AN - I finally realized that this website was being a control freak and taking out the extra spaces I put between paragraphs to indicate that the story was jumping to a different location or time, so I decided to start using those line break thing-ys instead. (Yes, I just now realized this after five stories. OTL) I hope this will make my stories easier to follow, even though I know this is just going to drive my OCD soul up the wall.
"I don't think it's good for you to stay cooped up all the time like this, Tei. It's not healthy at all." Tei's dark red eyes flickered as she folded her hands together and stared at the floor.
"Since when do you care, Teiru? It's my decision." Teiru frowned as he looked down at his sister.
"Just look at yourself. You don't leave your house anymore, and it's dark as a cave in here."
"If you're just going to be mean, then please leave." Teiru crossed his arms angrily.
"I just want to help you. I brought you a present." Tei lowered her head.
"I'm not interested," she muttered.
"I think you will be when you see it. Come on, it's in my car."
She didn't respond, so Teiru grabbed her arm and dragged her off the couch. She didn't resist as he led her out the front door and to the back of his car. Teiru let go of her arm to open the trunk of his car, and Tei's breath hitched in her throat when she saw what was in it.
"Oh, Teiru..." He smiled as he glanced at her.
"I know it isn't exactly like that boy you wanted, but it's pretty close, right?" Tei nodded slowly as a smile spread across her mouth, the first one in months. In the trunk of the car was a little girl who looked to be around two years old. A strip of duct tape covered her mouth, muffling her attempts to cry out, and her hands were tied together behind her back. Tei reached out a shaking hand to run her fingers through the girl's blond hair as she stared at the green eyes that were full of tears. Teiru lifted the girl out of the trunk and set her on her feet. He kept one hand firmly on her shoulder as he peeled the tape off her mouth.
"Why are you crying, sweetie?" Tei asked as she crouched down in front of the girl.
"I wanna go home. I want my mommy," the girl choked out in a small voice.
"This is home, and I am your mommy," Tei cooed. The girl's eyes widened as she tried to step back, but Teiru held her firmly in place. "What's your name, sweetie?" Tei asked.
"Lenka," the girl said in a quiet voice. Tei smiled happily.
"Well, I think we will be very happy together, Lenka."
And that was how Lenka's new life began.
"Miku, get up! You're going to be late!" Miku rolled over and glanced at her alarm clock. 6:59 AM... she closed her eyes sleepily.
Wait a sec, 6:59? School starts at 7:15!
The green-haired girl literally sprang out of bed and got dressed in record time. She quickly tied her hair up into her signature twin-tails before grabbing her bag and running out the door.
"Bye, Mom!" she yelled as she took off down the street.
Miku ran into her first period class, panting like a race horse that was about to drop dead. At her old school, first period started at 8 o'clock. She hadn't expected for the forty-five minutes difference to give her so much trouble on her first day.
"Ah, you must be Miku Hatsune?" She turned to see a woman with pink hair standing beside her.
"Yes, ma'am." The woman smiled.
"Nice to meet you. My name is Luka Megurine, you can just call me Ms. Megurine." The bell rang, and Luka turned to her class. "Everyone should be in their seats now," she said as the last few teenagers dashed to their desks. She walked to the board and wrote Miku's name on it. She turned and gestured for Miku to come stand beside her. "Everyone, this is Miku Hatsune. She's a new transfer student to our school. I hope you will be nice to her." She looked at Miku. "Why don't you tell us something about yourself?"
"Oh, okay. Well, I like to sing. And I like birds. I hope I can make a lot of new friends here!" she chirped cheerfully. She didn't notice the girl sitting in the back of the room rolling her eyes. Luka nodded.
"Well, as you can see, this class is already pretty full. I'm afraid my only empty seat is in the back, next to Lenka." Miku saw the desk she was referring to, the one next to the girl who had rolled her eyes earlier. She nodded and head towards the seat. As Miku sat down, Lenka watched her with emotionless eyes. She could already tell that the green-haired girl was either a ditz or a complete idiot. Said ditz-or-idiot noticed that Lenka was looking at her and smiled in return.
"Hello, what's your name?" She was answered with silence. Miku's smile wavered as she realized that this girl already had a bad opinion of her. She looked towards the front where Luka was talking, but she found it hard to focus when she could still feel Lenka's gaze on her.
"Hey, your name is Miku, right?" Miku looked up at the girl with dark green hair standing in front of her.
"Yeah...?"
"Okay, my name is Gumi, and it looks like we have the same homeroom. Would you like to come over here and meet some of my friends?" Miku nodded, but as she stood up she noticed Lenka walking into the room.
"Hey, who is she?" Gumi turned and noticed the girl.
"Oh, that's just Lenka Sukone. She's not very friendly, so most of us just leave her alone."
"Is she mean?"
"No, she just doesn't talk to anyone. I don't think any of us have heard her speak before." Miku frowned as she watched the blond make her way to a desk next to the window. Even though it was the end of summer and very hot outside, Lenka was wearing pants and a long-sleeved shirt. It was strange, seeing as Miku was wearing shorts and a tank top and still felt uncomfortably hot.
