Hello! Thank you for the long wait! I actually had this chapter done last week but since I'm such (note the sarcasm) a busy person, I spent a week to edit. I hope there are no mistakes...ENJOYZERS!

Disclaimer: I don't own Shugo Chara. 'Precious Secrets And Beautiful Liars' by TheLingeringWolf=most of the story inspiration (my fanfic Anything But This was basically a rip-off off that). 'Got to be perfect Not' by bleachlover1999=Rima's disguise. And it also is now highly influenced by Durarara!

《Not Expected》

Nagihiko POV

Here it was. Proof that I had become crazy.

The proof were the words that slipped out of my mouth that morning.

The proof was the stupidness of my actions.

I want to meet the person that could have done what I did with a perfectly sane mind. With a full audience of a homeroom class.

I never heard of the most popular boy in the school going up the the transfer student nobody cared about and say in a pleading voice-

-" Please be my friend!"

Needless to say, as I started to wallow as if being stupid was the most amazing thing in the world, silence ensued.

A smirk-like grin formed on Rima's face as she realized how stupid I sounded. How I wished I could have taken back those word.

I had a thought, maybe it wasn't too late, I could threaten everyone in this class to act as though this hadn't happened, but of course that would have been damaging to my image, so I didn't.

I just stood there, dumbstruck, staring at the girl with goggle glasses and bunched up hair in a beanie.

It felt like hours had passed before I did what most social people did when they made a mistake. It came as a conditioned reflex that activated much too late.

I laughed, but at that moment, laughing happened to make it sound like the words I said before were a joke.

Laughing made my words sound like a cruel joke that was played on the unfortunate transfer student when she had barely been there a week and had been subjected to be ignored from the moment she threw that desk at Kukai.

As the class nervously joined me in my laugh, Rima relaxed on her chair still smirking. The fact that I could not fathom why she was still smirking, seamlessly added to my my nervousness.

I began to wonder what that scene looked like in a strangers eyes. The biggest extrovert in the school requesting friendship with the invisible-like introvert and then that extrovert laughing it off, walking away as if it never happened.

Then that introvert by the name of Rima spoke.

" You actually meant that didn't you?" She said, sounding surprisingly normal. At that moment she seemed to me that she was nearly above the highest intellect of the world. To me, she seemed like a goddess in disguise at that moment for all I cared.

The extrovert by the name of Nagihiko Fujisaki could only utter one word in reply.

I think that must have been the most stupid moment of my life.

Idiotic, stupid me said-

" Yeah"

Kukai POV

I came to school late, having overslept, hoping I arrive before the teacher does.

I walked into the classroom and I get what I wanted, the teacher's presence failed the classroom, but in turn, the class felt extremely odd.

It was so quiet a pin could have dropped and everyone would have heard it. They were all listening so intently.

But it was also the type of quiet that if that pin did indeed drop, no one would care to take notice of it. They only heard what they wanted to.

" H-hey" I said with a mask of uncertainty, since I was not an idiot who could not read the moods and atmospheres. Instead I was the type of idiot who could read the mood but never bother following it unless I, myself deemed it absolutely necessary.

And this was one of those times.

Rima POV

I had spent the morning daydreaming. Carefully masking my face with a default look, I let my mind wonder.

I thought of many things, but as always, my mind settled on one thing.

I envisioned what my family would have been like if I happened to not have been kidnapped. I remember what it was like when I was younger. My mom coming home from work and smiling, laughing...she looked beautiful.

I remember how my mom my father and I settled before the TV and watched dramas, alternating between my mom and dad's choice each night.

Those were the happy times, and I let myself get lost in it.

I let myself get delusional.

Those happy times are happening now...yes, nothing has changed.

"Please be my friend!"

Huh?

I was still in my blissful mood, still thinking there was nothing wrong. I mean, there was even someone asking to be my friend...

Grinning. I was grinning.

" You actually meant that didn't you?" I said.

Only after those words were said did everything come back, crashing, a sharp reminder.

" Yeah," he replied.

And that he, I realized, was Nagihiko Fujisaki.

Kukai POV

The class stood frozen. No one heard my uncertain hello.

Both Rima and Nagihiko were staring at each other.

And the class was trying to catch even the slightest implication of communication between the two. And so was I.

