Yo! Before I say anything, I just want to say happy solar eclipse! Make sure not to look at the sun directly when it's covered, cause you could go blind and that would be a terrible thing indeed.
Chapter 7 is finally here, sorry for any delays! As always, I'm going to start off by thanking everybody who reviewed, favorited/followed and read Rekindling the Past! It's always a joy seeing reviews: no author wants to write a story just for themselves. I mean, if they did, then they wouldn't bother publishing haha!
Also, as always, I don't own GA, Yumeiro Patissiere or Kitchen Princess! Seriously though, if you haven't checked out KP or YP I highly recommend you do!
Without further ado, I present to you chapter 7!
Flashback: Mikan's POV
Present: Ruka's POV, shifts to Natsume's POV
FRIENDS
"Mou! How is this supposed to fit into this? Maybe if I….."
CRACK
"AHHH! IT BROKE!" With a huff, I tossed the broken mast on the desk. I was beginning to feel extremely frustrated with the challenge Narumi Sensei assigned the class for today. The rules of the challenge were pretty simple: we were to be placed into teams of four people at random and then to build a boat using only the materials provided. We had one hour to build and then the competition would commence outside near the pond. Narumi Sensei would time how long it took the boat to make it across the pond and the team whose boat went the fastest would win the grandest of prizes! A huge box of Howalon, the fluffiest, sweetest, most scrumptious heaven to exist on this world! I just had to win, no matter what!
At first, I thought it would be easy because the random shuffling resulted in Ruka, Hotaru, Natsume and myself on a team. Although now that I think about it, the teams didn't seem too random. Either way, I figured with two geniuses like Hotaru and Natsume, we would win this challenge in a cinch-especially because Hotaru specialized in inventing things! Unfortunately, my aspirations were quickly shot when Hotaru decided blackmailing Ruka would be a far better use of her time and Natsume just reclined in his chair to take a nap, draping his manga across his face to block out the light. Ruka wasn't any help either because he was trying to stop Hotaru from selling more embarrassing photos.
"IMAI! GIVE ME THAT PHOTO BACK RIGHT NOW!"
"And why should I do that? It's selling quite well, really. Maybe I should make an announcement during lunch to everyone and make more sales off this pose."
"IMAIIII! YOU WITCH! I can't believe you snuck cameras into my room while I was sleeping!" I bit my lip to hold in my giggles at the thought of Hotaru going so far. She would never admit it, but I knew there was something deeper behind why Hotaru went out of her way to blackmail Ruka and Ruka alone.
"Tch. Ruka, you're too loud. I can't sleep with this noise, so just give him back the damn photo already Imai." I glanced up at Natsume's irritated tone, only to let out a peal of laughter at his frazzled expression. He reminded me a spoiled child who was woken up from a nap and ready to throw a tantrum. Natsume immediately focused a glare at me and I stopped laughing, fearing for my life just a bit.
"Sorry, Natsume. I would stop being this loud if IMAI WOULD JUST GIVE ME THAT DAMN PHOTO!" Hotaru sneered at Ruka before dangling the photo in front of him with what looked like a fishing pole. Right as Ruka reached for it, though, the pole suddenly sprouted hands and punched him right in the face. I winced, watching as Ruka fell from his desk. He shot up in anger before roaring Hotaru's name. And...they were off, playing their game of tag once more. Leaving our group with two fewer members. Oh well, it's not like they were helping much anyway. I glanced back down at the broken mast with a sigh.
"Polka quit wasting your time. You're never going to be able to assemble something that can float, let alone be the fastest across the pond." I glanced up in anger, noting Natsume's apathetic gaze focused on the broken mast. Damn him! We could totally win this if he would stop being a lazy jerk and actually helped! I decided to let him know as much.
"Oh yeah? Then why don't you get off your butt and actually help me, genius?" Natsume rolled his eyes at me before coolly tossing the manga back on his head and resuming his "I'm napping, don't even THINK of disturbing me or your family will be bankrupt before you leave this school" position. I grumbled under my breath before collecting information on the status of the other groups. Permy's group was almost finished with their contraption, although it didn't look like it would make it very far. Iinchou's group was the most promising; with Nonoko and Anna in his group, it made sense. Their boat looked very sturdy with a complex propeller system that appeared to be connected to….chemicals? I groaned, realizing that with a chemistry expert like Nonoko, the chemicals would probably make their boat go super fast. It even looked extraordinarily fashionable, demonstrating Anna's artistic touch. I knew I could make our boat look pretty, but that's about all I could do-math, science, engineering; they weren't really my strong suits. I'm sure Jin-Jin would agree.
I groaned before placing my head on the table in defeat. What was the point in trying? There was no way I'd be able to beat something like Permy's boat, forget Iinchou's!
"Oi, little girl. If you keep your head on the table like that then we won't have a boat to enter and will get marked down by Narumi. Not that I care about that idiot of a teacher, but Ruka's in this group too. I'm not letting his grades get hurt because of you." I pouted at Natsume, who was giving me a blank stare, his manga casually held in his hand.
"There's no way I can get us a good grade; I don't have a single clue how to build this! Who cares anyways? It's not like we can beat Iinchou's boat and win the competition, so why bother?" I responded with a defeated tone and placed my head back on the table.
