I was rehearsing in my room again. I let my words flow as I hit every note. Until my voice broke with the next high note and I coughed. I grabbed the bottle of water nearby and drank to clear my throat.

"Mana, dinner's ready!"

"Coming!" I spluttered, closing my song book and ran downstairs.

I took the seat next to Yuki and began eating. My sister grabbed my wrist before I could eat another forkful of rice.

"The talent show is in a month, you should relax," she said with a smile.

I slumped in the chair as Cross beamed at me proudly.

"You'll do fine," he reassured me as I prodded at the vegetables sulkily.

"I've never sung in front of a crowd before," I said moodily.

"You'll do fine."

I looked at both sister and adopted father before glancing at the brother opposite me.

"Zero?"

Zero glanced at me and shrugged.

"You'll do OK."

I felt deflated somewhat.

"OK?"

He shrugged again and I glared at him.

"I'll do more than OK! I'll be the damn best!"

"Mana!"

I picked up my plate and ran back upstairs to rehearse some more. I'll show him.

I'm on a bloody voice rest today. I sat next to Zero who looked smug.

"And that's what happens when you rehearse too much."

I raised my fists and he dodged the oncoming beatings I unleashed. He had that infuriating smirk on his face and it only encouraged me to hit harder. After I got tired, I decided to slump my body onto the desk and glare at the blackboard.

"What's up with the song anyway, it's new…"

I glared back at him.

"Wrote it," I whispered "I've been experimenting with tunes, lyrics, poetry…"

I coughed a little and Zero nudged me.

"Oi, you're supposed to be on voice rest. Tell me when you can speak again."

And I gave him another onslaught of punches. Don't ask me questions when I'm unable to talk in the first place, jerk! He shoved me off and I sulked, glaring back at the blackboard.

"Just saying, maybe you shouldn't sing a song that hits the notes you can't reach."

I pouted. Maybe I was being too ambitious. I shrugged and nodded, I'll find a song which can be easier for my voice.

It's probably no secret that I have a little crush on Zero. It's very little, minuscule even, don't you dare look into it. I've heard girls gossip behind my back and really, they're so wrong. It's not like I'm in love with him. He's attractive, he listens, he's a good cook, yes, those are wonderful qualities. But have you tried living with him? He is always brooding, always moody and he takes too long in the bathroom. He's always around to dampen my mood and I don't appreciate it much. Plus he keeps on criticising my singing, geez! I'm not that bad!

"IDOL-SENPAI!"

My ears! I swayed a little as the crowd of girls roared eagerly and I coughed sharply, reminding myself that I couldn't shout at them to keep quiet. They quietened down but my ears were still ringing. I glared ahead blankly, chewing my lip and clenching my fists. I really want to whip out Pearl Beauty to whip these girls into line.

"Thank you for your hard work."

I jerked my head to the side, silently telling Kuran to continue walking by. He hesitated as the girls behind me went wild and I coughed sharply again, but there was a lesser effect compared to the first cough. I wanted to stamp my foot, hopefully crush someone else's in the process but when my heel lifted slightly, nearly following through with my wish, I realised how childish that would have looked. Then I turned to the crowd and stuck my thumb and finger in my mouth to whistle sharply. They quietened down and I turned away from them. Kuran was still there.

"Ever the chatterbox," he said with that fake smile "See you later."

I glowered at his back and tried to give off a menacing aura. It wasn't as menacing as Zero's but Kuran began walking off with the rest of the Night Class. I tried to direct it towards the fangirl crowd.

"Cross, why are you so quiet today? It's kind of creepy."

I glared at the unfazed group. So I approached the nearest girl. She eyed me warily, stepping back a little but she wasn't showing any signs of going back to the dorm. I snatched the phone that was dangling off her wrist.

"Hey!"

I held her at arm's length as I made short work in deleting any photos of the Night Class that she had been taking from over my shoulder.

"No! Those are good ones!"

Once the last one was deleted, I handed the phone back and gave my best 'Who's Next' glare to the rest of the girls. Slowly realising that I was most likely going to do the same to them, they began running back to the dorms, the first girl slightly tearing up as she reluctantly ran after them. I dusted my hands before rubbing my throat. I should only be like this for a couple more days then I'm done and up and back to rehearsing for that talent show the Headmaster is hosting. I'm not sure what other acts there are but I've heard that the Night Class are going to participate because it was one of those things that humans and vampires are going to connect with. It makes me feel kind of sick.

I snorted derisively, glancing around and seeing that Yuki and Zero had taken off with the rest of the girls. I decided to take a walk around, just to clear my head and hopefully get rid of the ringing in my head. I began singing some of my songs in my head. I don't think they're any good, it's not like anyone's really heard them when they've been performed perfectly. They lyrics honestly started out as poems and then I began researching different songs. What kind of lyrics did people like? What was popular this month? Et cetera, et cetera…

I stopped in my tracks. I had found Yuki and Zero, they were milling around, talking, laughing. I smiled at the sight. It's nice to see them not fighting and yelling at each other for once. I wonder if Yuki thinks that if she's ever seen me and Zero talking normally. I shrugged and was about to approach them but Zero pulled Yuki closer. He kissed her. And I felt like time had frozen for just a few moments. Then reality crashed into me and I began feeling a little unwell. No, no, I felt like I was going to fall apart and I began feeling rotten. I shouldn't be seeing this.

I turned tail and I ran back home, despite my confusion. When had this been going on and for how long? I wanted to throw up, I wanted to hurt someone, I wanted to curl up and die. It was just a little crush, but why is my chest crushing me? I ended up navigating my way to my room which I rehearsed in and I locked the door. My knees wobbled and I fell onto the steps that were between the door and the actual room. I leaned on the wall and stared at the door with wide eyes, a lump blocking my throat, making me feel like I couldn't breathe. And like Niagara Falls, the tears came gushing out.

I couldn't help it; I was bawling my eyes out. I felt frustrated, I felt betrayed, I felt angry, I felt guilty. I've told no-one about this silly little crush. It's not like anyone could have known. I shouldn't be crying, I shouldn't feel betrayed, it's not a big deal. So why the fuck does it feel like it is! What is wrong with me? Why the fuck should I care?! I shouldn't! It's just a crush! It's just a fucking crush! STOP CRYING ALREADY!

The sun set, the room turned dark and I hadn't realised I had fallen asleep on the steps until the door in front of me suddenly knocked.

"Mana, are you in there?"

I stretched my arms out and wiped my eyes to get rid of the tears. I opened my mouth to say an answer but nothing but a cough came up. I wetted my lips, parting them slightly and tried to whisper but only got a hiss. I held my throat in alarm.

"Mana? Is that you?"

I knocked once on the door.

"Oh right! Dinner's going to be served soon! Remember, you're still on voice rest."

I heard footsteps as I stood there in the dark, rubbing my throat. I tried to speak, tried to whisper, tried to shout, but nothing was coming out. My tears came back with a vengeance. My voice was completely gone it seemed.

This is one of those stories which has had me come up with three, possibly four different branches. I plan to write them one at a time. You can vote which one you would like to see first:

Option 1: Will she ever confess her feelings?

Option 2: Will she be whisked off her feet?

Option 3: Will she be taken advantage of?

Option 4: Will she seek solace in another's arms?

Numbers in the reviews please