She's a backseat driver, a drama provider
An instant update of the world
She's a first class liar, a constant forgetter.
(She's attractive but bitter)
Did you scream enough to make her cry?
It's a turn around, turn around
Baby don't return to me
If you think, that I'm not worth your time.
She's a lady and ladies shouldn't be messed with.
She's a lady and ladies shouldn't be messed with.
~She's a Lady - Forever The Sickest Kids
"T-This is my younger sister," Ikuto had managed to make his way to the kitchen with Utau hanging onto him like a koala, "Utau." he introduced her once he threw sodas to everyone, all of them still staring at the strange girl.
"How come you didn't tell us you had a sister?!" Kukai asked offended by the lack of trust in their friendship. You'd think he'd be courteous enough to warn them he had a crazy younger sister roaming around in his home.
"Good to see you Utau." Tadase nodded to her taking her off guard long enough for Ikuto to ply her off and take a few steps away from her. She pouted at Ikuto for his actions.
"Huh?!" Kukai asked Tadase in shock, "You knew he had a sister?!"
"Well..., yeah," Tadase answered as if it were obvious, "Our families are friends, I've known them since I was three."
Kukai could understand that, but still turned to Nagihiko with a suggestive glare that he knew something, "I didn't know either." he answered honestly, which was surprising, considering Nagihiko seemed to know everything somehow. Nodding an approval to Nagihiko, he shifted his accusing glare to Ikuto.
"I didn't tell you," Ikuto started, the annoyance already in his voice, "Because she's hardly ever here anyway. There's no point in you knowing if you never saw her."
Kukai shifted his look over to Utau, who was still pouting, apparently upset he didn't ever talk about her, "Well, I see her now!" moving his hands the way Vanna White presented a letter, only he was presenting Utau. Her pouting expression turning to a glare towards Kukai. There went the mood swing again.
"Yeah," Ikuto countered now looking annoyed at Utau, "That's because she's early. Aren't you suppose to be at school?" Ikuto spoke to Utau at the last part.
"I already took all my tests," Utau muttered her reason looking away from Ikuto, "I didn't see the point in going to class on the last few days before break. Besides," Utau changed her tone and looked at Ikuto with a smile, "I wanted to see you." she told him lightheartedly before jumping towards him again. This time, Ikuto was prepared and dodged her. She attempted a few more times, Ikuto dodging all of them with hardly any effort. "You're so mean." Utau pouted finally giving up.
"So I've been told." Ikuto responded with a hint of sarcasm, "Now let's get back to practice." Ikuto commanded beginning to leave the kitchen with his unopened can of soda.
"Practice?" Utau asked curiously, examining the people in the room. She only recognized Tadase, but she couldn't imagine what this group was doing together. A guy thing maybe, except, that girl. She was unnaturally calm, just sipping her soda following the conversation silently. There was just something about her that bothered Utau. "What kind of practice?"
"None of your bui-" Ikuto started to say to get his sister to leave him alone, but as usual, he was cut short.
"Band practice." Kukai told Utau with a thumbs up to show his enthusiasm to her, "That is temporarily pointless since we don't have anything to practice with!" he added to make Amu twitch.
"I get it already!" Amu said clutching her can tightly, on the verge of crushing the can, "Would you let it go?!"
"I'll let it go when-Ouch!!!" Kukai was prepared to get into another rant until he was stopped by a swift hit in the back of the head, delivered by Nagihiko.
"Don't start that again." he explained the hit before Kukai had a chance to ask. Kukai just crossed his arms over his chest and turned away from the group, his own way of pouting.
"Band huh?" Utau commented in disbelief, they didn't seem to act like a band.
"Hard to believe, isn't it?" Tadase asked Utau sensing what she was thinking, "But, we all can somehow come together and have some fun. I play the bass."
"I play second guitar," Nagihiko introduced himself with his instrument, "Ikuto plays the lead."
"I'm the drummer!" Kukai told her, gaining back his energy at the mention of instruments. Utau looked between them all trying to get the image into her mind.
She turned to Kairi with a look that wanted answers from him, "I'm just the manager." he answered her silent question putting his hands in the air as a way to defend himself.
