A/N: Another chapter! We're gradually getting out of the exposition/inciting event phase. XD; Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Questioning Len's Fashion Sense

-:-

When Miku had realized that Len, in fact, couldn't see, she had permitted Rin to return him his glasses. Len gladly placed the thick set of square frames back on his nose and was relieved when his sight was clear again. However, as Len started to tuck his shirt back in and button up his blazer, Miku quickly slapped his hands.

"No, no. You have to wear your uniform like that from now on."

"Why?" Len almost whined.

"To be frank, you look a lot better that way." Meiko answered.

"We were going for the 'cool, spicy look.'" Luka looked around at the other members, who nodded along with her.

"But I'm not 'cool' or 'spicy!' Isn't how you look on the inside what really counts anyway?"

"True. Being beautiful on the inside is what counts." Miku began while circling Len, "But don't you think you're showing disrespect for yourself when you don't try to look your best, knowing that you can?"

Len opened his mouth to speak, but closed it shortly after when he couldn't think of a reply. He looked down at his disheveled uniform and flushed, being a little embarrassed. He puckered his lips and looked up from under his glasses.

"Oh, that reminds me," Miku started, perking up, "You have contacts, right?"

-:-

"So? What do you think of our newest member?" Miku chirped, twirling around to face Rin.

The two were on their way from school walking home together. The sky exhibited a deep shade of orange, Rin's favorite color. She was occupied staring at it until her best friend had drawn her away from it. Rin sighed and glanced at a rock they had passed on the side walk.

"Well, he's a guy...so I don't know."

Miku sighed and rolled her eyes, "Rin, not all guys are bad. I mean, did you see that kid? He looked like he couldn't win an arm wrestling match against a three year-old."

Rin chuckled a little and raised her hands, "I'm just saying. You never know with them."

Miku sighed once more and stood next to her friend, "I have to admit, though, I was kind of surprised when you didn't object much to letting him join—considering that it's you and all."

"Well, he's really good at singing."

Miku snickered and elbowed Rin, "But I saw that face when you took his glasses off."

"Stop it, Miku." Rin grunted angrily, only to hear Miku giggle in response.

A silence followed as the two continued along the way. Rin decided to change the atmosphere with a switch in subject.

"So... do you think Kaito's going to be all right?"

"Yeah," Miku replied, "They would have called the hospital if it was really serious. Besides, Meiko would have dragged him back from the afterlife if he died."

The two then laughed in unison.

-:-

Len sighed as he climbed the steps of his condominium, looking up at the orange sky above him. He was absolutely exhausted. The day had proven to be much more difficult than he anticipated. He had gotten far more attention than he had wanted, not to mention there was the worry over the unconscious third year looming in the back of his mind. Approaching his apartment, Len pulled out his keys to pen the door before him.

"I'm home," He called as he flickered the lights on.

Len waited for a moment to see if there was any sort of response. When there wasn't, he closed the door behind him and slipped out of his shoes, seeing that they were the only pair there. He then dragged his feet across the floor until he made it to his room.

After shutting the door, Len leaned back against it and sighed deeply. He stayed there a moment before stepping over to his desk. On his way, he passed his full length mirror and caught his reflection. Len had jumped because he had nearly not recognized it. The appearance that he saw now in comparison to the one he saw that morning were completely different, especially when Len took off his glasses.

He flushed, a little embarrassed, and quickly put his glasses back on. After placing his bag down at the side of his desk, Len took off his blazer and sat in his chair, groaning as if his body was released from a long strain. He then slowly began to smooth down his hair. After a moment of stillness, Len reached for his bag and pulled out his notes that he had taken that day. He had already finished his homework, but he made it a habit to do as many extra problems as he could.

Today was a bit different though, because after a few moments of reading over his notes and solving a few extra problems, Len closed his books and sighed. He then glanced at one of the blank notebooks on his desk. A moment later, he slipped it in front of him and opened it to one of the blank pages.

"Write the lyrics, huh?"

Len looked up at the ceiling, putting the tip of his pencil to the bottom of his lip in thought. Then he began to scribble a thing or two on the blank page, a smile crossing his face.

