Shironeko-pyon: This is my first Gakuen Alice fic but I'm not new here. I'm currently working on four CCS fics as of now.

Yuu: Shironeko-pyon doesn't own Gakuen Alice. She's just wishes she does.

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Kiss by the book

By: Shironeko-pyon

Chapter One:

Love 101

The wind blew strong through the Alice Academy grounds as tidbits of leaves danced happily through the breeze. Kids of all ages who possessed mighty alices wandered around the surprisingly huge campus. A girl with long auburn hair tied in a messy ponytail trudged her feet through the dormitory halls. Surprisingly, she's not outside gawking and squealing over simple things. Nope, she's inside reading while walking.

Yes, Mikan Sakura ...reading? Shocking, isn't?

But, it's not just an ordinary book. The book she bought at Central Town for twenty rabbits was neither about Physics nor about Biology. It's about something she has no clue about, something she doesn't know of.

It's about love.

"Let's see here. 'How to attract your chosen boy in more ways than one:'," Mikan mumbled as she read eagerly through the pages of the rather thick book.

It's almost a surprise how she can walk without bumping into someone. But, then again, who would be in the dormitory halls in a time like this? No one but her. Well, that's where she thought wrong.

"Oof!"

"Hey, watch it!"

Mikan's book flew in midair due to the impact of the collision. The person she bumped into suddenly landed on her with a loud thud and she felt his head resting on her…

Oh my God! Not on my chest!

"Get off me, you perverted piece of crap!" Mikan shove the person away from her with all ferocity and strength. She stood up, got her book and brushed some dirt off her skirt.

The raven-haired boy smirked while getting up. "Tch, it's nice I landed on something soft. It's the least you could offer after you gracefully bumped into me, floral panties."

Mikan rolled her eyes and glared at him.

Oh great, Natsume Hyuuga, of all the people in this Academy! Why, oh, why are the heavens so cruel to me?

After that incident, she swore on hating this smug idiot with every ounce of her nullifying blood. Many thought she's being harsh. Well, they don't know what exactly happened on that fateful day. Only she and Natsume are the witnesses.

- - -

"Natsume! Natsume!" Mikan called out as she kept on looking for him.

Where is that jerk? She thought as she decided to look for him at the most secluded place she could think of.

…And there he was, sitting quietly while reading his usual manga under the shade of a cherryblossom tree. Mikan approached him and quickly snatched the manga from his hands. Natsume just sat there and looked at her with cold eyes.

"What do you want, little girl?" He asked, his voice as blank as ever.

Mikan shot him an icy stare as she placed her hands on her hips. "What do I want? Well, let me see… you promised on taking me to Central Town today! You promised you'll take me and we never get there! You always say you have this super important thing to do! We kept on postponing, this is the fifteenth time, Natsume!"

There was silence and upon realizing Natsume wouldn't answer, Mikan grew into a boiling point.

"You know what? That's it! I'll go alone! You're impossible, Natsume! And here I am, thinking you actually care about me and considered me as your friend!" Mikan stood up and was about to leave when a voice spoke up.

"You mean nothing to me,"

Mikan froze as those words entered her ears and stung her heart. W-What did he just say? She thought as the faintest sign of tears were starting to well in the corners of her rich brown eyes.

She turned around, letting Natsume see her scorned features. "W-What did you say, Natsume?"

Natsume bowed down, his bangs covering his eyes. He bit his lower lip as if regretting what he just said. "I said…"

There was a long pause, only the rustling of the wind through the trees could be heard. Mikan waited for his answer, somehow hoping the whole thing she heard was just a fragment of her over-active imagination.

"…you mean nothing to me."

Mikan's lip quivered as a tear trickled down her soft cheeks and onto the dirt-filled ground. The wind blew once more, this time stronger, making Mikan's long hair sway along with it. There was a deafening silence but Mikan, irritated about the whole thing, decided to break it.

"You don't mean anything to me either, you perverted idiot!" Mikan shouted in between tears. "YOU DON'T!"

