Chapter Fourteen

If We Were Still in School, then . . .

"Len, you jerk!" Iroha exclaimed, slamming the classroom door open, huffing and puffing as her bag dangled from her arm. She glared viciously at the boy who'd looked to her with an amused grin. Infuriated and ignoring all the gazes on her, she stormed right up to him and opened her mouth to shout louder, but he cut her off before she could.

"Geez, Iroha, you're almost late," he scolded with a heavy sigh, smiling all the while. "What happened to your hair, by the way?"

Iroha hurriedly ran her hand through her knotted hair and snapped, "That's because I had to run here because you snuck out the bathroom window!"

Len tilted his head to the side with that same playful grin. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Iroha."

Iroha felt like she might burst. He was simply unbelievable. Ever since they'd entered middle school, she'd been coming to wake him up for school each morning after discovering that he was unlikely to wake up on time otherwise since his parents both left for work early in the morning. Then, this morning, as she'd been waiting for him, he'd gone into the bathroom and snuck out the window. It wasn't like this was the first time he'd done something like this, either. He just loved to mess with her.

"You're terrible, Len!" she huffed, scowling at him and plopping down into her own seat, which rested next to his. Only then did she notice Rin in the seat behind him, staring at her in shock. Iroha felt herself go beet red. The third day of their first year of high school and she'd already terrified a classmate. She laughed hesitantly and tried kindly, "Sorry, my name's Nekomura Iroha. What's yours?"

"Kagamine Rin," the girl said with a hesitant smile in return. "Nice to meet you."

Iroha cast Len a glare for letting her embarrass herself, but he simply shook it off with a light smile and continued in his conversation with Rin.

"What?" snapped Rin, glaring at Iroha and dragging her out of her thoughts. Iroha jumped. She hadn't noticed that she'd been staring at Rin. Embarrassment faintly coloured her cheeks.

"I was just thinking about when we first met," Iroha remarked, looking away timidly. "Do you remember?"

Rin snorted. "How could I not? You scared the hell out of everyone when you came in shouting like that." She absently picked at a loose thread on her sleeve as she and Iroha waited outside the school gates for Yuki to be let out. "And then there's the rumours about you and Len, of course."

Iroha stuck her tongue out in distaste. She remembered that. Everyone had believed that she and Len were a couple for weeks, as though she'd even consider dating him. Even after that, she was constantly asked if she had any interest in Len, which she most certainly didn't. Childhood friends didn't always fall in love, she'd told them. Not that anyone had listened. "That was a dark time in my life," she muttered, sighing heartily. Silence fell when Rin offered no response, so Iroha questioned, "Are you sure you don't want to go home? I can walk her home myself, and I was planning on taking her to that café."

Rin refused to meet Iroha's gaze as she repeated, "Yuki is my daughter, so it's my responsibility."

Iroha glanced away and smiled. "I see. That's good of you, Rin." Rin merely snorted in response, so silence fell between them. After a moment, Iroha wondered, "How much do you remember about high school, Rin?"

Rin's hand fluttered upward as she daintily pressed her fingertips against the fabric covering her chest. All she said in response was, "Too much."

Iroha knew she should have shut up and let Rin be, but this was the first time she'd managed a genuine conversation out of Rin since Len's death. So, she remarked idly, "I was thinking of getting in contact with Aria again."

Rin barked a dark laugh, her response instantaneous. "I wouldn't bother. She hates me. You were off in America for some conference when she was taking care of me, remember? Well, I said some pretty horrid things to her, things I'd been too cowardly to say before. I probably couldn't repeat them to her even now."

Iroha couldn't help but wonder what she could have said to have angered the ever-friendly Aria, but she kept her mouth shut. "Alright, I won't then."

Rin eyed her cautiously, evidently waiting for her to say something more, but Iroha knew that what she meant was implied. So, Rin continued with, "I don't need you here, Iroha. You can go."

Iroha's breath unintentionally hitched, her amber eyes widening as she looked to Rin. Was she insane? Did she really think she was fine without Iroha now? Bringing Yuki to school once when that was already her responsibility didn't cut it. There was no way Iroha was going to leave when both Rin and Yuki evidently needed her. "You're an idiot, Rin. I'm here for Yuki too, you know."

Rin sighed and cast Iroha a withering look. "I didn't mean like that. I mean right now. I can bring Yuki home by myself."

Iroha's tension faded to embarrassment. Of course. Rin may have stated that Yuki was her daughter, but it wasn't clear if she truly meant it yet. She still needed Iroha, so it was alright for Iroha to stay by her side, right? "Oh. Well, I still want to pick Yuki up, so that's too bad for you."

Rin raised a brow, unimpressed. "You're pretty harsh lately."

