Fushigi Yuugi Fan Fiction / Sailor Moon Fan Fiction ❯ My Savior ❯ Being Popular and Mamo-kun ( Chapter 1 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

My Savior
Chapter 1
By Mako-chan Fan/Jovian Angel
Makochan_fan@hotmail.com
Author's Notes:
This fic will be extremely short, maybe 2-3 chapters.
School starts on the 26th and I'm definitely going to
be busy. Anyway, Mako/Nuriko.
******************************

Mako was watching a cartoon when the doorbell rang.
She stood up and opened the door. Standing outside
was Nuriko, still a little unsure of the situation.

"Hi Nuri-kun. Come in." Mako cheerfully greeted as
Nuriko took off his shoes and stepped inside. His
eyes wondered at his surroundings. The apartment
looked great. The white walls helped make the place
look clean. The living room held the black TV, DVD,
VCR, and the sound system. The white carpet covered
the cold floor. The black leather couch faced the
electronics. The coffee table, which was made of
glass, sat in the middle of the living room.

"Come on. Let's go eat snacks before we go straight
to the mall," the green-eyed girl suggested as she
led him to the small but cheerful dining room and
kitchen. The kitchen table and chairs were redwood,
and under it was a green carpet with flowers on the
side. If the living room looked modern, the dining
room looked classy and elegant.

"What do you want?" Mako asked the mesmerized boy,
her voice muffled as she checked out the insides of
her fridge.

"Uh, I'm not sure I'm hungry," the lavender-haired
boy answered. Mako stuck her head out, an eyebrow
perfectly arched.

"We're going to be walking around a bit, Nuri-kun, so
you have to eat. Come on, it's not like I'm going to
poison you. I got cherry pies, chocolate cakes,
oatmeal cookies, and blueberry muffins. What do you
want?" she offered.

He thought for a second. "How about a piece of
chocolate cake and oatmeal cookies?"

"Sure thing. Just a second, okay?"

She took out the medium-sized cake out of the fridge
and cut two pieces, one for Nuriko and one for
herself. She put the rest back and took the cookies
laying on the counter and served it.

"Wow, this looks good," he commented. He took the
fork she handed to him and took a piece to his mouth.
"This is delicious! One of a kind! Where did you buy
it?" he asked in delight.

She heartily laughed. "Buy it? I made it!" she
informed him, taking a bite of her cookie.

His eyes widened. "Really? I didn't know you can
bake. Can you cook?"

She wrinkled her nose, not liking the disbelief.
"Yeah, I made it. And yes, I can cook. Is it THAT
unbelievable?"

"Sorry, it's just that I hear people talk about you
in school. Some people say that you don't even eat,
so it's kind of surprising that you cook," he said
apologetically.

Mako sighed. "I hate stereotyping. They really
shouldn't judge me by how I look. Just because I'm
popular doesn't mean that I'm anorexic or bulimic or
snobby or a bitch. Hell, I bet Usagi can eat more
than you."

"Well, you know how they are, some people blast you
because you're everything they're not. But some
people treat you like goddesses, like role models,
you know?"

"Well, I don't exactly want to be a role model.
Shouldn't they be what they are? What they really
want to be?" She asked, making a point.

Nuriko nodded. "True. But you and your friends are
lucky. Some students would kill just to be you. You
guys have it easy."

She looked at him with incredulity. "Easy? How wrong
can you get? Sure, being popular has its advantages,
but it's got downsides to it, too. Imagine yourself
having to control yourself, limit your actions. You
can't make mistakes because hundreds of pairs of eyes
are watching you. You don't want to make a wrong step
because you've got a reputation to maintain.

"Everyone thinks we're all looks and no brains, great
looking on the outside but bitches inside. We've got
ears too, you know. We hear what some people say, but
we don't want to cause a fight or anything. Why do
you think Rei-chan's a little mean to people? That's
her coping mechanism since we can't do anything else.

"And can you imagine how me and the girls feel
whenever students and men leer at us, hooting,
calling cat names? It's disgusting. We can't even
find the good guys because the guys around us, all
they want are to make out or have sex. Either that or
to use us for popularity."

He never realized what these girls go through until
now. He felt saddened by how he thought about them,
how cruel it really was. He placed himself on her
shoes. Everywhere he goes, people stare at him,
leering, making moves. He shivered. How could she
live like that everyday? These girls need protection!

