I'M SORRY. HERE'S PART 3! For an explanation of my absence, please read it at the end of this chapter ;3; Thank you for your patience!

"The clouds look kinda sad today."

The boy blinked. Slowly, he turned his gaze to his friend. The girl beside him ran her fingers through the strands of grass languidly as she focused on the sky spread above them, clouds streaming through the sky in long strands, the ends dissolving into a wisp.

"Why do you say that, Rin?"

"I don't know. Usually they're poofy and energetic, but they're…slow today," Rin twirled her index finger around a particular long strand of grass, "but I'm being silly."

"No," The boy sat up and smiled at his friend, the long strands of his hair still touching the ground, "You just have an interesting thing of looking at things. I think it's cool."

A slow smile curled along her face, pushing out her cherubic cheeks further. The pair continued watching the sky above them until the girl sat up and glanced at the boy curiously as she fixed the flower in her hair. "You told me you had something to tell me?"

The boy frowned. He then shrugged with dismissal. "Oh, yeah, I guess I did. It's sort of dumb, though. Forget about it."

"No, Gakupo!" The girl tugged on Gakupo's arm and whined suddenly, her bottom lip tucked outwards as she pouted. "You promised!"

"Nah, it's not that important. It's stupid."

"Nothing you say is stupid, Gakupo." Rin's eyes dug into Gakupo's. "Tell me, please?"

Gakupo smiled slowly as he permitted himself to gaze deeper into the girl's eyes, but he quickly returned his stare to his lap. He had no other way of describing her eyes, as he never permitted himself to gaze at them for too long. He was too unnerved to discover what would happen to him if he stared into her irises for too long. Would he drown into the blues of her eyes? Or would he find himself lost in the large wormhole of her pupil? Either way, he was afraid of indulging in her for too long; he couldn't ruin their friendship.

Gakupo found the confidence to bring his head up to Rin after a few moments, while the girl begged for him to spill his thoughts. He smiled at her again.

"No."

"Gakupo!" Rin shouted. "No fair!"

Gakupo giggled at Rin's suspense.

"If you don't tell me, I'll…I'll braid your hair again!"

"That's low, Rin." Gakupo yelped. The possibility of Rin grabbing his hair and tying it into a too-tight braid almost made his scalp burn. "Fiiine."

Rin giggled happily and flopped back onto the soft grass, the palms of her hands situated excitedly in the lap of her skirt. Gakupo found himself staring at the sky again and silently asked God for confidence. Rin's face soon appeared back in his vision. Gakupo sighed tensely.

"This is dumb, but-"

"I'm sure it isn't, Gakupo." Rin quickly grasped Gakupo's hands with a broad smile. "Even if it is 'dumb', I won't judge you." She plucked the flower out from behind her ear and gently placed it into Gakupo's hair.

Gakupo felt relief at the reminder that Rin was much more accepting than his other peers were. She was much more welcoming to his long purple strands and quiet nature. She wouldn't judge him for his request, either. She didn't mind using her time listening to him, unlike his parents; his father was too busy working to lend an ear to him, while his mother was too obsessed with her manicures and diets to pay him any heed either. He let Rin put the flower in his hair and smiled briefly. He felt his heart soothe until a loud voice pierced the calm ambiance of the field.

"Rin? Rin!"

Gakupo gritted his teeth at the sight of short blond hair. Len climbed up the hill, panting tiredly until he caught sight of his sister, grumbling briskly.

"Rin, you said you'd walk home with me." The boy lamented.

"I'm sorry, Len. I forgot. G-Gakupo invited me to the field, and I didn't realize the time." Rin quickly sat up, dusting off any particles of dust from her skirt. She turned to Gakupo quickly. "I'll see you tomorrow?"

Gakupo's darkened eyes brightened at Rin's pink cheeks. He nodded.

"I'll see you-"

"Come on, Rin!"

Rin glanced back to her brother with a long sigh and nodded rapidly, but waved to Gakupo a final time with a small giggle before running after her brother, leaving Gakupo deserted.

Gakupo clenched the sides of the book while hunching over the end of his bed. That was the last time the two had spent time together, before Len had found them and had the opportunity to hover over Rin like a wasp, swarming around the two of them until he managed to drag Rin away. Gakupo wished that he had seen it from day one: that Len had been sucking the life out of his sister day by day like a fat leech, until that day when he sucked the oxygen out of her and filled her lungs with smoke. He could barely remember the day of her death; only the memory of screeching sirens and crying children lingered. He didn't even remember Rin's funeral. Apparently, he had shown no sign of emotion until he reached her casket, and collapsed in a heap and begged to see her again. At that point, Rin was only ashes. They managed to cremate whatever was left of her, but it seemed like an insult, to force her to burn in a fire twice. He was grateful for it, though. He didn't need to witness what that leech had done to her body.

