DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Gakuen Alice, nor do I own A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens or I'm Yours by Jason Mraz.

Selfless

~Chapter 9~

Mikan's heart pounded within her chest at the sight above them. The mistletoe hung innocently in the dim light, dangling by the thinnest, yet strongest of threads. No way, they had been sitting beneath that this whole time?

Mikan's eyes traveled to Natsume's figure, wondering just what he was thinking then. If Mikan were to be honest with her feelings, she wasn't all that disappointed to see a mistletoe hung above them. Embarrassingly, she had been wondering just how it would feel like to kiss the boy beside her. But what did he feel like? What did he think?

Her eyes made their way back to the plant hanging above them. Did he feel the same way she did? Or was it just her? She didn't know. However, she really wanted to find out. And she knows that she will. Someday; somehow.

She looked back to Natsume, only to realize that he had been looking at her all that time. She blushed, embarrassed to have not noticed his gaze for a while.

Mikan was snapped back into reality when Natsume began to lean towards her, eye contact between the two never breaking. Her breathing became all the more shallow the closer that he got and her eyelids began lowering. She barely noted the fact that Natsume was doing the same, his body scooting closer so they wouldn't be positioned awkwardly.

Mikan's breath caught when she felt his lips touch hers. His lips were soft, smooth, warm. She felt a delighted sensation course through her veins at the feeling of his lips against hers.

Natsume's arms wrapped around Mikan's waist, a hand trailing up and down her spine. An involuntary shiver sped its way down her back. Mikan finally knew how it was like to kiss him; how it was to have him kiss her. It was practically a dream come true. She had never thought that in her lifetime, she'd be able to spend such a perfect kiss with Natsume. It was beautiful. It was heavenly. It was amazing. She wouldn't have had it any other way.

Natsume pressed more against Mikan's lips when she wrapped her dainty arms around his neck. He practically purred in delight when she ran her fingers through his hair. He pulled back a bit to get some air, then swooped back down to capture her lips once more. He found her taste addicting. He had a feeling that he'd never, ever get bored with the way she felt when she was pressed against his chest and how soft and plump her lips were as he kissed them. No, that'd be impossible. She was perfect. She'd always be the one for him. And he'd be the luckiest man on Earth if she were to return his feelings and accept him for who he was. Heck, he felt pretty fucking lucky right now.

The two pulled away from each other, foreheads resting on the other's as they breathed hungrily for air. They didn't even bother to untangle themselves as they heard the ending speech being announced to the whole of the Sakura family. They just stared into each other's eyes in silence, trying their best to calm their breathing.

But once they heard the whole hall begin to talk again and move towards the doors, they snapped back into reality. Mikan blushed as she untangled her fingers from Natsume's hair and he unwrapped his arms from her waist. Standing, he brushed off the fake dust just to distract himself from the rising color to his face. He took a deep breath, turned around, and offered Mikan a hand and a smile so they could go back to the car. Mikan blushed a little more, but smiled none the less as she accepted his hand and they retreated down the stairs.

The two spoke not one word as they got into the car, still not speaking throughout the ride home. They just held each other's hands in a contented silence. After they had bid everyone goodnight, they headed upstairs to their room and the two of them collapsed on Natsume's bed. They lay on their backs, heads tilted so they could look into each other's eyes.

They stayed like that for minutes until Natsume shifted his position and placed one arm on the other side of Mikan to prop himself up as the other stayed beside his sitting figure. The two closed their eyes as he swooped down and captured Mikan's lips once more.

Natsume's heart skipped a beat when Mikan wrapped her arms around his neck to pull him closer. He complied, slightly resting on top of her as his arms worked to keep most of his weight off of her. His legs moved so that he had one on either side of her as to be able to kiss her easier.

When he pulled away, he spoke, "Mikan."

Her heart fluttered when he said her name with that husky tone. "Yes, Natsume?"

He caught his breath before he spoke once more, lying down at Mikan's side, he sighed and nuzzled his face into her neck. "…You know… that was my first kiss."

Mikan blushed. "M-me too."

She gasped when he lightly nipped at her neck. "So that makes you mine, right?"

Mikan's blush deepened. "W-what?"

"And if you're mine," Natsume continued as if she hadn't even spoken, "then I'll be yours. Only yours."

