Mikan just stood at the doorway gaping at Natsume. Blood gushed in her ears, and she felt a weird sensation in her stomach, something akin to nerves. The nerve of him, to have suggested, no, ordered that Mikan stay in his room for the night; in the same tone as he would have asked for a cup of coffee.

She glared at him once the message sunk in.

"You want me to stay here with you. For the entire night." she spoke, stressing each word, so as to get the message through.

Natsume nodded his head, seriously. And he sighed heavily, as a give away. "Listen, I am not going to rape you or anything." He sighed when she still looked at him apprehensively. "Fine." He continued. "If you don't believe me, you don't need to stay. Please switch of the light on your way back."

She didn't know why, but for some reason, the tone that he used hurt her somewhere, deep down. She argued a bit in her mind, trying to make a decision of either staying or leaving. One glance at Natsume's lean and abrasive figure, lying on the bed with a confidence and acknowledgment that was almost unnerving, made her decision. She turned towards the door, and slammed it shut, before she turned to look at him. The slight surprise in his face amused her.

"I'll stay. There might be some side-effects of the potion. Its better if I were here to keep an eye on you." she said. Of course, that wasn't entirely a lie. She really did want to keep an eye on him, and well, she was a girl, and between spending the night alone, worrying about more nightmares, and this – this won, hands down. She had a good look around at the room, which she hadn't noticed before this. Clean, she thought. Nothing fussy, or high. Everything was subtle, and in tones of black and white, which made her suspect that Natsume had probably remodeled the entire suite to suit his taste. The furniture was bare, only the necessities were kept. The bed, like hers, was a four poster, but this was made of sleek and shiny ebony, also contributing to the black and white theme of the room. Natsume lay on it, his head balanced on one of his hand, which was propped up on the pillows. His face looked more angular now, all hollows and angles. His hair was ruffled, standing out in all directions, and she could barely resist the urge to comb her hand through them. His eyes were narrowed- an effect of the potion, and his lips were slightly parted, making him look even more irresistible. As she could already feel the heat rising, Mikan cleared her throat and tried to think of something that did not involve the gorgeous hunk lying on the bed.

"Umm.. Hey, Natsume?' she spoke cautiously and moved forward, so that she was right in front of him.

"Nn.." he murmered, still looking at her .

"Bother moving over? To the other side of the bed, I mean."

He just lifted one of his imperial eyebrows, giving her an one- over. With a small, almost unheard sigh, he shifted. An inch.

Mikan sighed, exasperatedly. "Natsume? Would you mind moving?" she asked, in a timid voice.

He raised his eyebrows again. "What did I just do, right now?" he demanded. Mikan scowled deeply, not being too used to being demanded. She opened her mouth, about to argue with him, but decided against it. Natsume gaped at- right, gaped- when she actually settled on the bed, right next to him.

"What? No crying wolf?" He asked, quickly recovering.

"No." Mikan replied back, tartly. "It's the dead of the night. And I used my powers. Its only natural that I feel sleepy right?" she added as she tucked herself into a blanket, making sure that no part of her was touching Natsume in any manner. "Just go to sleep, Hyuuga. That medicine is pretty strong." She said, yawning widely.

Natsume smiled at her gently. "Well, 'night then."

Mikan gave him a brief smile, before closing her eyes. It was barely a minute before she knew that it was a wrong move. The loss of her sense of vision seemed to have driven her nose into an overdrive. She was overpowered by smells, or rather one single smell of the person who lay next to her. A musky smell, mingled with a bit of something lemony, most probably from his soap, filled her nostrils. And almost made her mouth water.

Damn. He had to smell that good!

She tried backing away from him, just in case. She barely moved a centimetre before she found that further back would mean the floor. She sighed softly, as she tried to focus her mind on something that did not involve the hunk she lay in bed with.

Count sheep. Yeah. That works.

She had made it well into the hundreds when she felt an arm around her. Someone was holding her, tight. In her drowsiness she was only able to make out the stone like hard structure of his chest, and the masculine smell of his. She sighed again, as she moved further into his arms. It was a while before she realised that he was humming something in that wonderful, husky voice of his. A lullaby. She almost swooned. Sleep found her soon, maybe it was because tiredness, or because of his humming. Or maybe because of the fact that she felt safe there, in his arms. It was then that she heard the words, maybe truly uttered, or maybe she just imagined them.

'Sleep, my love.'

*************************************************************************************************************************

The sun shone brightly outside, but only a few rays managed to find their way in through the curtains adorning the room. The day had begun many hours ago, but not too many people were outside, the day being a Sunday.

Mikan's eyes twitched slightly. She unwillingly opened her eyes a fraction of an inch before groaning. She yawned hugely and cuddled up to her soft toy. Only that it wasn't a soft toy.

Wait. What?

She was cuddled up to something. Something big and cold. Something that breathed.

She cautiously opened her eyes and glanced up. Her glance was met by scarlet eyes that smouldered her irises. She gasped audibly before she pushed Natsume away from her.

"What precisely do you think you are doing?" she snarled, both her palms were on his chest in order to maintain the distance between them.

Natsume arched an eyebrow. "Seriously. You're asking me that? You were the one all wrapped up in me all night long." He replied in a monotone. "By the way, did you know that you talk in your sleep?"

Mikan's mouth fell open. "No I don't!" She said. Heat crept up her cheeks, making her blush a deep crimson.

He smirked, as he pushed her hands away. "Yes you do." He pulled her towards him and draped an arm round her shoulder, so that the two of them were now lying side by side. Mikan was too shocked to even bother to put up a fight.

"Umm... What did I say?" she asked, unsure.

His smirk widened as he pulled her closer. "Oh, pretty much." He looked down at her red, now glowing face. "You miss the rain. And your grandpa. And about Takashina's lack of fashion sense. You muttered a lot about fire. And...."

"And?" She made the mistake of looking at him. His eyes startled her as always, but this time it was different. What she saw in them felt like a punch to her gut.

Emotions battled in his eyes. Curiosity, confusion, the slightest bit of panic, amusement all wrapped into one. But there was something else too, something Mikan couldn't lay a finger on.

"You said my name." he murmured so softly, that she almost didn't hear him. "You said my name. A lot." His eyes bored into hers, as if he were looking beyond her eyes, into her heart. His eyes became more serious than before. Mikan gasped as she finally figured what the something else in his eyes was.

Passion.

"I wonder why...." he whispered. His sweet breath tickled her skin, making it difficult for her to breathe. His fingertips traced her forearm, sending goose bumps through the length of her arm.

"Mikan."

Her eyes widened, and her breath became erratic. His face was barely inches away from hers, and his eyes still held hers.

"Umm... I think I must..." her voice died away in her throat.

How the hell am I supposed to frame sentences when he is.... damn it! He had to be so... seductive!

"Mikan" he whispered again, this time with more finality.

Before she knew she was pinned beneath him, both her arms captured by his hands. He bent down and pressed his lips to her jaw. Her breath hitched in her throat. He proceeded to brush his lips along her chin and ear. Mikan bit back a moan as he captured her earlobe between his teeth. His arms slid down from her upper arms to her hips, so he could hold her firmly in place.

Natsume pulled himself away from her face, his eyes darkened to the point that they appeared more maroon than red. He looked at her for what seemed like eternity, drinking in her huge caramel orbs, flushed face, slightly parted lips, sleep ruffled hair and those few tendrils that curled around her cheeks.

"Mikan." He whispered for the third time.

Mikan blushed even more as she muttered, "Natsume, I..."

But the rest of her words were drowned by a loud oath from Natsume, before his lips crashed onto hers.