01 Encounter

. . . .

The brunette hummed happily as she took another step forward. She continued walking. They morning breeze was so great today, she felt safe. Somehow she got a feeling that today will be a fine day. And the weather was so nice, something good must have happened later on.

She intended to call her best friend to inform her that she'll arrive soon. And also to notify her that she's already awake long time ago. Jeez. Hotaru was so strict. Even for her own dear best friend, she couldn't even tolerate a few minutes of tardiness. Mikan reached inside her pocket and then all of a sudden, her feet halted. She had abruptly stopped walking. She grabbed the content inside her pocket and winced. She took a deep breath and let it all out with a low mumble of curses. She took out the flat yet thin card from inside her pocket.

"Ah, shit. I'm dead," she swore again.

Without wasting a beat, she turned around and her paces broke into a run.

All the while, she couldn't mentally stop from cursing her dear beloved brother all over again. He's the one who actually forgot the—his—card and being the extremely caring and responsible sister she was, she picked it up for him and put it in her pocket, mentally remind herself to give it to him later because she's so bloody sure he had already forgotten about it. And now what? She forgot about it too and surely Hotaru would have her head as the aftermath when she reached her school late—again—today.

But who was she kidding? She would go as far as anything if it'sYouichi. She got mad and pissed and would always swear at him but all the while, she loved him. She wouldn't trade him for anyone at all.

They say love conquers all.

Her paces stopped in front of a tall gate. She had managed to find the back ones. Like always.

This school was prestigious, there's no doubt about it. Sure rich parents send their spoil brats here to at least learn something though she doubt they actually learnt anything at all, but at least not all of them are bad eggs. Some of them were even worth mentioning about. She knew because she too was once one of them.

In fact, she's the one who lead them.

But that was ages ago.

Her glory days had come to an end and she had long ago closed the book. Her new life is ahead of her and letting go and accept the fate was what she chose and surprisingly, she had not regret it ever since. It was the one of the best decisions she ever the best one ever.

. . . .

A pink haired girl hummed a soft tune as she aimlessly and boredly scribbled something on the blank pages before her. The teacher was teaching at the front of the class but she had no intention to pay any mind to the old man. She was damn bored and it was history for god's sake! Another more hour of this, she swore she could fall asleep.

She felt her phone suddenly vibrated inside her pocket. Slowly, she fished it out from her pocket and her eyes went big when she saw the name on the screen. Almost immediately in reflex, she stood up, making a screeching sound as she pushed her chair. Realizing she suddenly disrupted the whole class peace and stirred unwanted glances and stares; she quickly bowed and excused herself before rushing out of class.

As soon as she was out of hearing sight, she pressed on the answer button on the screen. Straight away upon hearing the voice on the other line, she bowed her head in respect despite knowing very well, the other person on the other line couldn't see it.

"Sakura-sama," the girl said with high regard.

"Anna-chan!" the girl on the phone beamed. "So sorry to bother you at times like this. Are you in class right now?"

Anna blushed when she heard the girl she idolized so much even to this day, mentioned her name and the fact that she still remembered her sent her heart fluttering! She's a huge fan of Mikan Sakura. Back in the old days and even now.

Anna frantically shook her head. "Oh no I'm not, Sakura-sama." Well technically, she was in class but now that she already went out, she's not in a class at all right now. So that's not really a lie. "Can I help you with anything?"

"I'm so sorry to disturb you at this kind of time, truly I am. But I need help…"

"Anything for you, Sakura-sama."

"So I need you to…"

Anna listened closely to the phone and paid every attention she had to the caller while slowly making her way towards the said direction told by Mikan.

. . . .

Mikan ended the call and shoved it inside her pocket. She put down her bag—which she had been carrying all this while, on the ground and rummaged through it. After she found the rubber band, she quickly tied her hair up and zipped the bag again before throwing it over the gate. She heard the thump sound and nodded her head. She did a few easy stretches to warm up and took a few steps back. After what seemed like a few minutes, she started running towards the tall gate and when she was closed enough, her hands grabbed for the top and she quickly climbed before making a jump over it. And just like that, she swiftly landed with a low thud.

She grinned triumphantly and brushed her two hands. That's wasn't so hard.

"Are you intruding our school?"

Upon hearing the voice, Mikan froze on the spot. Shit. Did someone see her?

She slowly turned around and silently prayed it wasn't a teacher or some sort of it. She'll be dead if a teacher found her breaking in. Moreover, she'll be halfway dead first when the news travelled to Hotaru Imai before it reached to the principal of her school. Hotaru's punishment was a lot crueler than the school's, believe her.

Mikan sighed in relief when she saw it was no one except for a student. He was leaning comfortably against the trunk of a shady tree. He had his face covered with a manga while his long pair of muscular legs sprawled on the grass. She assumed he was a guy seeing his school uniform, despite not seeing his face yet. And the rough voice definitely belonged to a guy's. Mikan inwardly snickered. If it's a student, then it should be easy enough to handle. She had experience with this.

