk to his parents alone. "Okay. We'll be in the pool when you finish! Don't take forever!"
Noticing the exchange, Saki-san also excused herself with a smile. "It's been awhile since I've taken a dip, so I think I'll join the kids for a bit."
Kaoru-san nodded. "Would you mind popping into the kitchen to request tea for three, please?"
"Of course. Goodnight."
As soon as Saki-san had closed the door behind her, Kaoru-san smiled knowingly at her son. "I could smell this conversation coming ever since Hotaru-chan pointed out that Mikan-chan got picked on today. What's on your mind, sweetheart?"
Natsume chose his words carefully. "The incident at lunch with Suzuki-san and Kobayashi-san wasn't the only issue Polka Dots had today. I didn't witness it myself, but apparently a group of girls cornered her by her locker after school and demanded details about her relationship with me."
"Did you ask her about it?" Kaoru-san asked calmly.
His brow furrowed slightly. "You know her, she insisted that it wasn't a big deal. She said they were just making conversation, but according to Koko, they looked more aggressive than she made them out to be." He met their gazes steadily. "All day, people were staring at her and talking about her and even spreading rumors. She swears that she had a really good day and isn't going to let that kind of stuff bother her, but I'm afraid of what might happen if it continues or gets worse from here." His voice grew firm, conveying his resolve. "I want to protect her. I want to know what my options are. I know I can't compromise our position with families connected to HDI, so I'm asking for your advice on how to avoid that and still defend her when she's being bullied."
The corner of his mother's lips curled up in a half smile. Of her son's many accomplishments and valuable traits, his loyalty and willingness to stand up for his friends was something that made her the proudest. She exchanged a glance with her husband and listened as he addressed their eldest child.
"I understand your dilemma." Although he continued to smile, Hatsuharu-san's gaze and tone were serious. "It's not always easy navigating the politics of high society, even at your age among your peers. But truth be told, son, I have full confidence in you and your ability to make sound choices in the moment. You've proven yourself time and time again, so I have no reason to doubt that you'll continue to be as polite and respectful as necessary."
Leaning forward, he interlocked his fingers and rested his arms on the table, his posture adding weight to his next words. "That being said, I meant what I told Mikan-chan earlier; all the power and wealth in the world is pointless if it doesn't allow you to protect the people you love. It should go without saying that Mikan-chan is a member of this family, blood-related or not. If at any time you feel the need to take action on her behalf that might create backlash against us or HDI, your mother and I will deal with that when it happens. Obviously, the hope is to avoid such a scenario, but rest assured, if a situation were serious enough, we would never sacrifice Mikan-chan's safety or wellbeing for a business advantage."
The teenager couldn't help being moved by his father's reassurance. It wasn't that anything he said was a revelation; it was just so rare and reaffirming to hear it all spoken out loud in such straight-forward terms. Instinctively, he stood and bowed deeply, his long black bangs obscuring his garnet eyes. "Thank you, Otou-san." Hatsuharu-san smiled, his hazel eyes softening with love for his only son.
Just then, the door opened and Komaki-san approached the trio with a tray of fresh tea. Natsume returned to his seat as she served them, nodding politely when she set his cup down in front of him. With their thanks, the maid bowed and left.
As he waited for the hot beverage to cool, the Hyuuga family patriarch continued. "On a more practical note, I suggest that you simply treat Mikan-chan like the close friend that she is and speak up for her the same way you did today. When I suggested that you invite Mikan-chan to be your plus one to Chiba-san's dinner Saturday night, I mentioned my belief that if we make her importance to us clear, then people are more likely to leave her alone even if they disapprove of her privately. I think the best way to do that is for her to be consistently seen associating with us and being treated as someone significant to us. We can also show an appropriate amount of displeasure if someone tries to compromise her. Eventually, people will get the message. It's always good to remember that while we don't want to offend our partners and clients, they also don't want to offend us. Without sounding arrogant, the reality is that Hyuuga Defense Industries is in the top echelon of companies operating in Japan. We wield that power responsibly and with great reserve, but that doesn't make us pushovers."
"It's just like what you've been taught at the training academy," Kaoru-san spoke up. "You aren't training to become an expert fighter so that you can resort to violence when it isn't absolutely necessary; you're doing it so that you can be prepared and effective when it does become necessary. The same holds true for your position as the Hyuuga family heir and future leader of HDI."
"Exactly," her husband confirmed. "Use your best judgment to keep the peace whenever possible, but don't leave Mikan-chan to the wolves either."
Natsume considered their words for a moment, his fingers resting against the warm porcelain of his teacup. He understood what they were suggesting, but he was struggling to visualize his fan girls actually heeding his warnings. "I just hope that's enough to sway them to leave her alone."
His mother smiled. "I'll let you in on a secret of the female perspective, Natsume-kun; girls don't want the boy they like to think badly of them. While it probably won't persuade all of them, I think you'll find that most of your admirers won't want to upset you by picking on her—that is, if you make it clear that treating her badly does upset you."
"On the other hand, you might not need to if she ever becomes your girlfriend," Hatsuharu-san speculated. "The thing about titles is that they make your relationship clear without anyone needing to question you or observe you first. When I introduce your mother as my wife, the automatic assumption is that she's important to me, that I will protect her and support her, and that I value her above anyone else. That influences how people perceive her and treat her, especially if I'm someone they want to be on good terms with. It's the same concept on a different scale."
Natsume stared silently down at his tea before releasing a heavy breath. "Someday."
His father chuckled. "There's no rush, son. You two have been growing closer for nearly a decade. Whenever you choose to take that step won't be too soon or too late, if you decide to take it at all."
Natsume glanced at his mother before meeting his father's eyes. "I have every intention of asking her to be my girlfriend once she's been here long enough to decide whether or not she wants to stay. I don't want our relationship to influence such a big decision. If she ends up being unhappy here, I want her to be able to go home to Makikawa without worrying about me."
Hatsuharu-san nodded. "Your mother mentioned that. Truth be told, I don't think your official status will stop her from considering your feelings if she does decide to go back. But knowing Mikan-chan, do you really think she'll just give up at some point and leave?"
Natsume recalled the determination in her amber eyes and the conviction in her voice as they'd spoken in the garden.
…I'm not going anywhere…
…I am not giving up…
…let me fight for you, too…
He believed in her, he really did, so much so that the temptation to throw caution to the wind and immediately ask her to be his girlfriend had nearly overwhelmed him this afternoon. But as desperately as he wanted her to be with him, he wanted her happiness even more, so he simply couldn't take the risk. He was committed to giving her a way out even if it meant he couldn't have what he wanted yet. He could be patient if patience might help protect her.
Meeting his father's gaze, he gave the most honest answer he could.
"I hope not."
Author's Note: FINALLY! I swear I've been working on this chapter literally since I posted the last one over three months ago, but life has been really rough since Christmas, so I've struggled to find time, energy, motivation, and writing-mojo. To my credit though, it's over 18,000 words long, which once again breaks the record for this story.
So the first day of school is done. I won't cover every day of school in nearly so much detail (in fact, I'm hoping to fit the rest of the first week of school in chapter 25 so that I can focus on the weekend in chapter 26).
I've said it before and I'll say it again, I will absolutely finish this story. Even if months go by between updates, I refuse to allow This Is High School to become one of those unfinished fanfics hanging around in cyberspace.
As always, PLEASE leave a review. Hearing your thoughts, likes, and dislikes from each chapter is the only compensation I get for sharing this story with you, so it's very encouraging and appreciated.