Natsume twitched. He stayed glued on the spot and said nothing. It pierced his heart as those words wafted through the air and into his ears.

"I'm done being your friend, Hyuuga!" Natsume twitched again when she mentioned his last name. "Your partner, your slave—everything! You're just one …insecure freak!"

Mikan sobbed and ran away. She ran faster and left a dumbfounded Natsume.

"…This is for your own good, Mikan. It's better you shouldn't get too close to me."

- - -

Mikan sighed upon remembering what happened. She couldn't believe everything would end that way. She couldn't come to conclude their so-called friendship would finish just like that. Deep inside her, Mikan wished she just hadn't said those horrible words. But, it's now too late. Right now, she had to handle some important issues.

Mikan got her book and flipped the page where she left off. "Whatever, Hyuuga." She said, not even bothering to look at him.

Natsume ignored the emotionless comment. Since that very day when he said she doesn't mean anything to him, Mikan's been acting like that. He secretly wished he just kept his pie hole shut. Darn it! That idiot's getting in my head! So what if she's getting all rebellious here? I don't care. It's her fault for getting too close to me.

He glanced at the title of Mikan's book. "Reading about love now are we, polka-dots?"

Mikan put down the book and stared at him with much anger she could muster. "Yeah, and so?"

Natsume placed his hands inside his pockets. "You wouldn't even know love even if it's written in big letters,"

"That's why I'm reading about it, you jerk."

"You can't learn about love by reading it through a book."

Mikan closed her book with fury. "Who are you to say that, Hyuuga? You don't even know how to love,"

Natsume twitched upon hearing those last words. What's this idiot talking about? Of course, I know how to love! Well, I think I do…

Mikan felt a bit hurt when she spat those words out. She looked at Natsume who just stood there, looking bored as ever. She knew deep inside that he's hurting and she blamed herself for that.

Okay, maybe I AM being a little harsh!

"I-I'm sorry…" Mikan approached him and smiled.

Natsume looked at her, masking his shock. This girl IS unpredictable.

"Sorry for what? Pfft, whatever …watermelons," Natsume smirked and walked away.

"W-What the hell? W-Watermelons…UH!" Mikan gripped the book tightly as her face grew red with anger. She gritted her teeth before she screamed.

"GET BACK HERE, YOU PERVERTED MORON!"

Her hands turned into balled fists as she dashed after a retreating Natsume.

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"Where… is that… underwear-peeking… dope?" Mikan panted as she reached the far end of the forest.

She grabbed her book and turned the page where she again left off. Grrr… I can't read properly with that idiot bothering me once in a while!

Mikan sat down on the soft comfy ground under the shade of a giant oak tree. She glanced on the page and read.

Finally, some peace and quiet!

Mikan was about to relax and continue reading when she heard footsteps approaching her. Now what?

She placed the book on her lap and looked at the person coming her way. Luckily for her, it's not Natsume Hyuuga but his animal-loving best friend.

"Oh, hey, Ruka-pyon!" Mikan beamed.

Ruka smiled at her. "Hey, Mikan." He walked beside her and sat.

"What brings you here?" Mikan inquired as she got her book and started reading.

Ruka looked at the title of her book. "I just came from the stables and thought of taking a walk through the forest. What are you reading? It's about love, huh, Mikan?" He blushed after those last words slipped out of his soft lips.

Mikan glanced at him and smiled. "Yeah, Ruka-kun! I'm gonna learn more about love."

He blushed and looked away. Ruka looked at her from the corner of his eyes and saw her confused face.

"Hey, Ruka-pyon!"

Ruka looked at her, his blush never fading. "Y-yeah, Mikan?"

Mikan handed him her book and pointed on something imprinted in bold letters. "What do you mean by this, Ruka? I can't quite understand,"

He looked at the words in bold and his eyes widened like saucers. Ruka blushed a bright red and couldn't utter a single word.

"Ruka? Is there something wrong?"

