Chapter One: The New School Term Begins!
~RIN KAGAMINE'S POINT OF VIEW~
To me, Len Kagamine …
… Is really cute.
His soft, blonde hair, the way his blue eyes light up when he laughs, the rich, merry sound of his laughter, his fair skin.
Of course, I wasn't the only girl crushing on him. A lot of the girls have a crush on him and many have confessed, but all claimed to be rejected by him, even the school's prettiest, Nakamuri Tsukima, and said that Len, himself, said that his heart belonged to someone else.
I glanced down to my tabletop, my eyes downcast, a bird eagerly fluttering around in my chest when I thought about him. Our golden looks were the same and we both received an equal amount of adoration.
Thock.
A girl quickly came up to Len, placing something on his desk. Peering behind my shoulder, I could see that it was chocolates.
St. Valentine's day is today, right…?
I has remembered and even prepared chocolate for him…
… But it would be useless. He probably doesn't even know I exist…
The way his eyelashes droop over his eyes, casting a slight shadow in his brilliant, deep blue eyes, the way his mouth tilted upward cutely in a smile.
At the same time, our eyes met.
I blushed hard, and glanced down. A second later, I could hear the skritch of the chair scraping across the ground behind me. Soon, Len was beside me.
"Hello!" He said, grinning. "You're new here, right? You just transferred over a month ago?"
"U-Um, yeah. But that's not really new." I stammered, feeling my blush creeping up to my cheeks again. Len's smile deepened.
"You prepared any special chocolates for your special someone?" He asked. I sighed, shaking my head, ruffling my hair slightly in a frustrated notion.
"Guys love running from me."
"Not true, from what I hear."
"Maybe, but… Oh, well. I prepared a box of chocolates, but I've got no one to talk to. Maybe I'd eat it myself." I tilted my head backward just slightly, my lips falling open, my eyes half-closed.
"I'm Rin Kagamine, sorry for the late introduction, I forgot. Excuse my rude manners," I said, smiling, offering my hand.
"Len Kagamine."
"Hm? Ah!" I realized something I was too stupid during my month here. "Our surnames are exactly the same! Are we related?"
"No," Len said, tilting his head to the side. "I would've known I was related to such a stunningly attractive girl."
I blushed harder.
"E-Eto, Len," I said, stammering, pulling out the box of chocolate I hid in my pocket. "Here, it's for you."
"For me?" He said, caught off guard, his eyebrows raised. "I thought you said…"
"U-Um."
Len laughed.
"From now on, let's be best friends, 'Kay?"
"Deal!"
Two years later.
"L-Len! I like you!" I said, my head bowed, my cheeks blazing. "I know that we've been best friends, but I really, really like you! Ever since I entered the school, I have been admiring you from afar…"
Len sounded surprised. "Rin…?"
I kept my head bowed, waiting for his reply.
"Sorry… I like someone else."
The tips of my fingers went cold. My heart went cold and stopped beating. I looked up, my eyes wide and full of tears, white-hot and overwhelming, but not spilling over.
"R-Really…? Who…?"
"Luka Megurine-sempai…"
The super gorgeous senior, with her icy nonchalance and effortless work, always able to sail to the top without blinking an eye…
I can't compete with her.
I hated people seeing me cry. Even my family. Anyone. I kept the tears in, smiling and laughing.
"Okay! Megurine-sempai is really pretty. M… May it work o-out for you…" I managed a weak smile before quickly turning around then letting the tears fall.
My world would end.
~Len Kagamine's point of view~
I watched Rin turn, bursting into tears.
I knew I had fallen for her the day she entered our classroom. The way her blue eyes lit up cutely when she was happy, her dazzling smile, her cheerfulness and cuteness.
Softly, I whispered. "I'm sorry, Rin…I don't like Megurine-sempai. I don't like you; I love you. But… I can't say it. I've promised Lily when she was down with cancer… I'm so sorry, Rin."
Lily's dead, Len, a small voice sounded from a side of my head.
But I promised her, on that day, that I'd keep loving her, no matter what.
Did she ask you to do that? On the contrary, did she ask you to forget her, if she died? The small voice continued.
I sighed, turned and ignored the small voice, watching the sakura petals slowly sink down to the ground from the trees beautifully, sadly.
~A week later~
We stopped talking to each other.
Rin got a boyfriend, out of a sudden, a week after her confession. Rin never seemed as energetic in school anymore, just walking by, staring at the ground, and not particularly saying anything. I even heard one of my friends say that she was bullied by her new boyfriend. The evidence was in the injuries Rin always had everyday.
It pierced my heart to see her smile, but not smile genuinely. It seemed like she lost her spirit the moment I rejected her. I hated what I had done to her.
Night after night, day after day, I beat myself up over hurting her so badly.
If only I could turn the hands of time back again, and set everything right. Make her happier. More full with life. Rin, I love you, smiling beautifully, so full of life, so happy-go-lucky… If only… If only…
I walked out of school, greeting friends, and then walked down the road home distractedly.