"Tch. Stop moping, it makes you look even uglier Polka." Natsume retorted, irritably. What was making him so annoyed? It's not like I was bothering him to help me or anything. Natsume suddenly poked me, and I was startled to see that he had emerged from his throne and was standing beside me. He yanked on one of my ponytails painfully and I let out a shriek of pain before standing up and glaring at him.
"WHAT WAS THAT FOR?"
"Move," Natsume intoned, pointing to the desk next to me. I rose an eyebrow at him in confusion before sliding over. Maybe his seat wasn't comfortable enough or something. Or maybe he wanted to make my day worse by troubling me. Yeah, that was probably it. Natsume caught my curious stare and scoffed.
"We've already established I'm handsome, so quit staring and help me make this stupid boat." My eyes widened in shock-Natsume was finally going to help! I immediately scrambled to grab the remaining boat pieces that weren't broken and pushed them onto the desk Natsume now occupied. Natsume let out a sigh, before turning towards me.
"Seriously? Can't you build any part of this?" I blushed in embarrassment before attempting an unperturbed tone.
"If I could build it myself then don't you think there would be more than scattered pieces sitting in front of you?" Natsume rolled his eyes and adopted a confident smirk.
"I'm not surprised that you'd just get in the way. So why don't you give the genius some space, otherwise your stupid genes might infect him."
"Oh, that's funny. I don't see a genius anywhere nearby."
"Tch, in that case, have fun building your "boat," Polka." I bit my lip before swallowing my pride at the vision of Howalons. Anything was worth the delectable treat, even suffering Natsume's arrogant company.
"Wait, I take it back. So, Mr. Genius, please build the boat," I managed to get out, my inner pride deflating like a souffle taken out of the oven too soon. Natsume sneered before getting to work. I stared in amazement as he assembled the pieces in a haphazard manner, as though not even concerned about what he was doing. It was hardly ten minutes later that Natsume finished the boat and my jaw dropped at how perfect it looked. Almost like a miniature ship from Pirates of the Caribbean or something. Except even better. Natsume casually handed me the ship with a self-assured smile.
"Here's your boat, so quit simpering and sighing-it's ruining my nap. Now I know you're pretty clumsy, but you better not drop this boat."
"Natsume...how did you do that so fast? I mean, are you sure it will sail across the pond, let alone float?"
"Who do you think I am, little girl?"
"Natsume Hyuuga." Natsume rolled his eyes at me again and sent me a patronizing look.
"No shit, Sherlock. Now leave me alone, I'm tired." With that, Natsume propped his legs back on the desk and situated the manga on his face once more. I sent a scowl his way for completely dismissing me and then glanced down at the boat. My scowl morphed into a grin as I realized that even though he was an idiot in every other area of life, Natsume was pretty smart. Which meant that this boat might actually win my Howalons!
"Alright, class. Your building time is over! Now let's go test them out on the pond. Oh, and Natsume? Don't think you can just sleep in the classroom, you're coming as well. If you don't, I'll fail your whole group for this project." Natsume slowly peeled the manga off his face before sending a frigid glare at Narumi Sensei, who sent him a smile back. Muttering curses and declarations to "kill that repugnant bastard" under his breath, Natsume smoothly got up from his seat and strolled out of the classroom. I giggled softly at the comedic display before carefully picking up the boat and heading to the pond myself. When I arrived, all the other groups were already set up. Natsume walked over to the tree by the pond and settled in the shade, apart from the rest of the class. I let out a sigh: sure he might have built the boat, but Natsume truly couldn't care less about this competition.
Permy's group was the first one to go and my earlier predictions about their boat came true when it traveled hardly a few inches before sinking. I bit my lip to hold in my laugh as Permy scolded Koko for his failure at making the boat. When Permy lunged at Koko, who only laughed off her lecture, Narumi Sensei had to step in and hold back the furious girl. A huge grin broke its way onto my face at the sight of a restrained Permy and I quickly turned away before the irate girl could see. After calming her down, Narumi Sensei called up a few more groups to go. There was only one boat that actually made it across the length of the pond, although the time was quite slow at ten minutes. Finally, there were just two boats left: Iinchou's and mine.
Iinchou presented his luxury liner before placing it on the lake. Narumi Sensei started the timer and I observed anxiously as it began to float on the lake. Nonoko walked over and poured some green liquid into a tube that was sticking out of the boat. The whole class watched, enraptured, as the tube began to bubble and fizz. The boat started moving across the lake, and it clocked in at 2 minutes 15 seconds, creating the fastest time yet. Iinchou's group let out a loud ovation, while Permy resumed her angry yelling at Koko. I gulped, worried about how our boat could possibly top that performance.
"Alright, Mikan! You guys are the last group...although I don't really see the rest of your team. Oh well, it seems you have the boat on you, so why don't you go ahead and set it on the water." I nervously complied, unsure of what kind of system Natsume had installed to make the boat move. I could see sails on the top, but there didn't seem to be a propeller of any kind. After setting the boat on the pond's surface, I backed away warily. It wasn't sinking, so that was a good sign, right? Narumi Sensei started the timer once a small breeze blew the sails, making it inch forward just a touch. I groaned, realizing that there would never be a big enough breeze to make it go across the pond faster than Iinchou's boat, and turned away in shame when my peers whispered what a failure it was.
