I don't G.A.

"There is no real ending. It's just the place where you stop the story."
― Frank Herbert

~Epilogue: May the red string of fate bring us together again~

Mikan was not happy.

Once upon a time, she'd cooked dinner for Natsume but the man only replied that he wouldn't be able to make it after she'd already prepared the food. It was fine the first time, really; since she knew how hectic life was for a doctor like her boyfriend. But she hadn't seen him for a week. That was seven days! She couldn't even remember when was the last time she had seen him—okay, maybe, she knew. Oh, yeah, she knew exactly how the raven became all jumpy when she came over to his office to bring his lunch.

They'd been together for three years, for heaven's sake!

Her hazel eyes focused on that smudge on the white paper; her finger was incessantly snapping that button in her pen. She glanced outside the glass window and the midnight blue sky greeted her sight. The gradient of the blues of the night could've captivated her if not for the fact that her mind was elsewhere—to where horrible possibilities about her relationship were popping out in the back of her mind.

Oh, God. She had to stop this before she goes nuts.

The brunette decided that seven o'clock was already late enough and that working on a project when her heart wasn't into it wasn't a great idea. She ended up erasing many sketches and crumpling some more papers in one of the art rooms of the university. She wasn't getting anywhere with this.

That was when she stood up, determined to finally arranged the mess inside her head. And there was only one way to do that: talk to Natsume.

Before she could even exit the art room, the familiar buzz of her phone vibrated in her back pocket. She pulled out the device and let out a smile when the familiar caller flashed across the screen.

"Hello, Hotaru~" As much as she was irritated, her best friend could always make her feel cheery.

"Hi, Mikan. Where are you?" Well, that wasn't the routine. She'd usually call her some names that seemed offending to anyone but not to her. She already knew that behind the businesses woman's mask, there was actually that flippant and sarcastic character. And it was precious whenever Hotaru let out a smile or two. Totally precious.

"University, why?" she asked, not trying to disguise the confusion in her voice. If the amethyst-eyed woman wanted to hang out with her, she'd directly tell her the place where to meet. So it was strange, really.

"Mikan. Don't panic. But..." she trailed off and Mikan's chest started its own drumroll.

"W-What?"

"Natsume got in an accident and he's in the hospital right now."

"...Oh my God... What..."

That was when she snapped her phone close and she printed out of the building to her car, and she'd never done anything so fast in her life. Her heart was beating erratically in its ribcage and she felt the tears stinging the back of her eyelids, but she refused to break down like this. She didn't know what condition her lover was in but she didn't want him to see her like a mess when they see each other. However, her thoughts weren't enough to make the paralyzing fear to go away; if anything, it merely made her tremble more. She gripped the wheel tightly as she wove through the roads with highly-controlled cautiousness.

She'd never hear the end of it if she would get in an accident, too. And that thought rang in her head like a terrible, broken music player.

Was this how Natsume felt when he found out that I went missing that day?

Her tears rolled down her cheeks. No. She had to be strong. Hotaru didn't get to tell her all the details but she didn't have the time to call her back now. She knew which hospital would her boyfriend be confined in.

Oh. God. Please...He's not gonna be confined in any way.

She arrived ten minutes later and she got out from her car. She ran to the ER side of the hospital, as the dread dropping her stomach continued to pool as she saw the ambulances pulling over near the entrance doors. The automatic doors opened for her and the familiar staff greeted her, most of them had patients to take care of. But she couldn't see Natsume.

She saw Kaname, the mop of blonde hair was on his way inside the area, and she almost collided with him when she went up to him.

"N-Natsume...? Where is he?" she gasped out. She became aware of how her lungs seemed to burn in the inside—no doubt, because of the lack of oxygen. She'd practically sprinted the minute she stepped out of her car. She couldn't even remember if she locked it, but that didn't matter now. All she wanted—needed—to do was see Natsume.

The doctor blinked at her once then twice, and the anxiety that was stirring her whole being was about to consume her whole when he pointed upstairs, his finger pointing right above them. She stared at him in confusion as if to ask what?

"Upstairs."

She didn't waste any time to go to where she was given directions to, not forgetting to say thanks to him, and then she encountered Ruka right next to the railing of the staircase.

"Ruka!"

He turned around and his baby blue eyes sparkled at the sight of her. And it confused her to no end, because what she expected was a dead look from him.

Maybe Natsume's life wasn't in any grave danger.

No one really told her that he was in the first place, anyway, and an "accident" could be anything. She just assumed, and now the adrenaline was dying in her nerves and she could feel her knees starting to buckle.

"Mikan! Natsume is upstairs! Take the elevator!" He shouted from her from the stop of the stairs, and before she could even question him any further, he already walked away. She remained gazing at the top in shock. Did Ruka just dismissed her?

Now, her mind was a scrambled egg of confusion. What the heck was happening?

She followed what Ruka told her to do anyway, and she really shouldn't be surprised when she saw Hotaru right in front of the elevator when it opened. But she was. It was as if the woman was waiting for her—expecting her to come that way.

"Are you scheming something?" she asked as soon as she stepped out of the box. Her mind was beginning to clear from that cloud of worry and agitation, and it was now replaced with confounding bewilderment.

"Natsume is in the rooftop. Better take those stairs," Hotaru said, pointing at the narrow hallway that she hadn't been to. The brunette pursed her lips and regarded her indifferent friend who looked at her with no expression or whatsoever but the gleam in those purple eyes were saying something entirely different.

