Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice. Emotional manipulation or "testing" your partner's feelings is not okay. Mikan is a little bit immature, yes. Inspired by Charlie Puth's "Attention."


Mikan Sakura loved the attention.

Not in the sense where she was desperate to have the spotlight trained on her at all times, but it was just so nice to feel appreciated every once in a while.

And ever since she became single and available again, she definitely was feeling appreciated by the love letters stuffed daily into her locker, the thoughtful gifts thrusted toward her by blushing boys and girls, the chocolates made exclusively for her.

But that wasn't the only attention she craved.

Seeing him approach from the corner of her eye, she pretended to be obliviously shuffling her books around in her locker, knowing he was coming for her.

He always did. With his usual arrogance and know-it-all attitude, he leaned in close so she could smell his familiar cologne.

"Party at Shouda's tonight. You going?"

Natsume fuckin' Hyuuga: one of Alice Academy's many heartthrobs, elusive and aloof bad boy, soccer team co-captain, Mikan Sakura's ex-boyfriend. She had broken up with him a week and a half ago to the surprise of half the student body and to the shock of the formerly unshakable Natsume. There were no tears, no yelling; just a calm and smooth delivery and a couple of long phone calls later.

They were still good friends.

So they said.

Mikan shut her locker and looked at him with those big, wide innocent eyes he always used to fall for. "Of course I am."

He smirked, reaching out to lightly touch her arm. "Come over and I'll drive you there."

"Really, Natsume? That's so nice of you to offer," she beamed with her toothy smile. She saw his eyes dip low to focus on her mouth (and her lips, perfectly plump and glossed with his favorite vanilla balm) as she tilted her head flirtatiously.

Before he could respond with some poorly concealed innuendo and before he could intoxicate her with his full-on charm, she straightened up, thanked him for the ride, and walked away, keenly aware of his eyes following her down the hall.

She knew she had baited him just enough to keep him hooked, enough to keep his eyes locked on her figure for the rest of the day, enough to keep him coming back to her.


Hotaru Imai was not a particularly social person. If her best friends weren't all so ridiculously outgoing and popular, she would have lived happily in solitude, venturing out every so often for lowkey events like pizza sleepovers and movie nights. But that was years ago.

"Hey, give me a ride to Shouda's." Now it was all about the parties and the music and the dancing and the dumb shenanigans. Hotaru absolutely refused to go anywhere without knowing if at least three of her friends would be there for her to latch onto. Her best friend, Mikan, would never abandon her.

"Can't." Mikan carefully applied a line of eyeliner to her left eye, intently focused at her reflection, but she could still feel the frown directed at her and the disapproval emanating from her best friend, who was lying on the bed with her applied physics workbook in front of her.

Satisfied with her matching eye make-up, she turned around to face Hotaru. "I'm already going with someone."

Hotaru was incredulous. "Who? I'll just catch a ride with them, too."

"Natsume."

"Natsume as in your ex-boyfriend Natsume?"

She rolled her eyes and went back to applying the rest of her party face. "He's more than just my ex, Hotaru. We're practically family."

"No, you and I are like family since we're best friends. You two are exes. Don't you find that a little bit weird?" Hotaru knew there were still friendly vibes between the two of them, but she had never really warmed up to Hyuuga that much. He was...okay. When he and Mikan were still together, sometimes Hotaru thought he wasn't treating her best friend as well as she deserved. It took the patience of a saint to put up with Hyuuga's grouchy attitude and complete inability to talk about his feelings.

Mikan shrugged. "It wasn't a bad break-up, and we both agreed to be friends."

"We've all seen how he looks at you," Hotaru deadpanned. "He wants to be more than friends."

"Does he now?" she said lightly, focused more on the outline of her lips and the way they looked when pushed together. She popped them a couple of times, effectively ending Hotaru's investigation.

Hotaru gave her best friend a suspicious look; Mikan was playing some game, and Hotaru wasn't sure she would win.


Hotaru caught a ride with Nonoko and Anna, the other two "Geeky Sisters." As she climbed into Nonoko's sedan, she gave Mikan a stern warning look as Mikan stood in front of her door, all dressed up, waiting for Natsume.

He came four minutes later, seven minutes earlier than he said he would arrive, just because that was who he was. She smiled brightly, skipping down her driveway with a hop. As he opened the door for her, she greeted him with a half-hug and an innocuous kiss on the cheek.

They bantered amicably during the car ride there, slipping into an easy comfort that reminded them of their first days together as a couple.