-:-

Piko hummed as he leisurely entered the classroom, smiling and waving at acquaintances. He made his way to his desk and set his bag on the side. Just as he was taking his seat, he looked at the empty spot next to him.

"Huh... Len's not here yet."

As if on cue, the sliding door to the classroom slammed open. Standing underneath the door frame was a very flustered Len Kagamine, breathing harshly with his usually tidy uniform now a little out of place and his glasses crooked. With a bit of confusion in his eyes, he looked around the classroom to see that everyone was staring straight at him. A shade of red rushed over his cheeks and he quickly slid the door closed behind him and walked toward his seat, trying to ignore the chuckles that rose.

"Morning," Piko sniggered, "That was quite an entrance, Len."

Len flushed, "I-I was running late! I must have just barely made it!"

"Len, class doesn't start for another half-hour."

Len blinked a few times at Piko and then quickly lifted his wrist to look at his watch. He stared intently at it for a few seconds, then slumped back in his chair, sighed, and put his head on his desk.

"Why did you think you were running late?"

Len lifted his head, "Well, I was trying to put in my contacts today, but it was taking much longer than I expected it to. I ended up giving up and when I looked at the clock... I guess I mistook the big hand for the little hand."

"Well that makes me feel a little about myself knowing that a honors student can make those kinds of mistakes!" Piko laughed as Len flushed once more, "Why were you trying to put contacts in?"

"Uh, well..." Len twirled a lock of hair around his finger awkwardly.

He knew that Piko so very desperately wanted to be a part of the Vocaloids. What would he think if he told him that he was recruited in? Or forcefully recruited, rather... Would he be jealous? Would he not want to talk to him anymore? Either way, Len decided to tell Piko the truth.

"The Vocaloids... a-asked me to join... And I have to wear my uniform a certain way. And part of it is no glasses..."

The smile on Piko's face vanished for a bit and Len immediately felt a wave of guilt. Len opened his mouth to say something, but Piko had quickly gained his smile back. Len was both relieved and confused.

"I'm glad!" He grinned, "That means you're fitting in to this school!"

A small, sheepish smile crept across Len's face, "Y-Yeah... And I'm sure one day you'll get in, too!"

Piko grinned a bit wider and nodded. Then curiously, he eyed Len up and down, "If you have to wear your uniform a certain way, then why do you look pretty much the same? Minus looking like a train hit you, that is."

Len looked off absently in one direction and poked his fingers together, "Well... it was just too embarrassing. And I couldn't get the contacts in, so... yeah. I guess I can say that it's a good thing that there are no club activities today."

"Yeah, but Rin, one of the Vocaloids, is in our class. Don't you think she'll—"

"...I'll what?"

Piko and Len both felt like their souls were ripped out of them as they jumped in complete surprise. Len scrambled in his seat until he turned to where the voice had come from. Sure enough, there was Rin standing right behind him.

"H-Hello, Kagamine." Len managed to stutter out.

"You're looking awfully nice in your uniform today." Rin snickered.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry!" Len clapped his hands together and bowed, "Just please don't tell Hatsune, okay?"

Rin folded her arms and stared down on Len. She left him in a moment of silence, seemingly pondering her own thoughs. Rin could have sworn she saw Len's mouth quiver, though. She wondered if she should just walk back to her seat and leave him in torment. However, they were in the same club... she might as well try to get along with him.

"Okay, okay, fine."

Were those tears forming in the corners of his eyes? What a cry baby.

"Th-Thank you, Kagamine!" Len bowed his head, "I promise I will try to wear my uniform differently tomorrow!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." And with a wave of her hand, Rin walked back to her seat.

When Rin had walked away, Len had let out a sigh and turned toward Piko. What he saw was a boy with stars flying all over in his eyes.

"Piko?"

"Wow!" Piko was gaping at Len now, "She talked to us! You must be made of magic or something!"

"Er... I don't think that's the issue, here..."

But for now, at least Len knew he was safe for the day.

Or so he thought...

