[NOTE]

Hi! Author here. As you can see, the title of the chapter has a warning, meaning that this chapter will contain some sensitive scenes that may be triggering to some readers. So, since you can't really skip this chapter as this is when it rises to a climax or rising action I guess, I will tell you when to stop and when to start.

Just a lil warning, anyways, have fun reading!

7:00 PM

"Before you judge someone, know their story."

"...I'm home." A voice spoke dullingly in the dense cloud of the tension-filled atmosphere.

Rin silently placed her bag in the corner of the kitchen, then shifted out of her muddy converse as she placed them near the doorstep. The slender figure of the female straddled onto the floor, its creaks echoing through the dead silence of the kitchen.

She pushed open the bathroom door, her steps melting into one another as she entered the dull room filled with dust and smoke of nothingness.

In hopes of being able to find some anti-depressant pills, the female shuffled through the counter. Yet no sign of her pills. Rin quietly groaned, pinching the edge of her nose bridge as she shut her eyes. "Ugh...Life sucks." She scoffed to herself willingly between calm sighs and quiet breaths.

She was tired. Bored. Exhausted. Why was it that each time she went to that education building named school, AKA: Hell there was always that specific person that had to ruin her life even more?

Was this it? Was this all that life had? Was this all that life could hold at the edge of the cliff?

She was barely holding on, she was about to fall into the smoke of brokenness and intoxicating wine filled with fuming hatred. A red ravishing smile of unfortunate light greeted her at the edge of the road.

The road where the demon lies.

Sucks to suck.

Unconsciously, her body shifted on its own, struggling to hold the last bit of energy stored in her heart. Rin is face to face with her sobbing expression planted on the mirror, her eyes gently caressing either side of her snow-white cheeks.

Her eyes were puffy and dark circles faded around them, barely holding on. Tears barely slid down the edge of her skin, which burned against the cuts scraped on her cheeks. Dirty blonde hair was out of place, crispy and dry almost as if she hadn't washed it in a while. Her skin was washed out of its color, and now a ghostly white paints over it with a stern brush.

She looked dead.

"I'm dying." Her hoarse voice spoke, echoing in the porcelain walls of the bathroom.

She smiled slightly. "I'm gonna die." Her eyes welled with horrid tears grasping to hold onto the edge. But they finally fell, and landed onto a tiny puddle coated onto the tiled floor. Perhaps, she would be like those tears. The tears that finally gave up on life and flew straight to heaven.

No, maybe more like hell.

Because she would end up like those tears, who gave up on life and died trying to make it but eventually failed.

Because this time, she wasn't holding anything back.

7:03 AM [Kurohana Highschool]

"Good morning!" Students chirped as they entered the dull-looking classroom that was barely illuminated with the light crippling from the windows, the sun rays were dim and warm while caressing the sides of the desks. "I hope it doesn't rain again today, I want to play soccer." One of the students spoke.

Rin scoffed from the edge of her seat, her deadly azure eyes gazing at the window as the rays showered over her gloomy skin, washing away the intoxications from the sleeping and anti-depression pills she had used the past several weeks.

It had been about three months ever since she had told Len she 'hated' him, and she had to deal with watching Miku and her brother hanging out and doing lovey-dovey stuff or whatever the heck crappy couples do. She was surprised they didn't break up yet. Usually, couples in high school break up after several months of dating.

She hadn't talked to her brother at all, nor Miku. There was no point in trying to talk to them anyway. The last time she attempted to talk to her brother, he slammed the door on her face. The last time she tried talking to Miku in front of her friends, she pretended as if she didn't know her.

Pathetic.

She knew that Rin didn't mean to hurt her that day, when she attempted to take her life away by running until she passed out in the cold rain, so why was she acting as if they didn't know each other?

Yet...why did she scream that day?

Why did she call out for her dad?

Her thoughts are torn away once Miku enters the classroom, her cellphone in one hand and her bag in the other. The tealette quietly and gracefully walked towards her desk and sat behind Rin without even sparing a glance at her. There was some shuffling, a cellphone ding, and some more shuffling.

The students' chattering stopped once the teacher had entered the classroom. Mr. Yamada clapped his hands with his ruler as he caught the students' attention. He leaned against the surface of his desk. "We will be welcoming another new student today, I hope you can treat him well." He says before opening the door to reveal a cyan-haired boy.

Rin and Miku froze.

Students began chattering about how good-looking he was, and how he looked almost exactly like Miku. The teenager was dressed up in the casual school uniform, he looked almost as if he were a bartender or someone rich. His eyes were a soft, gentle shade of blue and his turquoise hair was soft and silky, like the edges of a feather.

He looked deadly handsome.

"Introduce yourself, Hatsune."

The male stared at the students before the corner of his eye caught a glimpse of Rin, who was fiddling with a pencil. Miku stared at the boy who looked exactly like her, she was shaking with fear and remorse and her stomach churned with a ton of emotions. The light in her eyes just went off.

