Diamond Rose

Chapter 34

Silent Snowdome

Miku stepped out of the limousine, feeling rather self-conscious. Flight Records' CEO tended to go overboard with party preparations. The decorations were luxurious to the point where it was ridiculous. Silver tinsel, paper snowflakes, three chandeliers. That wasn't even beginning to cover it. Not only that, a lot of big names were invited. All of the artists signed into Flight Records attended, reporters from various newspapers and magazines were granted entry. Of course, all employees of Flight Records attended. Thus, one really couldn't afford to turn up looking sloppy.

As such, her new stylist (Lenalee was now working in Korea, bickering with Kanda and facing a possible engagement) had shoved her into a tight-fitting dress. It was black, and while the neckline was of decent height, the back was fairly low. At least it was long sleeved, ending in bell sleeves that would undoubtedly cause her some trouble – depending on what she chose to eat that night (which would not be much). It had an empire waistline and a bow was fastened above the skirt – which fell above her knees. She was also wearing black stockings and stilettos. Her hair had been worked with, and she now had extensions so her hair fell to her back. She had kept the purple streaks though.

When she entered, Miku found heads turning in her direction, like all those camera flashes outside had not been enough. Even so, she had been expecting that reaction. Many of her label-mates had sent her emails and texts regarding her relationship, but she had failed to answer in detail. The press had made Lavi's departure seem like such a big deal, and it had been less than a week, so of course, it was still front-page news. I really wish they'd find something else to talk about. Speaking of which, there was her re-debut.

After LaKu was disbanded (there was no choice, after all, Lavi's contract had been terminated – no renewals in sight), Miku set to work, and had a digital single released on Christmas Day. She had barely slept those past few days, and it was miracle that she could summon the energy to attend the party at all. At least, she could afford to laze around a little the next few weeks, her physical debut single was set to be released on February 14th. Yes. Valentine's Day. Without Lavi.

Miku discarded those thoughts and headed in, finding her seat, taking note of its position and bumping into Allen Walker immediately.

She smiled, slightly tired, "Hi, Allen."

"Good evening, Miku. How are you?"

A sour laugh left her mouth, "Excellent, clearly."

"Sheesh. You need rest." The concern was obvious.

"Yes, I know I do."

"Why are you here?"

Miku rolled her eyes, "Can you imagine the fuss that I'd kick up if I didn't attend?"

Allen nodded, suddenly finding great interest in the ceiling, "Yes, that's true. The press is full of idiots."

A very familiar voice was upon them a second later. "Good evening."

It was none other than Sorane.

Miku looked at her, blue eyes stony cold, "Good evening to you as well. You were invited?"

She nodded, staring at Allen, who looked increasingly uncomfortable. He was also eying a passing tray of food rather intently. "Yes. I'm working with –"

Allen dived into the situation at that moment, "Sorane, we should talk, oh, I'd like to introduce you to someone …"

Things looked rather fishy.

Ayumu had never been very fond of anything related to the word "formal". But here he was, dressed in a suit – at least he had escaped the nightmare of a tie (for he had ditched it a moment earlier). Possibly worse was the girl that was currently following him like a shadow.

Her name was Road Camelot.

"Why don't you talk to someone?"

"I am talking to someone." He replied through gritted teeth, irritation leaking out of his profile.

Road rolled her eyes as she continued to follow him past tables and mingling groups, "Apart from me."

"Then leave me alone."

"If I did, you'd find some place to hide and avoid everyone."

That was actually what Ayumu desperately wanted to do. He hated the stares and murmurs about him. So what if he was thirteen? So what if he had a debut single set to be released on January 7th? So what if there was a huge amount of money being poured into his production? Would they please stop staring?

He responded to Road, still refusing to look at her. "And what's wrong with it?"

An irritating giggle emerged from her mouth, "We can't have an unfriendly idol."

