Time passed and Miku became even more popular. She was one of the most popular singers in the world, only behind a couple human singers. Master concluded it would be best to make more in the Vocaloid 2 series. He created Len and Rin, opposite sex twins. They were blonde, short, young. When Master brought them to the mansion Meiko could only think: He keeps making them younger and younger. Master pulled Miku, Kaito, and Meiko aside when he arrived with his new creations.
"Rin's very sweet, although slightly cocky, but I'm sure she'll be just fine fitting in with you guys. It's Len that I'm slightly concerned about. He seems kinda shy. Can you guys just try to welcome him?" Master knew that his creations acted very human, so their mental health was very important to him. Miku assured him with a large smile and hug that both of them would do just fine. Her excited attitude made Kaito laugh.
Len and Rin had rooms next to one another, Len's across from Kaito's. Kaito welcomed Len to come to him whenever he needed him. Len looked up to Kaito, who he called his older brother. Instead of eating or watching television like his sister, Len's free time was spent in the library. Or on special occasions, it was spent reading a book as everyone socialized around the television. Although everyone was very welcoming, he didn't seem to take to socializing.
Rin, on the other hand, was very sociable. Fitting perfectly into the environment. Her and Miku connected immediately, they had that special girl bond Miku longed have with Meiko. That dream was long dead. The two practiced together and they sounded exceptional. Rin also formed a close bond with Kaito. He looked after her like a little sister, which he was beginning to do with a lot of with his family. Rin didn't find herself connecting with Meiko, no one seemed to. Meiko didn't connect with the new members of her family. She would get lunch with Kaito but that was about the end of her social bridge. She even stopped talking to Leon and Lola. It was odd, the way Master had now grouped them and their rooms. The English speaking Vocaloids and the Japanese speaking Vocaloids were separated from one another. As he made more vocaloids these cliques became more defined.
Meiko had a problem: Master just kept making more Vocaloids. He never had time to practice with her, like he originally anticipated. He still made time to see her, but she had to practice with the others (meaning Kaito). The new Vocaloids were all so amazing, they made her nervous. There was one new Vocaloid that Master had made, Luka was her name. She was gorgeous. She was very womanly, a deeper steady voice, confident. She had a lot of Meiko-like qualities. Meiko described Luka as a, "better Meiko," only to herself. It made Meiko feel even more unwanted and inadequate. The popularity of Vocaloid led Master to start doing concerts. The best Vocaloids got to participate, meaning not Meiko. As Kaito, Miku, Len, Rin, and Luka were being attacked by a herd of fans, Meiko was sitting at home. Alone. No one wanted her, and it's not like she had friends. Leon and Lola refused to talk to her. All the English Vocaloids, or Engloids, refused. She was placed in the category of the esteemed Japanese Vocaloids, like the ones at concert. She was an outcast.
Miku. The name brought anxiety and anger and despair into Meiko's thoughts. Although Miku was kind to Meiko, Meiko didn't perceive it as so. Meiko hated Miku with every fiber of her being. Every gear that ticked within her body despised Miku. She didn't trust Miku one bit around Kaito. She felt in her heart that somehow Miku would convince Kaito to leave her. Then she'd be all alone again. Almost as if Kaito was uninstalled. He might as well have been. Miku was her obstacle. Meiko wanted her gone, to have never existed. Master should have never created such a disgusting, vile thing. Miku was good for nothing except to make Meiko's life miserable. Life would be better for Meiko, for everyone.
Meiko had nothing to do. Master was busy writing songs for everyone else. He had no time to write any for her, she didn't perform or record. It's not like she wanted to sing anymore anyway. Kaito was too busy with his own songs and his duets with Miku to practice with her. It seemed like everyone was too busy. Practicing reminded her of the days when things were simpler. When it was just her, Kaito, Leon, and Lola. The days where she could talk with Master for hours without being pushed out from Ai. The days where Kaito was always free at lunch. The days where Miku didn't exist. The days where Vocaloids were so unknown that Kaito would always be by her side, that Master would. The days that were lost. The days she could never have again.
So when she couldn't practice, couldn't perform, wasn't wanted by anyone, she began drinking. Sake mostly. It numbed the pain… the first time. Normally, it made the pain worse. The more I drink, the better I'll feel. Right? Wrong. She found herself drinking before anyone else was awake, drunk by breakfast. She stayed in her room most days, except for the ones where she didn't care about anything anymore. She'd walk into the kitchen, slurred speech, stumbling. She'd open the fridge, knocking over bottles and handling foods in a desperate attempt to find something to eat, something to numb the pain, something to make it all stop.
"Drunk before 10:00am? I guess it's gotta be five somewhere." Len sat solitary on a the sofa near the kitchen. He held a book and chuckled to himself. Never once looking at the drunk making a fool of herself. Meiko felt self conscious, too much so to answer. She just headed upstairs with a loaf of bread dangling by her side. It hit her thigh as she fumbled up the stairs. Len finally looked up as she slammed her door. His expression worried.
She would sometimes watch Kaito with the others, when she was sober. She saw the way he laughed as Miku told him about a funny experience she had. His smile. His captivating smile. Every part of him that swallowed Meiko whole. The part that was no longer hers alone, she had to share. The thought of sharing him made her angry. She found herself more and more filled with rage above any other feeling. Kaito, her Kaito, no longer laughed at her jokes but at other's. It was all over for her in the moment she realized that. She didn't know him anymore, not as well as she thought she did. He wasn't hers. Was her story coming to it's end?