"Miku, Miku, Earth to Miku!" Gumi waved her hand in Miku's face, dragging her out of her thoughts.
"Oh, I'm sorry," she said before following the shorter girl to her group of friends. Her mind was still fixed on Lenka Sukone, and she knew without a doubt that she was going to have to find out more about the strange blond.
"Hey, Lenka! Wait up!" Lenka stopped and turned to look at Miku. It was the end of the day, and she had just grabbed her stuff from her locker and was standing in the front door of the school. Miku ran up to her and slid to a stop, her shoes slipping on the slick floor. "How about we walk home together?" Miku said. Lenka blinked at her, then turned and started walking again. Miku wasn't sure if this was a yes or a no, so she fell in step beside the girl.
The two girls walked in silence for several minutes. The hot sun was taking its toll on Miku, and she felt her face flush as she fanned herself. She glanced at Lenka, but she didn't seem bothered by the heat.
"Aren't you hot at all?" she asked. Lenka shrugged. She tugged on the edges of her sleeves, almost seeming as if she felt nervous about something. The silence between them resumed, and Miku started counting all the street signs they passed. She felt her face flush darker as she realized something. Oh, she had been extremely stupid earlier.
"Hey, um, I kinda..." Her voice trailed off as she noticed the glare Lenka was giving her. If looks could kill, there would be a Miku-sized pile of ashes on the sidewalk right now.
"What?" Lenka stopped and turned to fully face the other girl. "Can't you go bug someone else?" she asked. Miku blinked in surprise. Part of her was happy that Lenka had spoke, the other part was flinching from the venom in her words.
"I-I'm sorry?"
In a second, the annoyance on Lenka's face vanished as she resumed her look of indifference. She turned and started walking again, but as Miku started to follow she said, "We're almost to my house. You should go away, or I'll get in trouble."
"Uh, um... I'm lost." Lenka spun around to look at her.
"Seriously?"
"I'm new to the area, and I'm not sure which way my house is." The look on Lenka's face clearly said You're an idiot, but she shrugged.
"I'm sorry, but I can't help you. If I get home late, I'll get in big trouble." Miku watched quietly as Lenka turned and walked away.
"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow," she called in a small voice.
"Hello, sweetie. Did you have a good day?"
"It was fine." Lenka shrugged her bag off her shoulder and set it on the floor next to the door. Tei frowned as she looked at the teenager standing before her. She reached out and gently touched Lenka's ponytail.
"Your hair is getting long. I think it's time to cut it again."
"I like my hair long!" Lenka protested. Tei's smile slipped away as her eyes darkened with anger.
"What was that?"
"Ah, nothing." Lenka lowered her head, her eyes trained on her shoes.
"Nothing?" Tei asked, her voice low.
"Nothing that needed to be said. I'm sorry, ma'am." For a few seconds the air was tense between the two females, then Tei's smile suddenly reappeared.
"That's a good girl." Lenka took this as a sign that she was forgiven for talking back to Tei, so she started to leave the room. She stopped when Tei grabbed her arm tightly. "You've been getting quite snappy lately, Lenka. What should your punishment be for it?"
Please, no, she thought, but she knew better than to say that out loud. That would only anger the white-haired woman. To be honest, anything she did at the moment would anger Tei. So Lenka merely closed her eyes and kept her face turned away.
"Should I get the knife out? It's been a while since it cut you, hasn't it?" Lenka bit her lip.
"I won't argue anymore, I promise." Tei shook her head.
"Liar, you always lie. This is pathetic." Tei suddenly pulled on Lenka's arm, dragging her to the coffee table. She forced the blond to sit down at one side of the table, then she sat down at the other side facing her. She set Lenka's arm on the smooth wood, holding onto her wrist firmly as she fished in her pocket for her knife. Lenka turned her face away and closed her eyes. She heard the schick sound the knife always made when Tei opened it, and she forced herself to relax her arm. The edge of the knife cut into Lenka's skin, and she bit her lip until she tasted blood. Tei cut a straight line all the way across the underside of Lenka's forearm, then she looked up at the blond.
"Have you learned your lesson, or do you need more?" Lenka didn't answer, it was all she could do to keep from crying out. Tei cut her again, dragging the knife as slowly as she could, until a small cry tore from Lenka's mouth. The white-haired woman smiled.
"You'll remember this before you open that smart mouth of yours again, won't you?" Lenka nodded quickly, her lips red with her own blood. Tei let go of her arm and went to clean the knife. She returned with the first-aid kit, which she shoved into Lenka's hands before grabbing her uninjured arm and dragging her to her bedroom.
"Just to make sure it sticks with you, you can spend tonight in your room," Tei said as she opened the door and shoved Lenka into the room. "Goodnight, sweetie. I'll see you in the morning."
After Tei closed the bedroom door, Lenka finally allowed the tears to escape. They rolled down her cheeks as she sat down on her bed and opened the first-aid kit. Running up both of her arms, from wrist to elbow, were two series of cuts parallel to the two fresh ones. Most of them were quite old old, made years ago when she was stupidly defiant. The oldest ones were just faint scars now. Lenka bandaged up her arm quickly, then closed the first-aid kit and set in on the floor. She knew if she tried the door that it would be locked, so she didn't even bother to get up. She flopped back on her bed and stared up at the ceiling fretfully. She lifted one of her arms and studied the scars running across it.
