Author's Note: Welcome back to another of my fics, this time Volume Three of my 'Songs of Muse; Songs for You' series, themed after lily white's single which roughly translates to "I don't know love, Teach me love", featuring Hanayo and Rin.

I have to apologise beforehand. This is the one album that never caught my eye, and the one pairing of characters that barely anyone knows about. I feel I made an utter hash of it unlike my previous works, but I hope you can bear with it till the end. It is also Hanayo-centric so to my Rin fan(s), I'm sorry too. ^^"

Warning: Contains 'spoilers' for previous volumes. Please read 'Love marginal' first if you want the full experience.

Please enjoy.


Chapter 1

"Rin-chan! I have a question! What do you think of me?"

"Kayo-chin? Uhm... we're good friends?"

"Uwehhh?! I'm always by your side but... we're only friends?"

"Of course nya! We're the best friends ever!"

The atmosphere couldn't possibly have been more tense between the two first-years as they walked along under the setting sun.

In all the years they had been together the pair had never been separated for long, but now Hanayo felt an impossibly wide chasm between her and Rin, who walked slightly ahead in utter silence. The catlike girl had been unusually reticent since they left the rooftop and parted with the second-years, as if she had realised she had said something incredibly bad.

But then, that would mean she understood the weight behind Hanayo's question earlier, wouldn't it?

Hanayo bit her lip as she kept her eyes down, looking at the road beneath her. Just one step after another, following in the wake of her best friend. That was how it had always been, right? So why was it so difficult this time round?

The brunette wanted to run away, more than anything else. Perhaps they should just part ways here, although the intersection where they normally split was still a few blocks up ahead.

"Hey, Kayo-chin. Wanna get some ramen together before heading home?"

A quiet question, devoid of its usual energy or verbal tic. Hanayo was startled enough to look up, but Rin was still facing ahead, looking away from her.

Her back had never seemed so far.

"... Okay."


"Tsuru tsuru~" the orange-haired girl was making plenty of noise as she dug into the steaming bowl of ramen placed in front of her. The pair were seated in the ramen store nearest their school, at the counter just across from where the chef bustled away.

The store was a familiar place to the two of them, who often stopped here after practice for dinner before heading home. Almost enough that the chef was starting to know them by name and their favourite foods. It was a pretty quiet evening in the store though, with only a business-man seated alone at the other end of the counter. Well, they did arrive slightly before the dinner crowd after all.

"Rin-chan, slow down or you might choke..." Once again, Hanayo found herself repeating the same words she always did whenever she ate together with her excitable best friend. And of course, her warning was never heeded.

But at least having her favourite food seemed to have restored some life into Rin, who was slurping animatedly with a look of bliss on her face.

With a quiet sigh, Hanayo turned her attention to her own, far smaller bowl of ramen. My words... can't reach her, huh?

Picking up her own chopsticks, she began eating as well. Horribly bland and without taste. But she doubted she would've tasted anything even if she had gotten the deluxe beef ramen set instead.

At least this was a sanctuary of sorts for her, these few moments when they were both busy eating and neither talked. She had a few minutes in which she could sneakily stare at Rin's adorable face, so content with her ramen...

"Hmm? Kayo-chin isn't eating anymore? Do you want Rin to help you finish it?"

"Eeh!" Having been caught staring, Hanayo could only continue eating with her cheeks turning red.

All too fast the ramen was gone, and it was an uncomfortable silence that stretched between the two instead.

Hanayo began prodding her fingers together. What should she do? She couldn't think of any topic to talk about. Though this was the same girl she had spent most of her life up till now with, absolutely everything else just flew out of her mind... But it ended up being the orange-haired girl who broke the silence.

"About your question earlier Kayo-chin, Rin doesn't really know a lot about this kind of stuff."

Hanayo jumped at the chosen topic, blushing furiously. "Ah! No, it's-"

"No, listen. Rin only knows about having fun, sports, that kinda thing. Even being an idol was difficult for Rin, but Kayo-chin wanted to do it, so here we are. But it's been really fun. Every day, learning new songs and dances, all these things wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for Kayo-chin."

The timid girl tilted her head back up, looking into the other girl's eyes for the first time since they stepped they had left the school. Rin had a determined look on her face, absent of the cheer it usually had. Almost as if sensing the tense atmosphere despite facing away from the pair, the chef's clanking of pots dropped audibly in volume.

"But Rin knows a lot about ramen. And rice too, after all this time. And Rin knows that you can't eat both together for the same meal. That's just weird nya, don't you think so too?"

Time stopped for Hanayo while the words and their implied meaning slowly sunk in. Rin-chan thinks we... don't belong together?

"Rin will see you tomorrow morning, okay?"

The automated door chimed as it opened, marking the exit of the orange-haired girl who left without a single look back. A cold wind blew in from outside, dropping the temperature several degrees in an instant before the door closed.

Frozen in her seat, Hanayo could only stare out the glass door, watching her best friend's back fade rapidly into the distance. The world was starting to blur around her.

A thud sounded when a teacup was placed in front of her, steam rising into the cold air.

"Don't take it too hard, kid."

Choking out her thanks, Hanayo felt her tears finally begin to flow.