Hi. Yeah, this chapter's kinda short. Sorry. But I wanted to put it up, because I'll probably forget during the week.

Oh, for those who are confused, in this story:

-There are Alices, but they aren't really important. I think.

-There is no evil elementary school principal, but I might include Persona. NOT AS DARK.

-There was no Alice war or AAO evil plot thing.

I don't own Gakuen Alice. If I did, would I really be posting on ? Seriously.

"Natsume."

For a moment, Sumire thought that Hotaru had arrived, before mentally berating herself for thinking a guy's voice to be Hotaru. Then she noticed whose voice it was.

"Ruka?!" Everyone shouted as one, barely taking note of the screaming fan girls and the fainting women. After all, the small gathering was made up of the best of the best, the hottest of the hottest, and—even more dramatic ('cause we all love drama)—they all used to go to the same school! With the holy aura surrounding them, it was surprising that the whole room wasn't down from pheromones.

*The previous paragraph was an excerpt from a crazy fan girl's perspective. Before she fainted.

But the participants of this divine group didn't notice at all as they gawked at the newest arrival. Natsume stood.

"Hey," he said shortly as Ruka hesitantly paced towards them.

Ruka licked his lips nervously. "H-hey." He cautiously grasped Natsume's extended hand, as if in a handshake. But they both simultaneously pulled each other into a brief hug—no, not a squealing, crushing, ohmigosh-I-haven't-seen-you-in-so-long hug, but a guy hug that involves bumping shoulders and patting each other hard on the back. A kind of hug that lasts about a millisecond.

But that hug was enough to send another domino episode around the room, right after the general squeal of "Awwww"s. Ruka and Natsume looked around; Ruka started laughing and Natsume cracked a tiny smile, sending out yet another ripple effect of fainting. Finally, they rejoined the others, and the other guys also stood to welcome him back, doing a similar type of hug.

Was it just Mikan's imagination, or did Ruka shoot a guilty look her way before greeting her? To settle her nerves, she also briefly pulled him into a hug. But when he pulled away, she noticed that most people were sweating, and Natsume was sending them both his death glare. No longer too naïve to understand, she rolled her eyes and extended her Nullification from just herself to the entire room, muttering, "Get over it."

Natsume clearly heard her, because he intensified his glare, and she had to keep her Nullification going strong. Even when he let it go, she held onto the protection a few seconds, just in case.

Despite her minimal guilty pleasure at his reaction, she was mainly annoyed by his possessiveness. She was NOT his girlfriend, and certainly not a THING he could own—even though he had seemed to see her as a toy he was unwilling to share, but didn't feel it necessary to be exclusive towards. Just a toy.

She fiercely pushed away the pain. She was sure no one had seen her battle as she watched her friends exclaim over how long Ruka had been gone. She only managed to glean that he had continued at the Academy the entire time, staying with Natsume. But apparently he had been rather unhappy and distant after Hotaru left, and only roomed with Natsume a few days before escaping to another continent across the largest ocean.

Ruka still seemed uncomfortable after the greetings, so she was about to ask what was wrong, when Natsume's earlier words came back. "—but I think it was partly because of Ruka." Hotaru left because of Ruka. So now he was guilty in front of her best friend.

What had he done?

Mikan stiffened, and she knew Ruka had realized that she had understood. He turned, and abashedly opened his mouth to explain, but—

As if on cue, a quiet voice cut through the clamor the girls were making. "Mikan…?"

Everyone froze, and turned as one towards the sound. Standing there, in a shimmering, floor-length violet halter dress, was Hotaru Imai. She looked beautiful. The time in Europe had kept her skin smooth and white, and her hair had grown out, flowing straight down around her shoulders. There was a several silver strands wound loosely around her hips, and sparkling diamonds on her ears and throat completed the look.

Mikan stood, as if in a trance. The two once best friends faced each other, neither saying a word. They were only about ten feet apart, but to Mikan, it felt as if the tension was a tangible force, pushing her away, pressuring her to run. It took a lot of effort—too much effort—to remind herself of who she had become, to remind herself of the promise she had made a week after she left—when she was with Rena.

"You know, Aima," Rena said, using her made-up name for Mikan, soothingly brushing Mikan's hair, "I don't see why you don't smile."

Mikan twisted to look at her blankly, not really listening to the topic Rena had brought up several times before. Instead, she studied the other girl. Rena was tall, with long, straight, blue-black hair and icy blue eyes. But when she was mad, her eyes turned a frightening blood-red. Mikan had only seen that once before, when they first met.

"You've been through pain, haven't you," Rena said quietly, putting down the brush and twisting Mikan's hair upwards. "But you must smile. To show your enemies, your tormentors, that you are better than them." She bent down, her hair swinging straight down like a curtain. "Do you hear me, Aima? Smile at them, freeze them in fear; either make it look real, or let them know you will kill them. You must smile, Aima. You cannot—ever—run away." She picked up a pin and slid it into the neat chignon.

Mikan bit her lip. "I can't." Rena picked up an elegant silver pin adorned with delicate flowers.

"But you must, even if you cannot," Rena murmured, gently sliding in the pin. "You must exhibit strength, Aima. If your tormentors know you are hurting…" she trailed off. "Even if they hurt you until you want to scream, you need to smile. Never let them know your pain. Never run away. Keep your pride, Aima. Even if that's the only thing you have left." She stepped back, allowing Mikan to turn and look in the mirror. Mikan saw a beautiful girl staring back at her, her hair elegantly coiffed, with excess amber locks tumbling gracefully about her neck and shoulders.

And that day, Rena began teaching Mikan how to smile.

I don't know I should have let Mikan understand Natsume's jealousy... should I make her more dense in the future?

Is Rena too creepy? I'm kinda obsessed with dark stuff right now... Hehehe...

I didn't label the flashback thing, because I don't want Mikan to remember it at that moment; it's just a scene for the reader.

Tell me what you liked and what you... didn't like as much! (That's what the little Review button is for.) Too funny? Too creepy? Too... meh?