Ruka couldn't believe what he's seeing. W-What the? What on Earth is this book's author thinking when she wrote this?

He slowly read the words once again.

How to let the boy you like know that you want to play hot games with him on the bed:

Ruka kept reading, his eyes still wide. He could feel his blood rising to his cheeks as the blush on his face reddened even more, if that's even possible.

Tip #1: Show some skin. Wear a tank top and a mini skirt, expose some curves. Let him see your underwear once in a while.

He gulped and closed the book shut. Ruka felt as if his nose was going to bleed. Mikan tried getting the book from Ruka's grip but he shove it away from her.

"Where did you buy this? At Central Town, huh?" Ruka asked, keeping the book away from Mikan.

Mikan looked at him, bewilderment clear on her face. "Y-Yeah. Why?"

Figures, thought Ruka as he opened the page where he saw the disturbing item.

"Mikan, promise me you won't read this page, okay?" He asked, pointing at the page.

Mikan looked confused. "O-Oh, okay… if you say so, Ruka-pyon. But, why?"

"Just promise me,"

"Okay,"

Ruka-pyon's freaking me out. Mikan stared at the title of her book. It says "All about innocent love". What's Ruka all worrying about? She shrugged. Hmmm… beats me.

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The very next day, all seemed a little bit weird. Mikan Sakura arrived at the classroom without screaming, "Good Morning" or attempting to hug her so-called bestfriend. She waltzed in while still reading her "Innocent love" book. All seemed shocked by the sudden change in aura. All except Natsume and Ruka. If Hotaru was also surprised, she had an awesome way of hiding it.

Mikan sat down on her seat beside Hotaru and looked at her bestfriend with that usual perky smile on her lips. "Good Morning, Hotaru!"

Hotaru arched an eyebrow. "What? No hugs?" She asked sarcastically in her trademark monotonous voice.

"Oh, I forgot!" Mikan beamed. "HHOOTTAARRUUUUUU!"

Mikan tried hugging her but to no avail.

WAPAK!

Some things never change.

"Aww, Hotaru! That hurts!" Mikan whined while feeling the huge bump on her head.

Hotaru patted her horse-shoe glove. "You never learn now do you, Mikan?"

"But you said 'What? No hugs?'! I thought you're upset about me not hugging you!"

"You weren't supposed to take that seriously,"

"I don't get it,"

"You're… such an idiot."

Mikan crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Hmpf! You're mean, Hotaru!"

She grabbed her book and started reading again. Hotaru looked at her and heaved a sigh. She turned her attention on her new invention and minded her own business.

Ruka sweat-dropped as those two stopped fighting. He glanced at Natsume who was staring at an earnestly reading Mikan, his chin resting against his palm.

"She bought that book at Central Town," Ruka said out of the blue as if reading his bestfriend's mind.

Natsume looked at his bestfriend. "How on--"

Ruka smiled. "I'm your bestfriend, Natsume. I know you well enough to know what you're thinking."

Natsume looked away and stared elsewhere. "I'm not thinking about that idiot,"

"Whatever you say so," Ruka looked down and patted his furry bunny.

Hmmm… So, that little girl bought that book at Central Town, huh?

"Hey, Ruka."

"Yeah, Natsume?"

"Could you go with me to Central Town tomorrow?"

Ruka's eyes widened. "Uhm, what for?"

Natsume just remained calm. "I need to buy something,"

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Natsume: What the hell? What will I buy at Central Town?

Shironeko-pyon: Something… (laughs)

Natsume: Why you! Don't tell me I will buy that… (has a scared look on his face)

Shironeko-pyon: (evil grin) Yes, I'll make you buy that short pink tank top that will expose your cute bellybutton in my story!

Natsume: NOO! (rans away and pukes)

Shironeko-pyon: While Natsume throws up, please review. Suggestions are always welcome 'cos I'm making this up as I go. (smiles) Oh no! Natsume's coming! Gotta hide or else I'll be ash. (scampers away and hides)

Hotaru: Review or else… (gets her Baka gun)