" Even if you meant it, why did you say it?" Rima spoke, her voice growing more and more montone with each word she said. The whole class held their breath for Nagihiko's answer but I grinned, that question seemed to fit the parts of Rima I had seen so far.

"I honestly have no idea" Nagihiko replied, not skipping a beat. It was almost creepy how normal the conversation sounded when he said that.

Kree.

The sound of a chair being moved echoed the classroom. Rima had gotten up from her desk, but Nagihiko remained rooted to the ground where he was standing, next to his desk.

Rima grabbed his arm and began to head towards me, the doorway.

" Let's go," I heard her say softly to Nagihiko as they past by me," to the roof"

And they left.

They passed by me but did not acknowledge me. Rima led Nagihiko out of the classroom and as soon as they left, I closed the door behind them.

"No one follow them." I told the class sternly. And as if on cue, the bell rang, signaling the start of class.

People scrambled to their seats and the teacher walked in.

As the teacher took attendance, there was an unspoken agreement that Nagihiko and Rima would be marked absent.

Enjoying my window seat, I grinned, looking out into the open cloudless blue sky.

"Souma Kukai! Please pay attention!"

Busted.

" Yes teacher "

I heard him mumbling about how students like me even got into this school.

That was it, that was all it took.

I burst out laughing. This was beginning to be one of the funniest weeks of my life. First a transfer student. Then the unpredictable events that followed, I mean, seriously, what kind of closed minded person wants to kick a hard ball to a person who they're interested in? What a sadistic thing to do!

Oh, being around Nagihiko was so fun.

I had made the right choice. I didn't care anymore, let abnormal become normal! What was I so afraid of? Everything can change, and I'll love it. I would never be bored now. I don't need a normal everyday life to anchor me down, I have people. And those people can change as much as they want but they will still be the same person, flesh and blood.

I was off my chair by now, still laughing.

I have Nagihiko, the best friend a bored person could have.

A person I first chose as a friend to kill time. Unexpectedly, he became an important existence to me. My best friend.

And I was ready to share him. To share him with Rima, because that was bound to happen eventually.

I was ready to race forward to days that would be so much more fun.

Rima POV

I heaved.

" What the hell?" I mumbled under my breath.

" 'What the hell' is right, I think I'm going crazy" the person whose arm my hand was clasped around said.

I let go of his arm.

I took in my surroundings. We made it to the roof. I took a deep breath, trying to breathe in whatever fresh air there might be.

My mind couldn't take it anymore, I needed something refreshing or something I could abuse. I was so close, so close until my mind shut down. Until I shut down.

" You have pretty good hearing" I said in a last ditch effort

" Nice to know"

We stared at each other for a good few moments.

" So what was that abou-" Nagihiko and I had spoked at the same time and we stopped abruptly. I stopped trying to force myself. Whatever I wanted at that moment, I felt like I would get it.

"-t?" Nagihiko finished.

Normal POV

" Do you think the class would be courteous enough to erase what they heard from their minds?" Rima asked seriously.

" I don't think that's possible" Nagihiko deadpanned.

" Well then, I guess I'll have to beat the memories out of them, I hope none of them get permanent amnesia."

They looked at each other and laughed.

Thier laughter were beautifully harmonized.

Nagihiko's low chuckle enhanced Rima's tinkling giggle.

It was a scene in a movie, where two main characters found something insanely funny. But there was something different from what it would have been from a movie.

Most people, when they laugh, try to hold it in and end up laughing more, but the way Nagihiko and RIma laughed was not like that.

They laughed freely and openly as if they hadn't laughed in a long time and never wanted to stop. They didn't hold in their laughs, but let it flow out, naturally and willingly.

When they finally calmed down, they felt a little closer together than than the two students that happened to share a class they had felt like earlier that day.

They remained silent after the laughter died away, enjoying each other's company.

" So, how about we take a walk home together after school together?" Nagihiko asked smoothly after a while.

" No way" Rima replied, " I'm not that easy purplehead."

" I know"

And the laughter started again.

But before they could talk about anything more, the bell for second period rang. They both left the roof in the best mood they had felt all week.

The rest of the day seemed sour compared to the to the sparkling moment they had together. It was the first time Nagihiko had enjoyed anything since he had entered middle school. For Rima, it was less magical, the last time she had felt this was only a few months ago.