"I wonder if that Miku girl found her way home..." she muttered to herself. Oh well, that girl was none of her concern. Lenka had learned several years ago that friends were not allowed in her life. She had been forced to move more than once because she had become too friendly with somebody. Tei was the only person who she could talk to, period. Lenka let out a heavy sigh and rolled over onto her side. She ran one slender finger over her sheets and let her mind wander. She frowned when she realized it had wandered back to Miku.
"No, stop that." For a moment, all was quiet. Lenka let out another sigh as she looked at her clock. The next morning seemed very far away.
"Hey, Miku! What did you bring for lunch?" Miku looked up from digging in her bag and smiled. She was in homeroom, and they were about to leave to go eat lunch.
"Just a sandwich. You?" Gumi shook her lunchbox, making the containers inside thud against each other.
"Leftovers. Kind of a hodgepodge of stuff, really." As they walked to the lunchroom, the two girls chatting in a friendly way, Miku noticed that Lenka turned and went up some stairs as the rest of their class continued straight down the hall.
"Where is she going?" Miku asked as she pointed at the blond. Gumi turned just in time to spot Lenka before she turned and walked out of sight.
"Oh, that Sukone girl? I think she eats up on the roof. I never - Hey, where are you going?" Miku didn't answer as she quickly hurried up the stairs after Lenka. She ended up going all the way up the stairwell before she stopped in front of a large wooden door. There was a small window in the door, and through this window she could see Lenka. Miku stopped, one hand on the doorknob, as she watched the other girl. Lenka walked across the roof slowly, the wind blowing her ponytail out to the side. When Miku listened closely, she could make out the blond's voice.
"Drowning in a sea of 'maybe's and 'what-if's, it's getting harder and harder to breathe. Now all I want is to hear your voice, though I'm not that strong..." Miku suddenly pushed the door open.
"I love that song!" she yelled happily. Lenka whirled around, her usual mask of indifference slipping away to reveal a harsh glare of anger.
"What are you doing up here?" she snapped. Miku blinked as she took a step back from the angry blond.
"Well, uh, I figured I'd eat my lunch up here today." Lenka frowned for a second, then she slipped her emotionless mask back on as she shrugged.
"Whatever." Miku's face brightened. She closed the door and walked out onto the roof. A high fence ran around the edge of the roof to prevent anyone from falling. Lenka sat down and leaned back against the fence before she opened her lunchbox. Miku sat a few feet away from her, watching her out of the corner of her eye as she ate her sandwich slowly. Lenka seemed intent on ignoring Miku's presence, so the green-haired girl was surprised when she spoke. "Staring is rude, you know."
"Uh, s-sorry," Miku stuttered as she quickly focused on her sandwich. After a few minutes, she worked up the nerve to ask the blond a question. "Do you usually sing up here?" Lenka glared at her food and didn't answer. Miku decided to just plow ahead anyway. "I really like to sing. That song you were singing is one of my favorites."
"Good for you," Lenka said sarcastically. This green-haired ditz was really starting to grind on her nerves. She didn't feel like being punished because of this girl's stubbornness. For a few moments, the roof was quiet.
"So I say to you, hello, how are you?" Miku sang quietly to herself. Lenka decided enough was enough.
"I'm outta here," she muttered as she stood up and headed for the door.
"Wait!" Miku cried as she got to her feet. She grabbed Lenka's arm just as the blond grabbed the door handle, earning her a glare from the shorter girl.
"Let me go!" Lenka snapped.
"You're bleeding!"
"What?" Lenka looked down at the arm that Miku had grabbed. A thin trail of blood was running out from under her sleeve and down her wrist. Her eyes widened in surprise and confusion. When had she started bleeding?
"Let me see it," Miku said as she started tugging the sleeve up.
"No, don't-" Lenka said as she tried to stop her, but it was too late. The green-haired girl's eyes widened when she saw the scars on the underside of Lenka's arm. Lenka noticed that one of her fresh cuts had somehow reopened, and the blood had soaked through the bandage and started running down her arm.
"What what have you done?" Miku asked in a quiet voice as she looked up at Lenka's face. The blond avoided her questioning gaze. Miku thought her wounds were self-inflicted. She was very wrong, but Lenka could not tell her that.
"I...I can't..." Lenka suddenly pulled free of the other girl's grip and dragged the door open. She ran down the steps, almost tripping because she was distracted by the conflicting emotions in her head, but Miku did not try to chase her this time.
At the end of the day, a very upset Lenka yanked open her locker door and shoved her textbooks in. Of course, you would have to know her very well to see how upset she was. Lenka had become a master at hiding her emotions, at least most of the time. She had a tendency to slip up around Tei, and more than once she had let her mask slip around Miku. That girl got under her skin in a way she did not understand, and she didn't like it one bit.
