A few days passed since Luka had her conversation with Rin. She found it hard not to think about the fact that Miku was in a potentially dangerous relationship. Luckily for Luka, Tuesday came quicker than expected. This was the day she planned to head to the cafeteria and hang out with Miku.
"Please don't let Flower be there..." Luka said to herself as she walked to the cafe.
The place was loud and crowded, with the same old geeks playing their goofy card game and the couples showing their gross affection to each other. Luka was somewhat jealous, but kept going until she found Miku's table. Much to her delight, she was alone.
"Miku!" Luka joined her fellow club member.
"Oh, Luka! Hi there!" Miku greeted Luka with the smile she loved so much.
"How's your day going?" Luka did not sit down, almost afraid to get close to Miku without being awkward.
"Meh," Miku groaned. "Not much to say about it."
"Heh, same here. Say, if you're not busy..." Luka was about to pop a big question. "Do you want to hang out for a bit?"
"Of course! I have a few hours, we can spend them together."
Luka was ecstatic. She would finally be able to be completely alone with Miku. She could not recall the last time she hung out with a crush of hers, so this would be a new experience for her.
"Let's go somewhere else, though," Miku suggested. "This place is a little too noisy."
"Yeah, I agree. Do you have anywhere in mind?"
Miku was happy Luka asked. The twin-tailed girl took Luka by the hand and led her to the Turito College library. Luka was not sure where they were going, but it did not matter, because it was with Miku. After going into the library and climbing the stairs, Miku brought Luka to a row of bookshelves in the far back of the second floor. Behind the bookshelves was a small space, perfect for laying in and staying out of sight. Miku and Luka sat on the floor next to each other and enjoyed the space where they could be alone.
"This is a secret spot that Flower and I found," Miku explained. "Nobody ever goes back here, so we have complete privacy. I'm not a fan of crowds or loud noises, so I like to come here to have some time for myself."
Luka relaxed against the back wall, taking everything in and enjoying her situation.
"By the way, Luka," Miku continued to talk. "Rin told me that Gumi introduced you two. I think it's so sweet that my friends from different parts of life are coming together."
"Yep, Rin's a really nice girl. You picked a good roommate."
"I sure did. I've known Rin and Flower for pretty much my whole life. You and Lily are the first friends I've had in a while that aren't them."
"Speaking of which, Flower isn't here today?" Luka noticed. "She was there with you last time."
"Nope. I think she's mad at me." Miku looked ashamed.
"Why would she be? You're not someone to easily get mad at."
"She told me yesterday that she was sick of 'third-wheeling' with me and Lily. I think it's ridiculous, since I spend so much time with Flower every day, to the point where she even follows me wherever I go. But the moment I start hanging out with someone else, just for a little while, that's not okay. Even if she decides to tag along." Miku realized that she trailed off. "Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to go on a rant or anything."
"No, no, please feel comfortable to do so. It's good that you get it all out, and I'm here to listen." Luka sort of enjoyed seeing Miku get fiery for a moment.
"Thanks. I don't get to talk about my problems often. Flower never leaves me alone."
"Why are you even dating her? She sounds super possessive." Luka asked, not caring if she sounded rude.
Miku backed against the wall and faced forward, as if reminiscing. She then delivered her answer.
"It's not necessarily because I want to," a statement Luka was afraid to hear. "Flower had a serious crush on me when we were kids. One day, she confessed to me, and I didn't want to say yes. Rin didn't want me to, either. But..."
Luka swallowed hard and listened for the continuation.
"She told me she'd kill herself if I didn't date her. Every now and again, she reminds me. Even all these years later."
Luka's jaw dropped. That was one of the most cruel situations she could ever imagine being put in. How could any decent human being make such a demand?
"That's so unfair!" Luka did not believe what she was hearing. "You actually accepted?"
"I know, I sometimes regret it. I'm just too easily swayed..."
"I-I don't want to intrude on your love life, but should you really be marrying this woman? Are you even happy with her?"
"Not really... She's the only girlfriend I've ever had, so I don't know any different."
Luka exhaled and calmed herself. She knew Flower was bad, but hearing it from Miku's mouth was a major bombshell.
"It's sad, though. Someone as amazing as you deserves so much better."
"Aw, stop it, you..." Miku playfully punched Luka in the shoulder. "Anyway, sorry if I'm talking about myself too much. It's kind of mind-blowing to be talking to someone who isn't Flower or Rin."
"Like I said, don't apologize. I want to be someone you can come to about anything." Luka put her hand on top of Miku's. "You can count on me."
"Thank you, Luka," Miku kept her hand under Luka's. "We haven't known each other for long, but something about you is so inviting. I feel like I've known you for most of my life. I trust you."
