Natsuki awoke the next morning wrapped in Shizuru's arms. It was so comfortable and warm she almost went back to sleep, but Shizuru's parents did arrange to have her taken to school so she had to wake up. Placing a light kiss on Shizuru's lips, she watched the other girl's eyes flutter open and said, "I'm getting up now to get ready for school. You don't have to get up." Making an unintelligible sound of frustration, Shizuru grabbed Natsuki and pulled her back down onto the bed and held her tightly in place. "No, you're staying right here," she said, her voice hoarse from sleeping. "Of course I'd rather stay here, but you know I have to go." Shizuru was about to protest again, but a sharp knock on the bedroom door startled them, causing Shizuru to release her raven-haired captive. "Pardon me Miss, but I must remind you that your guest shall be leaving shortly and needs to be downstairs for the car in fifteen minutes," a voice said from outside the door. "Alright, thank you," Shizuru called out. Turning to Natsuki, she said playfully, "Well, I guess you won this time, but next time you won't get away so easily!" "Please, it's not like I want to get away. By the way, what are you going to do today?" Natsuki asked as she began dressing for school. "Well, my parents are out of town now so I don't really have anything I'm obligated to do. Maybe I could come over to your place tonight?" "Sure," Natsuki quickly agreed, her mind already racing at the prospect of having Shizuru all to herself again. Once she was ready, she went over to the bed where Shizuru was sitting and tried to quickly kiss the girl goodbye. Shizuru had other plans however, and held Natsuki's head in place as she deepened the kiss. She smiled at the glazed-over look in Natsuki's eyes as she pulled back. "Goodbye, love," she said, "call me after school, ok?" "Yeah," Natsuki mumbled, still entranced by the kiss. "See you later," she added as she made her way to the door. With one last look back at Shizuru she left the room to go downstairs. The driver was waiting for her in the foyer. "Ready to go?" he asked her as she approached. She nodded and followed him out to the car where he let her into the backseat. The ride to school passed without incident. Natsuki was so lost in thought she barely noticed when they pulled up to Fuuka Academy, coming out of her daydream only when the car came to a stop. The driver walked around to her door and opened it so she could exit the car. As she was about to walk away, he stopped her and said, "I was instructed to give this to you by Mr. Fujino." Natsuki looked down and saw that he was handing her an envelope. When she took it from him he tipped his hat and got back in the car, driving off. What could this be? Deciding to open it once she got to her desk, she started heading towards the school. Once in class, she saw that she still had a few minutes before the lesson started so she got out the envelope and opened it. She unfolded the paper and read: Ms. Natsuki Kuga, Mrs. Fujino and I enjoyed our dinner with you last evening, but I'm afraid that is not the subject of this letter. It has come to our attention that you have become involved in an elicit relationship with our daughter that exceeds the boundaries of an appropriate friendship. This knowledge has left me greatly vexed, and I feel I must put an end to this matter before serious damage is done. I forbid you from seeing or contacting my daughter again in the name of her and our family's best interests. If you care about my daughter's future, you will respect my wishes. Surely you must realize the negative impact this relationship could have on the Fujino name if it were to become public. I will not have such a disaster occur as a result of young foolishness. I trust you will make the correct choice so that I will not have to make it for you. Please destroy this letter once you have finished reading it so that it does not fall into the wrong hands. -Mr. Fujino Natsuki stared at the letter in shock after she finished reading it. Her heart was pounding in her ears and her stomach felt like it had twisted into a knot. She couldn't form a coherent thought and she felt like she was going to be sick. "Hey, Kuga-san, are you alright?" a fellow classmate asked. She turned to him in a daze, not even registering what he had said. "You look really pale, maybe you should go see the nurse," someone else said. Standing up from her desk, she wordlessly walked toward the door and down the hall to the bathroom. Going to a sink, she splashed water on her face, and that managed to bring her back to her senses. Immediately, countless questions flashed through her mind. How did he find out? Was someone listening to us? Does Shizuru know about this yet? What the hell am I going to do now?... Shaking her head she told herself: Ok, I need to think logically. First I'll call Shizuru and see if she knows about any of this. She pulled out her cell phone and called Shizuru's cell; there was no answer. That's strange, she thought, surely they wouldn't have taken away her cell phone... The bell to begin first period rang so Natsuki ran back to class, her mind still in overdrive. She decided to go to Shizuru's house after school and see if she could get into contact with her. Shizuru's parents weren't in town for today at least, maybe it wouldn't be too hard. The rest of the day passed, and when school let out she got a ride home with a classmate to her apartment. She then hopped on her motorcycle and quickly made her way over to Shizuru's. The gate was closed so she used the call box. "May I ask your name and the purpose of your visit?" a male voice asked after she pressed the button. "This is Natsuki Kuga and I'm here to talk with Shizuru, please." "Ah, I'm sorry, but Ms. Fujino has expressed that she does not wish to see you anymore. As such, I cannot let you into the estate." "That's bullshit! What's happened to Shizuru? If she's been shut up in this house against her will someone's going to be sorry!" "That is not of your concern. Please leave now." Furious, Natsuki throttled her bike and began riding around the perimeter of the estate, trying to find another way in. Maybe there was a back entrance somewhere? The walls were about 10 feet high all around with steel spires running along the top, so climbing the wall was out of the question. When she got to the back of the estate, she noticed a small, gated service entrance. It also appeared to operate by way of a call box, so she was going to have to sneak in somehow. The best time to attempt such a feat would be at night and it wasn't going to be dark for a couple more hours. As she rode off to kill some time and to plan out her infiltration of the Fujino estate, Natsuki realized she hadn't even thought twice about doing such a reckless thing. If it was for the sake of Shizuru, she would do anything. Just thinking that her friend might be suffering in any way made her want to take the house by storm, without regard for the consequences. But, she knew she'd have a better chance of actually getting to Shizuru if she acted covertly, so covertly she would act. Going to a gas station, she topped off her motorcycle before stopping at a nearby café. There, she formulated a plan for sneaking in. It was definitely not failsafe, but it was the best she could come up with. Before long, it was time to get going. Pushing her fears and doubts to the back of her mind, Natsuki hopped on her bike and made her way off into the night.
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