Chapter 10

A tingle of syrupy warmth slowly spread from her chest and down to her sweaty, socks enclosed toes. The pounding of Rin's heart was so fast that she wouldn't be surprised if it jumped out of her ribcage and made a run for it. The blonde let a bubble of laughter escaped her lips before clamping a clammy palm on her mouth, after Gumi gave her an elbow to the ribs. And even after that painful jab, her mouth morphed into a cheesy grin and Rin sniggered.

"I'm going to the-"

"Competition. Yes… yes. I know, the cab driver knows, we all know." Gumi waved her free hand for emphasis, while using the other to support her head against the glass window. "Now, can you please something other than repeat that darn phrase again and again? We still have, like an hour before reaching. Maybe just take a break, you know? Have a kitkat…" The green haired girl then readjusted her sleep mask and curled to her side of the cab.

Rin took out her handphone, gazed at the reflective black screen and fiddled with her carefully gelled hair. After it was satisfactory, she drummed her heels on the car floor in impatience before checking the time on Gumi's wrist watch and repeating the cycle again. Once this purposely irritating routine did nothing to attract her friend's attention, Rin resigned to looking at the passing scenery. As they moved through the concrete jungle, the similar buildings that dashed in and out of her vision eventually lulled her to sleep.

"Rin."

"Rinto."

"RINTO!"

The blonde blinked her bleary eyes and raised a hand to swipe, with disgust, at the dried drool from the side of her mouth. "Whaaat.." Rin's words came out in a yawn and she stretched her arms in the cramped space of the cab.

"Rin. We are here and there are cameras and photographers and everything that can and will broadcast your ugly mug in any form of media to the world, right outside our car. So, I swear if you don't wake up properly and make yourself presentable as Rinto, your career is gone as far as I'm concerned. Get. Up. Right. Now." Gumi whispered harshly, her fingernails digging into the car's seat.

Rin felt as though a lightning bolt struck her, any form of tiredness that previously lingered had vanished. She grabbed the wet tissue offered by Gumi and furiously swabbed at her face, hoping that this pathetically semi-moist tissue could miraculously save her current appearance. Knowing that this was practically a lost cause and realizing the gravity of the situation, Rin knew that going out of the car late would incur a worse impression than having a disheveled appearance.

She breathed in and before the anxiousness could set in, Rinto opened the door and stepped on the cement with newfound confidence. She had a sheepish smile. "I didn't realize that I would receive such a warm welcome."

As Gumi hesitantly got out of the car and paid the cab driver, Rin couldn't help but feel that her best friend was exaggerating the amount of paparazzi. Many of them swarmed just before the gates of Crypton Concert Hall, probably to capture early shoots of the upcoming program. They were not at the volume that Rin was accustomed to at the peak of her career, however the camera flashes and the whole pizzazz did seem like an awful lot to a newbie like Gumi. Rin stepped closer to Gumi's side, hoping that this would give her a little reassurance.

A woman standing next to the intimidating closed gates of Crypton Concert Hall. She tapped one heeled boot with slight restlessness. Her dressing was formal, shoulders covered by a thin striped jacket that only allowed the dull blue bottom of her dress to peek out; a great contrast when her bright pink hair was childishly curled up into two twin drills. Magenta eyes narrowed in condescension as she lifted herself from the metallic gates that she was leaning on, and made her way to the blonde.

"Rinto Akira?" She spoke the name as if it was greek, slowly drawing it out with a slight muffle at the "kira" syllable.

"Yeap." Rin gave an awkward laugh and extended her hand, "And you are?"

The woman gave the hint of a frown at the thought of shaking Rin's hand before fishing out a small card out of her leather handbag and then peering at her smart-looking wrist watch. "There's no time, I'll introduce myself as we process your registration and assign you to the respective waiting room."

Apparently the 'respective waiting room' was this large, dull and pretentious storeroom that was a poor excuse of a waiting room. It's previously white walls had long turned yellow, with a strange moist patch in one corner of the room. A single lightbulb hung precariously from the ceiling and swayed ever so slightly when one of the teenage girls inside it let out a piercing squeal.

Rinto let out a grumble and sat down on the thinning carpet. She got herself into the most comfortable position that she could and waited for time to pass, wishing that she'd brought a book to read. All phones had been confiscated before she had entered the room and now there was nothing to entertain her until the green light had been given to go on stage. Gumi wasn't allowed in the room due to 'security reasons', but Rin thought it more plausible that Crypton Concert Hall wished to hide any trace of this terrible room and lessen the pairs of eyes that could lead to gossip and further damage the reputation of the reputable Crypton Concert Hall. It was a better theory than that 'security reasons' bullcrap.