FWOOOOOSH!
Some of the other students started gasping and I whirled around to see what the commotion was, only to see a huge rocket-like mechanism emerge out of the stern. My eyes widened in astonishment when it suddenly activated and a huge flame burst out. The boat flew across the lake at a ridiculous speed and the others in the class began cheering.
"YES! COME ON! YOU CAN DO IT!" I screamed, getting caught up in the excitement of it all. I couldn't tell you where those rockets came from or how they got activated, only that it was a miracle, to say the least. The boat made it to the other side of the pond and Narumi Sensei called the time. I bit my lip in anticipation, worried that it may have been slower than Iinchou's boat. Sure, the rockets made it zoom across the water, but time was significantly lost at the beginning before the rockets materialized.
"Well, everybody! Looks like the winner is Mikan's group, with their time of 2 minutes 10 seconds! Mikan, please come here," Narumi Sensei exclaimed. I let out a shout of joy before dashing to Narumi Sensei. He handed me a huge box which I subsequently opened. Inside lay 31 fluffy pink clouds-my Howalons!
"Mikan. Good for you." I looked up at Hotaru with a grin, wondering when she had arrived at the pond. I grasped one of the delectable sweets and handed it to Hotaru. She took it from me, emotionless, then turned around and stalked off. Ruka suddenly ran up, searching desperately.
"WHERE? WHERE IS SHE? IMAIIII!" I laughed, attracting Ruka's attention. He looked at the box in my hands before sending me a congratulatory grin.
"So, our group won? I'm surprised you were able to build a boat that beat Iinchou's group after breaking that mast."
"Actually...Natsume made it! Ah, here-you deserve a Howalon too!" I corrected, handing another of the fluffy pink treats to Ruka. He took it wordlessly and popped it in his mouth before giving me a sly grin.
"Thanks, Mikan. Also, I'm surprised Natsume contributed-it must have been to thank you."
"Thank me?"
"Yeah, for your help the other day with all the account books. Although Natsume probably will never admit it." Catching sight of Hotaru, Ruka dashed off to seize her. I turned his words over in my head: did Natsume actually help me as thanks? But I just did what anybody would do for a friend in need that day, and that too because he helped me with the apple tree incident. A friend...yes that's exactly what Natsume Hyuuga was becoming. A good friend. I smiled at the thought before handing out the remaining Howalon to everyone else in the class, including Narumi Sensei. There were exactly two left in the box and I decided to go find Natsume. After all, he's the one who made the boat in the first place. I ran over to the tree he was perched under and stopped right in front of him.
"Natsume! Here, there's two more Howalon left-one for you and one for me!" I began, before grabbing one of the final pieces and handing it to him. He rose an eyebrow at me before taking it. I took the final piece and plopped it in my mouth. The candy tasted like heaven, and I let out a satisfied hum once I finished it. Natsume watched me, amused, before eating his piece in silence. I took a seat next to him under the sanctuary of the tree.
"Neh, Natsume. Where did those rockets come from?" Natsume paused in reading his manga and reached into his pocket. He pulled something out and tossed it at me then resumed reading. I glanced down at the object in my hand before understanding dawned on my face. It was a remote control, with a single button on it. Natsume must have pushed the button when our boat was on the water. Which means he was watching the competition the whole time! A soft smile slipped on my face as I further realized that Natsume did care about winning and Ruka's words came back to my mind.
"Natsume….Ruka said that you helped me to thank me for the other day with the account books. Is that true?"
"Tch, as if Polka. Your failures were disturbing my nap, that's all. The fastest way to shut you up was to build the boat."
"He also said that you wouldn't admit it, guess he was right," I retorted, a cheeky grin making its way onto my face. Natsume just looked away in annoyance.
"You know, Natsume, at first I didn't really like you 'cause I thought you were an arrogant jerk. But now...I guess I consider you one of my good friends. You're always helping me out and everything," I softly uttered. My thoughts drifted away as I considered the repercussions of what I was about to do. Deciding it didn't matter at the moment, I reached over and gave Natsume a slight hug. Before he could push me off himself, I sprang up to my feet. I could feel my cheeks heating up a bit and it confused me. Why was I blushing-all I did was hug him for Pete's sake?
After clearing my throat I turned my head towards Natsume, unable to see his expression since his hair was in his face. Although...was he...blushing too? No, that's impossible.
"Natsume. Thank you, you made me really happy today," I quietly murmured before running away. Little did I know who else witnessed our conversation and that as a result, those people would come back to cause one of the most traumatic experiences of my life.
Hash browns frying? Check. Toast in the toaster getting toasted? Check. Fruit in the blender? Check. Water in the coffee maker? Check. I let out a satisfied sigh as I finished preparing breakfast for Hotaru and myself. Usually, Hotaru was the one to wake up first and make breakfast-believe it or not the former Ice Queen could cook pretty well, though nobody's as good as Mikan-but I decided to wake up early today since she seemed tired from yesterday's events. It probably wasn't easy convincing Natsume that Mikan lost her memory: I would know, seeing how he's my best friend. I flipped the hash browns before grabbing the toast out of the oven and plating it. The smoothie was almost done and the coffee maker was ready to battle.
