Till There Was You


Life Spent in Love


When Natsume brought Mikan home and introduced her to his family, Mikan almost cried of fear. She did not know how to behave around a family. She never had one; and even if she had met all of her friends' families, this was different. Her past boyfriends were not celebrities. She did not need to be afraid of distrust. With Natsume it was more complicated.

So that evening, half a year into their dating, when Natsume brought Mikan home for dinner with his parents and sister, Mikan felt like dying. Even Natsume looked nervous.

''I hope they will like me.'' Mikan muttered, while waiting for the door to open.

''They will. No worries. The fact that it's been long since I officially introduced someone to them is reason enough.'' Natsume admitted and clenched her hand. He only introduced one girl before Mikan to his parents if he was honest. And it had been back in high school.

When the door opened and Natsume's mother welcomed them with a tight hug, they both relaxed.

''He did tell me a few things about you, but I'm glad I get to know you more now.'' Kaoru told her while leading them both to the dining room. ''Mikan, this is my father, my sister Aoi, and her boyfriend Yuichi.'' Natsume introduced her to his family. They all shook hands with her and smiled.

''So yeah…'' Natsume started awkwardly. ''This is Mikan Sakura, my girlfriend.''

''Aww, he's shy!'' Aoi teased her brother and Natsume glared at her. ''Come on, sit down both of you. Mum's been going crazy not knowing what to cook and now she wants to present you with her master piece.'' Kaoru glared at her daughter, but smiled at Mikan. ''Don't mind her. She just can't believe that Natsume plays shy.''

Mikan noticed that Kaoru and Yuichi brought the food to the table and through conversation, she learned that the boy is a cook in training. She learned many embarrassing things about Natsume and his childhood and laughed at Mr Hyuuga's jokes. She felt very comfortable and happy to have met Natsume's family.

And she was not sad that she never had a family like this one, but it made her a little melancholic.

''So, Mikan… You're a librarian? How in the world did Natsume find you?'' Kaoru asked jokingly and Mikan and Natsume looked at each other and laughed. The family watched them curiously and with a smile, waiting for the explanation.

''Actually…'' Mikan started.

''I ran away from Koizumi.'' Natsume continued a little embarrassed.

''You ran away from your ex?'' Aoi asked in disbelieve. She was Luna's friend and knew that the blonde was a little… extravagant… but running away…

''I just came from vacation and was officially still somewhere on the islands. I walked down the street, when I saw her and her friends walk towards me. She would have recognized me, so I hid in the library.''

''I found him behind a shelf, whispering into his phone for help and he looked like he might scream when I asked him what was going on.''

''I did not. You just surprised me. And I thought you might recognize me and tell the press.''

''Yeah, yeah. He almost panicked, but then I told him to just find a book and read. So he did.'' Mikan laughed and Natsume glared at her playfully. The family watched them a little in awe, and looked at each other smiling. The two were in love.

''When did that happen?'' Mr Hyuuga wanted to know.

The pair looked up and thought about it. ''Um… A year and a half ago, I think. Maybe a few months les.'' Mikan answered.

''So you two knew each other for almost a year before you started dating?'' Kaoru asked.

Mikan blushed and smiled at Natsume. ''Yeah… It took us some time.''

Natsume took her hand and smirked. ''She could not resist my charm.''

Mikan rolled her eyes. ''Of course. It wasn't like you didn't come to the library every week ''just for books''.''

''Oh, hush you.''

The family laughed at their banter and could hardly believe how good the two got along.

''What about your family, Mikan? Natsume hasn't told us anything.'' Kaoru asked and Natsume flinched. Mikan on the other hand just smiled gently.

''My parents died when I was a child and I was brought up in an orphanage. It was a very nice place.'' She explained and before anyone would feel awkward, she started telling funny stories from her childhood and made them all laugh. Natsume watched her with a smile his mother recognized as pure love. He was completely infatuated with her. And she was glad it was like that because Mikan seemed a very nice girl.

And as the evening went on, the family accepted Mikan completely, making her feel like one of them. As the couple went home, staying at Mikan's place, they talked about the evening and were glad it went all right.

After the introduction of the family was taken care of Natsume and Mikan thought about how to make it known to their friends. Half a year later that was also taken care of.

To say that Mikan's and Natsume's relationship was normal would be a lie. They kept it hidden from the public. No one was sure if Natsume Hyuuga was take nor not, but they all had a hunch that his sudden change of attitude had something to do with a romantic partner. His new songs had so much love in them, and were so deep that it was not necessary to guess if he was in a relationship or not – it was quite obvious. However, officially, Natsume did not comment on that statement.

Which is why everyone guessed who the lucky person was. Who was the one that made Natsume Hyuuga turn into a love-sick puppy? Who made him so secretive?

Natsume Hyuuga was not a playboy; never had been. But he was never shy to tell who his current love partner was. He turned up at official parties with his current girlfriend and took her out on dates.

But not now.

He came to events with his band all smiley and happy, and went home alone. If he ever took his girlfriend out, it was done in secret.

While people read about the success of the band RED, the change in Natsume Hyuuga and guessed about his love life, Natsume and Mikan were walking hand in hand with Mr Bear on the leads down the street. Mikan was just explaining something to her boyfriend, and he laughed at what she said and at the way, she made grimaces. They looked like a normal couple, although the man wore far too many clothes to be even recognized.

It was almost spring, but the weather was still winter-like, snow was falling and the streets were white. Mr Bear loved to walk around in that kind of weather. His tail was wiggling and his ears were up, ready to take in all the sounds.

Mikan pressed her red coat closer, her braided hair tucked under her hat. Natsume watched her smile and kissed her whenever he had the chance to. She still blushed like the first time and he loved her reaction.

''Red suits you.'' He chuckled and she hit him playfully.

''Thank you, I guess…'' she replied and looked around carefully, noticing no one paid them special attention. Then she quickly turned to Natsume and pressed her lips to his in a short but sensual kiss. He was surprised for a second, but his hand already found the back of her head. She pulled away almost right away, this time watching him flush a little, his eyes big and shiny, and in love. She grinned.

''Got you now, eh?'' she giggled and pulled him behind her like a child. He followed her with a goofy smile, still in daze. Bear ignoring their playful attitude.

''Man… I'm completely crazy for you.'' He blurrted out and flinched at his own confession. But Mikan did not make a big deal out of it. She just looked at him with a smile, still walking, her cheeks red, and pecked his cheek. ''I'm crazy for you too…'' she giggled at his expression and pulled him behind her again. They ran like children, Mr Bear running too and hid in an empty side street, where they snogged each other like teenagers.

Eventually they calmed down a little, laughing at their own behaviour and continued their walk around. It was a wonderful day and they enjoyed it to the fullest. They did not go out to eat, because anyone would recognize Natsume there, so they usually had dinner at Mikan's and on rare occasions at Natsume's.

They were not able to spend much free time like that with Natsume's career obligations, but that just made them even more in love.

Maybe one day, they would not walk around in secret and as girlfriend-boyfriend. Maybe one day, she would wear a ring on her finger with his name on it. And maybe one day there would not be just the two of them and their pets; maybe there would be a toddler in Mikan's arms, having his eyes and her hair. Maybe one day.

But that would wait a few years. They still had a lot of things to experience. They still had time. And he would enjoy it to the fullest. That, he knew.