Natsume lifted his head after placing a kiss on the other side of her neck, looking deeply into Mikan's eyes with the most hope she had ever seen. All she could do was nod.

He grinned and held her tighter against him, kicking off his and her shoes as he pulled his comforter over them.

"H-hey, we need to get ready for bed first!" Mikan blushed.

Natsume sighed and groaned, "Too tired."

Just as Mikan was about to get off of the bed, Natsume wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back down so that her back was against his chest.

Mikan sincerely hoped that he couldn't feel her heart pounding through her back. But, she knew immediately that he could feel it when he chuckled and kissed her neck just to make her heart beat faster.

His arms wrapped tighter around her waist as he snuggled with her. Mikan cuddled into his chest, curling up just a bit around his arms as she became comfortable in his embrace. And just when she was drifting into her dreams, she heard Natsume speak.

Into her ear, she heard Natsume's whisper: "Mine."

"And we have a present for you too, Mr. and Mrs. Hyuuga!" Yuka cheered.

It was Christmas morning, and all residents of the Sakura household- guests and all- were gathered in the living room to unwrap gifts. Each child (Tsubasa and Natsume included) had received a gift from each other, their parents, and 'Santa'. Mikan swore to Natsume that her father was Santa Clause in disguise.

"Really?" Kaoru asked, smiling as she watched her son and Mikan laugh with each other.

"Well, first, I need the attention of everyone in the room before I announce the gift!" Instantly, attention was Yuka's. "Alright then! Well, your present is jobs from our company!"

Mr. and Mrs. Hyuuga's expressions lit up in delighted surprise.

"We know how hard you work," Izumi said, rising from his seat to stand with his wife, "and we know just how much your multiple jobs pay. That's the thing with the jobs that people get when they have nothing else: they barely pay anything. And then, you never have enough money after that."

"So," Yuka cut in, "we are to offer you a job in our company and let you work under us! That is, if you would kindly accept."

"Of course!" Kaoru replied quickly. "We'll start whenever you will have us!"

Izumi chuckled as the rest of the room erupted into applause. "Well, we should head to the dining room to discuss your jobs and pay."

Kaoru and Ioran nodded, following the Sakura couple into said room. And for a little while, the living room was silent as Youichi and the young adults sat watching the place they last saw their parents.

And then, Tsubasa broke the silence. "Congrats, Nat," he grinned, clapping his hand on said boy's shoulder.

Natsume nodded in return.

"What do you think about your parents getting a job with our company?" Mikan asked, sending Natsume a small smile.

"You knew?" Natsume asked.

"Yeah," she replied. "But I wasn't allowed to say anything about it. Sorry."

"Don't be," Natsume said, ruffling Mikan's hair, "Christmas is all about the surprises."

"Hey!" Tsubasa scolded, slapping Natsume's hand from Mikan's hair, "stop flirting with my little sister!"

"What's flirting?" Youichi asked his elder brother.

"Hm, how do I explain this…" Tsubasa trailed off.

"You'll know when your older," Mikan said, flicking Tsubasa as if to say 'knock-it-off'.

Natsume smiled softly, smile not noticeable to the quarreling siblings. This was an ideal way to spend Christmas morning: surrounded by friends and family, the people he cared about dearly. He wished every Christmas would be just like this. His mind drifted to the events of the night before and he grinned. Yeah, the same thing happening every year would be heaven in Natsume's opinion.

Natsume sighed and got up, dusting off his pajama pants as he did so (he and Mikan had put their pajamas on before they headed downstairs that morning).

Mikan raised an eyebrow in question. "Where are you going?"

"I've got work at the diner."

Natsume placed the orders on his customers' table before he roller-skated back towards the front counter. Earlier that month, he'd been given the job of a waiter, seeing as some of the girls couldn't make it and he was very good at balance unlike the other men who worked there.

After his little job change, the owners thought that it would be a great idea to keep him as a waiter, the reason being the attraction of new customers (mainly of the feminine kind).

Teenage girls giggled as he swiftly passed their tables to reach his destination. And once he was at the counter, he leaned against the table to converse with the doorman who was none other than Koko.

"How are you doing with the ladies?" Koko teased grinning from ear to ear.

Natsume shrugged, asking, "You?"