When the bell for lunch rang, Rin pulled out the bento she had made and walked out of the classroom. She glanced at Len one last time who was being approached by a crowd of boys wanting to hang out with him again. Rin made her way to a classroom a few doors down and peeked inside, seeing a pink head and a tealette.

"Oh, Rin, hi!" Miku called, waving Rin over to have her join her and Luka.

"How's your day so far?" Luka smiled, "Are you doing okay?"

"Yeah. It's just slow today." The blond answered, then changed the subject, "I talked to Len this morning, though."

"Oh?" Miku smiled, interlocking her fingers and resting her chin on them, "So did he wear his uniform differently today?"

"Nope."

Luka nearly choked on the juice she had just swallowed and Miku sighed, letting her head fall to her desk. Rin simply pulled a desk close to them and sat down, opening her bento.

"He said something about being 'too embarrassed' and not being able to put in his contacts." Rin continued, breaking her chop sticks.

"But who in their right mind would want to look that nerdy in this day and age? I mean, even his hair looks like it was pulled out from ten years ago with the way it's parted and greased!" Miku twiddled her fingers with frustration.

"Maybe he just doesn't know what good fashion sense is." Luka sipped another gulp from her juice box.

"Doesn't...know..." Miku stared at something invisible on her desk. Her eyes then slowly widened, "Oh, my gosh... what is his fashion sense outside of that uniform?"

"Beats me. Why should we care?" Rin swallowed a bite of her lunch.

"Don't act like you don't care, Rin, I saw you oogle over him last time!" Miku turned toward Luka as Rin choked on something, "Luka... your skills are still sharp, right?"

"Why yes, they are." Luka replied.

"You know what to do...right?"

"Yes, I do." Luka smiled.

"Do it after school... we don't have club activities today, after all." Miku then lowly began to chuckle and then erupted into a sort of maniacal laugh.

"Miku, stop that." Rin coughed.

-:-

Len stretched after class was finally dismissed for the day, extending his arms as far as he could. Today was actually a bit of a good day, minus the mauling crowd at lunch.

"Hey, Len," Piko called from beside him, "I have something to do after school, so I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

"Yeah, see you tomorrow," Len smiled as he put the last of his notebooks in his bag.

Maybe with no club activities, he could go to the store today... They were running low on groceries. After all, there was a sale going on that day as well. Len grabbed the handle of his bag and quickly got out of the classroom before he could be bothered. While in the hallways, he had to worry about running into Miku, Luka, or Meiko. He didn't truly breathe a sigh of relief until he was off school grounds.

The walk through the city and the ride on the subway was normal enough. Streets were overly crowded and the subway was absolutely packed tight. It wasn't until he approached his neighborhood that he finally got some space to himself. It was also when he couldn't shake the feeling that something was burning into his back. Len stopped for a moment and looked behind him expecting to see someone else walking behind him. Though he soon discovered that he was the only one walking on that sidewalk. Len turned back around and shook his head, shaking the feeling away from him.

Once again, Len unlocked the door to his condo and stepped inside before announcing that he was home. And once again, there was no reply. Len sighed and slipped off his shoes before walking to his room. Instead of sitting at his desk right away, however, he approached his closet as he slipped off his blazer. He pulled out a new set of clothes to wear. After crawling out of his uniform, Len dressed himself and then looked in his mirror, making the final adjustments. With that, he nodded and stepped out to the kitchen, gathered a bit of money from a jar, and was on his way out again. Locking the door behind him, Len made his way down the stairs.

Before he began walking down the street, Len looked around when he thought he heard a violent cough. When he saw no one was there, he turned around, shrugged, and continued on his way.

Luka had covered her mouth after she coughed at the sight of his atrocious wardrobe. She had followed him all this way—she wasn't about to blow her cover. What she saw was a boy wearing a button-up plaid shirt tucked in to some black pants. Combine that with his thick, square framed glasses and neatly combed hair and you get something that may have appeared ten years ago.

"Oh, my gh...wha...ha—" Luka silenced her stuttering when she pulled out her camera and snapping a picture.

A/N: I hope this isn't going too slow... I promise that in the next chapter, things will start picking up! Rin and Len's relationship starts developing... ;)