Lenka let out a small sigh as she closed her locker door. Miku was easily the most annoying creature she had ever met. She would not leave her alone, and she kept shoving her nose in where it didn't belong. It was because of this that Lenka both hated and liked the other girl. Part of her wanted the green-haired girl to just bug off, and the other part wanted her to stay so she wouldn't be alone.
"Absolutely pathetic," Lenka muttered under her breath as she headed towards the exit.
"Hey, wait up!" She turned to see Miku running towards her again, just like the previous day. Instead of sliding to a stop, she crashed into the front door of the school, causing Lenka to let out a giggle of dark amusement. "Ouchies," Miku muttered as she rubbed her forehead from where she had hit it on the door.
"What do you want?" Lenka asked.
"Well, I was wondering if we could walk home together today," Miku chirped. Lenka frowned.
"Didn't you get lost yesterday?" she asked.
"Uh, yeah. I wad kinda hoping you could help me find my way home today. I'm a little challenged when it comes to directions," Miku admitted sheepishly.
"Do you know your address?"
"Oh, yeah! I have it right here!" Miku dug in her pocket and pulled out a scrap of paper, which she quickly handed to Lenka. Lenka read the address and frowned. The street name sounded familiar...
She suddenly had a strong urge to facepalm.
"Miku, come out here," she said as she grabbed the other girl's arm and dragged her outside. Once they were on the sidewalk, Lenka turned and pointed in one direction. "My house is this way, and," She turned and pointed in the completely opposite direction, "Your house is that way."
"...Oh." Lenka let out a sigh of frustration at the other girl's simple reply. "So... can you help me get home?" Miku asked. Lenka's eyes widened.
"I can't... you should... fine." She started off in the direction of Miku's house, the green-haired girl quickly following her.
"I'm home... Mom." Tei looked up from her book and smiled happily.
"Ah, Lenka, you're late. Why?" Lenka dropped her bag next to the front door and pulled off her shoes.
"I stopped by the store to buy some ramen, since we didn't have anything to fix for supper and it was cheap." Obviously, she was really late because she had walked Miku home, but saying that to Tei would be a very bad idea. The white-haired woman raised one eyebrow suspiciously as she looked at the girl she called her daughter.
"How long does it take to buy some ramen?" she asked.
"Well, the store was really crowded, so the checkout line was pretty long." For a few moments, it didn't look like Tei believed her. Then the white-haired woman smiled, and Lenka let out a sigh of relief.
"Well, I'm just happy that you're home now." Lenka smiled back and nodded quickly before she went into the kitchen to fix the ramen. It was easy to fix, so as Lenka worked she let her mind wander. It was becoming more obvious every day that she spent with Miku that the green-haired girl was just an idiot, but she didn't really mind the other girl's simple nature. It was kind of a relief to be around someone who almost never got upset, seeing as Tei had such a trigger-happy temper. She wondered why Miku hadn't asked about the scars after school. Maybe she thought it was better not to ask. Or had she simply forgotten them? Lenka bit her lip as she looked down at her arms. Was Miku so simple-minded that she would just forget about something like that?
"Well, that looks nice." Lenka jumped and spun around to see Tei looking over her shoulder at the ramen.
"It's really simple, I hope that's okay," she said quickly as she mentally prayed that she hadn't been thinking out loud.
"It's fine. Oh, and Teiru is coming over for dinner." Lenka's eyes widened.
"What? Why didn't you tell me this sooner? If I knew we would be having a guest, I would have gotten something fancier." Tei waved her hand like she was brushing the complaint away as she started fixing drinks.
"It's just Teiru, so relax. He practically lives off plain bread, so anything you make will be a treat for him." Lenka let out a sigh as she started putting the ramen in bowls. Teiru was actually the only person who ever visited them, so she always tried to fix something extra nice whenever he came over. Teiru was much more relaxed than his sister, and would usually laugh off things that would make her explode. Lenka sighed tiredly and scratched at one of the fresher cuts on her arm. The only people she was allowed to talk to was Tei and Teiru. Her life felt so boring sometimes, it made her want to scream.
"This is pretty good, Lenka."
"All I did was add water," Lenka said sheepishly. She, Tei, and Teiru were all sitting in the living room. The room was awkwardly quiet, which was usually the situation whenever Teiru visited. Tei cleared her throat and left the room, mumbling about going to find something. Teiru caught Lenka's eye and jerked his head towards the front door, and she quickly nodded. Once the two were standing out on the porch with the door closed, Teiru visibly relaxed.
"So, how has things been going at school?" he asked as he leaned against the porch rail.
"Same as always, you know. Pretty boring." Lenka's voice caught on the last word, and Teiru raised his eyebrow in a knowing manner.
"Oh, really?" Lenka glanced at the door, then looked down at her feet.
"Promise not to say anything to Mom?" she asked. Teiru nodded.
"There's this new girl in my class. Her name's Miku, and she's really..." Lenka frowned as she searched for the appropriate word. "...overly friendly, I think."
"And...?" Teiru kept watching her as he ate some of his ramen.
"I've been talking to her some. I think... that she's not a bad person." Her voice dropped almost to a whisper on the last part, and she looked extremely guilty. Teiru couldn't help but laugh.