"Uh," Amu started nervously when Utau turned her glare on her, "I-I'm the singer."
"Is that so?" Utau asked her suspiciously. Why would she want to be in a band with a bunch of guys? Even Utau had to admit none of them were bad looking. She thought it was obvious why she joined the band, just to get close to these guys. That thought just pissed her off having a girl like that hanging around Ikuto all the time, "Why would you want to join a band?"
"To get some cool music playing!" Kukai answered adding some hand motions to show him playing invisible drums. Utau looked back at him with an annoyed expression, everyone either looking confused, or in Amu's case, sweat dropping. "What? Was that question not for everyone?" he asked noticing their expressions.
Utau rolled her eyes at the boy, looking back at Amu, impatiently waiting for an answer, "I kind of didn't choice at the beginning." Amu admitted thinking back at the first impression on the band. She thought they were insane, after she had been physically dragged over to the auditions.
"Come on, we didn't any other options," Kukai countered before she started complaining about them forcing her into the band, whether it was true or not. "If you don't have any other options," Amu said calmly with a sweet smile, "Then stop complaining about my songwriting or you'll be without a singer." Kukai was about to respond, but he stopped with his mouth open with his hand still pointing at Amu. He never considered that. After his moment of realization he closed his mouth and brought his hand up to his chin thinking of how to respond.
Utau couldn't believe the characters that were here. "You wouldn't do that to us." Ikuto said slyly putting his arm on Amu's shoulder as if they were best friends, Amu looking up at him suspiciously, "Would you Amu?"
"Don't think I won't," Amu answered standing her ground, but she didn't like the sarcastic tone in his question.
"Didn't you say last night that you wanted to be apart of the band?" Ikuto asked already knowing the answer, especially with Amu's twitching face making it plainly obvious.
"When did she say that?" Kukai asked trying to remember.
"I don't think she told us." Tadase answered him, knowing he'd remember that kind of detail.
"Guess we're out of the loop." Kairi commented within the group.
"So she really does like being in the band." Nagihiko mused all of them coming closer to her.
"Admit it Amu," Kukai commanded teasingly nudging her in the side, "You like us!"
"Ikuto." Amu said making a glare up to him, but without it's usual threat considering the added pink in her cheeks from embarrassment, "This is the last time I'm telling you anything!" she complained with Ikuto only shrugging with an amused smile at the group.
Utau watched them in disbelief. They were all so comfortable with one another, so natural. Especially Ikuto around them. Carefree on the comments he made, his expressions, and...his actions. How could he just put his arm around that girl naturally?! How could she just think nothing of it?! Rage was burning inside Utau watching them all, her body trembling from her anger.
"Ikuto..." she stated no louder than a whisper, but enough to get everyone's attention, "You...you..." continued in a whisper. Amu looked concerned at her, she could see she was upset, but she couldn't imagine why. "YOU IDIOT!!!" she shouted at him jumping on him pushing him back to the ground. Everyone else just stared at the them in shock, as Utau began chanting 'idiot' repeatedly while hitting Ikuto.
"She..." Amu started unable to describe Utau's rapid change.
"...Snapped?" Nagihiko suggested all of them continuing to watch in shock at their guitarist getting hit by a girl.
"You would you knock it off?!" Ikuto asked more as a command pushing Utau back.
"Why?!" Utau asked with a pained expression on her face, "Why can you be so open and carefree with them, but not me?! Don't you know how that makes me feel?!"
"Makes you feel?" Ikuto asked still pushing her back not sure what she was talking about and really didn't want to know the answer anyway.
"I'm...a little confused." Kukai stated everyone else nodding simultaneously.
Hearing this Utau stood up looking at them, "Got a problem?!" she asked challenging them, none of them voicing their opinions. "I won't lose against anyone with my feelings of love for Ikuto!"
Amu cocked her head, looking at her with a hint of admiration. She could tell Utau didn't like her, but maybe it was because she was a good sister, "But, why you?!" Utau asked directing the 'you' towards Amu, "There had never been a girl Ikuto has been interested in." Utau said calmer as if she were just talking to herself.
