09. What a pleasant surprise!
Hotaru was standing there beside a silver car, her violet eyes gleaming in anger.
She was late. Oh yes, she had expected this.
"Let's leave, Nogi." She said as she opened the door and stepped inside the vehicle.
"B-but… Sakura?" Ruka asked, terrified. He never wanted to leave, leaving that innocent girl behind. Hearing that, Hotaru looked at him and Ruka froze.
"Start the engine." Hotaru said as she patted her mini baka gun which she had specially designed for parties. Ruka's throat dried as he saw her gun and he knew she won't hesitate to use it on him.
"O-okay!" He said, looking totally terrified. He had already started the engine when he saw a running figure coming in their way.
"Hey! Waittt! I'm cominggg! Hotaruuu!" They could hear her screaming and hopping. She had her hair loose and her flip flops were dangling in her hand. She hadn't had enough time even to arrange her hair or get into her shoes.
"Here comes the idiot." Hotaru said flatly as she turned and glared at Mikan who was getting in to the car like a clumsy birdie.
"Oh! Hotaru you meanie! You almost left me!" She said as she stuffed herself inside, clumsily. Hotaru looked at her with disgust.
"You're never gonna learn a lesson Mikan. If it wasn't for this idiot-" she pointed at Ruka and continued, "I would've been already in the party." Seeing her pointing her finger at him, Ruka froze again.
Hearing what she had said, Mikan looked down, hurt.
"I'm sorry Hotaru… I always mess things up." She said, hurt was visible in her tone.
"Get into your shoes you idiot! And do something to your hair." Hotaru said, ignoring what Mikan had said.
"Tsubasa senpaiii!" Mikan cried out loud as she ran towards the 21 year old guy, who was standing there with a tall, slender, pink haired girl, talking and smiling sheepishly. Hearing Mikan's loud cry, the whole crowd turned their heads to look at her, shocked.
"Mikan!" Tsubasa was equally excited to see her out of the blue. Misaki was also happy to see Mikan, and joined the celebration.
"Tsubasa senpaiii! Happy Birthday!" Mikan said as she jumped forward and hugged the blue haired guy at once. Tsubasa hugged her back, gently as he whispered his happiness to her ear.
"Misaki senpaiii! It's been sooo long!" Mikan jumped and hung around Misaki's neck soon after she recovered from Tsubasa's hug. Misaki hugged her back gently, tears were rising in her eyes.
"Yeah Mikan… Look you've grown up so much! You were this much when we last saw you." Misaki said as she lowered her hand to show how short Mikan had been 5 years back. Tsubasa and Misaki had been studying at Mikan's school before they flew to USA to continue their studies there. They had been the best senior friends Mikan had had and they had protected her in every means ever since they had got to know each other.
"I didn't even know you guys were already here!" Mikan said as she wiped a tear which had fallen on to her left cheek.
"We just arrived 5 days ago and wanted everyone to be surprised to see us back. So we kept it till today." Tsubasa said as he patted Mikan's back, lovingly.
"Why isn't Natsume here?" Misaki asked Ruka who was standing there, taking glimpses of Hotaru who had already started to feast.
"Umm…uh… You know…" Ruka answered, looking down, disappointed.
"Yeah. We know." Tsubasa said as he ran his fingers through his hair, smiling sheepishly. He already knew Natsume hated him, maybe, because he was stupid or maybe who knows, for being close to Mikan?
"Anyway guys! Let's enjoy the party!" Misaki said as she dragged Tsubasa to the dance floor.
Mikan watched them dancing, seated in a corner of the room, alone. She did want to dance, but with who? She hoped Tsubasa senpai would take her to the floor after he was done dancing with Misaki senpai. She saw Ruka, trying hard to get Hotaru to dance, who was busy with her food. She couldn't help but smile at her best friend's hard heart.
"Oh Hotaru…" She said as she stood up to walk towards her. Maybe they could dance together. They had done that several times.
All she wanted was to dance, this way or the other.
She was walking towards Hotaru through the crazy crowd, when her eyes met with a certain pair of eyes, she knew very well. Seeing them, her legs automatically stopped.
"Hi! You wanna dance?" The owner of the eyes spoke, treating Mikan with goose bumps. Her eyes, widened as she clutched the corner of her short pink dress.
"Well…umm…uh…" She could find no words to form her answer. She was still blabbering nonsense when that person took her arm and led her to the dance floor.
Seeing this new couple, everyone started to cheer.
"Whoa! What a cute couple!" Kitsuname who was sitting next to Koko at the drinks bar shouted out making Koko, Hotaru and Ruka look up at the couple, thunderstruck.
"What the heck is going on!" Koko spoke out Hotaru's thoughts. Ruka was simply speechless.
