Kiss of Fate
By: Esa Marie
Chapter 12
It was the third day of the festival and Natsume decided to look around. He was bored and irritated by his last girlfriend that he stayed on top of the sakura tree yesterday and just read the new release of his current favorite manga. He went out of his special star room and proceeded to walk into the school grounds where the festivities are currently on-going. As he stepped into the people's view, everybody seemed to have stopped talking and began to look at him. Natsume's eyebrows furrowed. Is there something wrong with him? Or is there something wrong with the people around him? He shrugged and took a step forward. Big mistake. It seemed like a signal to all the girls around the area. And they all began running towards him like bees who had just found a pot of honey. Natsume's eyes widened as he saw the incoming disaster.
'What the hell?!' he cursed silently as he dodged one girl after another, his ears getting burned out from all the screaming of his name and 'I love you's'
"Natsume-kun!"
"Natsume, I love you!"
"Natsume-kun, I'm here!"
"No! I'm the girl you like!"
"I've been waiting for so long Natsume-kun!"
"I'm all yours!"
"Natsu...!"
"KKKKKKKKYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
A huge blaze of fire suddenly appeared and separated the girls from Natsume. Coughs were heard all over the place as the girls scrambled to their feet and tried to clear out the smoke. When things began to clear out, Natsume Hyuuga was nowhere to be found.
"What the hell was that all about?!" Natsume muttered furiously. Fan girls would normally content themselves with blushing, giggling, confessing, staring, but not attacking him like hungry mongrels. What in the world happened to cause those girls to act so bold?
He suddenly felt dizzy from running that he had to lean against a tree for support. He then felt footsteps coming his way that he swore out loud. He'll surely burn the hair of any stupid girl who would dare attack him.
"Natsume?"
Natsume let out a sigh of relief.
"It's you, Ruka," he acknowledged his friend. He sat at the base of the tree and leaned back against the trunk.
"Had a bad day, huh?" Ruka asked.
"Anyone who is being chased by a bunch of idiots would have a bad day," Natsume answered sarcastically. "There's something wrong with those girls."
"You mean, you haven't heard it yet?" Ruka asked as he sat beside Natsume.
"Heard what?" Natsume asked.
"Rumors have been spreading like crazy since yesterday," Ruka replied. "They say you're in love with someone."
Natsume stiffened.
"I don't know where that information came from but they say it came from a very reliable source," Ruka continued.
"Very reliable source…" Natsume whispered furiously. 'Only two people knew the truth.'
Ruka turned his head and saw him seething. "So you're affected by the rumor?" he asked curiously. "You never tell me anything about your real feelings especially if it's about a girl. Despite all the girlfriends you had, you never loved any of them, right? Although if the rumor is true about you being in love, I have a fairly good guess on who it is."
Natsume turned his head away. "You're talking nonsense, Ruka."
"Am I?"
Natsume just sighed but kept his silence. Ruka was surprised when Natsume suddenly stood up. "Natsume?"
"I have to find someone."
Ruka shook his head as he looked at Natsume's retreating back. 'It's pretty easy to guess who you're in love with, Natsume.'
Koko found himself in a position which every guy would have dreamt of, being surrounded by girls. Although in his case, it's a nightmare.
"Koko, we want to know something," the bravest of the girls said.
"No way!" Koko burst out.
"We haven't told you anything," another girl said.
"I can read your thoughts if you had forgotten," Koko answered back. "Besides, I don't know anything about that."
"You're Natsume-kun's friend. You must know something about the girl he likes."
"Besides, you can read his mind."
All the other girls nodded their heads in agreement.
"Count me out," Koko told them. "I still care about my life, you know."
"Koko-kun!"
"Come on Koko! What if I'm the girl he likes? I'll just have to give him a sign to confess to me."
"Hah! As if Natsume-kun will look at you. I'm prettier than you!"
"Both of you are stupid! Natsume-kun won't even spare a glance to hags."
The fan girls began to insult each other. This gave Koko a chance to sneak past them. But they are sharper than he thought.
"Koko, help us! Who is the girl that Natsume-kun likes?"
Koko always have a lot of patience but these fan girls just drained them all. "If you don't want me to reveal all of your deepest secrets, leave me out of your plans," Koko smiled evilly as he threatened them, causing the girls to turn pale.
"Hmphh! You've been no help at all."
The girls marched away leaving him alone. He scratched his head trying to recall all the things that he read from their minds. 'A fortune teller, huh?'
"So, it wasn't you."
Koko turned around and saw Natsume behind him.
"Of course, it wasn't me. You've already given me a fair warning on that," Koko said then grinned at him. "But I know now how the rumor spread."
"Was it Souma?" Natsume asked.
"Nope. It was a fortune teller," Koko replied. "I remember there's a fortune telling booth for the festival. Of course, his or her alice would be that of fortune telling. No wonder the rumor is accurate."
