[A/N] Hiiii look it's an update! Thank you for the reviews! If you made it this far, congratulations. Don't forget to leave a review please!
Disclaimer: I do not own Shugo Chara.
~lonelybutlovely
"How was your day?"
"You ask me this as if you weren't with me the entire time."
Amu looped her arm through his and together they strolled down the hallway. Now they were free to do whatever and she planned to use her hours wisely. She wasn't exactly sure what to call their relationship. He wasn't really her boyfriend...she was still planning to see Tadase later after all. He was more than a friend, but not exactly her romantically involved partner. With all the kisses shared between them she felt they should be but at the same time she wasn't sure. He never clarified their relationship either so she wasn't ALL to blame.
Ikuto's thoughts tracked a similar thought process. Though he also wondered her connection to him and why he was so inexplicably drawn to her. It wasn't that she was the descendant of that girl...no, she was really something else. What was he doing anyway? What could he tell her?
She would hate him if he told her everything, right? How he killed people in cold blood and didn't give a second thought...how he was running from his insane family, he was hiding from his duty as a pure blood prince. She would want him to do it, he felt a rueful smile shape his lips. Amu would definitely want him to do his task.
And he couldn't refuse her, even if it meant losing her. She would beg and plead with him, that was just how she was. And she'd disappear from his life, never to be seen again. He couldn't bear to part with her. He didn't want to do his job, he just wanted to be with Amu. A foolish proclamation but a true one. But if Amu asked him to...he would sure as hell say yes. He wouldn't be able to refuse her.
A sudden scent alerted Ikuto. He narrowed his eyes, wrinkling his nose at his smell and letting Amu go. She looked at him with mild surprise. She put a hand on his arm, her concerned gaze focused on his face. He shook his head and murmured, "Wait here," before suddenly disappearing, a faint breeze the only indication of him ever being there.
"What do you want?" Ikuto stood at the edge of the concrete building.
Nagihiko shrugged, peeling away from the shadows of the building. "They're not far."
"They found me?" Ikuto's voice hardened.
"They've found your general location," he informed him losing any playfulness he had before. "They know you're back in Japan again. They already searched Europe again and they heard you came back here."
"How is it that you found me?" He narrowed his eyes.
"I've always kept tabs on you," Nagihiko cracked a smile. "Besides, you created me. I will always sense my master."
"Master?" Ikuto scoffed. "You're really acting like a fool. You never listen to me anyway."
"Don't I?" Nagihiko slowly frosted the edge of the metal rods. "I stayed away from her," he said gently," just like you asked."
"And keep it that way," he warned frostily. "I don't want her involved with anything."
Nagihiko covered it in a light covering of ice, pulling back when he was satisfied. It glistened in the afternoon sun, glittering colors on the surface and white frost edging the cracks. He observed his handy work for a moment and smiled. The images the cracks made formed loopy hearts and makeshift doodles of a girl and a boy. Ikuto twitched his finger and the ice instantly melted, a puddle steaming down onto the concrete around them. Ikuto looked over he edge of the building and sighed.
"Try not to cause a ruckus," Nagihiko murmured before he left.
"Same to you," Ikuto disappeared as well.
Amu was bent over a book, her hair making a thin veil between him and her face. He smiled and quietly, carefully, blew in her ear. She jumped up, a strangled yelp caught in her throat. When she saw it was him, her hands automatically hit him. He chuckled at her weak attempt as she shut her book.
"Don't do that!" Amu hissed over her shoulder. "God, I hate it when you just show up out of nowhere."
"You were just so absorbed in your book you didn't even notice me," he replied smoothly.
"Ugh!" Amu rolled her eyes. "I'm meeting up with Tadase in an hour or so - whenever he can get loose from his club stuff. So I guess you have me until then."
He raised an eyebrow. "Is that an offer?"
Amu shrugged, "It's your choice. I'll go back to my dorm if you're busy."
"No," he shook his head. "Let's go together."
"Excuse me?" Amu blinked. "You realize we're strictly not supposed to let boys into our dorms."
"Are you known for following rules?"
"Actually, yes, I am."
"It's a really good thing I don't care then," he picked her up. "I had hoped we wouldn't have to do this again."
"Okay!" Amu quickly answered. "Fine, we'll go! Just put me down!"
Reluctantly, he set her down. She quickly adjusted her skirt and fixed her hair as best as possible. When they got to her room, she quickly shuffled into the mini fridge for a snack and a drink. She held out her hand to Ikuto expectantly.
"Um..." he stared at her hand in confusion.
"Thermos," she replied. "I'll warm up what's left - "
"There's actually no - "
"Come on, I'll feel rude if I you're just sitting there while I eat." He handed her the thermos. She opened it up and heated the rest in the microwave, humming a happy tune and tying her hair up in a floppy ponytail.
He pulled the end of her pink hair. She turned. "Your hair is nice."
She patted her head. "Is it? I didn't change it or anything..."
"I'm just saying it's nice," he said admiring it.