Ayumu reached a side exit – it led out to a quiet hallway – exactly what he needed. After grabbing the handle and turning it, his hopes plummeted and shattered at the bottom of a mysterious abyss. It was locked. Now, who on earth would have –

"The Earl thought that it'd be a really nice idea to lock all the doors except the main entrance."

This left him seething with rage.

Road just grinned. "Will you behave now?"

When had her voice grown so evil and cunning?

She continued, disregarding his emotions, "If you don't, we might have to pull your creative rights –"

Ayumu turned around, blue eyes fierce. And completely out of the blue, pulled out the tie he had removed from his neck moments earlier, and draped it around her neck like a scarf (an easy task, for he was taller). Surprisingly enough, the midnight blue tie complimented her gothic-style dress, adding a touch of colour that it had been devoid of. "Learn to co-ordinate your outfits better."

And he was gone, mingling with the generally older crowd, a smile appearing on his face.

It was far from genuine, but it was a start.

Sorane had ditched Allen not too long after her first encounter with Miku, Now she was seeking out the singer again. She had some bonds to repair.

After many short exchanges and apologies, the actress had manoeuvred her way through much of the crowd and finally located Miku. She was speaking to Hevlaska – probably discussing a musically-orientated topic. Perhaps the most effective use of synth effects in a ethereal ballad? Or maybe some vocal trade secrets? Whatever it was, it was something Sorane wouldn't be able to comprehend. She stepped in, remembering her manners, bowing and introducing herself, exchanging the general hellos. A few moments later, she had Miku alone. And there they stood, two beautiful girls in a noisy crowd.

Sorane smiled, not the usual way. The smile displayed her feelings openly. The sadness, the loss she had suffered and brought upon herself – the understanding she had come to find. "Miku."

"How are you?"

The good-natured inquiry brought back sharp pangs. Miku, who always put herself behind others. The one who asked about you, before thinking of herself. Sorane, of course, answered. "I'm fine. I lost something recently though."

Miku blinked, curious. "Hm? What is it?" Perhaps we could find it." A nagging thought at the back of her mind was sending off some alarm signals though. What was going to come next? On second thoughts, she'd rather not find out –

"I lost my best friend."

Shit.

"She was always by my side before. Whenever I was stuck, she always said something to help me. Even if she was busy, she'd always try and make time for us. She would stubbornly tell me about how great a person I supposedly was when I was feeling down and the director was shouting at me."

Call her over-sentimental or emotional, but those words sent tears to her eyes. She didn't want to cry – first off, it was downright embarrassing, secondly, weren't they still on bad terms?

A voice in her head nagged her.

You're only on bad terms because you make it seem like you're supposed to.

Miku's voice came out half-strangled and weird, "You make your best friend sound so good."

"That's because she is that amazing." Sorane had a brave smile on her face- it was getting difficult to keep it in place, for she was starting to tear up as well. Her vision blurred and wavered as she spoke, trying to maintain some kind of composure.

And all of a sudden, they were just two girls again.

It didn't matter that they were standing in a hall, dressed in designer clothes and dolled up like goddesses.

They were just two friends, who had a juvenile fight.

And they were making up.

Miku swallowed and smiled, tears gathering at her eyes, "I'm sorry, Sorane."

Sorane shamelessly burst into tears as she grabbed her friend and pulled her into a bearhug. For once, the thoughts of others as they looked on did not matter. For once, she was able to embrace reality head-on.

It was snowing.

It was silent.

But it wasn't cold.

Sometimes the answer to everything,

Is oh-so simple …

A/N - I'm so sorry for not updating earlier - school is just BUSY BUSY BUSY. In fact, I have a crapload of Science and Maths homework due tomorrow T_T but since I love my readers and this story so much, I simply HAD to upload. It's been too long, after all! I guess it's a little sad that it took Sorane and Miku 20+ chapters to overcome their issues. As for Ayumu - he vents his anger in weird ways, which explains why he gave Road an accessory. Perhaps he thought he put Road to shame, somehow, and that satisfied him? Haha~ Please look forward to the next chapter ! Thank you ^_^