"Shut up," Natsume grumbled at Koko's teasing.
"Akira-kun, isn't it that you're supposed to help Taki-sempai in his booth?" Mikan asked.
Akira scratched his head and grinned sheepishly. "I'd rather stay with you."
Mikan laughed at his boyish gesture. "Taki-sempai is going to be furious. Go! I don't want to be included in his lecture if he finds us," she said as she pushed him away.
"Are you sure you're fine alone? I could ask Taki to…"
"Go now. I'll be fine. I'll ask Hotaru or Anna and Nonoko to keep me company," Mikan said.
Akira sighed. He then grabbed Mikan's hand and pulled her to him. "Just promise me one thing… I'm going to be your last dance on the last day of the festival," he said looking into her eyes.
Mikan shifted uncomfortably. "Eh… For several years now, Hotaru has always been my last dance."
Akira raised his eyebrows. "Wouldn't that be unusual? In the eyes of the people here, I'm your boyfriend."
"Is that so?" Mikan asked innocently. "Well then, okay."
Akira's face lit up and a huge smile crossed over his lips. "Great! Thanks Mikan-chan." He then leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll see you later."
Mikan touched her cheek where Akira had kissed her as she watched him walking away.
"Oh that's so sweet!"
Mikan spun back at the voice. "Anna-chan, Nonoko-chan!"
"I really envy you Mikan-chan!" Anna squealed.
"Souma-sempai is so in love with you!" Nonoko gushed.
Mikan just smiled but inwardly, her heart seems heavy. 'I think I really should forget Natsume…'
Hina slouched back on her chair after the last customer left. After the incident with Sumire Shouda, her booth became more popular and a lot of customers began to pile up to have their fortunes told. She closed her eyes to take a minute rest when she heard a commotion just outside the room.
"I-i'm s-sorry but we're already c-closed…"
"H-hyuuga-san…"
Hina stiffened when a handsome guy with black hair and crimson eyes suddenly flipped back the opening of the tent and entered along with his lackey who has a messy pale blond hair.
"N-natsume H-hyuuga, I presume?" Hina stammered. Who wouldn't know the fire wielder alice? His power, good looks, and intellect are well known throughout the whole school. 'Not to mention his coldness,' Hina thought.
Cold eyes stared back at her. "So, you're the fortune teller?"
Hina nodded nervously. 'Is he gonna burn me for telling his secret? But I don't even know who the girl is.'
Natsume then turned to Koko. "So?"
Koko shook his head. "No, she doesn't know."
"Eh?" Hina was surprised.
"Okay, let's go." Natsume said. He then turned to leave.
"Wait!" Hina called out.
"What?"
"Y-you're not going to burn me for telling your secret?" Hina asked. Her nervousness seemed to have disappeared after she realized that Natsume wasn't planning anything bad against her. 'Or are you gonna leave then burn the whole tent?'
Koko laughed. "He's not that cruel, you know. We just want to find out how much you know. But you're pretty good."
"Koko!" Natsume warned.
"Sorry." Koko apologized then turned to follow him.
"Wait!"
"What now?" Natsume asked in an irritated voice.
Hina looked into her crystal ball. Now, that Natsume Hyuuga is here, it seems that she can see more clearly into his and the girl's fortune.
"The last dance…" she whispered.
Natsume turned to look at her.
"The last dance is your last chance. After that, her fate will change. You're going to lose her…"
Natsume just stood there, his expression cold and unreadable. Then he just shrugged his shoulders and walked out of the tent. "Whatever."
Koko smiled apologetically to Hina. "Don't worry that's just his normal expression."
He felt the girl's relief as she slumped back to her chair. He followed Natsume out just in time to read his final thoughts. 'I never had her anyway…'
Oh my, it's been more than a month since my last update? Wow, time sure flies fast. I'm really sorry for the delay. I'm really finding it hard to update this fic. I seem to have run out of ideas. Hahaha. I hope I'm not making a mess of this story.
Anywayz, thanks to the following for all your reviews. I'll try to update it as fast as I can (I hope... XD ) Read and review please! Luv u all!
facadephazzad, MiKaN♥NaTsUmE, Azurana K.
Memorie, Elspiritdelmar, anitsirhc
cutegabrielle16, Co;ette, jwinkee
glenda23, rukatoki, rurico
neko56, natsumeluvr, icedprincess6063
natsumexmikan, Dear Julie, estrela jem
kuroneko2728, winglessfairy25, Ghissy the Rockstar
maakuchan, Cat4862, kuroangelique
sakura0038, seshire, Xian-pyon
michiy0,KaTLeYa KaSSaNdRA KaReN LiN, emrevolemina
Natsumiyu, SnowMirage, black cat girl 2006