DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GAKUEN ALICE BUT THIS STORY IS MINE.
Cinderella's Shoes
...
"But why do I wish he meant everything he said?"
-Mikan Sakura
"But even if I do, you're going to be my special fan girl, my forever fan."
-Natsume Hyuuga
...
"Thank you Mikan Sakura and Natsume Hyuuga for such a wonderful song and teaching us how to kiss." The host draped a hand on Natsume's shoulder and gave him a small smile. The crowd cheered, shouting Natsume and Mikan's name. Natsume smirked while Mikan scowled. After a few minutes, they were hustled on the backstage to prepare for the next portion of the contest: the question and answer part.
Mikan clenched her hands into a fist and glared at the unsuspecting Natsume. "What the hell was that for?" she shouted. "We didn't plan to kiss in front of so many people, idiot! What do you take me for, asshole?" She huffed and placed her hand on Natsume's arm, forcing him to look at her.
The sight was infuriating. Natsume's face was full of smirk, as if he, himself was made purely of smirks. She gritted her teeth.
"Why the hell are you smirking? Don't smirk, you idiot!"
"That was an awesome kiss. I didn't know you could kiss like that, little girl."
"Don't make me remember that!" Mikan covered her ears with her hands. "That was so –"
Her words were cut when he suddenly grabbed her hand. She slowly looked up and found him staring at her intently. "I want you to remember everything." He smirked and tipped her chin. "I will never let you forget about the kiss we both enjoyed." He lowered his head and closed his eyes. She felt attracted to him all of the sudden and found herself closing her eyes and leaning forward to meet his lips.
"Hey, guys! You're up in five min –" the organizer of the contest stopped when he saw the scene unfolding in front of him. "Did I just interrupt something?"
Mikan suddenly opened her eyes and shoved Natsume away. She flushed and looked at the organizer. "No, you just came in the right time!" She laughed nervously and went to follow him. Natsume clutched her hand. She turned her head and stared at him.
"You..." he smirked at her, "...were able to escape me this time. But there won't be a next time. I'd made sure we're both alone if I try to kiss you again. '
Her face darkened and she yanked her hand from him. "I'd made sure you're going to be sent to the hospital the next time you tried something like that to me. Mark my words, Hyuuga-bastard."
Cinderella's Shoes
God, he made her so mad. When is he going to leave me alone? She asked herself mentally. She stomped her foot in her every step as she climbed towards the stage again. She went on the right side and stopped. Natsume stood beside her, smirking. Just when does the guy stop smirking? She sighed.
"Guys, we're going to enter the question and answer part of the contest. The traditional approach to this was asking the girl and then she would give a satisfying answer. But today, we're going to go out of that tradition and ask the boys this time!" the host explained.
Mikan sighed with relief. She was worried about the question and answer portion because she knew she might messed it up or completely ruined up their chances of winning.
"So I'm up, huh?" Natsume whispered.
Her eyes widened. If it's Natsume, then everything won't go according to what she wants. Natsume would take everything in his flow. She clasped her hands together and silently prayed.
Natsume glanced at her from the corner of his eyes and his face darkened. She was like praying for a miracle to occur. He smacked her back.
"Ow – what the hell was that for?" she hissed.
"Leave everything to me, idiot. I'm not going to let us lose." He looked at the contestants. "...Because I'm the man who always wins. Keep that in mind."
"Yeah, right Hyuuga-obnoxious."
"Stop affixing anything on my last name, idiot!"
Mikan smiled a little and turned her focus on Ruka who was called on the center of the stage. He looked so stiff and stressed out. Being the chosen partner of Sumire Shouda had really drained his energy.
"How are you holding up Ruka-kun?" the host asked the haggard lad.
"Ah actually I'm getting ti –" Ruka stopped his words on midair as he felt a chilly air coming behind him. He sluggishly steered his head and saw Sumire glaring daggers to his back. He immediately looked ahead and said cheerfully, "I'm having a great time."
"Ruka is an idiot," Natsume put his arms together in front of his chest and looked at his best friend wearily. "He could run away from Shouda but no, he chose to live his life miserably like that."
"Nogi-kun is not like you Hyuuga. He's a gentleman unlike you."
"Oh," Natsume bent his head in Mikan's level and said, "I'm a gentleman. I'll make sure you'll know how gentleman I could get."
"Shut up, pervert!" Mikan muttered, "Ugh, you and your perverted impulses."