Iroha stuck out her tongue like an overgrown child. It was a habit she'd kept from childhood. Len would always tease her and say stupid things, so she'd stick her tongue out at him, even if the strange boy had started playing a game to see if he could catch her tongue after a while. He had, a couple times, but that just made her want to stick her tongue out at him more. "What can I say, Rin? You bring out the best in me, I guess."

And then, to Iroha's shock, the faintest of smiles found its way to Rin's lips. Iroha froze, afraid to move or say anything that might chase away that amused look in Rin's eye. "I wish I could say the same," she remarked dryly, the dark humour in her voice less painful to Iroha's ears as she laid her focus on that smile.

Slowly, Iroha forced out natural-sounding words. "So are you going to cook for us tonight, hm?" She placed a playful smile on her own lips, her eyes sparkling with mirth. It felt a little like high school now, just a little.

Rin smirked and cautioned, "I might accidentally poison you, though. Fair warning." Then, she looked innocently away and stated, "Well, maybe it won't be an accident, but either way."

Iroha laughed with an indignant tone and exclaimed, "You jerk! What have I done?"

"You know what you've done." That smile on Rin's face was truly priceless. Iroha's heart raced as she stared at the other woman, and she wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around Rin and cry out her joys to the heavens. She knew better, though, because, the moment she mentioned it, she was sure that smile of Rin's would slip.

"Care to share, then, because I can't remember a thing," she retorted haughtily, laughing joyously as she stared back at Rin, offering a challenge. Rin grinned in return, looking so much like she used to that Iroha could almost imagine that Len was there, even though he was as far as he could possibly be.

Rin leaned in close to Iroha's face. Iroha was unsure what to do in this proximity, with Rin's blue eyes only inches from her own yellow ones. "You just reek of trouble, Iroha, with that crazy hair of yours."

"Because bright yellow is a very naturally-found colour," Iroha scoffed in response, smiling at Rin.

"Better than pink," volleyed Rin.

Iroha stared back at Rin, refusing to back down despite Rin looming over her. "At least you can tell I'm a girl with my hair. Yours is shorter than a boys'."

Rin gasped in shock and drew back, covering her mouth with a delicate hand. "You're a girl? !"

Iroha let out a cry of amused outrage. "You jerk!"

"Hey, lady!" came a cry that caused both Iroha and Rin to pause in their games to stare at the source. Iroha couldn't help but feel disappointed. It had been going so well. She missed being like this with Rin, or even with Len. She felt a little cheated that her time had been cut short. The source was a little girl with blonde hair sloppily falling from one side ponytail, her yellow eyes blazing with a challenge. "I have a bone to pick with you!"

"What kind of nine-year-old says that?" mumbled Rin, faintly amused as she watched the child come toward her. Iroha cast a glance at the pair of children, Neru and Haku, before focusing her attention on Rin again.

"Neru, stop, please," requested Haku, clinging desperately to the yellow-haired child as she was dragged along. "You're so mean."

"I want to come over and play!" Neru shouted to Rin upon arrival, pointing up at Rin as Haku desperately tried to bring that hand back down. "Invite me!"

Rin raised an eyebrow as she stared down at the child. "And why on earth would I do that?"

"Because I'm Yuki's best friend and I said so!"

Iroha caught a chance to try to bring Rin's playful mood back and piped up, "Actually, Piko is Yuki's best friend. He said so."

Neru scowled deeply, allowing Haku to pull her hand down as she turned her gaze onto Iroha. "Well Piko's a stupidhead." Then, she turned her glare back to Rin, drawing her arm up to point once more as Haku let out a despairing cry. "And you should get her a cellphone, too, so we can text!"

"What's a child going to do with a phone?" Rin questioned. She didn't seem as amused anymore, her smile gone, but she still hadn't fallen into a foul mood.

Neru looked at her like she was an idiot. ". . . Text."

"When I was a kid, we used our imaginations."

"I'm not a kid!"

Iroha smiled when she saw amusement flicker in Rin's eyes, though the smile refused to resurface. "As soon as you can pay for a texting plan, I'll stop calling you a child."

Neru scowled, her only response being a grumbled, "You're a child."

Rin barked a laugh. "Clever."

Neru scowled and was prepared to retort, but Haku interrupted with, "Miss Utatane told us to tell you that Yuki's going to be a little late because she's with Neru's big sister."

"Don't interrupt me!" exclaimed Neru, jumping on Haku as the girl fell to the ground with a screech, pinned down by Neru. Iroha smiled, reminded of doing such things with Len. Even after growing up, they'd continued doing that. She remembered how jealous she'd been the first time he'd done the same thing to Rin.

Iroha paused. If she was remembering that, could Rin be, too? The pain in Rin's gaze when Iroha looked back at her told her that she was, and there was nothing Iroha wanted more than to take her far away from here and hide her from anything that would ever remind her of the past again.