"Ruka." I looked up from the hash browns to see Hotaru standing by the doorway, still in her pajamas. She was rubbing her eyes, clearly still tired, and I smiled softly. There was actually a lot more to Hotaru than meets the eye and no words could describe how happy I was to be the one to discover all her facets. Take this as an example: Hotaru was actually adorable when she first woke up.
"Ruka." Actually, Hotaru is a lot like Natsume now that I think about it. Both of them are stoic in public, but when you really get to know them you see they tend to internalize their emotions. After a while, it becomes pretty easy to read them: you just have to look past their facades and defenses. It took me a while, but now just a glance at Hotaru's eyes and I know what she's feeling.
"Ruka!" When we were kids I used to really detest the Ice Queen. But now, I can't even picture life without her beside me. I chuckled, wondering just how Hotaru managed to charm me. I suppose the saying was true: opposites really do attract.
"RUKA! The hash browns!" I immediately snapped out of it at the sound of irritation in Hotaru's tone. Her second statement sunk in and I focused back on the hash browns, which were now lying charred in front of me. I gulped as Hotaru sauntered over and pushed me aside. She surveyed the damage before raising an eyebrow irately at me.
"What were you thinking so hard about that you completely ignored the hash browns as well as me? I called your name three times too many Ruka," Hotaru coldly articulated. I let out a sheepish laugh, not about to admit that I was thinking of her the whole time. I somberly scraped the remainder of the burnt potatoes into the garbage before setting the pan in the sink to soak in cleaning water. Out of the four of us, I was definitely the worst cook. No matter how many recipes Mikan tried to teach me, it always ended up like today's hash browns: torched. Ah well, I guess I'll just stick to running a company and treating animals on the side.
"Well? I asked you a question, Nogi," Hotaru icily interjected. I focused on my fiancee, realizing that she was beginning to get livid. Better put this fire out-hopefully, it wouldn't result in another failure. I upped my charm to 100% before turning to Hotaru with a smolder.
"Sorry, darling. I was just too caught up in how gorgeous you are to notice."
BAKA BAKA BAKA! I jumped, avoiding the first two shots before getting nailed by the third. Ruka-0, Hotaru-1. With a groan, I turned my charm down and faced Hotaru, who was calmly pouring coffee into two mugs and setting them onto the kitchen table. I should have known better than to try and charm Hotaru-she hates that kind of stuff.
"Sorry, Hotaru. I wasn't lying though: you were the one who captured my thoughts. I was thinking about how much we've changed since we were kids, that's all," I sent a sheepish grin towards Hotaru, who only rolled her eyes in response. We both sat at the table and I was buttering my toast when Hotaru's cell phone rang.
"Imai speaking. What is it?" I glanced up at Hotaru, who was narrowing her eyes. Uh oh, that couldn't be good news. I raised an eyebrow curiously at her, as though asking what was wrong. She just shook her head softly at me before coldly replying to her phone.
"I see. Make sure to put us on the first flight you get then." With that, Hotaru snapped her cell phone shut and let out an exasperated sigh.
"Who was on the line?"
"That incompetent flight representative."
"Sheila?"
"Yes, I suppose that was her name. She called to inform me that the storm conditions are still too dangerous to fly in and that the airport will remain closed for at least a few more days."
"Oh, alright."
"That's it? You do realize we'll have to postpone our engagement announcement then?" I let out a soft chuckle, realizing that Hotaru wasn't quite seeing what a blessing the storm was. Not only would it force Mikan and Natsume to stay together longer, making it more likely that the two would fall in love again, but it also allowed me some quality time with the woman I love. Even though she's normally a genius, Hotaru sure is pretty dense about this situation. I bit a piece of my toast off and washed it down with some of the fruit smoothie before acknowledging Hotaru.
"Hotaru, I'm not worried about that at all. As I told you yesterday: to hell with the press. This snowstorm is allowing me to spend a lot of time with you and for that reason, I wouldn't mind if it continued for more than just a few days. Besides, this is beneficial towards our plans of reuniting Natsume and Mikan: they'll be forced to stay in a cabin together longer. And you and I both know Natsume can be quite charming when he wants to be; I have no doubt he'll make Mikan fall in love with him again. If we're right, then by falling for him again Mikan may just regain her memories of Natsume." Hotaru took a sip of her coffee before staring at me for a few moments, clearly processing the validity of my words.
"Ya, I guess you're right. It'll be good for the two Bakas. We should probably call and let them know that our stay in Greenland has been extended. As for spending time with you, I suppose I can find a way to suffer through your company." I sent a wicked grin towards Hotaru for that statement before getting up from my chair and stalking over to hers. Her eyes widened slightly at my grin before she replaced it with her blank facade and resumed drinking her coffee. Just as she was reaching for the toast I grabbed her from the chair and she let out a yelp. Whatever she was expecting, it certainly wasn't this. I shifted her bridal style before tossing her on the couch and straddling her. Ruka-1, Hotaru-1.
"R..Ruka! DON'T YOU DARE!" It was obvious she was catching onto my plan, but it was too little too late. I grinned at her before commencing her punishment. She tried to glare at me, but eventually, laughter broke out.
"...St...Stop!"
