I worked out that if I update this story with one chapter a day for the whole of July, I will finish this challenge by August, which is the cut-off date. Heh, I'm in over my head now...

I really wanted to write from Alice's Point of View for a change, so here it is :)

This chapter was inspired by "Crush" by David Archuleta.

Disclaimer: Bakugan is owned by TMS Entertainment, not me.

crush; n. a usually temporary infatuation

"Guys, meet Alice." Runo motioned to the Russian girl standing beside her, orange curls framing her pale face.

"Ummm… I'm Alice…" She smiled, her voice just above a whisper.

"Awesome! It's great to finally meet you in person!" Dan said enthusiastically, giving her a thumbs-up.

"Yeah! It's so good to have you here!" Julie grinned, winking at her.

"As the saying goes: there's safety in numbers. Or in this case, having you on our team should significantly boost our strength." Marucho added, adjusting his blue-rimmed glasses.

Alice smiled at her friends, until she noticed a lone boy, leaning against a wall. He had long dark hair, tied back into a ponytail. His eyes were closed in concentration, or perhaps it was annoyance. To Alice, he seemed like a very mysterious person, and she couldn't help but be drawn towards him.

"Hey, ummm… Runo? Who's that boy?" She whispered into her ear.

"Who? Oh, you mean Shun?" She asked, looking in the same direction of Alice's gaze. "Yeah, don't worry about him. He's usually like that, always acting all cool and distant."

As if he heard Runo talking about him, he looked in their direction. His intense gaze met Alice's, topaz eyes fixed on her brown ones. She knew it was rude to stare, but she couldn't help it. His eyes were so lovely, and so mysterious. She felt a warm rush creeping through her body, her face flushing a soft pink.

His eyes locked on hers for a moment, and then as quickly as a breeze blowing in, he had left the room, his long ponytail flowing with the wind sweeping behind him. She had never met anyone so cool, so mysterious.

"Does Shun… not like me?" Alice asked Runo, her face falling.

"Who knows? He does that to everyone, so it's hard to tell what he's thinking."

She nodded at her answer, staring at the door he had just left through. It was hard to tell whether he felt the same way about her. Alice wasn't sure if this was just another crush, or maybe, just maybe: she was beginning to fall in love.

Thank you all for your kind reviews! They really make my day!

My next chapter will be D for Danger! Look forward to it!