Disclaimer: If I owned, the relationships would have had a much more definite ending (or maybe a better term would be beginning) aka: Ikuto and Amu getting together

Exception

Lying on the tree branch I watched the clouds go by passively. I'm not really supposed to be up here (something about a safety hazard), but I don't really care. The worse the teachers can do is yell at me, and that's only if they catch me—which they won't—they never think to look up. I smirk at that thought: teachers, thinking, HA! That'd be the day…but then again, maybe I'm being a bit harsh on them. After all, when I decide to disappear, no one can find me, be they teachers, friends, or even my little sister…

"Ikuto, what the heck are you doing up there?"

…Amu's the exception.

I can't stop my smirk from growing as I glance down at the pink-haired girl below me before returning my eyes skyward. "Nothing much." I shrug, knowing my unsatisfactory answer will annoy her.

Out of the corner of my eye I watch as her hand moves to her hip and her eyebrows come together, "Couldn't you just give me an actual answer for once in your life?" Before I could say anything on that, she answered herself, "What am I thinking? Of course you wouldn't. You're the master of evasion." I succeeded in my mission, however, she was not nearly annoyed enough for my liking. Time to add some oil to the fire.

I turned casually on the branch—as if I weren't ten feet in the air—until I was facing her (I've done this so many times, it's become second nature). Propping my head up on a fist I prodded, "Oh, so I'm a master, am I? I didn't know you thought so highly of me."

To my amusement, her face turned bright pink and she started to stutter. "Y-you—" I interrupted smugly, just to irk her.

"Me."

Her fists clenched as she broke out her glare. I don't understand how she can scare anyone with it, though; it just makes her look more adorable to me. "Quit twisting my words, dang it!" That glare was definitely not doing what she intended it to. Like always, instead of intimidating me, it just made me want to egg her on even more. My luck was in as she practically handed me my next bit of ammo, "And get down from there already. I'm getting a kink in my neck."

"Why don't you come up instead?"

She shot back almost instantly, "Because I'd fall!"

If only…

"What was that?" Dang, did I say that out loud? I hope not.

Smirking, I said the next thing that came to my mind, "Like I'd let you get hurt."

She scoffed, "Yeah right, I'd probably just make you fall too." Too late for that one. You made me fall a long time ago; you just don't know it yet.

"You're forgetting my cat-like reflexes." I explain seriously.

As I expected, she rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Yeah, yeah, whatever, just get down already before you break something."

I placed a hand over my heart melodramatically, "Ah, so you do care!"

As I'd hoped, her face turned even pinker than her hair. "Of course I care, you idiot!" My heart skipped a beat (not that I let it show), but my hopes were soon shot down as she continued on, unaware of my feelings, "We're friends, aren't we?" Friends…of course… What was I expecting? Her to suddenly notice the obvious? "Now, would you please come down, Ikuto?" she asked, her face still pink. Dang it! She's bribing me with that cute face of hers and she doesn't even know it. "Classes are going to start soon." She adds, as if I didn't already know. I was planning to skip, but now…

I wait just long enough to show that I'm not coming down simply because it's what she wanted (though it really is, I have my pride) before I land gracefully beside her. I catch her watching me wistfully, and though I'd like to think it's because she secretly wants me, I know it's just that she wishes she could do things like that without falling flat on her face (she falls enough as it is without the added dangers of a ten foot drop). I'm glad she's not as graceful as I am, though, because it makes my life more interesting. The whole 'tripping and falling into my arms for one reason or another' thing doesn't hurt either.

"Like what you see, Amu?" I purr, knowing it's just the thing to snap her out of her daze. Her face turned brighter than a tomato as her eyes narrow into another glare (seriously, does she not know how cute it makes her look?). However, just as she opened her mouth to say something, the warning bell rang. To my surprise, instead of continuing on to say something witty as I expected her to, she just grabbed my hand and started running inside. For a moment there I think I lost control of my blush, but at least I got nowhere near as red as her… and at least she wasn't looking.

I wouldn't want her to find out about my feelings prematurely; I don't think she's quite ready to hear them yet. After all, though she alone can always find me, she hasn't even noticed that how we interact with each other is different from how we interact with everyone else. I'm not sure if her feelings for me have progressed as far as mine yet (she is younger than me after all), but I'm certain she'll fall for me eventually (the fact that she always blushes around me is a great confidence booster), I just don't know when.

Giddy on the inside and Cheshire cat on the outside, I entwine my fingers with hers as we run. It isn't until we reach the point where we have to go our separate ways that she notices, though, and by then I'm not sure if her face is flushed because she's been running or if it's because she's embarrassed. However, the way she stutters a goodbye and rushes away assures me that it was because of the latter.

If it were any other girl, I'd be glad to see her leave—I'm a rather antisocial person, after all, and I hate it when people hang around me, let alone on me. However, as I watch her hurry down the hall, I can't help but wish that she'd kept her hand in mine. Maybe I'm selfish, but I want to keep her all to myself. I know it's impossible, she draws people to her like honey, but that doesn't make my selfishness go away. If anything, it makes me want to be with her even more, which is funny, considering once again that I'm usually so antisocial. I start to slowly make my way to class, not caring if I'm late, a thought in mind that I couldn't help but smile at.

Amu has always been and will always be the exception…

No—MY exception.

I hope you like the story. It was actually rather hard for me to write since it's in the first person (I normally write in third person) and it's from the opposite gender's point of view (which is always harder than your own). However, I just finished reading the manga, and I felt this tugging at me, so I had to get it on paper.

My original idea was for Ikuto to merely be contemplating his feelings for Amu, but it wasn't long before I digressed from mere thoughts to having her actually come into the story itself. It's set in a school setting, but I purposefully don't directly address their ages so that it wouldn't interfere with the flow of the story (they had to be in the same school setting for it to work). Anyhow, this is an AU (alternate universe, for those who don't know), so there's no Chara's or magic. For all we know, they may be in one of those schools that go from elementary school to high school. I'll leave that up to your imagination.

Thank you for reading. Reviews and constructive criticisms are welcome to a tea party in the Royal Garden, flamers, however, would just burn it all down, so they're banned from coming.