"No can do, princess." With that, I resumed tickling her, finally breaking her as she continued laughing painfully. I overlooked her pleas to stop and trapped her hands before she could retaliate. This is another facet of Hotaru most people wouldn't know: the Ice Queen was actually extremely ticklish. When it looked like she had suffered enough for her comment, I finally let up. But not before grabbing my phone from my pocket and taking a quick picture of her laughing face. See, I had learned over the years that the best method for getting back at Hotaru's blackmail was to play her game. AKA sell her photos to her fan club back in high school. I waved my phone at her teasingly, chuckling at the expression on her face. Hotaru sent me one of her most deadly glares and I responded Natsume-style with a smirk. She then narrowed her eyes and I decided the poor girl had had enough. I gave her a soft kiss on her forehead before tucking her hair behind her ears, observing the very slight tinge of pink on her cheeks. Hotaru also hated blushing in front of other people, so it had become a bit of a game to me. The "get the Ice Queen to blush game." I finally got up from atop her before starting for the kitchen again. Let's see, in about three seconds she would probably...
BAKA BAKA BAKA! I narrowly avoided the last shot this time before sending an award-winning smile to Hotaru and escaping into the kitchen. I could hear her barely audible curses trailing behind me and my smile only augmented. Ruka-2, Hotaru-1. Hotaru came back into the kitchen and sent a sharp look my way before picking up the coffee. Damn, at the rate this was going, I wouldn't be sleeping on the bed with her tonight.
"Awww, come on. Don't be too mad, dear. You were the one who wanted to "suffer" in my company after all. Anyways, you'd better let Natsume and Mikan know that we're gonna be stuck here for a while longer." At the mention of our friends, Hotaru immediately grew serious and grabbed her cell phone. Right before she left the kitchen though, she turned back to me.
"You're still sleeping on the floor tonight for that stunt." Ruka-2, Hotaru-1,000,000.
Natsume's POV
"Hey, Polka-dots. Imai just called; looks like the storm conditions aren't getting much better and the airport is going to be closed for a few more days. Guess we're stuck in this cabin for some more time," I deadpanned, watching the girl move about in the kitchen as she baked some sort of cake. She had mentioned something about a competition coming up and immediately run to the kitchen after breakfast. I went back to my room to get some more work done for the takeover of Serio Industries and it was a few hours later that Imai had called. I rose an eyebrow at the mess in the kitchen-there were bowls everywhere and flour coated the countertops. The sink was filled with vessels and Mikan stood in the middle of it all, batter smeared on her face. She whirled around from the oven and faced me, clearly shocked at the interruption.
"Oh." That's it? No screaming, bawling, laughing? I grew a bit irritated when she anyway turned back to the oven, dismissing me in the process. I headed over to her cautiously, narrowly avoiding the splotches dotting the floor, and set my hand on her shoulder. Mikan jumped before turning towards me.
"Natsume?"
"Did you even hear what I just said, Polka? We're going to be stuck in this cabin for the next few days until the storm clears."
"I heard you the first time, Natsume. Sorry if I didn't give you the reaction you wanted-I'm just a bit preoccupied with this cake! The competition is coming up, and I still have no idea what to bake for it! What kind of theme is 'reflection' anyways? It's so vague and ridiculous-they didn't even specify what kind of dessert they wanted! I could do anything: cake, cookies, brownies, flan, tarts, pies, entremets. What the hell am I supposed to choose!?" I maintained my blank expression, although truthfully I was a bit shocked at her sudden outburst. The girl seemed pretty stressed out about this project. I sighed, realizing that unless she calmed down she wasn't going to comprehend anything I said.
"Oi, Pigtailed mess," I began, smirking when she gave me an irritated look. "Just relax-you're not going to come up with any good ideas if you force yourself. Give it some time, you'll probably come up with something. Besides, you're going to destroy the kitchen if you continue like this." Mikan bit her lip before staring at the oven again, almost as though she was consulting the god-forsaken appliance for a decision.
"Yes… Yes, you're right, Natsume. Well, about the forcing yourself part. I just hope I come up with something in time. This competition is huge-if I want to be a patissier someday then I need to win it!"
"Hnn. Polka, if you're planning to play in a bakery, does that mean Youichi is going to take over Sakura Corp?"
"Yes, that's correct Natsume-and I'm going to do more than play, sheesh! But...how do you know Youichi? You say his name as though you've known him for years." I cursed myself for the slip-up before shrugging. The best way to get out of this was to play it cool.
"Seeing how you're the one I'm to be engaged to, it's only natural that I learn a bit about the rest of your family isn't it?" There, that ought to cool her suspicions.
"Oh, yeah I guess that makes sense. Ahaha, I'm the same-I totally researched you when I found out we were going to be engaged." I rose an eyebrow, seeing through her lie. Or rather, her partial lie. She might have researched me, about that I have no hesitation. But I doubt she looked into my family. I smirked knowingly at her, before giving her some information.
"My parents are obviously the head of Hyuuga Corp, which I will be inheriting. I have one little sister, Aoi, who is in her final year of high school. She wants to become a lawyer and own a flower shop part-time, as she believes flowers can make other people smile or some nonsense like that. She's a pretty happy-go-lucky squirt and looks a lot like me. Anyways, I'm sure you're dying to know more about me, Polka, but I have to get back to work." Mikan looked at me a bit guiltily, confirming my notions that she hadn't researched my family whatsoever. I sent a victorious look at her before heading towards the exit of the kitchen.