"Hello, I am-"

"Excuse me, Mr. Yamada?" Miku interrupted the male student as she abruptly stood up from her desk, making Rin raise an eyebrow skeptically.

Mr. Yamada groaned, "What is it, Megurine?" He scoffed.

The teal-haired boy looked confused once he heard Miku's last name.

Miku held her stomach, "M-may I use the bathroom?" She asked, her voice shaking. Mr. Yamada stared at the tealette, whose skin and flesh was now pale white. "It's an emergency," Miku says again, sniffling. Mr. Yamada sighs, scrunching his glasses with his nose. "Go, go ahead, but be quick." Miku bows in thanks as she quickly runs out of the classroom, the teal-haired boy staring at her with widened eyes.

...Sister..?

Mr. Yamada told him to introduce himself again.

"Hello...I am..."

Miku helplessly ran in the monochrome hallways, then finally opened the door to the female bathrooms before entering a stall and throwing up, crying underneath. She wiped her cheeks with her dark sleeve, then sighed in frustration as she stared at her reflection. Her silky hair was now out of place, the bruise from Rin's slap from a few months ago was still there, healing endlessly.

Everything went terribly wrong.

She didn't want to like a guy or make any friends, she didn't want a classmate to hate her, she didn't want her lost brother to arrive so suddenly and be placed in her class. She just wanted to be placed in a high-profile school and support her injured mother.

Not this. She didn't want it to be like this.

Ow...My head...

Memories of her past had begun flowing in her mind like overloaded colors of hypnotizing shades. Her abusive father, her runaway mother that cheated on her father and only married him for money. Her brother that had left her all alone in that hellhole named 'home' when he left with their mother.

The day she had begun staying with her aunt to only hear her hook up with random strangers every night. When she had gotten kicked out at the age of nine and helplessly wandered in the streets. When Megurine Luka had found her and taken her home, when her family treated her like she was their own daughter.

When she began to start a new life.

Miku endlessly walked through the dark streets of Japan, where she then ran up to a nearby motel. One of the room's windows was open, so she decided to sneak in.

The tealette carefully crawled through the window. Surprisingly, she was small enough to fit inside. She was a bit tiny for her age.

Miku stretched as she looked around the motel room, the bedsheets on the mattress were neatly covered over the seam of the bed. It looked comfy.

Miku jumped on the bed, sighing in exhaustion. Her body ached and she felt her limbs go numb due to her adrenaline running out.

"Am I gonna have to keep living like this for the rest of my life?" Miku mumbled to herself, wiping her eyes. It had been a couple of years since she had gotten kicked out of her aunt's house. To be honest, she would rather live in her aunt's and hear her hook up with a random guy every night than live in the streets all alone.

It was better than living with her father, who abused her almost every time he came home from work. It was always at midnight, but whenever he would get drunk he would hit her and beat her until the morning light.

It wasn't until he got into an accident one night when he was driving home after going to the bar.

Miku experienced her father's death in the hospital, where he admitted that he truly loved his daughter. But the poor girl didn't know how to feel.

After a few weeks of staying at the hospital, she moved in with her aunt, who was very nice and kind. Miku thought that everything would be back to normal...

Until she had witnessed her aunt hooking up with a random man on the living room couch.

She was horrified, her brain told her body to move but she couldn't make her body run to the bathroom.

Miku had to experience that every night, the horrid sound of her aunt hooking up with a guy haunted her.

Sometimes her aunt would be too drunk to drive her to school or even make breakfast, so she had to eat sugary cereal every morning and then walk to school by herself.

"Nah. Maybe it's better if I just live on my own."

[Stop]

Miku breathed intensely as she leaned against the wall, before taking out a pocket knife and adjusting it near her neck. She stared at her own reflection, her true self. The horrid, quiet, violent version of herself. Not the sweet, perfect, and innocent one.

She was never innocent.

Miku sighed in frustration, letting her arm hang loosely from her neck. "Nah, it's not worth it." She smiled eerily before cutting her skin from her neck and cutting some more on her arms. She then raised up her sleeve, placed the knife back in her breast pocket, forced a smile, and left the bathroom.

No one will know.

And no one will ever know what she is hiding behind that happy smile.

[Start]

3:24 PM

"Rin-chan!" Gumi walks up to Rin, and places a gummy bear on the surface of the wooden desk. "Wanna walk home with me today?" The green-haired female says excitedly, "I was thinking of stopping by that boba tea place, wanna tag along?" Rin smiled slightly but shook her head. "Sorry, Gumi, but I have to pass today. I have to stay after school in the studio, and I can't miss a day."

Gumi whined, "But I don't wanna walk home with Fukase, he's annoying and he bothers me too much." Rin stifles a laugh and smirks. "Come on, I know you want to be alone with him." She laughs as Gumi playfully hits her arms, reddening with embarrassment.

