Third Wheel

T.W/12/New Term

"Sakura Mikan?" Sensei sighs. "Not here again eh?"

"I'm here." I say as I enter the class. For a moment, everyone looks up and I'm shocked by how many eyes are on me. I glare at them, "What?"

"Welcome back Ms. Sakura. Feeling better?" Sensei smiles and for a moment I feel like I actually missed arguing with him.

"Nope." I shrug and sit in my seat. It's taken by a bag. I look back and see that Cat-kun's bag isn't on his seat so I throw it off my seat and throw it on his head. He looks up and I flip him off. "Jerk." I mutter and sit in my seat. I expect insults to be thrown back but when I turn back he's looking through the window in deep thought.

What's his deal?

He doesn't bother me for the rest of the day but it really ticks me off for some reason. Didn't he say something like he was bored of not teasing me?

"Mikan." Hotaru smiles at me during lunch and takes the seat in front of me. "You came back. Took you long enough." She glares and I laugh nervously. "What did you do to your hair?!!"

"I wanted to change is all. My hair was getting too long." It's slightly over my ears but I like it. A new me. "I was tired of my old look and putting up my hair all the time." 

"You like long hair though...?" She whispers.

"Yep." I glance at my phone. "It's okay though. Don't you think?"

"It looks cute." She chomps at her sandwich and smiles.

"Thanks." I smile back, I tap at my phone again.

"What's up with your phone? Someone caught your interest?" She wiggles her brows. I don't answer her right away so she gets suspicious. "Really? No way, who's the guy?"

I shake my head and get up. "I'm getting something to eat." I lie.

"You're keeping something from me again." She mouths and I shake my head.

I check my phone again and find that there's another text there.

|Can we talk about us?|

I reply and sigh.

|Who are you?|

I have a really bad feeling about this.

"Boyfriend?"

My head snaps up and my eyes meet Cat-kun's. "Oh it's you." I mumble and place my phone back in my pocket but he follows me back to the cafeteria.

"Who were you texting?" He mutters with a bored expression. 

I cross my arms and sigh.

"None, of, your, business." I emphasize. He narrows his eyes and tries to take my phone out of my pocket. "Hey! What are you doing?!" I swat him and laugh as we struggle with my phone. He even starts pulling on my hair a little.

"You cut your hair." He suddenly stops. I pause.

"Is that a problem? I got tired of you pulling on my hair." I mumble, annoyed.

"It's... nice." I'm a little shocked by his compliment so I laugh. "But I can still pull on your hair."

I flick his head and he messes up my hair real bad. "Hey! Stop! You're messing up my beautiful hair you know?"

All of a sudden some steps stop behind me and I take a breath.

"Mikan?"

We stop and I freeze. 

I haven't heard that voice in a year but it's so fresh in my mine. A voice that my heart always recognizes.

It's Mahiru. Mahiru Toumo.

What is he... what is he doing here? 

"It is you... You look beautiful and you cut your hair. It looks so cute."

I can't move.

I clutch Cat-kun's shirt unconsciously. I can feel his eyes on me as he speaks, "What?"

"I just transferred here. Who would have thought that you went here too, Mika."

My heart drops at the sound of that nickname.

"Can't you see that she doesn't want to talk to you, brat?"

Mahiru ignores him and tries to touch my shoulder. Cat-kun hits his hand. "Don't touch her." He glares. 

"Mika." He calls again. My heart clenches tightly that I can't breathe. "Talk to me please." He begs and for a moment, my heart feels weak and fluttery again.

Oh no, I still feel... I still love him.

"She doesn't want to talk to you." I hear Cat-kun repeat but Mahiru doesn't pay any attention to him.

"Listen please. I love you Mika. I still do. What happened that day-"

"Mahiru." I finally blurt. "I don't want to talk to you." I say to Cat-kun's shirt. "Please... don't call me that either."

I can't face him, not yet. After all he's done to me, I can't look at him. Then I'll be reminded of what I use to have. Of my loving him so much that after he broke my heart, I didn't go to school for a whole month and then I transferred after seeing his face after all that time.

I can feel Cat-kun's arms go around my shoulders.

"He's gone." He whispers after a long minute, I sigh and rest my head against his chest. He will have to do for now. I stop shaking and breathe one heavy breath. He pats my back and lets me break from the hug.

"Thank you." my lips shake as I try to hold the tears from falling.

"Hn." He looks at me intensely with questioning eyes. I shake my head with a shaky laugh.

"Sorry. I'm not ready to tell. But really, thank you so much." A single tear falls from my eye. I wipe it fast so he doesn't notice. "I didn't expect him to come see me. I haven't seen him for..."

A year.

My heart flutters quickly as I recall our memories together. All the times he kissed me and hugged me tightly and made me smile. I fall to my knees and lean on my hands. My hair flings to my sides.

Cat-kun lifts me over his shoulder and runs down the hall.

"I'm okay." I mutter as I come to my senses. "Let me down."

"Stop lying already! You're not okay. I don't know what that brat did to you but... you're fine now."

I lean my head on him and let him carry me like that all the way to the infirmary. "Thank you." I say since I don't really know his real name or anything. I think I remember the girls saying something along the lines of Hoga or Hyuu or something. Can't remember.

"You can just call me Natsume." He says. "And I put my bag on your seat so no one could take it anymore."

He put the bag on my seat so no one would take it? What is he? A tsundere?

"Pft. Weirdo." But really, tears spring from my eyes. Today was just too much for me. Who would have thought that Mahiru was here. Did he transfer recently? When I was at home, did he happen to come here?

"You owe me some cream puffs." He says. I nod my head.

"Fine, just this once... on the house.

Thank you... Natsume."