RING RING RING RING RING! We both glanced at the counter and Mikan quickly made her way over to pick up the phone. She looked at the screen before looking back at the oven then at me.
"Natsume, it's my parents. Can you please watch the cake for a bit to make sure it doesn't burn or anything? I'll be right back." Mikan left the room before I could refuse and I let out a grunt as I surveyed the dilapidated kitchen. My eyes narrowed in irritation as I remembered the conversation with Imai, and how it was Mikan's parents who decided to keep the accident a secret from me. I had a bone to pick with them, but more importantly, I had some questions that needed answering. I threw a look at the oven timer, seeing that it still had a few more minutes, before exiting the kitchen in search of Mikan. The cake would be fine, probably.
Mikan was in the living room perched on the couch, and based on her expression was having trouble fending off her probably-still-overprotective parents.
"Yeah, Mom. Natsume and I are sharing a cabin. Hotaru and Ruka are in the other cabin-we all met up at the airport by chance. There's a huge snowstorm right now, so we can't leave Greenland for a few more days because the airport is shut down."
"Yes, Dad, I'm fine. No, Natsume isn't doing anyth-Dad! Calm down! You're the ones who engaged us anyways, wouldn't so wrong if we did something like that. All married couples do tha-no, Dad. I'm still your 'pure maide'-Natsume!" Mikan cut off her speech as she finally looked up and noticed she wasn't alone. Her eyes narrowed at me in irritation. I smirked at her, recalling the ridiculous sentence she was about to finish.
"Hold on, mom. Yes, Natsume is fine. Look, just give me a second." Mikan covered the receiver with her hand before sending me a glare.
"Natsume! How long have you been here-you didn't listen to what I was saying, did you? I thought you were watching the cake-oh God! THE CAKE!" Mikan scrambled to her feet.
"Mom, Dad, I'll speak to you later. The cake's burning, I can smell it. Damn it, Natsume, this is all your fault! AGH! Here, uh, Natsume you speak to my parents." Mikan tossed me the phone before running full speed into the kitchen, muttering curses and threats to kill me along the way. Perfect, this is exactly what I wanted. I glared at her cell phone for a moment before whipping out an icy tone.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Sakuras."
"Natsume," Izumi Sakura responded, hesitation lacing his tone. I narrowed my eyes, picking up on his desire to not talk to me. Regardless, it was time to get some of my questions answered.
"I'll get straight to the point. Why the hell didn't you tell me that Mikan lost her memory?" I could hear Izumi and Yuka murmuring to each other through the phone and it pissed me off even more. They better not hide any details from me this time. I heard Izumi give a huge sigh before he finally answered.
"Natsume, this is something that has been weighing heavily on our minds. I assume that Hotaru told you what she knows already?"
"Yes, she had the decency to finally tell me what happened." The 'unlike you' went unsaid, but it was clear to both sides that was the insinuation.
"You have every right to be angry at us, Natsume. But please, hear us out."
"That's exactly what I plan on, old man. Now start explaining; I'm a busy person and I don't have much time to devote to schemers like you."
"NATSUME HYUUGA! TAKE-"
"It's alright, Yuka. We deserve that much for our actions. Natsume, the day that your family was to leave, Mikan was searching for you. She ran right out of the house, and the maids let her because everyone knew how important you were to her. If we had only known what events would occur as a result, then we would have never let her leave the house."
"Get to the point, old man. I assume you're talking about the car accident?"
"Do be a bit more patient, this isn't easy for us. Yes, Mikan was hit by a car on her way to find you. Yuka and I were in a business meeting when we received the call from the hospital. Mikan was in a coma for a few months and we were worried she would never wake up. It was a joyous occasion when she did, but it quickly became bittersweet when Mikan didn't remember anything from the past year. She didn't even recognize most of her friends from Gakuen Alice; the only person she could remember was Hotaru. The doctor suggested taking her to locations around the school and to other places she had visited in the past year as this could return her memory. We took her to the kitchens on campus, the classroom-anywhere we could think of. Nothing worked until Hotaru took Mikan to a sakura tree. When she saw the tree, Mikan fainted. After waking up back in the hospital, she was able to remember everybody from Gakuen Alice. Every memory, every occasion, every person. Except for you." I was silent, processing the information that was new and checking their story with Imai's. Imai failed to mention the sakura tree, however. That was the place on campus where Mikan and I spent the most time. She would often search for me, wanting to show me her latest creation or just generally bother me for something. Once she found me at the tree, we would simply sit together, talking about our dreams and hopes. Well, she talked about her dreams and hopes-I just listened, although I wouldn't be lying if I said there were numerous occasions where I tuned her out. It made sense to me why Mikan would regain her memories at the tree. What didn't make sense, however, is why she wouldn't remember me specifically.
"Did the doctor give any particular reason why she didn't remember me?"