Rin caught a glimpse of the cyan-haired boy, who was neatly putting his books inside his backpack, and saw Rin.

Rin froze, looking away.

Gumi tilted her head in confusion, then smiled warmly. "Go talk to him." She whispered suddenly in Rin's ear, making her flinch. "Wh-what? I was just looking at him, nothing special." She grumbles, ruffling her blonde hair with embarrassment. Gumi giggles, not buying what the other girl had said. "Okay, Rin-chan. I'll see you tomorrow okay?" The greenette says as she pats Rin's shoulder before leaving the classroom.

Rin sighs before walking up to the cyan-haired guy and tapping his shoulder, clearing her throat. "Hey, uh...Mikuo-kun, was it? Um, you exchanged your number with me in the amusement park, and called me cute." Rin muttered under her breath, biting her lip nervously.

The cyan-haired boy smiled gently, "Why, I didn't know I would bump into you today, Kagamine." He smirks, snickering. "Yeah, me neither. I didn't text you though, so I don't know your number anymore." She mumbles. Mikuo laughs, his laugh was a bit raspy, yet it brought a warm feeling to her chest.

"It's okay," he grins sheepishly, his smile looking a lot like Miku's. "I'll just give it to you again, okay?" He grabs a paper sheet and rips a tiny piece out before writing in it. He then hands it to Rin and smiles. "See ya, Kagamine." He says sweetly before ruffling her hair playfully and leaving the classroom.

Rin blushes out of embarrassment and sighs in exhaustion. She grabs her cellphone and bag, leaving the classroom as she walks through the monochrome hallways.

It was quiet. Deadly quiet. The only sound that could be heard was the faint voice of a piano, echoing through the walls.

Rin's ears perk up, and something inside of her bursts to life. She began running and running endlessly until the sound grew louder and louder, ringing in her ears.

The delicate sound of the piano keys filled inside her ears as if it were cold water, hypnotizing yet seductive and graceful. Like a trap to lure an animal.

Rin was possessed by the piano, and all she was focused on was finding out who was playing it.

But what she didn't know, was that someone unexpectedly was playing the graceful instrument.

Sunlight crept through the window, rays of warm orange streaking the empty classroom. Thin, chilly air carelessly swept with the silky curtains, dust spores lingered in the dense atmosphere. Beside the smoothed chalkboard was a grand piano, the bright rays of the sunlight reflecting off the black surface of the seam.

Miku gracefully played the perfectly polished keys rhythmically. Her doe, polished eyes reflected off the rays of the bright sun. She stopped as her finger slipped towards the edge of another key.

Miku sighed in frustration and resentment, smashing the keys with her fists. Muttering to herself, she abruptly stood up from her seat, defeated. She sighed again, then shook her head. Miku sat down in the seat again, gracefully placing her fingers on the keys before playing the piano dramatically.

She began getting lost in each note, one by one it called her to play.

It wasn't until she began singing, each note complimented every lyric she sang. Each one was a healing piece to her broken heart.

What's the point...it's not like anyone is gonna hear you anyway.

During that time, Rin ran inside the building, her steps echoing in between the hallways. Rin slid up the stairs, her legs beginning to ache in pain.

For a lean girl, she sure was fast.

The hallways filled with students, they scrambled against the wall as Rin ran in between the crowds. And after what felt like forever, she finally made it to the studio.

It suddenly grew quiet.

Rin pushed open the door, breathing heavily as she looked around frantically, and suddenly she bumped into someone. She had quickly grabbed their wrist as the stranger in front of her yelped, but her blood went cold once she set her eyes on the tealette.

Miku.

It was dead quiet.

Rin froze.

Miku's tears rolled down on her reddened cheeks, helplessly falling down on the ground like it was nothing. "Miku.." Rin mumbled under her breath, letting go of her wrist abruptly. "Rin," Miku said gently, sniffling as she stepped back a bit. "Hi." The tealette says, forcing a smile as she wiped her eyes.

"...Are you..crying?" Rin mumbled under her breath, biting her lip nervously with embarrassment. Miku shook her head. "No, I'm fine." She forces a smile, the sweet grin beaming in the deadly tension of the room. "Really, I'm fine. Everything's fine." Miku reassures her.

Rin clenches her fists, how could she be crying one moment and the next minute look so happy?

It's..so...exhilarating.

Yet annoying and frustrating.

Miku giggles, getting off her seat while Rin growls under her breath. "You know what? Cut the goodie two shoe act. I'm so tired of it." The blonde female snarls, pinning her against the wall hard and suddenly. "Ah!- R-Rin?-"

"I'm done. I'm so done." Rin grasps the tealette's wrist tightly as she retorts, dragging her out of the classroom. "Wh-what are you-" Rin shoves her out of the classroom, then slams the door behind them, growling under her breath.

Miku was speechless.

"We need to talk."

[NOTE]

ohoho its getting intense

have a great day/night wherever you are!