"Miku... That's exactly how I feel. You have such a strong happy vibe, and I don't know how to explain it, but... I trust you, too."
Luka and Miku shared a quiet smile for a short moment, before Miku took her hand out from under Luka's.
"You know, Luka... You shouldn't be so careless with who you put your trust into." Miku's smile turned into a mischievous grin.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Notice how I brought you to this isolated area, where nobody can see us... Back here, nobody will be able to hear you scream!"
Miku pounced on Luka and tackled her to the floor, getting a shriek out of the pink girl. When Luka looked up and met eyes with the girl leaning above her, the two broke out into laughter. So this was Miku's playful side, which she finally showed to Luka, establishing the ultimate connection of trust. The two knew that this friendship was going to last.
The girls continued chatting for the next few hours, until Miku had to get to her next class. They exchanged phone numbers and bid each other farewell. Luka returned home that night, feeling warmer than she ever had before.
The following day, Luka checked her calendar. The music club had their second meeting that Thursday, which would give Luka the chance to see Miku again. These could turn out to be the best days of her life.
Luka plopped on her bed and cuddled her pillow, as if imagining it as Miku. Even with all the crushes of her past, none of them ever gave her this level of emotion. She wanted to be with Miku, she needed to be with her.
"Miku... Ugh, I love her so much..." Luka mumbled out loud, putting her face into the pillow.
Luka's fantasy was interrupted when her phone rang out the default text ringtone. She slowly turned over to her nightstand and grabbed her phone to see who it was. The text was from a number she did not recognize, and contained a single sentence.
"meet me outside the j building before 8 am tomorrow"
This was weird. Luka did not know the number, and the message lacked much information to go on.
"What is with people and this unnecessary subtlety?" Luka groaned and sent a text back.
"Who is this?"
About a minute later, a new text came through.
"youll find out tomorrow"
For some reason, Luka was disturbed by this. Even though it was over text, she was afraid to continue the conversation. She put her phone down and thought it through.
"Meet me? Tomorrow?" Luka figured it was probably another one of Miku's friends that Gumi tried to set her up with, but for some reason, the text made Luka uncomfortable. The syntax seemed cold and threatening. She tried not to worry about it, since she did not want to ruin her mood. Without another thought about it, Luka went about her day.
The next morning, Luka headed to school with Gumi, as was custom for her now. They were both excited for the upcoming meeting, wondering what plans Lily had for their club. Luka almost forgot about the text she received the previous day, and only remembered it once Gumi left for her class. Luka checked her phone, seeing that the time was 7:32. She had plenty of time to meet this mysterious person.
The J building had two entrances, but the one most people used was the one facing Keredo Street. This is where Luka assumed the message sender wanted to meet her. After standing by the door for a minute or so, she saw a hand around the corner of the building beckon her over. At least, she assumed it was referring to her. She cautiously approached the side of the building, trying to peek around the corner to see who this person was. Before she could make it out, two hands grabbed her and slammed her against the wall.
"Agh!" Luka shouted in pain.
"Don't scream, we don't want the attention." the aggressor holding Luka to the wall demanded.
Luka stared her attacker down, and knew she recognized this person.
"Flower? What are you-"
"Shut up! I know what you've been up to, pinkie. You're sticking your nose where it doesn't belong, and I don't like it. I've already got enough trouble with that Lily, I don't need another one."
Flower pressed the squirming Luka hard against the wall.
"I-I don't know what you're talking about... Please let me go, you're hurting me!"
"Do I look like I care? I don't care if she's in this silly club of yours, I don't want you trying to get with my girlfriend anymore. She's marrying me, and that's final. You can't just come into our lives and try to take her away, who do you think you are?!"
"I don't know, please stop!"
"Are you going to try another slick move on my girl again?"
"No, no! I'm sorry!"
"That's what I thought..." Flower brought her face close to Luka's. "If you know what's good for you, stay away from Miku. She's not yours, and never will be."
Flower released Luka and shoved her to the ground, stomping away without another word. Luka caught herself before hitting the pavement, and called after her.
"That's all you have to say?"
Flower turned back.
"I've made myself perfectly clear. There is nothing left to say."
Once Luka was alone, she shook her head out and tried to comprehend everything. Flower actually threatened her, what would she do now? Telling Miku would likely make matters worse, but letting Miku stay with such a horrible person was also bad. Luka was backed into a corner.
Deep down, Luka was genuinely scared. Not only for her own life, but Miku's too. This happened so suddenly, after things seemed to be going so well. It was too much for her. Luka tried to hold back her tears as she rose to her feet and trudged to class. Today was the one day she wished she had nothing going on.