Yay, I wasn't too late with this chapter either!
:D
And a HUGE thank you to everyone who made this story one of their favs.
I am so happy you guys are enjoying my story :) :) :)
Also, I apologize but my updates might slow down a bit.
I started a new story and I haf to write chapters for that one, too.
If you guys have nothing to do
And are waiting for my next chapter,
Try reading my new story, Escape.
Thanks, everyone, and enjoy the 6th chapter :D

Summer Camp

Chapter 6

The same man who had announced it was lunch stepped up once again and shouted into the microphone.

"All right guys, listen up! It's recreation time! You should have all gotten the information sheet. Now, choose where you want to go. Several counselors are standing here, and they are each holding a sign for one of the recreation spots. Stand in a line in front of the sign that has where you want to go."

Mikan looked up, her eyes twinkling.

"Where do you want to go, Hotaru?" She asked excitedly and then added, "I want to go hiking! I need to burn off some calories!" Mikan patted her stomach. "I ate way too much!"

Hotaru rolled her eyes. "I don't care where we go."

"Alright! We're going hiking!" Mikan jumped up and pumped her fist in the air.

In the distance, Ruka heard Mikan and smiled.

"Hey Natsume, wanna go hiking?"

20 MINUTES LATER…

Natsume

"You have got to be kidding me!" I said in exasperation.

I had agreed to Ruka's suggestion and gone with the hiking counselor to the start of the trails. He had said that since today was the first day, he was going to put us in groups of four and that we shouldn't separate. And guess who had been put in a group?

Me, Ruka (I was fine with him, he was my best friend.), Hotaru (Okay, it wasn't too bad.), and then… the cow! (ARGH! I just couldn't get away from her!)

So now, the four of us were hiking up the expert trail. I, Hotaru, and Ruka were athletic enough to go on the hardest one without breaking a sweat, but I was worried about Mikan, so far she had been a total klutz.

And then she had said, "Don't worry about me! I grew up in the country so I'm used to these trails. I can climb up Mt. Everest without any trouble. This trail will be a piece of cake." She smiled and started up the trail on her own… and then tripped on a tree root, scraping her knee.

…

Uh huh, she would definitely be able to climb the tallest mountain in the world without killing herself.

She had then scrambled back up and just started back up the trail. We had just followed her without a word.

Now, she was way behind us, tripping on everything that was on the trail: roots, branches, us… Why in the world had I come here?

"Hey!" I shouted at her. "Would you speed it up a bit?"

She looked up and glared at me, her face smeared with dirt and covered with scrapes.

"I'm trying! Now, if one of you would just come here and help me, it would be a whole lot easier!" Just then, she fell down once again, twisting her ankle.

"Ah!" she gasped in pain. I sighed and went over to help her up but she couldn't even stand up, let alone walk the rest of the trail and get to her cabin.

"Hey, Hotaru, Ruka, can't you guys come help me?" I looked back. What the fuck? They had disappeared! I whirled around to make sure it wasn't some kind of joke. They weren't there. They had disappeared without a sound.

Great. Now I was alone with the biggest klutz of all time in the middle of a forest. I sat down next to her with a sigh. She couldn't even walk so there was no point in wasting my energy.

"What are you doing? Where's Hotaru and Ruka?" she asked in a bewildered voice.

"They're gone." I said curtly.

"What? They left us? Those jerks!"

I didn't say anything, not wanting to explain, and we sat in silence. It was quiet, peaceful, and I closed my eyes, slipping into my thoughts. We would have to wait a while.

Mikan

We were alone in the middle of a forest and I had a twisted ankle. This was the first time I was alone with Natsume, I realized. I wanted to talk because the silence was really awkward, but I was kinda scared.

I peeked over at him once and saw that he had this really sad face. He was usually scowling so it caught me off guard. It was like he had been wearing a mask and it had suddenly been taken off, revealing his inside feelings. Was he always sad and just pretending to be a rebellious boy to hide his emotions?

I frowned and thought about how mysterious he was.

Finally, not being able to stand the silence any longer, I gathered up my courage.

"Natsume?"

He didn't move but I kept talking.

"Why do look so sad?"

I looked at him and saw that he was smiling really sadly. That was the first time I saw him smile.

And to my surprise, he answered my question.

"Because of something that happened to me a long time ago." his voice sounded exhausted and full of pain.

I pondered that for a moment and asked another question, my fear being overpowered by my curiosity.

"If it happened a long time ago, why don't you just forget about it and move on?"

Another long silence. Then he spoke softly.

"You know Mikan," I stared at him. He had called my name, and not called me a cow. I smiled as my heart warmed at my name. It sounded good.

He continued to talk. "You know, some things, you just can't forget, no matter how hard you try."

"Then why do you act all bad? Just act like your normal self."

"If I revealed my feelings to the world, I think I would fall apart. I try to not think about it and pretend it never happened. If I told my past to everyone, they would feel bad for me and pity me. I don't want that. And I don't want everyone to waste their time feeling bad for me, either. I'm not worth it."

Oh, he's putting on a mask and hiding his inner self for other people, I realized. Natsume, he's… a really kind and good person.

Then, I opened my mouth to ask another question but my throat closed. I shook my head, 'There's nothing to be afraid of.' I thought, and forced it out.

"What… what happened to you to make you this sad?"

Natsume turned slowly and looked at me. I met his eyes and my heart stopped. His normally burning crimson eyes had turned into an icy blue. Some people would say that blue is a very pretty color. And it was. His eyes were pretty, but it was the brightest shade blue you could imagine. It hurt. I felt like he could see my heart. It looked like those eyes were boring through me. And… it was really really scary. What was happening?

He lowered his head and went he finally met my gaze again, his eyes were once again normal. Was I imagining things?

He shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to answer that question." My eyes widened. What could have happened to him to change a normal teen like me into a boy with such a big burden over his heart?

Suddenly, I felt drowsy. I fought it but the urge to fall asleep was too strong. Finally, I surrendered and let sleepiness wash over me like a wave. My last thought before I closed my eyes was, 'I finally got to know Natsume a little better.' And I smiled softly.

Natsume

I was thinking about my past. Without realizing it, my thoughts had drifted to the accident. As that day replayed in my head, I closed my eyes. If I could just erase all of this! But no, I thought in my head, sadly. I didn't want to forget this but I didn't want to remember it, either.

Then, the cow startled me with a question.

"Natsume, why do you look so sad?"

I smiled sadly. And to even my surprise, I found myself answering. I don't know why. But there was just something in her voice that made me reveal a secret that no one but Ruka and my family knew.

"Because of something that happened to me a long time ago."

She asked me another question and I answered it after a long pause. She asked me another and I answered it once again. Finally, she asked me the question to my biggest secret ever.

"What… what happened to you to make you this sad?"

I turned and looked at her. Then, as I looked into her eyes, I felt… him. Oh my god. No, NO! I looked away and pushed him back. There was no way I would let him take control. Not here, not ever. I had made a promise that day and I would keep it.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not ready to answer this question." I said softly.

I saw her eyes widen but she didn't say anything else. I looked into the trees, trying to once again hide my feelings away.

Then, I felt something on my shoulder. I looked over and saw that she had fallen asleep. I smiled at her innocent face. She still didn't know how sad and unfair this world could be. She was like a small child. And I realized that now, I wanted to protect her from the dangers and keep her smiling brightly. Even if it cost me my life.

"Mikan Sakura," I whispered, "You aren't so bad after all."

END OF CHAPTER 6

Things are finally starting to move along now :)