Koko had started the job after the whole Christmas Concert at the retirement home. Mikan had received a call from the diner's owners, finding that there weren't enough people to fill in the shifts. So, Mikan had resorted to asking her best friend, Koko, to take up a job; if just for the winter season.

Koko smiled proudly, puffing out his chest a bit. "I'm doing awesome! Check out all the properly seated customers!"

Natsume didn't even try to follow Koko's gestured hands as they motioned to, practically, the whole restaurant. He sighed, rolling his eyes as Koko finally realized Natsume never really cared to begin with. And all Natsume could think when Koko finished his idiocy was, 'finally'.

"It's not nice to ask something without the emotions of it," Koko pouted.

Natsume just skated away to the kitchen's window. He picked up the other orders and made his way over to another table to set the orders down to the awaiting family. And when he was done, he made his rounds throughout the restaurant and made sure to keep his customers well satisfied. And after fetching a few refills and collecting plates to hand out bills, he made his way back to the front desk for a minute of rest.

"So, anything new happened?" Koko asked as if Natsume hadn't even left earlier.

Natsume shrugged. A lot had happened. He had gotten closer to the Sakuras, went to the family ball, spent Christmas morning together with his family and Mikan's… gotten so much closer to Mikan… but he wouldn't tell Koko that. Natsume had the sudden urge to just dash home and pull Mikan into a kiss. Great.

"Use your words, man!" Koko said in a mock exasperated fashion. "You own a mouth, have you not?"

Natsume raised an eyebrow at Koko's word choosing.

Koko shrugged sheepishly. "We're reading A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens."

"Hn."

"Is that even a word?"

Natsume shrugged. How was he supposed to know? "If LOL is, then it's not impossible."

"You are very much right, Hyuuga," Koko leaned against the counter.

A family and a group of girls made their way into the restaurant. The two teenage boys went to work, departing as they both made way to seat the two groups at their own tables. Natsume led the group of girls to a booth near the kitchen. And once they were seated, he put his newly acquired skills in waiting in action.

"Welcome, I'm Natsume and I'll be your waiter. To start, can I get you anything to drink?" he asked as he set down their menus.

"Some water would be fine; for all of us," a flirty voice answered.

Natsume, not even bothering to look up and make eye contact (he didn't look at any of them earlier either), nodded and jotted down the order. "I'll be right back with that."

Just before he skated off, he heard a "wait" from the same voice from the table. He turned around, giving the girl a bored look. And when he was greeted by the sight of the girl, he was able to contain his surprise of who it was.

He remembered this girl from somewhere, her strawberry blond hair and brown eyes. She was the same girl from the ball that he had attended with Mikan the night before. And he was hoping that he'd never have to grace her with his presence again. It was great to know that the universe was on his side, note the sarcasm.

"You are that same guy from my family's ball," she said. "We didn't get to introduce each other."

The other girls at the table contained their just as snobby giggles the girl that was speaking to Natsume had. He held back the urge to roll his eyes.

"I'm Luna Koizumi," she continued. "And you are?"

"Natsume!" Koko called in a teasing manner, "Someone is here to see you!"

"I'm going to have to go and get that," Natsume said, turning to go towards the sound of Koko's voice. "I'll be back with your drinks later."

Natsume took his leave and made his way towards the front. And he skated a little faster when he heard the sound of a chair scraping so that a certain girl from that table (most likely that Koi-fish girl) could follow him. He made it to the front in a jiffy, the strawberry blond stalker far behind him and trying to catch up.

"Hey, Na-"

Natsume cut Mikan off as he took hold of her hand, "Follow me."

He dragged her towards the corner of the diner, the corner that wasn't occupied with customers at that moment. Once they were there, he let go of Mikan, noticing his earlier urge to kiss Mikan rise up again.

"I see you are doing well as a waiter," Mikan started, an amused look on her face.

"Whatever, Polka-dots." Was his reply.

"I thought you were done calling me that!"

Natsume raised his eyebrow as he gave Mikan an 'innocent' look. "Isn't that your underwear print today?"

Mikan flushed red. "Sh-shut up! O-or I'll…. Or I'll…"

Natsume cornered Mikan against the wall, caging her between his arms. "Or you'll what?"

Mikan raised her hands and placed them against Natsume's chest as she struggled to push him away. "I'll… I'll scream!"