Distracted, I suddenly realized I had walked into a deserted alley. At a corner, I saw Rin surrounded by a bunch of hooligans hollering and laughing, and amongst them was her boyfriend.
"Come on Rin!" Her boyfriend, Keisuke, laughed. "Just do it for me, okay, RinRin?"
Rin looked terrified. Her hands were shaking, her eyes were wide.
"Keisuke…!" She said. Neither of them noticed me, but I could hear them clearly. At her tone and shaking hands, I started to get very angry.
They were terrifying Rin.
"C'mon… Just once? For all of us?" Keisuke walked up to her and pinned her wrists above her head with his hands. Rin trembled again, her eyes widening a bit more, with fear.
"Keisuke, please, no…"
"C'mon? Please? For me this time. For me."
Rin shook her head firmly again.
Keisuke's pleads turned to insults.
"Slut!"
His eyes flashed angrily and he clenched his fist as he punched her in the stomach, then slapped her.
Tears formed in her eyes. "Keisuke, I thought you said you loved me."
"It was a lie!" He yelled, laughing, taunting her. "Just like how that guy you liked didn't like you at all. I don't like you either. You're too stubborn, too stupid, too trusting, and too gullible."
My heart stopped.
I could see that it was a double low hit for Rin. The pain on her face sharpened.
That was it.
I hit Keisuke, sending him sprawling onto the ground.
"Don't ever speak to Rin like that!" I yelled, punching him several times. "Don't you dare touch her!" I punched the other guys that got in my way and soon, they all scrambled, dragging Keisuke along.
Rin slid to the floor, crumpling inward, continuing in her silent misery. Tears quietly dripped from her eyes as she kept her hand on her cheek, wrapping her other arm around her waist.
It killed me to see her suffer so quietly like this.
Were you always suffering alone, Rin…?
I touched her cheek gently. "Rin…"
"Don't say anything. I don't … want to hear it."
"Rin, listen to me!"
"No! No! No!" She slapped my hand from her cheek. "Don't say anything! You just helped me because that's the way you are."
With this, she stood up and ran.
"Damn it, Rin…!"
I chased after her, but she ran quickly. People passing by stared at us.
"Rin! Wait!"
"No!"
We ran across the road, while the cars stopped. Rin ran faster than ever and easily reached the pavement while I was still in the middle of the road.
Rin stopped to catch her breath and glanced behind her shoulder once to look at me, just the way she had done so on the first day we became friends.
Her blue eyes suddenly widened.
"Len! Watch out!"
I saw her running toward me this time, grabbing my cold hand with her warm one and pulling me backward, but falling forward instead.
I ended up on the pavement, and I turned around just to see Rin being knocked down by a sleek black car, being in the position where I had once been.
She lay on the ground, broken, delicate, blood streaming from her seifuku. Her eyes were still half-opened, filled with tears. I stood rooted to the ground as she smiled weakly to me. I ran to her side, my heart beating faster, my hands going completely cold, my blood frozen.
"Len..." She said softly when I reached her side. "I'll be fine."
I clutched her hand to my cheek, crying steadily.
"Guys don't cry," Rin said, laughing weakly.
"Rin…" I told her, softly kissing her hand. In the background, I heard an ambulance. "I love …"
Suddenly, her hand went slack in mine. I glanced down to see her eyes closed.
"Rin! Rin!"
A single tear rolled down her cheek, as she quietly whispered, "I love you, Len, no one else…"
Her hand slipped from mine.
I never got to finish my sentence earlier.
"Rin!" I pressed my hand to her chest.
Her heart was still beating, but barely.
I looked up frantically to see the ambulance pull to a stop. Paramedics rushed out with a stretcher for Rin, and I kept to her side until to the operating room.
"Stay here, please," The doctor instructed, and I did as he ordered me to. Anxiously, I got up and paced about, then decided to dial her friends, not the over-protective, controlling and unreasonable parents Rin told me about.
"Neru? I'm Len. Call the others. I'm at Keisu Hospital. Rin was knocked down by a car."
"Got it." Already, Neru's voice was full of panic and worry, and I could hear her running down the hallway, yelling their names.
I hung up and sank down into a seat, clutching my head.
Rin, Rin, Rin…
Rin…
I promise to you… I'll tell the truth from now on. Please, God, don't take Rin away. Please. I promise… I would do anything. I would. Even if it means… forgetting … Lily … I love Rin like I've never loved Lily. Lily was delicate, polite, precious, pretty… Rin is her exact opposite. I love Rin so, so much… Because of her personality, not her looks.
Please don't take her away from me like you took Lily from me. Please, God.
Half an hour later, all of Rin's closest friends were trampling down the hallway, disturbing the peace of the hospital. I yanked my head up to see everyone's worried faces; Kaito, Miku, Teto, Ted, Haku, Dell, Gumi, Gumiya, Mikuo, Meiko, Luka and Gakupo.
I could bet that my eyes were red from crying and that I still was.
