*Recap*

"Dude, hurry up!" Kukai shouted to Ikuto.

"Oh, so you're walking home with lil' ole me now? Just because your precious childhood friend is ignoring you?" Ikuto was now pushing Kukai over the edge. "Well, too bad! I don't enjoy being someone's second choice, ya know?" Ikuto huffed and turned his back against Kukai.

"Come on, Ikuto!" Kukai whined.

"No can do, bro. And besides, I have to help out at the library."

Kukai raised his eyebrow, then burst out laughing at the thought of Ikuto helping out in the library. "You? Help out? In the library? Hahahaha! Oh my god, don't make me laugh!"

"I'm not kidding. Apparently I need to start my volunteer hours so the teacher forced me to go help out in the library. So bothersome..." Ikuto yawned. "Well, see ya," and with that, the blue-haired teen headed towards the library, leaving Kukai by himself in the hallway.

While that was happening...

"Amu-chi! Why are you taking so long?" Yaya whined. "Let's hurry up and go to the mall!"

"Sorry Yaya," Amu said while getting her stuff, "I still need to go to the library."

"The library?" Rima said skeptically.

"Yes, the frickin' library because according to Nikaidou-sensei, I either have to go help out in the library or write a 10 page essay with the topic of "How to avoid being late in the morning"." Rima and Yaya laughed at Amu's misery before leaving her be. Amu sighed and headed towards the library. It's alright, she thought. I'll just get this over with. She entered the school library and headed over to the librarian, only to bump into...

*End Recap*


"Ouch!" Amu cried as her butt landed on the floor.

"I'm sorry. Let me help you up," the guy said as he extended his hand. Amu did not hesitate to grab it and looked up to see who she bumped into.

"Ikuto?! What are you doing here? Um...are you lost? Just in case you didn't know, this is the library."

"I'm not lost," Ikuto stated clearly.

Amu was silent for a second before replying with, "Let me repeat myself. Thiiis iis thee liibrary."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Heard ya the first time."

Amu looked at him and asked, "Why are you in the library if you're not lost?"

"I just don't feel like going home yet," Ikuto replied. Amu didn't seem to buy the excuse but decided to let it slide for today. She walked over to the librarian and asked her what she was supposed to do. The librarian handed her some books and a stamp and walked away.

"Well, anyways, I gotta go do some work so don't bother me," Amu told him after seating herself at a table.

Ikuto sat down in front of her and smirked. "No promises," he replied and cupped one side of his face while he stared at Amu, who was stamping the books.

*Five minutes later...*

Amu sighed, "If you have time to stare, why don't you help me stamp these books? Since you got nothing to do anyways."

Ikuto shrugged and got another stamp from the front desk and started to help Amu.

Amu stared at him while Ikuto was working. "Wow! I'd never thought you'd actually listen to me!"

"Oh just shut up and do your share." Before long, Amu and Ikuto were able to get the stack of books all stamped and sorted out.

Amu stretched her arms and smiled. "Now I can go home!" she cheered and grabbed her bag.

"Not so fast," the librarian spoke up from behind her computer. She looked at them from behind her thick, framed, old-lady styled glasses.

"First, you kids have to put all those books back onto the shelves in their proper place and help check in these returned books and put them in that cart over there. Then, you can leave."

"Ugh!" Ikuto groaned as he slid down his seat. "This is such a pain in the ass!"

Amu picked up a stack of books and made her way to the bookshelves. "Tell me about it." The two started putting the books back on the shelves. Amu went on her tippy-toes to try and put a book on the top shelf. "Just a little more..."

Suddenly, a hand reached out and grabbed the book from her hand and placed it on the top shelf with ease. Amu turned around to meet Ikuto's chest. "Oof!"

"Listen, I'll take care of the higher shelves while you take care of the lower ones," he ordered and got back to work. Amu nodded and put books on the lower ones while Ikuto towered over her to get the higher ones. After fifteen minutes, they managed to put all the books back onto the shelves and checked in all the returned books.

"Now, all that is left is to put these in the cart," Amu states and grabbed a stack of books and placed them in the cart. While she was working, Ikuto decided to take a break and sat down in a chair. He placed his feet on the desk and relaxed. Amu noticed looked at him. "Aren't you gonna help me?"

Ikuto looked at her, then at the stack of books, and then at the cart. "Nahh! You're doing fine on your own."

"Meanie," Amu said with a pout but managed to get all the books into the cart in less than ten minutes.

"Well, well, well, what did I say?" Ikuto smirked while looking at the cart that was now filled with books. "Now let's get out of here before the librarian gives us more work!" And with that, the two teenagers grabbed their bags and rushed out the library. They slowed down after sprinting out of the library and panted. Then, they shared a look and started laughing. After laughing at each other, they calmed down and started walking down the corridors of the school.

"Hmm...it's already dark out," Amu said to herself while looking out the windows.

"Come on, I'll walk you home," Ikuto offered while Amu looked at him with suspicion. "What? You're a girl so it's not safe for you to walk alone when it's dark." Amu shrugged and followed him. They walked down the hallways in silence until Amu decided to break it.

"So what's the real reason why you came to the library?" Amu turned to him with a sly grin, "Are you sure you're not lost?"

Ikuto sighed, but then flashed his infamous smirk, "I'm here so that you won't feel lonely."

"Lonely my ass," Amu muttered.

Ikuto decided to change the subject. "So where were you at lunch?"

"With my friends," Amu replied without a single emotion on her face.

"Why weren't you with us? You always eat lunch with us!" Amu just ignored him and quickened up her pace. Ikuto kept bugging her until suddenly, footsteps were heard from the other end of the hallway. Amu grabbed Ikuto by the arm and dragged him into a classroom.

Amu looked around. "Hey, this is Kukai's classroom," she said to herself. She found Kukai's desk and walked towards it. She placed her fingertips gently on the surface of the desk while a pained smile was plastered on her face. Ikuto, on the other hand, leaned against the wall and observed the pinkette with a frown.

All of a sudden, Ikuto's ears perked up and then this time, he grabbed Amu by the arm. "Shh! I think they're coming inside!" Ikuto whispered and they hid under the teacher's desk. Wait, why are we hiding? the two realized but it was too late. The classroom door slammed open and the two teenagers held their breath.

"Ahh! I knew it was here!" a girl spoke. Utau! the two hiding under the desk thought. They were able to see her shoes from under the desk.

"And why did I have to come back with you?" a boy piped up. Amu recognized the voice in an instant. Kukai?! What is he doing with her? Amu thought.

"Because you have nothing better to do," Utau stated calmly.

"No I don't! I mean I have to walk home and do some homework and...and..."

"I rest my case."

"Shut up and grab your bag so we can leave!"

"Say, Kukai, I've been meaning to ask something for a while now..." Utau started.

"Ask away," Kukai replied with ease.

"So...um...what does Amu mean to you?" Amu's breath hitched while Ikuto started leaning towards Kukai's side in order to be able to hear his answer. There was a long silence, as if Kukai was thinking about it in his head. "You know what? Forget it. You don't have to answer me," Utau said after the long pause.

"No, you deserve to know," Kukai said. "Amu is..."


Me: Cliffhanger~! You all must hate me right now. I'm so sorry I couldn't update any faster. My brother has been hogging the damn computer so I couldn't update. Well you guys know what to do!