Chapter 1: How It All Began

A/N: Hey everyone :D *smiles a really big smile* I haven't really written anything for a while, and at first I was thinking of just adding one-shots to my preexisting story The Diary of Sakura Mikan (which I hopefully will get to), but instead I decided, why not just write a new story altogether? Unfortunately, I've been a huge Debby Downer and haven't been into, well, anything recently, but after reading Hirunaka no Ryuusei (which is AMAZING btw), I suddenly got this idea and wanted to write it out before going back to being depressing old me again.

That being said, I hope you enjoy this story. :) Don't forget to review; you'll make my day!

Disclaimer: I don't own Gakuen Alice or any of its characters. Any parallels to other stories are merely coincidental.

Summary: "When one door closes, another one opens," is what they say. When Mikan faces the tragedy of her life, she discovers the newly opened sushi shop and opens the door to her future. She can't help but fall for the chef's handsome son, but when he steps into her school and is introduced as her new "sensei", her life becomes even more complicated than it had been before. AU Mikan/Natsume

Enjoy^^

I strolled down the street on my way home, taking the same route I did when I was in high school. I looked to my right, staring at the small, yet comfortable sushi shop I first stepped into three years ago. The smell of raw fish entranced me, and the happy aura and laughter from the customers made me remember why I had loved this place so much to begin with. Slowly, I pushed open the door, smiling the biggest smile. He turned and looked towards my direction, giving me his famous smirk and said, "Welcome home."

But the story doesn't start here. It isn't a finished story. It isn't perfect either. But to understand my life and everything I've gone through, we have to start from the beginning...

"Sakura Mikan! If you eat any more, you'll seriously turn into a pig!" my first grade teacher threatened. After showing us the movie, Spirited Away, which turned out to be more scary than entertaining, my teacher used this as a constant threat. Well, to me anyway.

"Buh I'm sho hungwy," I retorted, helping myself to extras. Food was something I had always loved, and always will.

"Piggy Mikan-chan!" the kids in my class chanted, hollering the nickname that had been giving to me upon the first lunch of elementary school. Right off the bat, I ate more than even the teachers did.

"Sensei, they're bullying me again!" I whined, tugging at the young redheaded teacher who clearly wasn't good with children.

"They're right, Mikan-chan. If you eat too much, you'll be filthy and nobody will like you," she sassed, going back to her purse and pulling out a mirror to fix her makeup. She disapproved heavily of me, always criticizing and telling me that a "proper lady" should eat little and in moderation.

If her definition of a "proper lady" was herself, then I'd rather stuff my face than take pride in starving myself skinny.

Throughout my childhood, I remember being constantly bullied for being the "chubby kid" or the "dumb one" who couldn't follow up with a lot of the lessons the senseis gave. While everyone else got awards like "Student of the Month" or "Great Improvement!", I was always in the back with the ribbon that said "Good Effort" or "Nice Try". But all that didn't matter, because even though I was criticized by both my teachers and my peers, I was always supported by the one I loved most.

"Daddy!" I screamed with excitement, running into his arms at age 10 with yet another "Best Effort" ribbon in my hand.

"Mikan-chan!" He yelled back, hugging my tightly. "Our daughter is amazing, isn't she Yuka?" We turned to look at my mother, who was busy filing papers for her company. While my father supported me at home, it was my mom who was the breadwinner.

"Hm, what was that?" she asked, not really caring for the answer. She then turned to look at me, sighing, "Oh another one of those ribbons while every other child holds a trophy for their achievements. Call me the proudest parent in the world." She rolled her eyes.

My mom had always been disappointed in me. She was a genius, working over 60 hours a week and graduating from the top school. My father, on the other hand, didn't care much for school. He had always said, "Happiness is worth more than intelligence." Mom said that was what people who dropped out of school say. But regardless of their disagreements and arguments from time to time, my mom and dad loved each other.

"Oh Yuka, stop being such a downer! Mikan gets this ribbon instead of a trophy because she's my special girl. I mean, our special girl. Lighten up!"

Mom simply ignored him and went back to doing whatever it was that she was doing.

My father had always been extremely supportive of whatever it was I wanted to do. I wanted to be a princess, a pop star, a doctor (which made my mom smile for the first time), and then a chef (she stopped smiling after I changed my mind). Dad always said, "That sounds great Mikan! Daddy will always be your biggest fan!" while Mom snorted, "You're delusional just like your father."

I was content with this. One supporter was enough, and I considered my childhood to be a happy one.

Everything was great, until...