"Alright, guys, here's the question for Ruka-kun," the host interrupted their bickering. He looked at the paper in his hands and asked, "If Sumire-chan is a fruit, what would she be and why?"
"Unripe mangoes," Ruka answered glumly. "Because our relationship is like the transition of unripe mangoes to ripe ones, it's blossoming slowly but surely." He coughed a little and added mentally, "She just made my mood turn sour, that's all."
"That was so sweet of you Ruka-kun, very sweet!" the host complimented the poor guy as he patted on his shoulder. Ruka nodded and sighed. He couldn't help but feel pity for himself. He was just dragged on this war for the Anastasia role by Sumire and he couldn't even do a thing about it.
He politely left the center of the stage and went back to Sumire.
The host smiled and announced, "And now, our last contestant, let's give it up for Natsume Hyuuga."
Natsume lowered his head and whispered to Mikan's ears, "Wish me luck, little girl."
As he moved forward, the girls shouted frantically, screaming his name. Natsume flipped his hair and smirked towards the girls' population.
"Attention-seeker," Mikan whispered. "You're an idiot, Hyuuga." She pouted and ignored the hungry looks the girls had been giving to Natsume. She felt a painful tug in her heart but decided to ignore it too. "I was just upset because he kissed me. I'm not upset because he's popular with gi –" She stopped her sentence and grasped her head, shaking away unwanted thoughts. "What is happening to me?" she panted, glaring at her hands furiously. She looked up and saw Natsume staring at her.
He was looking grimly at her. Mikan stepped back a fraction and her face fell. "The bastard saw me. I'm doomed." She turned her back on him.
"What the hell is that idiot thinking now?" Natsume muttered. "Could it be she had a diarrhea and she was just forcing herself?" He tilted his head on the other side and shook his head. "Impossible."
He took the center of the stage and the host smirked at him. "How are you holding up Natsume-kun?"
"I'm happy, very happy," Natsume said. The crowd wailed and shouted his name. He held a hand up and waved at them.
"Alright, my question for you is..." the host looked at the paper and smiled. "Define what beautiful means."
"Beautiful huh?" he stared at the vast people looking at him and to Mikan's gloomy back. "For me beautiful means, when you start eating a mountain of food but still asking for more, stubborn one who wears childish underwear like polka dots pattern, has lips coated with strawberry lip gloss, knows how to bake your face in the cake, so dense you want to strangle her in frustration, an idiot who makes other people worry, who sings like there's no tomorrow, acting was her second nature, has a smile that could brighten and melt the coldest of hearts and has a seemingly hundred of shoes that she always throws it towards a person accurately. Yes, that was my definition of beautiful."
Her eyes widened and slowly turned around to look at Natsume. "Was he talking about me?" she asked herself. She placed a hand and put it in her chest. "Why is my heart beating so fast?" She closed her eyes. "No, calm down. He's doing this to win, yup, he does." She opened her eyes and muttered, "But why do I wish he meant everything he said?"
The host thanked Natsume for the very unique, out-of-this-world answer.
Natsume stepped out of the center and returned to Mikan. He smirked at her and asked, "So how was my answer?"
"Ah, it's ok."
"What – that's you're going to say? It's ok? What was that?"
"What am I supposed to say?"
He clasped his hands together and imitated Mikan's voice, "Thank you Natsume-sama! I love you Natsume-sama! You're so handsome Natsume-sama –" He looked at her sternly, " – that's what I expect you to say."
Mikan's face dimmed and said, "If I say that, my mouth will rot. Are you mistaking me for your fan girl, you idiotic pervert?"
"I am not." He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "But even if I do, you're going to be my special fan girl, my forever fan."
He walked away from her as he was called at the center of the stage again. Mikan shook, she raised her head, revealing her flushed face.
She kicked something non-existing in the air and took off her slipper. She caught the slipper in her hands and aimed it to Natsume.
"Don't make me feel weird things, idiot!" she hollered and sent the poor, lone slipper flying towards Natsume. It hit him as always and his head tilted on the other side. He winced in pain. "Ouch, that really hurt, that idiot did it again."
Cinderella's Shoes
Author's Notes: Uwah, after such a long time I've finally updated Cinderella's Shoes. By the way, I already finished writing the epilogue for Rent a Girl. I'm going to post it this week or maybe next week. So, just wait for it, ok? As always, thanks for reading the story. And waiting patiently for the updates. Please drop some review if you have time.