"It's normal for a girl your age to want to have friends, Lenka."
"Yeah, but Mom..." Her voice trailed off, and a look of sadness crossed Teiru's face as he watched her.
"I'm sorry," he muttered.
"Huh?" Lenka blinked as she looked up at him.
"Ah, nothing. Never mind." He quickly ate some more ramen, so Lenka decided to let it drop. For a few moments, they were both quiet.
"She's been cutting you again, hasn't she?" Teiru asked. Lenka didn't reply, but the look on her face gave Teiru his answer. He frowned as he looked at the door. "I never wanted this to happen..." he muttered under his breath.
"Good morning, Lenka!" Miku's smile made her entire face light up. Lenka couldn't help noticing the way some of the guys in the hallway were staring at the green-haired girl, but Miku seemed oblivious to all of the attention she was receiving. Lenka wondered once again if there was anything in Miku's head.
"Morning," she said quietly as she turned back to her locker. She heard a sudden gasp from the other girl.
"Lenka! When did you cut your hair?" Lenka frowned and didn't answer. Tei had insisted on the haircut the night before after Teiru had left. It was now so short that it barely grazed the top of her shoulders, so Lenka hadn't pulled it up into her usual ponytail. As she closed her locker door and turned to face Miku, she noticed that the green-haired girl was staring at her with a look of extreme concentration. She stopped in her tracks, startled by Miku's sudden change in expression.
"What is it?" Miku blinked slowly as she kept staring at Lenka.
"You... you remind me of..." She bit her lip, then shook her head. "Oh! I just can't think who it is, but you really do remind me of someone!" Her look of concentration vanished as she smiled brightly again. "Oh well! I'm sure I'll remember sooner or later!" Lenka nodded slowly, wondering why she had felt so nervous when Miku said that she reminded her of someone. As she turned to head for first period, Miku suddenly grabbed her arm and stopped her.
"Lenka, are we friends?" Lenka's eyes widened, but she didn't look back at the other girl.
"I... I don't know..." she muttered. Teiru had said that it was normal for her to have friends. Tei had said that she could not have be friends with anyone. She didn't know which one to listen to. "We only met each other two days ago, so isn't it a bit early to be saying stuff like that?" she finally asked. Miku tilted her head, then she giggled lightly.
"I guess you're right, it is a bit too early for us to really be friends!" She started walking down the hall, dragging Lenka with her. "I guess I just asked because I like you so much, and I wanted to know if you like me, too!" Miku said happily. Lenka tried to dig her heels in and make Miku stop, but it was like trying to stop a boulder with a spoon.
"What?" she yelled. Miku glanced back and smiled as her.
"I really like being with you, Lenka!"
"Even though I'm mean to you?" she asked quietly. "I snapped on you yesterday during lunch, and I outright abandoned you when you were lost the first day..."
"You may be rude sometimes, but I think that's because you don't know how to be friendly. Don't worry, I'll teach you!"
Lenka just stared at Miku as she dragged her down the hall, the blond now completely oblivious to all the people who were watching them curiously.
"Hey, Lenka?" Miku said without looking back at the blond. "If I'm your friend, you won't be so lonely all the time. Will you stop cutting yourself then?" Lenka's breath caught in her throat. She had heard the pain in Miku's voice as she spoke, and she realized that maybe she had judged the green-haired girl too quickly. Miku glanced back at her, and a wide smile lit up her face again. "I would be really happy if you did that, okay?" Lenka found herself nodding back slowly.
"Okay," she said quietly, even though she really knew she had no control over the situation.
"Holy crap, it's hot up here," Lenka muttered as she fanned her face with one hand. Miku's eyes widened with surprise.
"Oh, so you do feel the heat?" she asked.
"Well, duh. I just usually hide it pretty well," Lenka muttered. The two girls were sitting on the roof of the school, like they had the previous day. Miku took a bite of her sandwich as she watched Lenka for a moment, then she started digging in her bag for something.
"Here, I have a spare hairband. You can use it to pull your hair up." Lenka blinked in surprise, then she took the hairband Miku was offering her.
"Thanks," she said as she fixed her hair into a short ponytail. She noticed that Miku was staring at her, her eyes wide. "What's wrong?" Lenka asked warily.
"Len..." Miku said quietly. She suddenly jumped to her feet and pointed at Lenka dramatically. "LEN KAGAMINE! THAT'S WHO YOU REMINDED ME OF EARLIER!" Lenka just stared up at her, a look of confusion in her wide eyes.
"Who?" Miku put her hands on her hips as she explained.
"He was one of my friends back at the school I went to before I moved here. You look just like him with your hair cut like that, you even have the same bangs and everything." Lenka frowned, not really sure if she should believe Miku or not, so Miku quickly grabbed her bag and started digging through it. "Here!" she snapped as she shoved a photo album into Lenka's hands.
"Why do you have this in your bag?" Lenka asked incredulously.
