Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice, masterwork of Tachibana Higuchi.

Chapter the Second

Enter Natsume

When Mikan finally stumbled into the kitchen, it was five past twelve and the dishes were already washed and put away. Befuddled as to what to do now, she remained rooted to the entryway, reluctant to brave the maze of a mansion for the second time.

"Hey. Move."

Startled, Mikan looked around to meet a pair of smoldering red eyes.

The man scowled when he realized that she wouldn't be moving anytime soon and brushed past her, heading for the coffee machine on the marble countertop. Mikan stumbled and caught herself just before she careened into the dining table.

"Do you mind?" she said indignantly.

The stranger didn't even turn around. "No."

Irritated, Mikan crossed her arms over her chest and glowered. "You're very rude, you know that?" She waited for a reply and, when none came, huffed. "Look, mister, I'm new around here and I don't know anyone except for Anna and Hotaru and Narumi and I have no idea where any of them are, so I'd appreciate it if you - "

"Stop talking. You're giving me a headache."

"Well - !" Mikan swelled up like a bullfrog and tried her best to bore holes into the back of his head. Then she deflated and, with a sigh, ran a hand through her hair. "Right, let's try this again." She strode up to the stranger and held out her hand, looking him square in the eyes when he looked at her. "I'm Mikan Sakura, the new actress. I just came from Paris last night, so I'm sorry for my short temper."

The man just looked at her for a long moment before he nodded and shook her hand. She couldn't help but notice how his hand dwarfed hers. "Natsume Hyuuga," he said, "Stunt Coordinator."

Well, he certainly looked fit enough to be one. Mikan had to tear her eyes away from his muscled arms, on display for the world to see what with his wife beater and all, and gave him a brilliant smile. "Stunt Coordinator, huh," she mused out loud. "Any specialties?"

"Yes." At her expectant gaze, Natsume twitched but caved. "Martial arts," he said shortly. "Fighting."

She raised a brow at this. "Oh, really." Then she threw out a fist at his stomach, aiming to get in a nice punch or two.

And then she was blinking in bewilderment as she suddenly found herself pressed against the counter, the marble digging into her back uncomfortably as Natsume pushed her back, her wrist in his hand. He looked smug.

"That was the worst punch I've ever seen," he said casually, as though he wasn't backing her up a counter and generally invading her personal bubble. She wiggled experimentally and he shifted with her, blocking all areas of escape. "And I've seen quite a few."

Mikan scowled and opened her mouth to unleash a cutting taunt or two when she heard a gasp. "Mikan?"

Peering over Natsume's shoulder, she caught sight of cotton candy pink hair. "Oh, hi Anna, sorry for being late. Jet lag sucks."

"No, it's fine," was the faint reply. Mikan, worried about how strange her friend sounded, was struggling against her captor when she froze at Anna's next words. "I think I'll just… leave you two to it, sorry for interrupting…."

"What?" Mortified, she struggled harder and barely suppressed a growl at Natsume's insufferable smirk. She'd just realized how wholly inappropriate (and suggestive) their position was and he really wasn't helping. "No, Anna, it's not what it looks like -"

But Anna was gone, and Mikan slumped in defeat, glaring at the tall dark-haired man until he finally let go. Absurdly handsome or not, Natsume Hyuuga was an asshole. "You jerk!" she accused irritably. "Who goes around shoving people against counters for no reason?" Really, who did that?

Natsume looked entirely unrepentant. "You tried to hit me," he pointed out, peering at the coffee machine. He made a satisfied sound at the back of his throat and pulled out a mug, pouring steaming coffee into it.

She rolled her eyes and snatched the cup out of his hands, taking a sip. She smugly took in his surprise – however faint it was – and tried not to make a face at the bitter taste. Yuck; she hated coffee without milk and sugar.

"I wasn't going to seriously hurt you," she retorted, stubbornly taking another sip. The surprise had melted into amusement as he watched her drink and she held back a pout. "Besides, you said you were a martial arts master or something. I was curious."

"Is there any doubt now?"

Mikan glowered. "No."

"Marvelous." Natsume plucked the mug out of her hands and gulped down the bitter liquid like it was water. "That was fun. We should do that again… Polka Dots."

She watched him amble out of the kitchen, puzzled. "Polka Dots…?" Shrugging, she moved to fix herself lunch but stopped dead when she caught sight of her state of dress. She'd been so intent on sating her hunger that she'd forgotten to grab a pair of pants – she'd been wandering about with only her tank top and cardigan over her red and white polka dotted boy shorts.

Down the hall outside the kitchen, Natsume smirked at the horrified scream behind him. He lifted the cup to his lips and took a victorious sip.

Coffee had never tasted sweeter.

"Stop sulking."

"I'm not sulking."

"Mikan - "

"I'm not!" Mikan fell back on the bed with a thump and tried her best to smother herself with a pillow. "Hotaru, I'm an idiot."

Pause. "Was this supposed to be some great revelation? Because I've known this for as long as I've known you."

"Hotaru!"

With a sigh, the dark-haired woman pushed back from her desk and regarded her longtime friend in mild annoyance. "Mikan, I have to go over the budget because Narumi is a useless idiot who probably failed his second grade math class and can't add or subtract to save his life. If you're going to whine all day without telling me what happened, I'm going to throw you out."

It was possibly one of the longest things Hotaru had ever said in her life. After recovering from her shock, Mikan groaned and tossed the pillow across the room, narrowly avoiding the lamp. Hotaru glared.

"You're so cold, Hotaru." Mikan sniffled pathetically in the hopes of touching whatever soft spot remained in her friend's cold, shriveled little heart. Hotaru didn't look all too impressed. "Alright, fine, fine, have it your way."

Out came the story.

Hotaru went back to the budget list. "It's Natsume Hyuuga, what did you expect?"

"Manners!" Mikan cried. "Kindness! Respect! Something other than a rude and perverted bastard!"

Her friend scoffed. "Manners? Kindness? Are we talking about the same man here?"

"Fine," the brunette actress said, offended. "If you're going to be like that, I'm going to find Anna. She'll be nicer to me, and she'll sympathize properly!"

"Have fun," came the disinterested response.

Hovering by the doorway, Mikan tried one last time. "And we'll have so much fun together that we'll become the best of friends and I'll forget you forever and ever, Hotaru!" She paused. "As in: Hotaru? Who's Hotaru?"

Hotaru flapped a hand at her.

"Fine! See how you feel when you're all alone and sad and you'll miss me too much to work!" Mikan flounced out the door with a final harrumph, nearly breaking the door with the force she'd slammed it with.

Inside her room, Hotaru smirked. Mikan just makes it too easy, she thought, and turned back to her numbers. And damn Narumi for being an idiot. The man couldn't do math even if his life depended on it.

A/N: Well, hello there. It's been a really long time since I last updated, and I'm sorry but life is a mess and I'm just wondering when the hell it became winter. Natsume's role was decided after an agonizingly long amount of thinking, but yes, I've settled on him being a Stunt Coordinator. And Hotaru's pretty much the unofficial Accountant because, as she complains, Narumi's an idiot and can't do math. (Or so it seems.)

Hope everyone had a lovely Valentine's Day, and that this chapter was enjoyable! Thanks for reading, and reviews are always welcome….

Eurwen de Vrill