Now, Amu was more confused than before. She looked at Ikuto sitting on the ground, still shocked by Utau's attack. Amu couldn't believe he had never had a friend that was a girl,...or a girlfriend. Amu felt a demonic presence come up behind her making her jump. She looked back to see Utau blazing in a rage. The other band members, smart enough to back up and out of the way.
"I've driven away all the bad pests that got close to Ikuto." said told her threateningly, that explains it.
"H-Hang on! Y-You got it all wrong! I don't have a single thing for Ikuto!" she tried to defend herself unsuccessfully, as she felt herself being pulled back into an embrace.
"You're cold." Ikuto commented to Amu who was confused on what he was doing, "After we spent all night in the park yesterday."
"Huh?" Amu asked blushing from the position, and his comment. "What?!"
"I can't forgive you!" Utau told her with an evil voice to her. Scaring Amu at the moment, just as Ikuto released her. Had he done that just to make his sister mad at her? Either way, Amu was going to hurt him, unless Utau got to her first. "I'll never lose to you!" Amu was frozen with a shocked expression.
"Let's go back to practice." Ikuto commanded calmly as if nothing had happened.
"Alright! Let's play some Aerosmith next!" Kukai suggested following Ikuto with Tadase and Kairi right behind him.
"Wait for me Ikuto! I want to here you play!" Utau called for him with a loving voice, chasing after him.
"Amu?" Nagihiko asked, the only waiting behind for her. She was still in a frozen state at the moment, "Are you alright?" he asked putting a hand on her shoulder.
Amu dropped her head in defeat, "I'm so confused!"
-
-
"Unbelievable." Rima muttered at lunch the moment she sat down.
"What?!" Amu asked snapping back to reality. She hadn't slept in two days, and still made no progress with her song. She had managed to sleep through her few classes, and now, she was even starting to nod off while she was eating.
"Everyone's busy!" Rima complained. It took Amu a moment to realize she was referring to their sleep over. "This can't be just a coincidence."
"What do you mean?" trying her best to stay awake to hear Rima.
"I mean," Rima began trying to put to words her theory, "That someone is trying to-"
"There you are Rima-chan!" Rima was cut off by a high pitched voice, a familiar one by Rima's annoyed expression. Amu looked over to the girl she recognized from art class, the one that always had a group of girls following her.
"What do you want Saaya?" Rima demanded, not in the mood to deal with her today.
"I just wanted to drop by to give you an invitation," she explained with a smile, "To my sleep over this Friday." she explained making Rima look at her in surprise. Amu just kept eating her meal, too sleep deprived to notice what that statement meant.
"What?" Rima asked in disbelief at this girl.
"Yes. I'd love it if you could come." she added before looking over at Amu with a sneer getting Amu's blank look as her attention, "Sorry Hinamori, but for the sake of my social status, I can't afford to invite any losers to my party."
"Ok," Amu answered plainly, still a bit zoned out as she kept eating ignoring Saaya. Saaya herself seemed to be angry from her response. Saaya gained back her composure before turning back to Rima, "So, can I count on you?"
"Not interested." Rima answered with an emotionless voice, hiding how pissed off she was at the moment.
"Well..." Saaya looked stunned by her response, "The invitation stands, if you change your mind." she told her before leading her passé to another table.
"That bitch." Amu was shocked by Rima's blunt statement, especially she could feel the waves of anger coming off her, "She knew."
"I'm sure it's just a coincidence," Amu tried to reassure her, as Rima blew off steam by ripping some pages in her unused composition book.
"Yeah, well, whatever it is, I couldn't get anyone to come," Rima grumbled irritated at the girls that had chosen Saaya's party over their own, and Saaya for being a jealous bitch because Amu was always around Tadase, "So, what are we going to do now?"
"Kairi invited his girlfriend for us," Amu said catching Rima curious look, "The guys do know about the sleep over you know," Amu reminded her Rima giving a faint nod at the recognition.
"It won't be fun with just us and another girl we don't even know," Rima added her complaint, she was annoyed on how her plan had backfired on her.
"Well...," Amu started, thinking of a solution, when an idea, a dangerous idea came to mind, "I'm going to try to invite some more people after school." Amu said with a nervous tone, this was either brilliant or stupid, or maybe both.