"Go on Rinto! Even if I can't be with you, my heart will!" Gumi screamed her throat hoarse as she struggled against the burly security guard which then having enough of her nonsense, picked her up and carried the screeching animal out.

Rinto smiled at this recent memory, which then immediately disintegrated at the sound of excitable girly chatter.

"I heard Len is going to come tonight!"

"Ohh! Maybe he'll visit the waiting rooms!"

"Oh my gosh i will positively die."

As a result, there was no best friend to help her cope with this essential Len Kagamine craziness. Rin looked around the small room. Most of the competitors were teenage girls, while a small portion were grown women, there were hardly any males at all. Her mouth soured and her lips puckered up into a frown. How was she going to survive this crisis? The blonde let out a small sigh and leaned her head against the wall. Unexpectedly, she heard a few muffled mutters going on from the hallway. Although she couldn't catch much, the tone was of fury and resentment. Rin's eyes widened as she then adjusted her position to enable a better hearing position, this intriguing conversation was a better distraction than the endless cycle of females gushing into her ear.

"But, I don't want to.."

She closed her eyes and blocked her other ear with her free hand. Those mummers had started to make sense.

"It's just for some fan service. Besides think about how happy those girls would be to see-"

"What about my happiness?"

There was a period of silence and Rin wondered if her hearing had gotten worse suddenly or that the people had walked away mid-conversation. Suddenly, there was a loud outburst of, "FINE!", which nearly made her lose her balance in shock. Rin jerked away from the peeling wall and innocently changed to sitting cross-legged.

The door creaked open slowly; a messy head of blond hair which was pulled back into a small ponytail, sharp cyan eyes that narrowed slightly in possible disgust before elapsing into bright and welcoming. He showed his set of pearly whites in a dashing smile and gave a casual wink to the crowd of girls. A burly man accompanied him, clearly to separate the drooling contestants away from the star.

"Hello, I'm Len Kagamine. Thank you all for your wondrous audition tapes. I'm so glad to finally meet all these talented people." His friendly, yet demanding gaze passed through the crowd of faces. But Rin felt as though something was amiss when Len's eyes flitted past the people around her, and still managed to settle several seconds of unnecessary eye contact. It was a mixture of anticipation and fear which made her skin feel as though it had been ignited.

Very thrilling indeed.

"Soon, you will be up on stage. I wish you all the best for the performance." Len gave a cheery grin and waved to the little crowd. Some of which, waved back. Right before he shut the door, the teenage boy swiftly turned, took out a rose, kissed it and tossed it over the crowd. Dozens of hands reached out to grab it, nails clawing at air desperately. The desired object gracefully flew high in the air, tempting all to grasp at it and fail miserably. The plain rose slipped past the dozen women and landed on a white haired girl's lap.

Rin wanted to let out a snort. The most prized possession had been given to the crowd's most uninterested member; one who had not even the decency to stand up to see what was causing all the racket or even to acknowledge Len Kagamine's arrival.

It was far too hilarious.

However, the feeling of a knife being plunged into her stomach and twisted made her want to hurl. She stopped laughing, pursing her lips. Rin knew that somehow, somewhere during this commotion, that Len Kagamine had stared directly into her eyes, smirked and closed the door.

What was that all about?

Rin froze.

She felt her heart race and swiped her sweaty palms on her jeans. Was it possible that he discovered that she was actually a girl? And if he did, could he kick her out? Was it an instant disqualification if the information on the submitted profile was incorrect? What would she do if she did? There's no way she could afford to lose-

Rin shook her head, trying to clear those rapidly increasing, dubious thoughts from her mind. She needed to go on stage in half an hour, this sort of negativity would not do her any good. The blonde let out a quick breath and tried to compose herself. She closed her eyes, thinking back rationally.

There was currently no way that Len could have known anything from just this brief encounter. She was standing at a far back corner, while he at the door. They were miles apart! Besides, there were so many people surrounding him; how was she to judge if that measly smirk was meant for her and her only. She didn't have a large neon signboard pointing to her head, screaming "GIVE ME ATTENTION LEN KAGAMINE! I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN!" There were other girls who already did that.

Also, this poorly-thought-out-curling-of-the-lip was not one which whispered, "I know your identity. You're a vulnerable teenage girl." But rather one will give with a haughty laugh while sneering, "Just try and top that. We all know that you can't." However, there was no specific explanation to why Len Kagamine would view Rinto Akira as well... a rival. So that theory was a flop.