"That's not important right now! Just look at this!" Miku flipped to a certain page and jabbed the photo with her finger. Lenka leaned forward to look at the picture. It was a group shot of Miku and three blonds. Two of the blonds were guys, and one of them had spiky bangs, just like her. Miku dug through her bag again, and this time produced a pocket mirror. She opened it and showed it to Lenka. "See! Just look at yourself!" Lenka looked at her reflection in the small mirror, then she glanced back at the photograph.
"Oh..." she said softly.
"See? You two look just alike! I wonder if you're related to him or something?" Miku was literally jumping with excitement at this unexpected development in her life. Lenka just stared at the photo, a nervous feeling twisting in her gut. She didn't know why, but just looking at the picture made her feel uncomfortable, like something was very wrong.
"Who... who are you?" she said softly as she stared at the photograph.
"OH MY GOD RIN YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE THIS!"
Needless to say, Miku had not calmed down much since lunch. It had been all she could do to keep from squealing in excitement through the rest of her day's classes, and then she had literally ran all the way home, accidentally leaving Lenka behind. Now that she had a chance to talk about her discovery, she was about to explode from excitement.
"What? Miku, slow down!" Rin snapped angrily. Even through the phone, the annoyance in her voice was loud and clear. Miku flopped back on her back and kicked her legs in the air happily.
"I met this girl named Lenka, and she's blond and had wide green eyes and looks just like Len!" She had slowed down (slightly), but it still took Rin a second to process what she had said.
"So... you found a chick who resembles my brother?" she asked.
"Not just resembles! She looks just like him, only in a girl's body. She's like, a gender bender of him or something!"
"...And what did you say this chick's name was again?" Rin asked.
"Lenka Sukone," Miku chirped happily. There was a long silence, then she frowned. "Rin? Are you still there?"
"L-L-Lenka? Did you say her name was Lenka?" Rin asked breathlessly.
"Yeah, I wonder if she's related to you guys somehow-"
"Miku! Rinto's sister was named Lenka!" Miku blinked, a look of confusion spreading across her face.
"Sister? I thought Rinto was an only child?"
"No! He had a sister, but she went missing when they were two years old!" Miku sat up slowly, a thoughtful look on her face.
"Why haven't I heard about this before?" she asked.
"It makes Rinto super upset whenever anybody talks about it, so we never brought it up. We never found a body, but we just assumed she had died somehow. But if that girl is her..." Miku jumped off her bed and started putting her shoes back on.
"I'm going to go talk to her," she said quickly. "Bye, Rin!" As Miku closed her phone, she cursed the fact that she didn't know Lenka's phone number. "Guess I'm just going to have to go to her house then," she muttered to herself.
Miku reached up and knocked hesitantly on the front door of Lenka's house. She was hoping that Lenka herself would open the door, but instead it was opened by a woman with white hair and dull red eyes.
"What do you want?" The woman asked. Miku blinked, then she stood up straighter.
"Can I speak to Lenka?" Tei's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"My name is Miku Hatsune. I'm one of Lenka's classmates." Tei kept staring at Miku with narrowed eyes, then she stepped back to let her enter the house. Once Miku had stepped inside, Tei closed the door and locked it.
"I'm afraid Lenka's busy right now, but she'll probably be done in a moment. How about we talk while we wait?" Miku shifted her feet uneasily. She wanted to speak to Lenka right this instant, but she felt like she was in dangerous territory. If Lenka really was the girl who Rin had talked about, then that meant that this women possibly had a hand in her going missing. Had she kidnapped Lenka all those years ago? "So, what do you want with my daughter?" Tei said as she sat down on the couch. Miku felt her stomach twist at the word "daughter". This woman was definitely giving her the creeps, but she pushed the feeling down and made herself smile brightly.
"I just needed to talk to her about a project we're working on together," she said cheerfully.
"Oh? Lenka hasn't mentioned any school projects to me," Tei said curiously.
"Well, we just found out about the project today, so I guess she hasn't gotten a chance to tell you about it yet."
"Hmm..." Tei pressed her lips together as she stared at Miku. "I've been thinking it's about time we move again," she said slowly. Miku blinked.
"Move? Why should you move?"
"Oh, I think this place is getting kind of stale, that's all."
"But, if you do that, Lenka will be lonely again." Miku realized a second after the sentence left her mouth that it was probably a really bad idea to say that. Tei's eyes narrowed.
"Lonely? My daughter has never felt lonely. She has me, and surely that's all she needs." She stood up and started walking towards Miku, her dull red eyes fixed on the younger girl's wide green ones. "I think you're a very nosy little girl. Maybe it's time you leave."
She suddenly sprang on Miku, her hands wrapping tightly around the younger girl's throat as she knocked her to the ground. Miku tried to scream as she struggled against her attacker, but all that came out was a faint rasp. She pulled desperately at Tei's hands, trying to free herself, but it was impossible. Her heartbeat started pounding in her ears as her vision darkened, and the only thought in her head was that she was surely about to die.