Natsume gave Mikan a smirk. "If you do, don't you think that they'll assume something different is happening over here?"

"…Huh?" Mikan asked, confused.

Natsume chuckled, dipping his head into Mikan's neck. "You're too innocent for your own good…"

"B-but I don't get it," Mikan said quietly as Natsume moved his head to rest his forehead against hers.

And instantly, Natsume gently placed his lips on Mikan's lips. They felt just as they had last night, if not a little more cool due to the freezing temperature outside. He indulged himself in savoring the sweet taste and the electric sensations that coursed through his veins as he softly kissed her lips.

Mikan's hands clenched Natsume's shirt, crinkling the button up in her grip. She applied more pressure into the kiss, bringing in Natsume so that he was that much more pressed up against her. She tried to keep her wobbly knees strong as Natsume's hands traveled towards her waist, gripping her waist in his hands. His touch was electric. It made her spine tingle and skin prickle with pleasure. He had no idea just what he could do to her.

Just as Natsume's exploring hand slipped beneath Mikan's shirt to caress her flat stomach, the two heard a gasp and growl, "Mikan!"

They quickly pulled apart, fixing their clothes quickly as Mikan tried to hide her blush and Natsume tried to hide his smirk of satisfaction. Both pairs of eyes found their way to a familiar strawberry blond that completely refused to leave Natsume alone.

"L-Luna…" Mikan trailed off awkwardly, playing with her hair.

Luna glared viciously. "What are you doing?"

"U-uh… we're…"

"What does it look like?" Natsume piped up, deciding it was his turn to enter the so called 'conversation'.

Luna turned to Natsume and sent him a flirtatious smile. "Don't tell me you're really into that."

"Hn," Natsume kept his cool, "you're more of a 'that' than anyone that I've met."

Luna made her way to Natsume's side, wrapping her arms around one of his. "Oh please, you're just playing hard to get! Why don't you just ditch her…"

Natsume snuck a peek at Mikan, of who was still standing back to the wall. He noticed that she was burning in rage and jealousy. Natsume couldn't believe just how cute she could be.

"If you haven't noticed, I was just making out with Mikan," Natsume stated as if he were talking to a stupid kid.

Mikan blushed and repeated to herself quietly, "making out…"

"So, if you don't mind, I'd like to continue that," Natsume finished.

Luna was just about to spout her enraged answer until Mrs. Miyazaki cut into the conversation. "Natsume, there you are! Oh, and Mikan's here too!"

"Hi Mrs. Miyazaki," Mikan said quietly.

"Hello dear," she replied. "Do you mind getting into uniform? We need an extra hand."

Mikan nodded and started on her way. Just a few steps from Natsume, she noticed that Luna was still there. The fact that she had tried to get Natsume for her own made Mikan's blood boil; Natsume was hers. He'd said so. So, just to show that she wasn't letting Luna go anywhere with him, Mikan backtracked, stood up on the tips of her toes, and gave Natsume a shy peck on the cheek. And then, she made her way towards the staff locker room.

Natsume blushed, but was able to hide the fact so that no one noticed.

"So," Luna started, making her way towards Natsume's side, "would you like to go out sometime?"

Mrs. Miyazaki, stepped forward and separated Luna from Natsume. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave, dear."

"B-but, wha-"

"I cannot have anyone harassing my employees," Mrs. Miyazaki said. "Please leave. Or I may have to call law enforcement."

Luna scoffed, but seeing as she had no choice, she stomped out of the diner, her posse following along.

Natsume sent a grin over to the old lady before him. "Thanks."

"No problem," she replied, patting the tall boy on his shoulder. "Now, please, get to work."

Natsume nodded and joined Mikan, who was all dressed and already serving the customers, in keeping the restaurant going. They skated to and fro, passing each other and talking along the way. They had worked in such sync, the customers had enough awe bestowed in them just by watching the duo skate gracefully through their routine. Once in a while, during their routine, Natsume would wrap an arm around Mikan's waist, just to give them some momentum so that he could spare her a kiss without having to stop in the middle. And the speculators thought the view to be so sweet and pure, the young love that grows in their hearts becoming stronger and stronger each minute they're in each others' presence.

And silently, as she listened to the radio, Mikan sang softly along to the song that had swept the nation into a love for it: "This is our fate; I'm yours."

~Chapter 9 End~