"Thanks," the microwave beeped. She pulled it open and handed him the blood without another glance. She then pulled open a yogurt and a juice box, not turning to see if he followed her back to her bed.
She set her things down and opened her laptop, booting it up and hopping onto her bed. He slid onto the bed beside her, observing her actions as one would observe a science experiment. She quickly logged on and plugged in her headphones, opening up a browser and typing in some websites. As she flipped through the pages she halted on her e-mail to reply to her sister and moved on. She ate her yogurt and then opened another browser, an upbeat sound filling her ears.
Ikuto realized it was an anime. He gave her a curious look she ignored. As the opening scenes began, she sipped her juice. Ikuto watched for a while longer as the heroine began talking to some other character. They were in a cafe with a few others and apparently were waiters of some sort. He quickly lost interest and began letting his gaze wander towards his companion.
After a few minutes, she leaned on his shoulder and comfortably watched her show. Ikuto froze for a moment, uncertain of how to take her actions then relaxing. He returned his gaze to the laptop but his thoughts wandered.
It had only been a matter of time. A few hundred years, but it was inevitable that they would find him. Normally, he would already be gone the second he heard that and on a plane to some other place. The warmth on his shoulder kept him there at the school when he should have been on a plane to a distant country. He was torn between leaving her and fleeing or staying here and hoping they would never search his location. It was a stupid hope since he knew they would comb the country small or large, keeping surveillance on high alert and viewing anyone who remotely looked like him.
He had thrown out a few look-a-likes to throw them off but it never took them long to find out the phony. They bided their time though, knowing they would eventually find him. It was all just a game to them, he thought bitterly. A stupid game.
Amu laughed, snapping him from his train of thought. She hit his leg a few times, commenting on the video. He cracked a small smile and mentally shook his thoughts away. He would worry later; now he would enjoy his time with her.
"Amu..." he murmured.
"Hmm?" She kept her gaze on the laptop.
"Do you love me?"
At that, she did turn away and stared at him with startled eyes. "What do you mean by that?"
"It's..." Ikuto wanted to say 'nothing' but time was short. "I just want to know."
Her startled look turned soft and slightly worried. "What's wrong? Are you dying?"
"No, no," he laughed nervously. He couldn't remember being this nervous in a long time. "Nothing like that. Nothing's wrong."
Her lips pressed together, an effort to stem the questions about to pour out. He stared at her for a moment, their eyes holding a long steady gaze. He pulled away and patted her on the head, rising from her bed. Amu paused the video, giving him a concerned look now. Ikuto shook his head as she began to stand.
"I'm...going," he said slowly. "You should get ready for your date." He winked. "He'll be here soon."
"It's not a date!" Amu quickly defended herself. She flushed pink. "He's a friend, just a friend."
"Have fun," he pulled the door open reluctantly and gave her a reassuring smile. "See you later."
"B-bye," she stammered as he shut the door.
Ikuto was in his dorm moments later, the thermos still in his hand. Pulling away from her took a lot more effort than he thought it would. She was this amazing and beautiful girl that held a lot of promise and he...he was just an old geezer with a lot of heavy pressing problems. He sighed and raked a hand through his hair. What was he going to do now?
"I'm here!" Amu shouted out waving her hand. Tadase turned to her as she rose from the bench with a smile.
"Sorry," he greeted her with a warm hug. "I hope I didn't make you wait long."
"It's okay," she pulled back and looped an arm through his. "Let's go!"
"Where to?"
"Um," she thought for a moment. "How about some little shops?"
"We have those?" He raised his eyebrows.
"In a place not too far from here," she pointed out. "I hope you don't mind driving..."
He fished his keys from his pocket. "Nah, we could use a little shopping, right?"
"Yep!" She nodded and they headed off to town.
After parking his car they started popping in and out of shops. Amu tried on clothes, picking out colorful displays and occasionally striking a pose. Tadase was forced to dress as well - and not always in boy clothes. Amu snapped pictures, the both of them laughing. Eventually they went to grab a snack from the convenience store and had a slow walk back to the car.
As the day drew to a close, her mind began wandering back to Ikuto. She wasn't sure what they were at all. And he had definitely acted stranger earlier. The way he had no teasing jokes or perverted motives worried her. And he left her by himself instead of trying to convince her of staying with him. He had barely mentioned Tadase and then encouraged her to have fun. That was very unlike of Ikuto.
"You're wearing that face again."
"Hmm? What face?" Amu gave have him a sidelong glance.
Tadase furrowed his brow and made a small tight frown, squinting his eyes forward. "This one. It's your thinking look."
Amu relaxed, not realizing she made a face at all. "Oh...sorry?"
"Don't be," he smiled, bopping her nose. "You can't help it when you think, I'm sure."
Her fingers flew to her nose, a blush creeping up onto her cheeks.
He laughed. "Now there's an expression I don't see often!"
"S-shut up!" Amu turned away embarrassedly. "Hurry up or we'll miss the curfew!"
He swung out his keys as they neared his car, chuckling all the way. "Sure thing, hime-sama."