"Sorry if I took my frustrations out on you. It's you
guys who have it easy." Mako gave a small smile.

"The others, maybe. But not me. Everyone thinks I'm a
geek, a weird geek, if that could get any worse. I
look like I have a brain, but I'm an average
student." He shrugged.

"That sucks. You know, everyone's weird in his or her
own way. It's nothing big, really. Take Usagi, she's
a little out there isn't she? And Rei's temper is
something else. Then there's Ami. She's always
reading, always studying.

"You, my friend, are just an introvert. That's not
exactly weird, but when you keep to yourself too
much, then people are going to see you that way.
Also, loosen up a bit, okay? I'm not going to eat you
or anything," she commented, a small smile on her
face.

"Sorry. It's just a little surreal that you're
talking to me, helping me when you're this big person
in school and I'm almost invisible to everyone else."

"See, one of those stereotypes again. I swear I'm
never going to be able to get away from them." She
noticed that they were both done eating. She stood up
and took their plates. But he took them back, and
helped her clean up. While he washed the dishes, she
made them something to drink before they left for the
mall.
***************

"So, what are we going to do first?" Nuriko asked
curiously while seating beside Makoto on the train.
"You're not going to do that whole make over thing
just like on TV, right?"

She looked at him, saw his deer-in-the-headlights
expression, and laughed. "No, of course not! We're
not going to do that make over thing. You don't need
that."

She took some of his long, lavender hair in her
dainty hands. He noticed how her eyes got sparkly
eyed while looking at his hair.

"I love your hair. I'm so amazed by it that I have to
have a glimpse of it everyday or I would be a grouch
the rest of the day. I wanted to talk to you,
befriend you, but whenever you see me and my friends,
you always stay away. I don't know why you did that,
until I talked to your friend Yoshi. He said that you
avoided us because you thought we would make fun of
you." He looked at her wistful gaze and felt bad. She
must've felt it because she smiled again went back to
the topic.

"We're going to trim your hair a bit. Your hair is
great, but we need to control the tips. And I don't
really think you should leave your hair down. Maybe
one of the reasons why Mina doesn't see you as a
boyfriend is because your hair's better looking that
hers!" she giggled. He laughed, a little embarrassed.

"Do I really look like a girl?"

"Well, kind of. People never thought that men could
have hair like this. And you've got such a pale skin.
It's nice to me, though. It tells me that you're
gentle and sweet," she complimented. He blushed.
'Mako-chan thinks I look good!'

Their stop was next and they got off. They left the
train station and went to the big mall close to it.
They turned left and headed for the parlor.

"Um, shouldn't we be at the barber shop?" Nuriko
asked, hesitating on going inside the salon.

"Are you kidding me? Those men are barbarians! They'd
probably cut all your hair off! They don't appreciate
good styles. We're going in here. The hair stylist
here is the best in the Tokyo district. I know him,
and I definitely trust him. Now come on!" She took
his arm and urged him inside.

Everyone in the salon seemed to know Makoto with the
smiles on their faces and their joyful greetings.
They headed for the receptionist. "I made an
appointment with Mamoru-kun."

"Oh yes, Mako-san. He's waiting for you. Go ahead."

She thanked the lady and led Nuriko to Mamoru's own
stall. He was sitting on one of the chairs and
reading a magazine.

Nuriko sized him up. He was tall, probably a 6'2. He
was wearing a red muscle shirt, which accented his
lanky but muscular arms, his flat chest and stomach.
He also wore tight black jeans that hugged his legs
perfectly. Black boots covered his feet. His raven
hair shone in the light, making him look like an
actor.

'I look like a catfish compared to this guy!' He was
suddenly self-conscious. He was wearing a blue shirt,
khaki pants and rubber shoes. 'Why did I wear
something that looked like they were the only clothes
left in my closet because everything else was in the
washer?'

He looked at Makoto. She was wearing a denim skirt, a
yellow tank top and white sandals. So simple, yet it
looked great. He rolled his eyes at himself. 'This is
really sad.'

"Hi Mamo-kun! We're here!"

At the sound of her voice, Mamoru stood up and kissed
the redhead on both cheeks. They whispered to
themselves. The raven-haired man kept on looking at
him.

Nuriko suddenly felt... annoyed. Who is this guy in
Mako's life? Why are they whispering to each other
like that? And why is he touching her exposed arms
and hands like that? 'Take your hands off her waist!'
he silently screamed at the guy.