In a nutshell, Len Kagamine's smirk was just a result of Rin's poor imagination working overtime and his sleek smile only seemed like it because of his sharp turn to close the door. Most likely due to her being so excited about going back on stage again after so many years.

Yep.

No other reasonable justification.

Clearly not because of-

Rin's train of thought was broken by the angry screeching of birds, except that the source came from the mouth of an enraged girl. Eyes following the origin of the lovely din, she found a gang of participants huddling at the back of the room. After standing up for closer inspection, female competitors had surrounded the Rose Maiden, who clearly looked as if she did not give two shits over their jeering. In fact, she was still playing with the rose stalk, letting it twist and turn between two fingers. Blue eyes soft and bored.

One tall girl, unsatisfied with the effect of her torment, reached down and snatched the rose away from her fingers. The Rose Maiden seemed stunned and looked blankly at her empty hand. Rin was willing to turn a blind eye. It was none of her business and gaining everyone's attention now might be disadvantageous in later stages.

Although she decided not to get involved, Rin could not help but observe the commotion that unfolded. The Rose Maiden got up and angrily berated the gang while the tall girl stood smugly. Soon that proud face turned red after hearing her insults, the tall girl started to retort. It was all fine until the tall girl raised her hand and-

"Ladies, ladies, ladies. We've but 15 minutes left to the starting of the show. Please don't cause unnecessary conflict. Besides if Len Kagamine were to suddenly step in and see this brawl happening…" Rin found herself dashing across the room, lightly grabbing the tall girl's arm and serenading the gang into ending this conflict. She internally cringed at this impulsive decision but for some reason, she could not stand to see girls fighting and wounding each other over some stupid starlet who would never look their way. The blonde peered at the gang of furious women with increasing sympathy; it was all Len Kagamine's fault.

"He would never see this!" The tall girl withdrew her hand forcefully. "He won't come to see us…" She then added with less confidence.

"How would you know?" Rin garbled, "He came in a few minutes ago." She knew these few words could not ensure that no fights broke out in the future and hence went for the bullshit. "Probably drawn by all of your beautiful faces and voices." The blond gestured to the women with a charming smile, hoping that these flattering words worked.

"Really?" There were some convinced among the girls.

Rin ruffled her hair and emplaced a bashful look. With a voice that was loud enough to be heard, yet soft enough to be mistaken for one accidentally speaking their thoughts aloud, she spoke.

"I mean, I would."

A few women giggled and some broke off from the group. The tall girl looked slightly indignant but mostly satisfied by the blonde. "A-alright. But just remember girl," She jabbed a finger at the Rose Maiden who stared sternly back, "I'll let you off because he asked me to. So I better not ever hear of you digging your nails into Len-len." She gave a huff before clutching the weakly looking rose and stalking off to the other side. Along with the finishing situation, all of the gang slowly dispersed, leaving Rin and the Rose Maiden alone.

Rin thought that a grateful smile would be a great gift for your benefactor, however the Rose Maiden seemed more furious than relieved. The blonde crossed her arms and cleared her throat, "Aren't you going to thank me?"

The Rose Maiden bit her lip and looked defiantly at her. "I'm not going to thank a disheveled boy who has a bed head." She swept her white tresses behind her shoulder with vigor, not lifting her stare from Rin.

"Okay, nevermind." The blonde gave an awkward laugh, sensing the disturbed air a little too late. Rin planned to retreat back into her previous sitting when she realised that it had already been occupied. There was no choice but to stand next to the angry, ungrateful missy. She internally shuddered and gave a tired sigh after glancing back to the Rose Maiden.

I shouldn't have meddled in this.

Rin continued this uncomfortable silence until the announcement fortunately notified the first competitor to make his way on stage. She instantly forgot about the Rose Maiden and felt fire fuel her veins, slowly inching up to her neck. Her body shook with newfound excitement.

She could not wait to be back on stage.

She could not wait for the spotlight to be back on her.

She could not wait to become Rinto Akira and finally make Len Kagamine reap the seedlings he'd first sown when he chose to replace her.

Hello there dear readers (if there are any), I apologise for the very delayed posting of new chapters but sadly, you will have to get used to it. Hahaha I won't be able to post until I have holidays which is most likely, the end of this year. But when i do, I promise to (maybe) finish this fanfiction finaLLY. I'll try my best.

Have my condolences,

-Marimosaber