Natsume was uncharacteristically courteous that night: opening the door for her again, taking her jacket for her, getting her a drink, staying by her side, greeting her friends (only Hotaru gave him the untrusting side-eye), and dancing when she wanted to.

Sweaty and gleeful and completely ready to take a break, she allowed him to pull her down to the couch in a quiet corner, and she tumbled onto his lap with a silly giggle. Sumire Shouda sure knew how to set the mood, her couches arranged into dark corners and the music perfectly set up to encourage frantic dancing in the middle of her house while also allowing for couples to sneak off and talk.

Of course, Natsume definitely wanted to do something besides talk.

He playfully nipped at her neck, and she merely closed her eyes and giggled more. It was only when she felt him mark the familiar hickey on his usual spot did she feel inclined to push him away.

"Okay, lover boy, that's enough," she said, without really meaning it, before she pulled him back to kiss him.

Minutes later, Mikan was comfortable nestled in Natsume's hold as she had her arms wrapped around his neck. She gazed at him contently, satisfied with just looking at him despite the darkness, despite the sweat, despite the other couples still making out around them.

Natsume looked back, allowing her to take in all of his face. He brushed her growing bangs away from her eyes.

"Why couldn't you be this affectionate when we were together?" she pouted, tugging at his cheeks playfully.

"I'm a changed man, Mikan," he answered sincerely, "I've seen the error of my ways."

She rolled her eyes a bit. "'The error of my ways,' yeah, right, Natsume. No need to butter me up with all your talk."

"I'll do more than just talk then," Natsume said before leaning in for more kisses.


He walked her to the front door, her arm linked in his.

"Do I get a good night kiss?" he asked innocently, blinking slowly, as though they hadn't spent the majority of Sumire's party macking on each other. Mikan swore he was actually batting his eyelashes at her, and she smiled at the adorable sight.

She leaned forward to place a kiss right on the edge of his mouth, just close enough to tempt him.

Of course, he fell for it, quickly turning his head so her lips landed on his and engaging her in a passionate kiss, which she responded to without inhibitions, arms wrapping around his familiar shape like slipping into a comfortable pair of sweats.

She broke away first, of course. She couldn't let him get what he wanted all the time.

"Good night, Natsume," she said firmly as she went inside her house and shut the door.

For several moments more, Natsume stood on the porch, replaying the night in his head.

It was a good day's work. He thought he had pulled off the grovelling ex personality very successfully. Damn, it wounded his pride and deflated his ego, but if he had to do it to get Mikan back, he sure as hell would.

She was trying to make a point to him, he knew that much for sure. When Mikan had told him those impossible four words, "Let's take a break," he didn't believe them for a second. When he called later and asked her why, she merely said she didn't want to be in a relationship anymore without any specifics.

Natsume knew her, knew what she wanted in life, knew what she dreamed about, knew what she was afraid of, knew what she cried over. If she were serious, she would have been utterly devastated and launched into a sobbing speech about why they couldn't be together.

He knew it was difficult to be with him. It had taken him years to be less stubborn and lower his ego enough to admit he even remotely liked her, much less had a crush on her. That's why he needed Mikan in his life; she understood who he was, how he acted, and why he did the things he did. She never pushed him beyond what he was really comfortable with, and she always listened.

Natsume more or less listened. If he had to take a guess and truly thought about the game she wanted to play with him, he was sure he could correctly identify the cause being she wanted him to give her more attention. He was more than happy to oblige her in that aspect. With the way he was acting, he would woo her all over again and get her back in only a couple more days.

Mikan stood at her bedroom window and watched Natsume walk back to his car. When he opened the driver's door, he looked up one last time and she blew him a kiss with a cheeky grin.

She saw him smirk before he got into his car and drove away.

Of course she still loved Natsume, and she knew he wouldn't give her up that easily. For months while they were dating, she had nagged Natsume to show her more affection, to be more of a gentleman, to pay more attention. It was wrong to play with his feelings, she knew that, but she knew she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life so she had to make a statement. She wanted to feel appreciated, and Natsume learned better by example than instruction. She had talked to him again and again, but she had to just show him what she wanted.

She didn't want him to be like that all of the time, of course. He wasn't like that, and she accepted that fact. But every once in a while didn't do any harm. She knew he could get very loving when he wanted. By the end of the week, she decided, she would stop the charade and ask him to get back together.

Who cared what other people thought or said? This was between her and him, and this was their relationship. Besides, Mikan just loved the attention.


a willingness to suspend one's critical faculties and believe something surreal; sacrifice of realism and logic for the sake of enjoyment.