He shook his head, clearing his thoughts. 'What's
happening to you? It doesn't matter if he touches her
like that! You're not her boyfriend!'

"Nuriko, come here." Mako called out. He walked
toward the two.

"Nuriko, this is Mamoru, Mamoru, this is Nuriko.
Mamoru is a good friend and my hair stylist. Nuriko
is a classmate and a friend." The two shook each
other's hands and offered a smile.

"Okay, let me guess. You want to trim your hair, am I
correct? We're not going to cut it like those boyish
cuts because your hair deserves better than that. You
went to the right place, Nuri-san. The barbers will
only massacre your hair. Your hair is enchanting, is
it bottled or real? I can tell it's..." Mamoru
chatted on. He made the lavender-haired boy sit on
the chair he once occupied and started the process.
Both the hair stylist and Makoto were easy to be
friends with that he relaxed under the two's
chatting. He laughed along at the funny stories
Mamoru shared with them. He also voiced out at his
opinions as they chatted.

Time seemed to move fast when having fun.

"There, done!" Mamoru proudly declared. His hair
looked better. It framed his face perfectly and his
hair had more and better figure. While he thought it
was enough, the other two looked at him. They moved
their heads in different angles and squinted their
eyes as they thought of more improvements.

"His hair shouldn't be left like that," Mako noted.

With hands on his chin, Mamoru nodded.

"Let me do something," came from the redhead. She
moved a chair directly behind his, sat down, and
started braiding his hair loosely.

Nuriko relaxed more under Mako's light pulling of his
hair as she braided. She was so gentle with it, he
felt as if she was taking care of him, thinking he
was something so delicate. He felt... appreciated. No
girl had ever made him feel this way.

"What do you think?" Mako asked Mamoru, looking up.
The raven-haired man looked delighted.

"Perfect! Just what I had in mind!"

"What do you think, Nuri-chan?" Mako sweetly asked
him.

He took the braid on his hand and looked at it with
the mirror in front of him. He smiled. "Hey! This
looks great!"

"I'm just going to the ladies' room. Excuse me." Mako
got up and left.

"Wait, how much is this going to cost?" He panicked.
If this cost a lot, he may not have enough money to
buy other things he needed!

Mamoru laughed at the young guy's expression. "Relax.
It's free. Mako-chan brought customers here so much
that the salon decided to give her a free session
every two months." His face suddenly turned serious.
"You're pretty important to her if she brought you
here and introduced you to me. Don't break her heart,
all right?" he warned.

He blinked. "What are you talking about?" And then he
realized what the guy was saying. "Oh, no. We're not
like that. We're just..." he was cut off my Makoto.

"Okay, I'm back. Come one Nuri. Let's go. We have
some more stuff to do. Thanks Mamoru, I'll see you,
okay?"

"Okay, Mako-chan. Say hi to the gals for me!" He
kissed her cheek before they left the parlor.

They walked in silence for a bit.

"Mako-chan, is he... I mean... did you and Mamoru-san
ever..."

"Dated? No. Mamoru-san and I are just good friends.
Besides, he's gay."

Nuriko was somehow relieved at the answer, knowing
that there was no history between the two. He didn't
know why. Then he facevaulted.

"Gay? What do you mean? He was kissing you and
touching you like..." he was cut off yet again.

"Oh, that's his nature. Seriously, Nuri-kun, don't
you know anything about gay men? Some of them are
hide their true selves, while some of them don't but
they still act a little manly. Mamo-kun is different.
He loves who he is, and he's not afraid to tell the
whole world about it. Why would he when he's great?
Anyway, Mamo-kun's really affectionate. He's like my
older brother, er, sister."

And then she laughed.

"What is it?" Nuri asked.

She eyed him, mirth written all over her face. "I'm
actually surprised he didn't make a move on you. He's
a playboy, er, girl (?). He flirts a lot. But why he
didn't make a single move on you is weird. Oh well,
maybe he's actually dating seriously now." She
shrugged.

The whole time they went shopping and walking around,
he wondered what he would have done if Mamoru DID
make moves on him.

END Ch1

I didn't realize that this one was going to be long.
I take back what I said, er, wrote. It's probably
going to take 4-6 chapters to finish this. All right
then, matta ne!