"Why on earth is the front door locked?" Lenka muttered to herself as she dug through her bag for her key. She found it and quickly unlocked the door. "Mom, I'm-" She stopped dead when she saw what was going on. Miku was lying on the floor in the middle of the living room, and Tei was sitting on her, strangling her. Before she even realized what she was doing, Lenka dashed across the room and slammed her heavy book-bag into Tei's face with all her strength. She succeeded in knocking Tei back, making the white-haired woman let go of Miku. Lenka dropped her bag as she grabbed Miku and dragged her out from under the older woman.
"Miku? Miku, can you hear me?" She shook the green-haired girl frantically. After a moment, Miku's eyes opened as she took a deep breath, then started coughing in pain.
"What the hell are you doing, Lenka?" Tei growled as she sat up, feeling of her nose gingerly. It was bleeding, and it looked like it might be broken. Lenka grabbed her bag and quickly moved so that she was between Tei and Miku, her wide eyes full of anger as she glared at the woman who had raised her.
"I could ask you the same thing, Mom."
"You know the rules, Lenka. I can't believe you would just break them like that!"
"Like what, huh? By actually talking to someone? I'm not some animal that you can just keep locked up all the time!" Tei got to her feet, reaching with one hand for the knife she always kept in her pocket.
"I tried to raise you with love, Lenka. My way may not be conventional, but it is my decision."
"LOVE? Love is not cutting someone when they disagree with you! Love is not banning someone from having friends! This is NOT love, it's abuse!" All the years of pent-up frustration and anger had finally pushed Lenka to her breaking point, and she was literally screaming at the woman responsible for her situation. Tei flinched back like she had been slapped.
"I'm sorry if you feel that way, but you'll understand my reasons eventually. Now move, sweetie."
"Make me," Lenka growled. Tei let out a low snarl and lunged towards the blond, the open knife held tightly in one hand. Lenka managed to avoid the blade and swung her heavy bag, hitting Tei in the chest and knocking her to the ground.
"Run!" she yelled as she grabbed the Miku's arm and hauled her to her feet. The other girl's brain jumped into overdrive and she took off like a racehorse, leaving Lenka behind again as she fled the house. Miku jumped down the stairs and dashed across the yard. As she darted into the street she heard a heavy thud behind her, closely followed by a short scream. She tripped and fell, letting out a cry of pain as her hands and knees hit the asphalt, and as she tried to get back up she felt someone grab her arm.
"NO! NO! LET ME GO!" she screamed.
"Miku, it's me!" She whipped around and saw the person who had grabbed her.
"Lenka..." she panted.
"It's okay, Miku. It's all over now," Lenka said quietly.
"What?"
"She's dead." Miku's eyes widened, then she turned to look back at the house. Tei was laying on the ground in front of the porch, facedown and still. Miku stared at her for a few seconds, her eyes wide, then she looked at Lenka. The green-haired girl's eyes suddenly filled with tears. She buried her face in Lenka's chest, her entire body shaking with sudden sobs. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!"
"What are you sorry for?" Lenka asked as she grabbed Miku's shoulders and pushed her back.
"I abandoned you with her," Miku sobbed.
"You don't have to apologize for that, you were protecting yourself. If anything, I should thank you. She's gone now because of this." For a moment Lenka was quiet, then her own eyes filled with tears as the shock set in. The realization of what all had happened in just a few minutes was simply too much for her already strained emotions. Her strange calmness disappeared as she started crying as well.
Lenka stared at the tile floor under her feet. She was sitting in an interrogation room at the police station. She wasn't really how she had gotten there, or how long she had been there. She vaguely remembered someone (one of her neighbors, perhaps) finding her and Miku sitting out in the middle of the road, crying. The person had gathered enough of the story to decide that the girls needed to go to the police station, and had taken them there. Then she had somehow ended up in an interrogation room, explaining almost her entire life to two cops. She had told them what had happened when Miku ran out of the house, how she had chased after Tei, and tackled her off the porch, causing the white-haired woman to land on her own knife. She had shown them the scars the older woman had given her, seen the way their eyes watched her as they listened. And now here she was, all alone and worrying about where Miku was.
She couldn't believe how much her life had changed in just three days. Everything felt surreal, almost like she was just a spectator watching a play go on around her. In her detached state, the thought that she was probably still in shock slowly drifted through her mind. The door opened, drawing her attention to it. Miku stepped through, and Lenka found herself smiling in relief. The green-haired girl was holding a folder in one hand, and Lenka looked at it curiously.
"Hey, are you all right?" Miku asked softly.
"Yeah, I'm fine. What's that?" Lenka said. Miku pouted.
"Dang, I can't get anything past you." She opened the folder. "I asked one of the officers to help look something up for me after they were done interrogating me," she explained quickly. Then she looked down at the papers inside the folder. "'Missing - Lenka Kagamine. She was last seen playing in the yard in front of her house. She has blond hair and green eyes, and is two years old. If you see this child please call...'" her voice trailed off as she looked up at Lenka. The blond was staring at her with wide eyes, her mouth trembling slightly. "There's a picture of her, too," Miku said as she showed Lenka the paper. It was a missing person flier, the kind the police post at places where people are most likely to see them. Lenka stared at the picture with wide eyes.
"Why are you showing me this?" she asked in a shaky voice.