The state of happiness.

Though this time, both of them acquired it through ignorance.

The day dragged on, seemingly forever. Kukai looked for telltale signs from Nagihiko but none were shown.

Once again, Rima had seemed to melt back to invisibility. But one thing, did in fact change from the day before. She had only seemed to be invisible.

The other girls in the class took notice of Rima. No one dared invite her for lunch for they didn't want to be seen with someone with goggles and a beanie on, especially since it was a warm day, but they talked about her, stole glances and exchanged a few simple, obvious conversations with her.

RIma did not like this change.

The girls around her said things like this:

" That's her, right?"

" Shh! She can hear you!"

" Ew, she's one step away from a fashion disaster!"

And the other girls gossiped:

" Hey, did you hear that rumor?"

" I did! I did! No way it true. The one about his beautiful girlfriend is more believable."

" What if they're the same person?"

" That's it! Maybe she looks really pretty when her hair's down!"

" That's a stretch, but if you look really closely at this picture I took, you can tell she had a little makeup on, on her cheek, see? It looks pretty correctly applied too."

" Oh my god, really? I can hardly tell! She must be really good."

" So...what if the 'girlfriend' and that short girl are the same person?"

Nagihiko POV

Achoo.

I sneezed. School was out and I was leaning at near the school entrance, arms crossed, relaxed. I was waiting for Kukai, who had to turn in an overdue paper to the teacher. I gazed up into the sky, it wasn't as particularly sunny as it was that morning.

I started observing the other people exiting the school. I got nothing out it, only taking note that it was a normal scene. But as I was looking at the faces of the people passing by I saw one face that caught my attention.

Rima Mashiro was walking calmly and in a manner too common that it would have been easily overlooked. My body lifted itself up, off the pace where I was leaning. I uncrossed my arms and my breath caught.

" H-hey" I managed. She looked over me. Her eyes were daggers, sharp and emotionless.

"Hey purplehead," she replied, and we fell into step, side by side.

A second too soon, Kukai glomped me.

" Hiya, whaddya doin'? Trying to leave me?" Kukai said grinning," Hello to you too, girl who threw a desk at me." He acknowledged Rima.

" Sorry, man, I didn't mean to you here." I said to Kukai.

"No problem!" He said, going to the other side of Rima.

I smiled, it was a normal exchange between Kukai and I except Rima as there, walking in between us.

Somehow, it was so creepily normal that the people around didn't seem to second glance us. Even though the other students knew us so well. But it worked, and we left the school quietly.

"We're out of school now." I said plainly.

" So?" Kukai and Rima said in unison.

" Is there a reason why you need to keep that stuff on or is it just for school?" I directed the question to Rima. She looked at me, confused. "I saw how you looked underneath, remember?" I asked, referring to her beanie and goggles.

"You did?" Rima stayed silent for a while, " Oh, you did." She paused once more," Do you want me to take it off? You have to take responsibility if I get hit on."

" Umm..." I said.

" Didn't think so purpleheaded prince."

Kukai cocked his head, "What are you guys talking about?"

" Nothing," Rima and I said unison.

We walked for a little while longer, Kukai and I chatting about the baseball game that had happened last night.

" I need to get some stuff from the market." Rima interrupted us and walked ahead without so much of a goodbye.

" I need to go somewhere too, see you!" Kukai left, jogging away the direction we came from.

I would be late for dance practice in five minutes, but it wasn't possible to make it in time. I would be scolded either way. I chuckled, before this week I would have done everything in my power to make it back home in time, but now, I no longer cared. I was so much more relaxed.

" Wait, I'll go with you." I said, jogging up to Rima.

She stayed silent.

This chapter started with a personal plea/going crazy first line and I worked off that. I still cringe when I see that first line since it feels so real to me and sorta diverges from writing that makes sense to others. Please bear with me, this 'friendship arc' will wrap up and make sense in the next few chapters so the story can finally move onto the action(for once in my life I actually wrote out the future plotline). Actually, this chapter was supposed to be longer, but if I moved towards the next event in the story, I felt like I would go past my usual chapter length. My feeling was right, I stayed within my usual 2,000s word mark.

Please read and review. It always means the world to me to see reviews.

~KiMi