Mikan cleared her throat. "Look, I'm not intruding or anything but.."

Immediately she got cut off, "Then mind telling me, why you climb the back gate instead of going through the front gate?"

Jerk, you cut me off! She mentally swore but outside, she gave him a sickening sweet smile. "I have my reasons."

"Enlighten me with your reasons then," the guy said. The manga finally slide down from his face and fell on his lap, revealing a face of a young lad with a mesmerizing pair of crimson eyes looking straight at her. He was devastatingly and insanely good looking with his hair all messy like he had not bother to comb it all and shucks, his eyes were red! How on earth could that be!? That's abnormal, right? How on earth someone could have red eyes?

The guy stood, totally ignoring his manga which had already fell on the ground. He stared at the intruder with an unwavering gaze. He knew she was looking at him too, probably analyzing him inside her mind.

The intruder was in fact, quite a breathtaking beauty. ; her front long hair was choppy fringe, covering only halfway to her forehead. Her eyes were soft brown and they were huge but they fitted her face superbly, the perfect vehicles for her—first time that he realized—direct gaze. Her brows were straight, uncompromising, but their line was soften by her hair. She wore it loosely on top of her head; he wondered how long her hair was. Her lips were temptation incarnate. Her aura seemed to bring a teasing, provocative light in her eyes. She wasn't necessarily tall but her height is average enough. His gaze stopped at her exposing legs. They were long and tough. He bet she's not a regular school girl who carried books, she must did sports; cheerleading at least. And she had a sense of taste too, the lad noticed. What she's wearing isn't common sneakers. It's a high cut Converse special edition sneakers, which was so damn hard to get.

Who is she?

She looked a bit familiar to him.

Her hair especially.

But he couldn't quite grasp who she was.

"You're not checking me out, are you?" she bluntly asked as he saw her crossing her arms.

"Does it concern you if I do?" he asked back with a hint of playfulness in his voice. He knew she knew he was checking her out but she asked him still. But one can play the game.

"Psycho," was all she muttered under her breath as her response. She picked up her bag and was about to walk away when the guy spoke again.

"You don't want to go that way. It's where the staffroom is," he informed her out of nowhere.

One of her brows raised in suspicion. "And why are you telling me this?"

He shrugged. "You don't want to get caught, do you?"

Mikan's brows mashed together at his question but she shook her head still.

"You're not going to turn me in? I broke into your school after all."

The guy bent down and picked up his manga from the ground before turning around to face her with a smirk. "You're not worth the work I'll go through if I turn you in."

And then he just walked away like that, leaving the brunette with an almost exploded head.

"Damn that retarded narcissist psycho!" she swore out loud. She was fuming. She saw red. And she felt like chopping his head off right now! She's not worth the work he'll go through if he turned her in?

The image of him smirking at her came flashing back.

What a nerve that guy was!

She wanted to pour acid on his face to wipe that smug smirk of his face!

Wait.

Mikan's forehead crinkled, suddenly remembered something.

Where had she seen that kind of smirk before?

It's oddly annoying, that smirk. Why did everything she remembered about that smirk, she had a feeling she had always detest it.

Weirdly enough, that smirk triggered something inside her.

She began pacing here and there. Thinking why the smirk was was so familiar and yet felt so odd to her.

As if something just clicked, Mikan froze. Her feet suddenly went numb. Her entire body was cold, like someone had decided to put her inside a freezer. Her heart almost stopped. And she swore her lifespan had reduced to 10 years when she finally came down to realization why it was so familiar to her.

"He's one of the Eye Candy," she mumbled in shock like that fact alone still couldn't convince her that it was real.

His looks. His eyes. His posture. His smirk!

He's Natsume Hyuuga!

She had watched too many of their videos on youtube that she would be an idiot not to recognize that stupid infamous smirk of his!

And she was an idiot because she failed to recognize it sooner.

Mikan sat on the ground, hands on her face, repeatedly massaging every muscles of it. She's panicking. Her hands were trembling.

"Oh god.. he didn't recognized me, did he?" her voice came out.

If he did, all her effort up till now would be futile. She had gone this far. And with just a short encounter like this, everything would crumble down? Just like a flick of a finger?

But she was—half—convinced that he didn't recognize her. She was trying to be optimistic right now by looking on the brighter side and self-hypnotize herself that truly, Natsume Hyuuga indeed didn't recognize her at all.

But who was she trying to lie? He was checking her out just now! And he even openly admitted it! He ought to notice something amiss, right?

No longer used performing on youtube with a cap on her head, covering half of her face, no longer used performing on youtube with only a black screen came out with her voice at the back. No longer used having Hotaru recorded her singing video and put it on youtube but without her face in it.

She had built her name on youtube like that. People didn't know her, not once saw her face and yet, they love her voice, they love her covers and songs.

And Mikan was satisfied being just like that.

But now, her entire secret life depended on the sole person named Natsume Hyuuga.

THE NATSUME HYUUGA.

Ah, bloody hell.

"Aaah shit. If he found out, then Ellys Emerys is screwed."

TBC.