May-First Year in High School

It was a rainy day. The first time it had rain in a month. What happened to the saying, "April showers, May flowers?"

Nevertheless, I was happy. Skipping down the hallway, I ran into my new best friend Hotaru, who had just finished her crab brains.

I was about to call out to her, when suddenly a "Sakura Mikan, Class 1-C, report to the principal's office immediately" interrupted me.

"Aish, what did you do this time, Baka?" was Hotaru's response.

I ignored her comment and ran to the office, afraid they were going to tell my parents about my latest math test.

I was expecting to get yelled at, or at the very least, a long lecture on my grades. Instead, when I opened the door, there was complete and utter silence and none of the teachers, nor the principal, would look me in the eye.

"Uhm, Sakura Mikan, from Class 1-C." I bowed, unsure of what else to say.

"Sakura-san, we regret to inform you that your parents...were just killed in a car accident," the principal finally said, biting his lip while all the other teachers stared at me, waiting for a response.

"Ha..ha..you're funny," I stammered, nervously giggling while tears slowly fell from my face and onto the table. This is a joke Mikan. You're parents aren't dead. They just left for a business meeting in the morning and are coming back before dinner. But it was no use. The more I tried comforting myself, the faster the tears streamed from my face. In just a short amount of time, I could see my reflection in the puddle of tears. Instead of the cheeky smile I usually wore, I saw myself lifeless.

I have nothing. My one and only support. My only family. Nothing. These words kept repeating in my mind as I broke down sobbing.

"I'm so sorry," the teachers said, trying to comfort me. It was no use. What was I to them? Nothing.

I ran out the door, and there was a police car waiting for me. I went in and was driven to the local hospital. The nurse, whose voice was quiet, said, "This way please."

And there I saw my parents. Dead. Unlike in the morning when they were so alive and bickering over whether or not it would rain. My mother, poised and sophisticated in her business suit, looked helpless for the first time. And to her left was my father, with a slight smile on his face. He looked as if he was saying, "Good luck Mikan! I believe in you!"

To this day, I have never cried as much as I did that on that one unfortunate, rainy day.

-XOXO-

One week later, I stared up at my ceiling while my phone rang continuously with phone calls and threats from Hotaru, telling me to go back to school.

I buried my face back into my pillow. The rumors have probably gone around already, and I wasn't ready to go back to a place where everyone was going to question me about the...tragedy.

My phone rang for about what seemed like the five hundredth time, but this time the voicemail was, "Baka! If you're not going to come to school, at least don't starve yourself! Listen, there's this new sushi restaurant just down the block from where you live. At least take care of yourself." Beeepp. The voicemail ended.

A new sushi place, huh? I guess I should get a proper meal.

I grabbed some cash, combed my hair, and tidied myself up a bit. Gosh, I was a mess from crying.

The sun was bright, even though it was barely six o'clock. After a brief yet refreshing walk, I stared at the shop that stood in front of me. This little place? Why would Hotaru recommend such a deserted shop? I questioned whether or not to go in, but in the end, decided to give it a shot.

Anyway, as they say, "When one door closes, another one opens", right?

Best decision of my life.

-XOXO-

Chapter 2 Preview:

It was wonderful. I had never seen so many happy costumers, cheering for more food. I shifted my gaze onto the very attractive man who held a new platter of sushi. "He looks like a prince. I bet he's really nice too," I thought, staring at the beautiful man.

Suddenly he caught my gaze, and I thought it was just like a fairytale, when all of a sudden...

"What the hell are you staring at, idiot? Did you fall in love with me already?" He smirked, amused.

My fairytale dream was crushed once and for all as I basked in the embarrassment of having everyone in the shop stare at me.

A/N: So...how was this chapter? Kinda depressing, huh? I promise it'll get better though! I'm personally really into romantic comedies, but I'm one of those people who tell a joke and have nobody but myself laugh at it. LOL but bear with me as I try to attempt funny scenes in the following chapters.

I know a lot of people skip author notes cause they're boring, but I personally love reading other's side comments as well as writing my own. But feel free to skip it, because I'll probably be rambling about something trivial anyway.

Also I realized this chapter was primarily about Mikan and had nothing really to do with the sensei/sushi chef/romance stuff I wrote in the summary, but it'll come soon! Lots of fluff.

In all seriousness though, I've been lacking motivation to write, and pretty much do anything. I don't know if it's just high school, or the teenage hormones talking, but lately it hasn't been great for me. So please leave a review, and you'll seriously put a smile on my face :D

reviews - happy author - faster updates *wink wink