I couldn't help myself. This idea came to me. I have no clue how it's going to end up, but for the meantime, I have the first chapter written down. I'll just go along and write when my mind decides to give me some more ideas. Hope you enjoy it!

Summary: After confessing, Amu finds that Ikuto's gone missing. Time passes and hope fades. At her breaking point, he returns. Dark, tall, and handsome. And he's back for her heart.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

.Chapter o1.

Everything's not what it used to be

Pink hair flowed in the soft afternoon breeze. Gentle hands brushed away the imaginary dirt on the uniform and grabbed the school bag, swinging it over her shoulder in a carefree manner.

"Amu! You're going home already?" Some classmates called out to her. One eye quirked over to them to look at all their happy faces. It was quite a contrast to her own. Amu gave them one nod and walked out of the classroom.

She was in high school now. A freshman, to be precise. Yet the same old sayings followed her, 'oh look! There's the cool and spicy girl!' Amu had gotten used to most of the comments, but on the inside, she yearned to be just like her classmates, talking about someone other than her.

On that note, the constant rumors about her were the only thing that had stayed the same since middle school. She and the guardians had split up. Kuukai had grown up to be an international soccer player so he had dropped out of high school to pursue his dream. Nadeshiko was still in the U.S practicing dance. Yaya had transferred to a different school, and Tadese had been home-schooled. Kairi and Rima were still a year younger than Amu so they were not yet in high school. Which left Amu to herself. She was supposed to be used to this, but her tough exterior was weakening day by day. This was no way to live. She didn't want to act, but there really wasn't a choice anymore.

Utau had hit albums across the world so she was living grandly. And Ikuto…he had disappeared. At the thought of him, Amu unconsciously bit her lip. There was no trace of where he had gone. He had left without a goodbye. She gave a wry smile. Why would he tell her anything anyways? She was just a kid. A kid that had confessed her feelings for him the night before he left. Was that why Ikuto vanished? Because she had told him that she liked him? Quickly shaking the thought away, Amu continued her walk home. She shouldn't think about him anymore. Her little childhood crush had faded, she assured herself. No longer was Ikuto involved in her life.

Cladded feet trekked through the town and crossed winding roads. It was quite some time before Amu saw the silhouette of her house. School character off. Big sister character on. She walked to the door, shuffled her hand around her pocket for the keys and once touching the metal, slid it into the keyhole. With a twist and a push, the door swung open to reveal an empty house.

"I'm home!" Amu called out, and her voice rang through the still house. Puzzled, she made her way over to the living room to see if Ami was playing around with a microphone. The girl was not in sight. Amu looked to the kitchen to see if her mother was preparing dinner. The knives and pots laid untouched. She even went to the bathroom to see if her father was 'running away' again. Even the weird old man wasn't eating something inside. With no other choice, Amu headed upstairs to her room.

Her eyes immediately trailed to the little bag that stored the eggs. Ran, Miki, and Suu. Clenching her fist, she dropped her school bag on a chair. Like always, she unzipped the bag to reveal three glowing eggs that hadn't opened in over a year. About the same time when Ikuto left. And when he left, it seemed that everyone else followed suit. Namely, the guardians. Amu'll admit. She was pretty upset when she was left all alone again, but she had never imagined that her charas would disappear too. Well, actually, they were still wrapped up in the eggs, but Amu feared that she may never see them again. She still remembered Ran's last words to her.

"Believe in yourself. Pick yourself up and stop being so depressed. When that happens, we will return to you."

But Amu could not go back to the once happy girl she had been in middle school. There was nothing to be happy about. Everyone had left. He had left. And when that wasn't bad enough, her charas had left her too. There was absolutely no one to support her. No one.

Frustrated, Amu leaped up on her bed and grabbed the nearest pillow to scream into. Her legs flailed behind her as she kicked the bed as hard as she could. She knew she should not be so miserable. It was just causing her more pain. She had fallen into a deep dark pit, and there was no one to help her up or shine a light down for her. Amu was trapped in a fog. Nothing appeared interesting to her anymore. There was no one to confide in. She was an outsider looking in on her surroundings. And now, her own family wasn't home to liven things up.

Growling, Amu picked up the pillow and threw it as hard as she could against the door. Tired and stressed out, somehow, she managed to fall into a fitful sleep.

"Good morning Amu!" A chorus of voices flowed through the classroom as the said girl made her way to the seat. Nodding politely at them, she plopped down on the wooden chair. There were bags under her eyes, and her hair had lost some of its usual luster. Yawning uncontrollably, Amu blamed her bad sleep from the night before. She propped up her arm on the desk and settled her head on her hand. Just let the day be over soon. So she could start the next dreary day.

"Class, we have an assembly today." Amu mentally groaned. She had to move again. Willing her legs to stand was torture. She definitely needed to take a snooze right then. Grudgingly, she got with her other classmates and went to the auditorium. Immediately taking a seat on the first chair she found, Amu slouched down so she could get so well needed rest. Her eyes fluttered to a close, and she could hear the ramblings of the other students come to a stop. The assembly was starting.

No words were spoken, and Amu found that sleeping will be easy in the quiet. But then, a melancholy sound flowed through the auditorium. A familiar tune played on a violin. Amu snapped her eyes open and looked at the stage. Her breath caught in her throat. There, standing in the spotlight, playing gracefully, was Ikuto. Dark hair covered his face, and his body had developed into that of a man's. His hands flowed smoothly over the strings in that same posture that she had remembered from a year ago.

Amu nearly choked on her own saliva. He was back. Ikuto was back. The same lines chanted in her head several times before she could conclude that yes, the prick that had left was indeed standing on the stage, playing, as if he had never left in the first place. Her shock and annoyance quickly faded when she was absorbed into the music. For the moment, she'll just let herself soak in the tune. Amu closed her eyes once again and leaned back into the chair. She hadn't heard this violin for a whole year. But then, her thoughts were disrupted by some other chatty girls sitting nearby.

"Wow. He's so good looking!"

"I wonder if he's single."

"He's not that much older than us either! I say, let's go for it."

Amu twitched involuntarily. She knew that Ikuto was not bad looking in the least, but the way the girls were talking disturbed her. The nagging question came to mind. Did he have a girlfriend? Amu immediately waved the thought away. She didn't care, anyways. After all, he was just someone that she used to have a crush on. A meaningless childish crush. But for some reason, Amu could not enjoy the music any longer.

Without seeking permission, she quickly stood up and turned around to leave the auditorium. She heard her teachers and classmates beckoning her back, but Amu did not listen. All she knew was that she could not be in the same room with him anymore, and she needed to leave.

Right as she was about to go through the door, the music slowly faded to a stop. That was weird, Amu inwardly thought. She had remembered the song to be much longer than that. There was a screech of a microphone as a familiar male began to speak.

"I would like to dedicate that song to Amu." His deep voice caused Amu to shiver slightly.

The girl stopped in her tracks. This had got to be some kind of dream. Gasps in awe filled the room. She knew that she had to turn around to face everybody. And for once in her life, Amu did not know what kind of exterior character to put on.

Rather short first chapter, but it'll do.

A/N: I probably won't write much about the X eggs and Easter. The characters are slightly older so let's just say, most of the X eggs have faded.

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