"Looks like they've reconciled." Kitsuname said, grinning. Hotaru, who had always kept a calm outer shell, couldn't keep calm this time. Her shock was visible in her stare.
"Natsume's never gonna like to hear this." Ruka thought as a dark cloud covered his blue sky. Ruka knew everything inside Natsume's heard, including his love for Mikan. Koko had some idea about that too.
Meanwhile, Mikan was there on the dance floor, startled, dazed and lost. Kaname was holding her by her waist, engaged in a slow dance, swaying from side to side while looking into her dreamy hazel orbs. Mikan couldn't figure out if it was a dream or real. She just let him take her over. It all felt so strange, and… so good.
It was simply the moment when all her dreams had come true.
Mikan tried to pinch herself to check whether it was actually a dream or not. Feeling that Kaname smiled at her, his eyes dazzling in the party lights.
"Why…?" He asked as he bent his head, his forehead nearly touching Mikan's. Feeling that close proximity, her throat dried and ran out of words. She just looked at him, speechless.
They had danced for about 15 minutes, when Kaname asked her to come and have a drink with him. She just followed him to a lonely corner of the room, away from gossipy eyes.
"You look really pretty tonight…" Kaname said, as he drew the chair for Mikan, very gentleman-like. Mikan just sat on the chair with an ugly thud- very unladylike! It looked like Kaname hadn't noticed that so Mikan thanked her guardian angels and opened her mouth to thank him.
"Thanks… Senpai!" She said, blushing. Hearing that Kaname looked at her playfully.
"Why thank me? Besides, I'm the one who should thank you for accepting my hand. Can't you see? You're the prettiest girl tonight!" He said as he sat at the table, facing her.
Hearing what he had said, Mikan's blush grew two times wider.
"I don't think so… There are plenty of beautiful girls around-" Her blushful remark was cut off by the blonde prince sitting in front of her.
"But still you're the most beautiful one." He said as he touched her supple hand which was resting on the table, sending an electric current through her spine.
"A-am I?" She asked, shocked to death. Seeing her shocked expression, Kaname's flirty smile faded away.
"You don't have to fear me. Don't be so formal." He said while squeezing her hand, bending forward. Mikan had already given into him, so that she didn't freak out this time.
"B-but-"
"No buts! I actually wanna apologize to you. I was being a real idiot when I turned you down." He said, as Mikan's eyes grew wider.
"Yeah… I regret that now." He added in a sad tone as he took his hand away. "I guess… I'm too late now." He said, looking forward for Mikan's response.
"Too late? What do you mean?" Mikan asked, surprised. What the heck was he talking about! He could never be too late. Not in another 20 years!
"I saw you with Natsume Hyuuga earlier today." He said in a disappointed voice.
Now Mikan could get what he meant. She had to correct his thoughts, or she was gonna get accused for something she had never had in her life.
"Natsume is not my boyfriend! He and I are more like siblings!" She said in a hurried manner. The sooner he got rid of that wrong idea, the better. Hearing that, Kaname's eyes started to dazzle again.
"Whoa! Would you mind telling me more about you guys?" Kaname asked, interested. He had to make sure that she was really alone.
"Oh… There's nothing much to tell about us… We share the same mom. So he and I are nothing but siblings." She said, relieved to feel that Kaname's interest was back on her.
"Same mom? What do you mean?" He asked, smiling this time.
"Umm… that's a long story… I'll tell you some other day…" Mikan said, smiling back at him. This time, tension was far away from her eyes.
They talked. They smiled. Mikan felt as if she was flying in the sky.
Hotaru was staring at a certain couple, smiling in one of the distant corners.
Her chain of thoughts got scattered in to pieces when Koko cleared his throat to say something.
"I knew he would be here." He said, following Hotaru's gaze.
"He used to be Tsubasa's best friend, remember?" Ruka added in a dreamy voice.
"Who'd forget that, baka." Hotaru joined the conversation.
"At least, she's happy now." Anna said as she passed the plate of treats to Nonoko who was looking at the couple dreamily.
"Yeah… Mikan-chan can't be happier than she is now." Nonoko said as she took the plate in both of her hands and hugged it to her bosom.
"But he turned her down only yesterday!" Koko said in a how-come tone.
"I wonder what made him act this way…" It was Ruka who expressed his thoughts this time.
"Natsume." Hotaru said out of the blue as everyone looked at her in horror.
"Natsume what?" Ruka asked, shocked.
"Natsume made him act like this." Hotaru said as everyone looked shocked.
"I knew this would happen. But not this sooner." Hotaru added before she started to eat again, uninterested.
Hi there people! There goes my 9th chapter.
So now, now….
On to the next chapter-