-
-
Amu stared at the door for a moment, with a last minute debate on whether to knock or not. She still couldn't believe she was here, especially since practice was suspended until the song was written. She took a deep breath as a way to calm her nerves as she brought her fist up to hit the door with a few steady knocks.
"I'm coming." she heard someone inside call, conveniently it was the person she was here for. Utau opened the door with a confused look, not expecting any company, that quickly changed to a death glare once she saw Amu.
"He-" Amu began to greet until Utau slammed the door an inch from her face. Amu sweat dropped at this; she hadn't even gotten a word out. She knocked again a little more confident than before.
"Can't you take a hint?!" Utau demanded opening the door again, Amu could have sworn their were daggers in her eyes.
"Can I come in?" Amu asked avoiding the question.
"No." Utau stated simply slamming the door again. Amu grunted a little at this, knowing that was a stupid question. She knocked again louder and more accretive.
"What?!" Utau practically screamed, making Amu finch back from her tone, "I don't know what you want, but Ikuto's not here, so leave."
"I'm not here to see Ikuto," Amu blurted out stopping Utau from slamming the door for the third time, long enough to get to her point, "I want to talk to you."
"Me?" Utau asked, making sure she'd heard right, "Why?" she asked crossing her arms over her chest to stand her ground. She wanted to stay on her guard with this girl.
"Well..," Amu began trying to find the words, she hadn't planned this far ahead, "I-I know we got off...on the wrong foot, and I just wanted to apologize for...not looking at things in your perspective." Amu explained her voice a little shaky from the glare Utau had been giving her, until she mentioned the last part, then Utau's expression was just dumbfounded.
"What do you mean?" she asked, she didn't have a clue where Amu was going with that.
"Well...," Amu smiled shyly having successfully softened Utau enough to talk to her, "I'm a protective sister too, so I kind of get where you're coming from." shocked was an understatement for what Utau felt that moment just staring at this girl. Was she trying to play her as a fool to get on her good side? Utau couldn't tell.
"Hmm." Utau muttered just thinking to herself, but Amu took that as a good side since there was no insult or threat given. That's when she dared the second part of her reasoning.
"Plus..., I wanted to ask a favor." Amu admitted watching Utau carefully.
"Favor?" Utau asked saying the word with venom in her voice. She knew there had to be a catch to all this kindness.
"Yeah," Amu admitted flinching a little from her voice again, "Uh...tomorrow night, my friend, Rima, and I are having a sleep over at my house, and I was wondering...if you weren't busy...if you wanted to come." Amu managed to get out, Utau's face showing her disbelief.
"Why?" she asked, too shocked to remember to add her attitude into her voice, or at least hide her shock.
"Well..." Amu started, smiling again from Utau's surprise, "I thought that since you're only here for a few weeks, and Ikuto's not home all the time, that you would be lonely cooped up in your house." Utau looked at her questioningly at that, what would she care about that? "Plus...," Amu added with a genuine smile to Utau, "I think we could be good friends."
Utau just stared at her for a moment, not sure how to respond to her. She hated her, so she obviously didn't want to be her friend. Then again, Utau had never been anything like a sleep over before. Plus, she could find out more about her enemy.
Amu giggled lightly at the girl who was as frozen as she was after getting threatened the day before, "Just think about it, and ask Ikuto for my cellphone number and tell me if you're coming," Amu suggested.
Utau glared at the girl again, Amu having caught her mistake began to defend herself, "I swear, he only has it for band practice updates..., and once to scare the hell out of me." Utau reluctantly nodded refusing to look at Amu. Amu smiled again, happy to have seemed to have made some kind of progress, "I'll see you later then." she said waving good bye as she ran off the porch heading to the bus stop not too far away.
Once Amu was out of sight, Utau shut the door and walked over to the kitchen, just as Ikuto came walking down the steps, "Hmm?" he asked confused by Utau's zoned out face,"Who was at the door?"
"Amu." Utau muttered watching Ikuto's face looked somewhat surprised and partial concerned.
"Is she still at the door?" he asked, wondering if his sister had killed her on the steps or something.
"No," Utau answer with a melancholy voice, "She left." Now Ikuto was watching her carefully, what had made her seem so...out of it? "Hey Ikuto," Utau started kind of reluctant to ask, "Do you have Amu's cellphone number?"