She'd rather not argue with her right now, especially that she felt like she would be missing something really important if she remained standing there. She walked up the stairs where she was directed to, and she noted how a metal door was slightly opened and the breeze was seeping inside. She held the flat knob with her hand and the chillness made her shudder a bit. She exhaled out a big huff before she slowly pulled it open.

Her breath hitched in her throat and her eyes started to water. Just few minutes ago, she was imagining how horrible—so utterly hopeless—she'd felt when she thought that she wouldn't be able to see Natsume again. And now that the man of her dreams, of her heart, was standing right in the middle of the rooftop, she felt the happiness shoot into her veins. And she ran into his arms.

She felt him wound those familiar arms around her and he nuzzled his face on her hair. She tightened her hold on him around his waist and let her heart go back to its original pace. They remained like that for a long time and it was when everything clicked in Mikan's head that she pulled away from him abruptly.

"That's not funny."

He raised one eyebrow and had the nerve to ask, "What is?"

"I was really worried, you know!"

He laughed and Mikan pouted. She couldn't believe that she was worried like hell coming to the hospital after hearing the news from her friend and now Natsume was actually fine and having the laugh out of this.

"Hotaru said that you were in an accident!"

He gave her a surprised look then it turned into a thoughtful one. "Maybe because I had one?"

She blinked and asked numbly, "What...?"

"I, uh, almost dropped something on the way here and fell down the stairs..."

Okay, that was probably the oddest thing she'd heard tonight, next to that phone call with Hotaru anyway. First, Natsume was always sure about a lot of things but there was some degree of uncertainty in his voice now. She knew almost everything about him to notice how he seemed to be more jumpy than last week she had seen him—and he'd been very, very jumpy that time, as if someone was going to drop his butt on the floor at any moment. And second, he almost fell down the stairs? What the actual...?! If one word could describe Natsume, it was that he was (most of the time) attentive. So what was really going on?

"Mikan..." he started and the brunette was pulled out of her thoughts. He was looking at her with those eyes that seemed to smolder with passion and...love. "Do you remember the first time we met?"

She swallowed; of course, she still remembered that. She remembered it clear as a day.

"Yes," she answered.

"I was that boy who almost committed a grave mistake, who gave up on his life and who almost disappointed his mom. Then, an angel came in. She was wearing white and there was a determined look on her face when she pulled the boy out of there—out of his cloud of self-hatred. She spoke of promises that she unknowingly fulfilled when they were in high school."

She smiled, knowing where this story would lead to. "Then, she let him fall in love with her. And she fell in love with him."

Natsume matched her smile by giving one of his own as he added, "And they were on the rooftop. It was always where they thought that they were free."

The raven stepped back from the brunette and she had to snap her lips shut because she wouldn't be able to keep her tears at bay if she were to say something now. She had an idea where this story would lead to, and the ecstatic feeling inside her chest was blooming and spreading inside her.

A sparkle of light in the distance caught her attention, and she full-out started staring as more of it erupted in the dark sky. Fireworks of the beautiful kinds were displayed right in front of her, and she openly admired them for several minutes, lips were parted, before the lights began to shift from those eye-catching designs to now coherent words.

"Mikan Sakura Yukihara." Natsume knelt down on one knee and an opened box was presented on his palm, a silver band almost shining against the moonlight. Mikan finally let her tears escape from her eyes as she alternatively looked at the fireworks on sky and to the most important man of her life.

WILL YOU MARRY ME?

"Will you marry me?"

She started crying. Then she jumped on him—limbs entangled together and her body slamming against his, toppling them on the ground. Netsuke's back collided with the hard surface and he let out a yelp, more surprised than pained. As she continued to bear-hugged him, she felt him shuffle from underneath her.

"Let me at least give you your ring before you squish me to death," he said teasingly.

The brunette pulled back and smiled playfully. "I haven't even given you my 'yes' yet, Dr. Hyuuga."

She predicted that he would roll those crimson eyes at her but he thought better of it because he only looked at her funnily, like he was saying I can't believe you right now. And she threw her head back to really laugh at him.

Mikan wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him forward to her until they were only centimeters apart from each other. The specks around his irises never failed to fascinate her, and she could see how he was also taking in the sight of her. She leaned in and brushed their lips together, before pulling back and then finally pressing her lips hard on his.

Puffs of vapor escaped from their mouths as they tried to calm their uneven breathing a minute after, and Mikan started grinning from ear-to-ear.

"I love you."

Surprise was evident in those crimson eyes. She'd never directly told him those words, trusting her actions more to convey her feelings to him. Even with those three years they spent together, the fear inside them never really went away. It was always there and Mikan accepted that it would always be there, because it would be evidence how much they meant to each other.

That they would always care for each other.

That they would always—

"I love you, too. Forever and always," Natsume said, lips tugging upwards. He then held her hand and took out the silver ring from the box. Mikan caught the words engraved in the ring as it slid into her finger.

May the red string of fate bring us together again.

And she was sure that the red thread that brought them together in this lifetime would work its way again to their next one.

A/N: Finally done. Another story done by me. OMG Help. The feels. I hope that you all like this story because I honestly cannot make any more changes (due to the fact that, well, I forgot the original story plot...) and I think I'm satisfied with this. A big THANK YOU for those who supported me from Chapter one until to the last. I'll always appreciate it :) You guys help me build my confidence and motivated me to write more stories and share them to the world hahaha

Thank you, once again! And I hope to see you in my next story *muah*

-CrimsonHazelEyes