Cuxie: Guess who!
Amu: I'll guess the weird girl who likes to meddle in our lives.
Cuxie: Still stone-cold I see. We'll fix that this chapter.
Amu: What do you mean by "fix"?
Cuxie: You'll see. ;)
Amu: I don't like the sound of this...
Cuxie: Roll like the wind!
Amu's POV
"You're early."
I sighed into the chocolate soda Kimi placed in front of me. "I know." Even on my days off, I usually find myself coming to Lace. It's the Lolita cafe I started working at when I was thirteen. The staff is required to wear different styles of Lolita. I actually got the job by accident. Since I'm known for my casual Punk Lolita style anyway, the manager mistook me for one of the waitresses the first time I came in. When I told her I wasn't one, she looked me up and down and then asked if I wanted to be.
Kimi is two years older than me. Her style is Sailor Lolita; she was dressed head to toe in navy blue and white. Her navy skirt was pleated and paired with a white sailor-esque blouse with puffy sleeves. On her head was a large navy blue Alice bow. Most of the staff at Lace is nice, but Kimi and I have been friends from the beginning.
She smiled sympathetically, pushing a lock of blue hair from her face. "Nerves, huh?"
"I guess. I don't know." I glanced at my cell phone. Tadase would be here in three minutes. He's always right on time. "I have a feeling this isn't just a hanging-out sort of thing, you know?" Tadase hadn't said much when he asked to see me today. Or I guess I should say he didn't say anything at all. Just a text of the place and time. And a smiley face. Which I guess should put me at ease. Smiley faces don't usually precede break-ups. At least, I don't think they do. No one's ever broken up with me before. The smiley face could be part of the 'let her down gently' strategy.
Against cafe rules, Kimi sat down next to me, stealing a sip of my soda. "You need to relax. I've seen the way that kid looks at you and there is no way this is about what you think it's about. I mean, if I had a boyfriend that cute and attentive-"
Mr. Cute and Attentive chose that moment to come in, spotting us immediately. Kimi vacated his seat quickly and stood primly beside me. "Can I get you anything?" she asked as he slid into the seat across from me. I couldn't help but notice he didn't stop to kiss my cheek like he usually does.
"Just water please, Kimi-san."
He looked up at me, his bangs shielding his face just a little, and smiled. It looked a little strained. Stop imagining things, Amu! "Hi, Amu-chan. You look great."
I shifted a bit self-consciously. "Thanks. How did the game go?" I remember him telling me Kukai and Nagihiko were dragging him out to play basketball. Not that Tadase's bad at sports, but he's not exactly a jock.
His cheeks reddened a bit. "Well enough. Although Kukai and Nagihiko did get pretty competitive. " I could totally imagine that. Kimi returned with his drink, lingering long enough to surreptitiously flash me a thumbs up. "Are you looking forward to the concert?"
"Totally." I brightened up a bit. "Utau hasn't sung at the Yumeplex since sixth grade." This concert was gonna hold her biggest crowd since she broke away from Easter.
"I heard Ikuto-nii-san is going to be there."
I shrugged. Ikuto was the last thing I wanted to discuss. Particularly with Tadase. I never even told him I went with Utau to the airport to pick him up. I could see he noticed my apprehension, so I decided to question him before he questioned me. "So, um...Is there any particular reason you wanted to see me today?"
His shoulders tensed about, a tell-tale sign of bad news. "Amu-chan...there's something I need to tell you." I knew it! "I should've said something to you sooner. I feel like I've put this off for way too long." My heartbeat kicked up.
Oh God, here it comes..."W-What is it, Tadase-kun?"
"Amu-chan...I got accepted to Azaku."
"...Huh?"
"Azuka High School. It's a really prestigious school. The application process itself is pretty time-consuming, and the interview..." I tuned out as he went on a tangent about school rankings and graduating alumni. Accepted to Azuka? Not...not a break-up?I could literally feel my blood pressure going down. The threat of tears disappeared and I found myself giggling. "Amu-chan?"
"An acceptance letter? That's all?" His face completely fell and I rushed to catch myself. "Oh, n-no! Not that it isn't great, I just thought...I thought you were going to say something else."
"What else is there to say?"
"Nothing! So, um, Azuka, huh? That's amazing, Tadase-kun!" He grinned and continued telling me all about the schools highest national test scores. To be honest, I didn't know much of anything about Azuka, except that it was insanely hard to get in to, and it was an all-boy's school, and...and... "Tadase-kun..."
"Yes?"
"Isn't Azuka a boarding school in the city?"
His smile was wiped clean and his eyes looked pleading. He reached for my hand across the table. "Amu-chan-"
"You applied to a boarding school miles from here without even telling me?" My throat felt clogged with unshed tears. How could he do that? How could he make such an important decision without telling me? "How long?"
He wouldn't look me in the eyes. "I applied two months ago."
"Two months!"
"Amu-chan, please, hear me out. I know I should've told you sooner."
"Why? It's obvious you made up your mind a long time ago!"
He squeezed my hand. "Amu-chan-"
I pulled it away. I couldn't look at him. Knowing I was only moments away from bursting into tears, I grabbed my purse and tried to make as composed an exit as possible. Tadase slapped some bills on the table and rushed after me. "Please listen. I wanted to talk to you about this."
"I don't want to talk about it!" My voice sounded shrill in my ears. As I was going out, he caught the door behind me before it could slam shut.
"Amu-chan, be reasonable." He grabbed my arm, attempting to keep me from running off. I looked at him. He was using his sparkly look. Or trying to, anyway. Most of the time, I can't resist it when he makes his eyes all big and shiny like that. But this time, I didn't melt. It just made me even madder that he was trying to get out of it by using his looks. What's wrong with me today? I'm getting mad for no reason at everyone. First Ikuto, now Tadase...Maybe I need to cool off. "Will you at least let me explain, Amu-chan?"
I stopped struggling. Once he seemed sure I wasn't going to bolt, he let go of me. "...Not now, Tadase-kun."
"But-"
"I want to think about this." He opened his mouth to protest. "Alone."
He closed it. "...I suppose that's fair. Just..." He sighed and ran a hand haphazardly through his hair. "Just let me say this: I know things will be different, but I don't want it to change anything between us."
I nodded and turned to leave.
"And Amu-chan...I love you."
I won't cry here. I took off before he could say anything else. I needed to get as far away from him as possible. I needed to calm down. It couldn't be healthy to have so many emotions roaring around inside me. I was hurt, angry, annoyed, and on the verge of a meltdown.
'I know things will be different...'
He's going...He's already decided that. He decided a long time ago. Without me. I could tell just by the way he'd said it. Nothing I said or did at this point would change his mind. Maybe that's why he didn't tell me sooner; he didn't want me to convince him not to go.
I took out my cellphone, pressing the speed-dial button. It rang twice. "Can you come get me? My life's just been ruined."
Cuxie: Aw! Poor Amu-chan!
Amu: What the hell? I thought you were gonna "fix" things!
Cuxie: Yeah...turns out, I'm not much of a handygirl, as the case may be. But I made things more interesting!
Amu: You just created more conflict!
Cuxie: Conflict = Interest
Amu: I want out of this story!.
Cuxie: Sor~ry, you've got a contract.
Amu: What? I didn't sign any contract.
Cuxie: You did if I type you did. Now tell the ppl to R&R!
Amu: You do it, I'm getting a lawyer...