"Yeah?" Ikuto answered confused by the question, what did she want with it? "Can I write it down?" she asked grabbing a pen and a scrap piece of paper.
"Why?" Ikuto asked putting his hand on his pocket protectively where his cellphone was.
"I need to call her." Utau told him looking away embarrassed by the statement.
"Why?" Ikuto asked, the confusion not close to clearing. He reached for a bottle of water in the fridge as he waited for Utau to answer the question.
"I...I'm going to her sleep over." Utau finally admitted with a blush from embarrassment, not wasn't help by Ikuto chocking on his water he had been drinking.
"Huh?!" he couldn't believe it. Utau just held her hand out which he just put his phone into for her to get the number. When she had finished writing the number, she threw the phone back to Ikuto and retreated to her room for some privacy. "This can't be good." Ikuto muttered to himself, and began dialing a few numbers.
-
-
"So...what's the problem exactly?" Kukai asked after Ikuto finished explaining about Utau going to Amu's party. He couldn't believe this was important enough to call everyone over on such short notice to discuss this issue.
"Think," Tadase told him, having known Utau for so long, already knew why this was bad, "Utau hates Amu because she's always around Ikuto. What do you think she would do to Amu if she got the opportunity to? Amu's just too naive to realize she's inviting the enemy into her home."
"While that makes sense," Kairi commented taking a step forward in the consideration, "What can we do about it?"
"We need to find a way to know what's going on at that party." Ikuto stated making all the guys look at him as if he were insane.
"Are you insane?!" along with Kukai, open enough to just say it.
"I know what Utau has done to girls that got too close to be before," Ikuto stated thinking back to all those incidents before, and how this was the first time he actually cared about stopping Utau's rage, "Trust me, we want to keep our singer."
"I see your point." Tadase commented knowing exactly what Ikuto was referring to.
"Well, there's only one way in..." Kukai stated adding a pause to get everyone's attention, "We need some serious undercover work. We have to put Tadase in a dress."
"No way in hell!" Tadase told him before Kukai had a chance to talk any more, "I refuse!"
"Do it for the band man!" Kukai tried to reason with him.
"Why don't you do it then?!" Tadase asked pointing at Kukai to take some responsibility
"Because, I would probably forget to act girly, as oppose to it coming naturally to you," Kukai explained, both insulting and saving himself at the same time, "All you need is a wig, and a false identity of an identical cousin."
"No!" Tadase told him for the final time, "I'm not going to do it! It wouldn't work anyway, Utau's known me forever, she knows I'm an only child with no cousins."
"Rats!" Kukai commented putting that into consideration, "Kairi!"
"I don't want any part of this." Kairi answered before he got the chance to explain what it would take to make him a girl, "Besides, my girlfriend will be there, remember?"
"How long are you going to rub that in?" Kukai demanded, getting the point that Kairi is out, "Iku-"
"You've got to be kidding." Ikuto commented looking down at Kukai.
"Yeah, you'd make an ugly girl." Kukai added just to make himself feel better. "Well, come on, if you walk the walk, how much could they really notice?" Kukai asked doing his demonstration of a girl's walk.
"That's not how a girl walks." Nagihiko told him, making all the guys look at him confused, "Girls move their hips, and sometimes while raising their feet in heels." the guys looked at one another before they all stared at Nagihiko with mischievous smiles, "What?" Nagihiko asked with a sweat drop, afraid of the answer.
"You live with a house full of women at your house, right?" Tadase asked.
"Oh no," Nagihiko commented, already knowing where this conversation was going.
"And haven't you had to fill in for a few injured female dancers before, posing as a girl?" Kukai asked his smile growing wider.
"Nagihiko, my friend," Ikuto said, putting his arm around him like they were good friends, "This is what I like to call, sweet revenge."
A/N:
Whoa! Finally posted it! Wow I'm really hyper right now! Well, I had trouble finishing this because I was sad after reading chapter 45 of shugo chara! Am I the only one sad about those three?! I loved those guys! I won't say anything specific for those who hate spoilers, but now I'm curious about how the next chapter's going to go! Well..., I'm not in a ranting mood really..., so enjoy! XD