"Look at the date on it, Lenka. You would have been two years old at the time she disappeared." Lenka blinked slowly, then she started shaking all over. "I also got them to do some more digging, and there is no record of a Lenka Sukone ever being born, or of Tei giving birth at all. She isn't your real mom."
"What did you say that girl's name was?" Lenka asked.
"Lenka Kagamine. She has a twin brother, and two cousins that she played with every day. They would really like to see her again."
The days that followed seemed to both fly by and drag for Lenka. She was so lost in all that was going on that she couldn't make heads or tails of anything. She got the idea that they were calling Tei's death an accident, so she wouldn't be charged for it. She also vaguely understood that the Kagamines were flying from wherever they lived to meet her.
Finally, the day arrived when she would see them. She stood in the lobby of the airport, holding onto her bag with one hand, and Miku's hand with the other. Miku had lost the feeling in her fingers several minutes ago, but she didn't complain. She knew that the other girl was nervous, and part of her was nervous for her. Lenka's hair was still very short, and with it pulled up in a ponytail she resembled the little girl on the missing person poster even more. Miku scanned the people around them, ignoring the ones that gave her curious looks as she rolled up on her tiptoes to scan the crowd. She suddenly spotted a familiar group of blonds, and let out a sharp squeal.
"Look, Lenka! There they are!" The green-haired girl started jumping and waving her free arm to catch their attention, and she saw them start heading towards the two girls.
"Where are they, I can't see them," Lenka complained. She was a little bit shorter than Miku, a fact that did not matter until moments like this. She suddenly spotted the group a few yards in front of her as they reached the edge of a small crowd. She let out a small gasp as she squeezed Miku's hand even tighter (which Miku had not thought was even possible). Then Lenka suddenly took off, dragging a very surprised Miku with her. She stopped just a few feet from the group, her eyes wide. She stared at them as they stared at her.
There were two identical men, both with bright blond hair. She also saw two women, one with dark hair, and the other with pure white hair. Then she noticed the two blond teenagers, both of whom strongly resembled each other and her. A third teenager suddenly shoved his way between them, and for a second he just looked at Lenka with wide eyes.
"Sis?" he asked.
"Are you Rinto?" she asked back. The boy suddenly grabbed her in a big bear hug that literally lifted her feet off of the floor. Then the two of them were knocked to the floor by the other teenagers' sudden tackle-hug.
"LENKAAAAAAAA!" They both squealed. Lenka found herself laughing even as she tried to push them off.
"You guys are crushing me! Get off!" She and Rinto finally managed to shove them off, and then all four of them stayed sitting on the floor as they introduced themselves.
"I'm Rin," the other girl chirped, "This is Len, and that's Rinto. We all share the last name Kagamine because our dads were identical twins. Len and I are your cousins. Oh, and-" She swerved around to point at one of the men, "That's your dad," she then pointed at the white-haired woman. "This is your mom." Lenka felt her eyes widen as she looked up at her real mother. With her white hair and red eyes, the woman very strongly resembled Tei. "Aunt Haku, come say hi to Lenka!" Rin said. Haku hesitantly approached the group.
"H-h-hello, Lenka," she said shyly. Lenka stared up at her for a second, then she smiled happily.
"It's nice to meet you, Mom."
"So, we're going to stay here overnight, then in the morning we're heading back home," Rinto explained to Lenka as they ate a dinner of cheeseburgers. "Mom and Dad kept your room just the way you left it after you disappeared, so I guess we're gonna spend the next few weeks redecorating. Unless you actually wanna stay in a two-year-old's room." Lenka frowned as she took a sip of her coke.
"No thanks, that sounds kinda creepy." Rinto chuckled, but Lenka caught his gaze sliding to her arms. She had worn a short-sleeved shirt under her jacket so that she could take the jacket off and let her family get used to the scars. It had already been explained to them what had happened to her while she lived with Tei.
"I'm sorry," Rinto said quietly.
"It isn't your fault," Lenka replied evenly. She looked over at Miku and noticed the sad look on the usually cheerful girl's face. "What's wrong?" Lenka asked as she nudged her friend.
"You'll be leaving tomorrow, and I'll never talk to you again," Miku muttered.
"That's not true. I'll call you as often as I can," Lenka promised. "And Miku, I want to thank you." Miku frowned as she looked up.
"Thank me for what?"
"Changing my life," Lenka said. Miku gave her a bright smile.
"No problem. It wad really fun."
AN - OH MY LORD IT FEELS LIKE IT'S BEEN FOREVER SINCE I POSTED A STORY. (Well, it has been almost two months, and in my world, that is forever.) I just got really busy with stuff.
And I've been working on another story since the end of March, but it turned out way longer than most stuff I write. Now that I've finished it, I'm not sure if I'm gonna post it, because several parts of it gave me a lot of trouble to write and I'm now not pleased with them. WE'LL JUST SEE HOW IT GOES.
Oh, and that song that Lenka and Miku sang was the English version of Hello / How Are You? It's a really awesome dub, and I suggest you go to Youtube and look it up. Like, right now. Look for the version sang by a chick whose name is Madoka - I can't remember the rest.
HAVE A GOOD DAY...YO.