"He said it was possible that since you had left the day she got into the accident, she was blocking you out. All any of us wanted was for Mikan to go back to normal, so even if you weren't there we thought just showing her a memento of the two of you would be enough. Especially considering how close the two of you became in that one year. Mikan had mentioned seeing a boy with crimson eyes in her dreams, so we all thought she needed a small push and would remember you. That's why Hotaru showed her a picture of the two of you together by the tree, the one taken during one of the school picnics. But...Mikan reacted completely opposite of what the doctor had hoped. She spazzed out, screaming in pain at the sight of the photo. The nurses had to restrain her before they could inject her with something to make her sleep."
"Natsume," Yuka interjected, taking the story over from Izumi. "That was one of the most terrifying things. My daughter means the world to me and to see her in such pain was unbearable. For days I couldn't get the sight out of my head; even now it haunts me when I think of it. So when the doctor said that such reactions weren't normal and were dangerous to the patient, I begged Izumi to conceal you from Mikan. The doctor thought that you were the trigger to her reactions, Natsume," Yuka broke off, tears shining through her voice. Izumi began to comfort his distraught wife.
Imai had said as much to me and I understood why the Sakura's were worried. Nevertheless, that still didn't excuse them concealing the truth from me. Did they think that I would recklessly try and force Mikan to remember? I cared more about her than most people, yet her parents didn't even try to explain the situation to me?
"Natsume, I know that what we did wasn't fair to you. You cared so much for my daughter, to the point that all of us parents thought the two of you were in love. But we didn't have any other choice. If she had reacted so violently to a photo, we were worried seeing you face to face would result in permanent damage. When we asked the doctor what we could do, he said the only way Mikan could regain her lost memories with you was by herself. If it was written in her destiny, she would regain them. The entire situation was hard on all of us. In the end, I had to rescind your letters in order to dissuade you from pursuing our daughter. Every single letter you sent, I read Natsume. Every word I recorded in a diary, hoping that one day I could show it to Mikan. I tried to ignore your calls, hoping that you would get the idea and be dissuaded yourself. However, when the calls continued, Mikan almost answered one of them. Izumi barely took the phone from her in time and that was when he told you to never contact us again. We didn't have any other choice, Natsume. Words cannot truly express how sorry we are."
"That still doesn't explain to me why you couldn't tell me the truth! Did you think I wanted to hurt Mikan? I thought she betrayed me all those years ago, when it was actually me who betrayed her!" I exclaimed, trying to keep my voice down so Mikan wouldn't hear from the kitchen. Dammit! I had a right to know!
"...I know you had a right to know, Natsume. But we were so scared that you would try and come back, try and make her remember. Natsume, I could never bear to see my daughter suffer through an attack like the first again. That's why we forbade anybody from contacting you and telling you. We even told Kaoru and Ioran so that they-"
"My parents knew about this? And they didn't tell me?"
"Yes, we told them in order to try and convince you to move on Natsume. If they were blocking you from meeting Mikan, we thought we could protect her better. They wanted to tell you the truth, but we forced them to stay silent, threatening to end the partnership between our companies. Youichi even cut off all contact with Aoi so you couldn't find Mikan through him. He loved Aoi, probably still does, but we forced him to leave her for Mikan's sake. We didn't know what else to do Natsume." So that explained why Youichi ditched my sister. I ran a hand through my hair, frustrated. I know that they kept it from me for Mikan's sake. But it irked me that all this time was lost, that all this time I blamed her for something she didn't even do. I cleared my throat, angry at fate for making this situation happen in the first place. Another thought entered my mind then.
"If you were so scared to let Mikan meet me in the past, why have you engaged us now? You do realize Mikan and I would have to meet again if we were to be married, right?"
"Of course we know that! It was always our plan to engage the two of you, ever since we found out that Kaoru was having a son at the same time that I found out I was having a daughter all those years ago. It would have benefitted the companies, plus our families are close friends."
"So you figured that the events of the past wouldn't affect the engagement whatsoever, is that it?" I asked, my temper beginning to rise. Did they really think their selfish actions wouldn't have affected anything? That Mikan and I would be oh-so-dandy and get right back into things the moment we saw each other?
"Well, yes, but we-"
"Don't be so naive. Mikan doesn't even remember me and for her, I'm just another stranger. Not to mention that your selfish actions have caused me a lot of trouble as well. Simply put, I don't really trust that something like this won't happen again. What if she blacks out because of me and then you cut me off again?"
"Oi, Natsume." I started, not recognizing the voice over the phone.
"Who is this?"
"You mean you don't even recognize me, Nii-san?" My eyes narrowed as I realized it was Youichi himself.
"If it isn't the bastard who broke my sister's heart." I know Youichi only did what he did for his sister. But that doesn't mean I was going to let him off easy for what he did to Aoi. Nobody makes my sister cry. Nobody. Youichi grunted in response, before catapulting over my attack.
"Regarding Mikan-you don't have to worry. I give you my word that my parents will not interfere in your relationship." I sneered. This brat's word meant nothing to me.
"Oh? Does your word actually mean something this time around? If I recall correctly, the last time you promised something involved my sister and that didn't end so well, did it?"
"Natsume! Stop being such an ass to You-kun! He already told me the truth about everything!" My eyes widened in shock at the sound of Aoi's voice.
"...Aoi? What the hell are you doing with Youichi? Do Mom and Dad know about this?"