Instantly, Miku sat to my side, patting my head, hugging me, whispering assurances. She was the only one who knew about my true feelings for Rin.
Teto sat on my other side. I could see that both of them were crying, too.
Kaito paced about, Haku and Dell kept staring at the clock, Gumi and Gumiya kept fidgeting around, Mikuo and Meiko kept staring tensely at the door of the operation, Luka and Gakupo kept whispering in hushed tones and Teto, Ted and Miku were sitting with me quietly.
About two hours later, the doors swung open. Everyone jumped up and ran to the doctor.
"How is she?"
"Is RinRin fine?"
"Is she alright?"
The doctor seemed overwhelmed. Taking off his glasses and wiping the lens with the sleeve of his shirt, his face was solemn.
"The operation was a big success."
Everyone heaved a sigh of relief; their beloved friend had danced with death and won.
"But she may have a loss of memory. She hit her head quite hard. There is a very high chance she might have lost her ability to do normal things, like talk or dress herself or eat herself, just like a newborn baby. She hit a major part of her brain."
My blood turned to ice.
"I-Is there any chance it may not affect her at all?" I asked, stammering.
"10 percent of it not affecting her."
I stopped breathing.
Everyone else gasped when they heard this; it came to them as a huge shock. `They didn't know what to say, what to do.
"Can we go see her?"
"Sure. She's awake now…"
Everyone slowly walked to the room the doctor pointed at, no one talking at all.
"What would happen to Rin…?" Miku said, sadly.
"We'll have to help her, of course," Came my certain reply.
We reached the door of Rin's room. Slowly, I pushed it open, peering around it.
Kachak…
The door clicked shut.
We saw Rin sitting up in her bed, bandages tied around her head, staring out the open window, as though fascinated by something outside.
"Rin…?" Miku asked hesitantly. Rin's head whipped around to see Miku.
She smiled broadly when Miku approached her and tugged on Miku's arm warmer. "Miku!"
"Rin, do you know who I am?"
Rin nodded.
"Tell me your name?"
"Don't you know? I'm Rin, silly!" Rin giggled.
Slowly, I approached her. "Rin? Rin… Do you know who I am?" I asked her, brushing her cheek with my fingertips.
Immediately, Rin shook her head and blushed. "W… Who are you?"
My heart stilled.
No.
It couldn't be.
"Don't you remember me, Rin…?"
"Nup! Have we met somewhere before?"
Rin wore a complete look of bewilderment and confusion.
"I'm sorry; I don't remember seeing you before."
"I… My name's Len Kagamine."
Her blue eyes lit up. "Hey, our surnames match!"
I grinned hollowly, feeling like someone punched me. "I know we're not related, I would've known that I was related to such a pretty girl."
I disregarded the fact that a tear was rolling down my cheek.
The rest stood quietly by, watching us, not moving, not saying anything. Then, Luka moved forward.
"R-Remember me, Rin?" She asked.
"Luka-neesan!" Rin grinned. "Hallo, minna-san."
Miku sadly gazed at me.
I glanced down, silently crying.
You didn't take her away from me; you took myself away from her.
I … want to die.
Rin glanced up and stared at me, concern filling her face.
"What? What? Why are you crying…?" Rin asked, reaching out her hand. She wiped off a tear from my cheek.
I smiled, kissing her hand, making her blush.
"From now on, let's be best friends, okay?" I repeated my words from the first day we met.
"Deal!"
From then on, everyday was bliss. We were together all day, when we weren't sleeping. We did everything together, just like lovers. We built our friendship up again without her knowing about what happened in the past. Blissfully kept in the dark about the past's events. My love for her continued even deeper, all the way, the bliss didn't even break once for three years.
Until Valentine's Day, when I was the happiest man on earth.
We were in the classroom by ourselves, sitting on the chairs opposite each other, having just finished classroom duty. Suddenly, Rin stood up.
"L…Len!" Rin said, blushing, her head bowed, holding out her chocolates.
"For me…?" I asked, shocked. Slowly, she nodded. I took the chocolates from her with a grin.
"Thanks, Rin."
"L…Len…"
"Mm?"
"D-Do you think I'm cute?"
"No."
Rin gulped and continued to stare at the ground.
"Would it hurt you to see a guy with me?"
Again, indifferently, I answered: "No."
"Do … Do you like me?"
"No…" I answered.
Rin gulped and I could see tears in her eyes.
"Dammit, why do I even care…!" I could hear her mumble, turning her back to me.
I grinned, my heart soaring.
She made a run for the classroom door, but I grabbed her wrist and pulled her down into my lap, wrapping my arms around her waist.
"Rin, I don't think you're cute. I think you're beautiful, beyond words. It would kill me with jealousy to see a guy with you. I don't like you; I love you, a lot. I would, literally, die to see you in the arms of another guy."
By this point, she had buried her face in her hands, blushing uncontrollably and cutely. Slowly, she said into her hands: "You're so corny…"
I removed her hands from her face. "I still love you, no matter what." I pulled her in by her collar and kissed her gently.