☆A Gakuen Alice Fanfiction☆

Chapter 3: A Best Friend

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Yuki was forced out of her thoughts when she heard loud noises. What's going on? She thought, tilting her head in wonder. Then, she heard loud footsteps rushing down the hallway, and Mr. Tamura suddenly barged in through the door. He was holding various medical supplies in his arms which he dropped on the bed beside her. Yuki watched silently as he knelt before her, his expression concealed by a shadow. Expertly, he started disinfecting her wounds and she noticed his shoulders slightly shaking.

"Papa, are you okay?" Yuki wondered aloud. She waited for a few moments, but his answer never came. "Papa?" Then, she heard a loud SNIFF.

"Yuuuki-chaaan!!" Her father shouted crying. When he looked up, she saw rivers of tears streaming down his face and snot dripping from his nose. The sight was quite comical.

Mr. Tamura was an emotional man who dearly loved his only child and tended to overreact whenever it came to his precious daughter. Yuki could only stare dumbfounded as he continued to sob while gently tending to her.

Ten minutes later, she was covered from head to toe in pink band-aids with cute designs. Her ankle had been bandaged tightly, and her father had thankfully stopped crying. Mr. Tamura cleared his throat, cheeks blushing from embarrassment, and told her they should join her mother at the Imais' house. Yuki looked down at her injured foot and then up at her father with a grabbing gesture. Mr. Tamura smiled warmly and bent down to pick up his adorable daughter.

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Her father princess-carried her to the Imai house and pushed open the door left ajar for them. Although only twenty minutes had passed since her mother went to talk to their neighbours, it felt much longer. Too many things had happened since Yuki woke up. She was exhausted, both physically and mentally. She had always been mature, but right now, she felt too old and weary for someone her age. She desperately wished she could go back to sleep and forget everything weighing down on her shoulders. All she wanted was to be ordinary and live happily, far away from Gakuen Alice.

Mr. Tamura closed the entrance door behind them and took a few steps into the dim hallway. At the end of it was a warmly lit living room. The atmosphere was heavy, interrupted only by the crackling of the wood burning in the hearth. Facing the fireplace was Mrs. Imai, a beautiful dark-haired woman in her thirties. She was sitting on the grey sofa with her legs elegantly crossed, her left hand resting on her visibly stressed-out husband's thigh. Yuki's mother was in the armchair beside them, her eyes fixated on the wildly dancing orange flames. Everyone was deathly silent, seemingly lost in thought. They only came out of their trance when Yuki and her father stepped into the room. Immediately, Mr. And Mrs. Imai looked at them, their eyes widening slightly in surprise.

"Oh my, Yuki-chan, what happened to you?" gasped Mrs. Imai, her hands cupping her face in horror. Despite having known Yuki for only two years, she considered her a daughter and her heart ached as she took in the sight of the bandaged and tired-looking little girl.

Yuki smiled slightly in response, her eyes searching the room for her friend.

"If you're looking for Hotaru, she is probably upstairs waiting for you." Said Mr. Imai.

Yuki silently nodded. She could see how distressed everybody was, their faces paler than usual. Knowing the adults would want to discuss things between themselves, she lightly tapped her father's arm, signalling him to let her down. Once her feet touched the ground, she quickly limped away in search of her friend. As she disappeared into the familiar hallway, she heard hushed voices from the living room. Slowing down, she headed for the wooden staircase leading to the rest of the house and caught sight of her best friend sitting on a step.

The top half of Hotaru's body was hidden in the darkness, but Yuki could still feel her eyes on her. The black-haired girl suddenly stood up and walked down the stairs. She wore her favourite pyjamas: a pink top with a frog drawn on it, a pair of green shorts, and bunny slippers. Her pretty face seemed completely emotionless but as she got closer, Yuki noticed her slightly furrowed eyebrows. Hotaru's purple eyes widened imperceptibly when they took in Yuki's state—sickly pale skin, prominent dark circles, and band-aids covering her wounds from head to toe. She said nothing; she didn't need to. Hotaru always understood everything inhumanely fast. She is a smart cookie, Yuki thought, slightly amused, a small smile forming on her lips.

Once Hotaru reached the last step, she stopped and gently took Yuki's hand, tugging it softly. Slowly and carefully, she helped the white-haired girl up the stairs. When they reached the middle of the staircase, they stopped and sat down, still hand in hand.

"It's time," Whispered Yuki, her throat tight and her eyes cast down.

"I know, I heard your mom talking to my parents," said Hotaru, her grip tightening on Yuki's hand.

They stayed like that in silence, holding each other's hands tightly, for a long time. The two friends always took comfort in each other's presence. Time had passed by too quickly; it had already been two years since they met. Back then, Yuki hadn't planned on making new friends, having already lost too many every time they moved. But when she saw Hotaru for the first time, she got a feeling her newfound resolve wouldn't last. And she was right—they became friends almost immediately. They understood each other like no one else, both knowing the pain and loneliness that came from being forced to grow up too quickly.

Over the past two years, they had forged a deep bond that only grew stronger with time. They weren't just best friends; they were sisters. The idea of separation was a painful one. Yuki couldn't imagine her life without Hotaru; her absence would suffocate her.

"Yuki, you're ugly when you cry." Said Hotaru, suddenly. It took the sickly-looking girl a few seconds to register her friend's words before patting her face for tears.

"I'm not crying?" Yuki corrected, confused.

"You still look ugly." Hotaru insisted.

"U-ugly?" Yuki repeated, completely dumbfounded. "I'm not!" she cried out, offended, her cheeks flushing as her arms moved up and down in agitation. "I'm a bishoujo! You—you're the ugly one!" she retorted, sticking her tongue out childishly.

And just like that, the atmosphere lightened up. Hotaru felt slightly proud of herself for distracting her best friend from her dark thoughts, and the smallest of smiles formed on her face as she watched Yuki's dramatic reactions. Her heart already ached at the idea of leaving, but she knew they had no other choice if they wanted to avoid being taken by the academy. Like Mr. and Mrs. Tamura, Hotaru's parents were desperately trying to protect their child, especially after their firstborn had been taken away. She had never met her brother, but she still somehow missed him every day. His absence was a great source of pain for their family. And now that Gakuen Alice had found them again, she would lose another sibling.

I'll be the ugly one if I cry... Thought Hotaru somberly, her eyes prickling a little.

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Greetings, dear readers,

I hope you're all doing well. It's already the third chapter of this story, and I must admit that I'm quite proud of myself for pushing through this far. I've always wanted to write something on Wattpad, and here we are °˖✧◝(⁰▿⁰)◜✧˖°.

Anyway, what do you think of the story so far? Do you like Yuki's character? Are you looking forward to where this story goes? 

I think I captured Hotaru's personality pretty well here, would you agree?

Please don't hesitate to leave a comment or a vote so I know you enjoy this story (and that would also make me very happy). If you find a mistake somewhere or something is unclear, please don't hesitate to tell me!

Thank you so much for voting on my previous chapters; it brings me so much joy and I get all fired up to write more ᕙ(⇀‸↼‶)ᕗ

Sincerely,

The Author.

P.S.: I did my best to colour Mikan's hair white so she can "look like" Yuki. I love this drawing, it's so freaking cute !! Also, "bishoujo" means "pretty girl".