"I'm not alone! Mom and Dad are here too. We all came for Hotaru and Ruka's announcement to the press and formal engagement. It was supposed to be this week, but I guess it's being postponed because you guys are all stuck in Greenland." I narrowed my eyes in annoyance. Keeping Youichi away from Aoi would be a lot harder now. Good thing I'm adept at giving death threats.
"Oi, Youichi. If you go within 15 feet of my sister, I swear to God I will-"
"Natsume! I thought I told you to stop being an ass! Besides, that will only make me suffer, seeing how You-kun and I are dating now." My mouth dropped open for a few seconds in shock. They were...dating now? What the hell.
"Aoi! You're only making this harder for me, sheesh," Youichi's voice muttered, although it was still audible. I sighed, deciding to give him one more chance considering the circumstances of the past. Besides, if he was the one who could keep my sister happy, who was I to interfere?
"Fine. But Youichi, if you do a single thing to hurt my sister in any way, I promise you will face the wrath of Natsume Hyuuga. And believe me, that's something you don't want to face. Are we clear?" I heard Youichi give a slight gulp and smirked satisfactorily. Glad to see he understands a threat when he hears one.
"Crystal. Now, back to what I was saying. My parents will not be interfering in your relationship with Mikan anymore. They have given me their word." I scoffed. This brat was too naive to think his parents would keep "their word" if their daughter blacked out again.
"You can believe what he is saying, Natsume," Izumi's voice rang out. "The truth is we weren't planning to go through with the engagement between you and Mikan. Things changed when Youichi yelled at us. He pointed out how you were miserable and probably had the wrong idea about Mikan and our family. He then scolded us for using our selfish desires to protect Mikan instead of looking at her happiness. That Mikan has never had any interest in any other boy all this time, which only proves that you and Mikan were meant to be together. I guess it was a bit of a rude wake-up call. Either way, Yuka and I now realize that the only way for our daughter to be truly happy is if she regains her memories of you, Natsume. The only way that can happen is if she meets you once more. We truly believe that if she falls in love with you again, she will regain the past. It's about high time you both rekindled your love." I rolled my eyes. This was beginning to sound like the ridiculous plot of a soap opera. Nevertheless, getting Mikan back suited my desires and purposes. After all, there couldn't be another male alive who could possibly match someone as idiotic as her. A smirk lit my face at the thought of the childish, clumsy girl, only to be replaced with an image of the real thing coming out from the kitchen. Her pigtails were even more lopsided and she still had cake batter dotting her nose. I snickered at her disheveled appearance before muttering a cold goodbye and disconnecting the call. I wasn't in the mood to share today.
"Hey! Why'd you hang up? I wanted to talk to them too!"
"That's too bad."
"Ugh, you are such an insufferable jerk! Well, what did they talk to you about anyway?"
"Just stuff."
"Oh really? And what kind of stuff would that be?"
"Stuff regarding the engagement. Details on how the companies will merge and Youichi and I will run the merged business together." I wasn't really sure if that was the plan, but it seemed like a good enough excuse to keep the ditzy girl occupied. She pondered my statement for a second before staring at me. Her eyes narrowed and she sent me a glare.
"Yes, I suppose that's the only good thing about this engagement. The fact that the companies will benefit." I smirked at her, realizing that she wasn't on board with an arranged marriage. Guess I'll have to fix that now, won't I?
"You're right, although it's much worse for me. You get to marry an extremely handsome and wealthy genius while I get stuck with a loud, childish brat. It's hardly a fair deal." Mikan began fuming and I let out a self-satisfied smile. Riling her up was one of the easiest and most rewarding activities. Especially because Mikan was the worst at coming up with comebacks, although it was amusing to see her try.
"You... You're not handsome at all! In fact, you're...you're….." Mikan trailed off, obviously not prepared with a suitable retort. I rest my case.
"Enticing?"
"Exactly! Wait, no! I-"
"Glad you can admit your feelings finally, Polka," I jeered, sending my characteristic smirk her way to infuriate the girl more. It worked, as Mikan stomped her foot, disgruntled.
"UGH! I CAN'T BELIEVE MY PARENTS ARE CRUEL ENOUGH TO ENGAGE ME TO AN ASS LIKE YOU!" Mikan burst out before glaring at me and running to the safety of her room. As soon as she was gone, my smirk became a smile. Mikan Sakura may not be good at comebacks. She may also be clutzy, naive and short-tempered. But she was the only girl suitable for me. And soon she would be mine.
I swear, I will make you remember, Mikan.
Yeesh, this chapter was a bit tough to write. Thank goodness all the formalities are done-Natsume (and you lovely readers) finally has/have the story of what happened in the past. Well, most of it. More on that later, much later.
As for the flashback, I know it ended in a bit of a cliff-hanger but all will soon be answered! And by soon I mean chapter 8. I hope you enjoyed the rockets that Natsume attached to the boat; I tried thinking of something more reasonable but in the end decided nothing realistic could beat the chemicals Nonoko and Yuu used. Besides, rockets are just so much fun!
I'm really excited for the next few chapters-they're gonna be super Natsume x Mikan! Those scenes are always really fun to write.
Anyways, thank you for reading this chapter-sorry if it wasn't very fluffy! I would love to know what you thought about it though. Hopefully, the plot is progressing to y'all at a good pace!
~ Breezylyn