Gakupo turned the page. He was greeted with a lilac iris; the same flower Rin had taken from her hair and had weaved into his hair while they were sunbathed in the field. She had a garden of them at her home. She loved wearing flowers in her hair. She almost never took them out of her hair, until she gave him that flower. She gave him a piece of her willingly. He gently turned the next page before any more emotions of distraught filled his head. A lily slid down into the inner hinge. Gakupo sucked his cheeks in before gently pushing the lily back into the center of the page. Afterwards, he rubbed his fingertips that touched the lily onto his pants, as if he had sullied them. The flower was from Rin's funeral. He found it on his bed the day after her funeral, when he had awoke the following morning. He figured he took it, so he could put that last flower from her in his book.

He remembered her through flowers. Every type of blossom, tulip, and rose filled his book. The sakura blossoms were from the festival that Rin had picked up from the ground. The rose was from the park, when they rode their bikes together. She gave him every flower that she picked. She knew that he liked flowers. No one else knew. All of his memories of her were contained in that book. Such a book hadn't been seen by anyone else except for him. If his friends ever saw it, then he was sure that their opinions of him would be full of emasculation. He couldn't have that. He hadn't ripped his heart off from off his shoulder for nothing. No one could know that he still dwelt over Rin's death. He had to make sure that the little leech who took her life away wouldn't jump on anyone else. He had sewn his heart into the book and left it in there, so in school he'd be unstoppable but admirable. Feared yet respected for his troubles. Gaijin didn't deserve to know that he still wept over his deceased sister at night, that no one would ever be as good as she was. All he deserved was the punches that he gave to him nearly every single day.

Being the dealer of punishments should have made Gakupo feel like a hero, but he only felt lower than specks of dirt most of the time, and never higher than that. He knew Rin wouldn't like the fact that he was pummeling her brother to the ground so often. She still loved her brother, even if he hated her because of his spiteful jealousy, but who else was going to punish that bastard for what he did to her? The court system didn't; the school was too hesitant to do anything to him at first; the orphanage didn't kick Len out when they should have done so in the first place. Gaijin deserved to be ostracized. Murderers didn't deserve to live happily. Gakupo knew that. Everyone knew that; it was a simple rule in society: criminals didn't win.

Gakupo slid the book back under into his drawer and locked it. He leaned back into his bed and stared at the ceiling longingly. He wished he had asked Rin to play in the park with him. Maybe, if he had told her that nonsensical request, he would have been happy.

Thursday was the day. It had to be that day, Gumi told herself, that she had to confront Len again.

Gumi sucked in a harsh breath as she waved her new pupil goodbye. Macne Nana was her new student. Considering Gumi had memorized her name, she didn't see why not to take her under her wing. She was a timid girl with fluffy hair and large eyes; Gumi was glad she didn't let Gakupo take her, or else the girl would probably would have felt as intimidated as Gumi felt around him on a common basis. After Macne Nana's exit, Gumi exhaled slowly, but the pace of her heart was sprinting faster than a race car.

'He'll be here. Again.'

She didn't understand why his words hurt her so severely. The only person who had cut her deep had been her brother, but that was because they shared blood. Gumi met her brother only a few hours after he was born. Piko's words still hurt her. His deafness around her still made her feel insecure as well. The reason as to why Len's words hurt, it was foreign to her. He was, after all, considered nothing to everyone else. Why would his words hurt her? Considering his placement in the school hierarchy, his words weren't supposed to have value to them.

Gumi wanted to chalk it up to her desire to see her father again. If she saved him, she could see her father and make up for her errors, yet that wasn't her excuse. Gumi wasn't that selfish, contrary to belief. She wanted to help Len, even if her life was in slight jeopardy by taking on this task.

'A crybaby.' Gumi's eyes narrowed.

That was what she was: a little girl who couldn't take criticism. She was only a coward. Gumi sighed at this unsurprising observation about herself. She dragged her backpack up from under the desk and onto the chair next to her. The familiar sound behind her caught her by her throat. Her eyes squeezed together sharply. She slowly reopened her dilated eyes and stared at her desk while attempting to ignore the dragging sound behind her. She was tempted to pop her earbuds in to drown out the sounds he was making, but she couldn't hide. Gumi waited for the slow shuffling to end, and when it did, Gumi took out the bunch of bananas. They were ripe and yellow (but nonetheless still disgusted Gumi.). She rose from her chair and quietly emerged behind the boy sitting at his desk.

She noticed the multitude of bandages covering his hands, more so than usual, as he dug into his grungy backpack to retrieve something. Gumi's eyes lowered at the sight of his backpack that was covered with less tape and bandages than the boy was covered in. Her lips threatened to curl upwards, and she pinched her thighs painfully to counteract the smile. The fact that the boy sitting in front of her appeared so destroyed and broken up was almost unbearable. It was too painful to do anything but laugh at the absurdity of the situation. Gumi could barely take it. She shuddered as she swallowed the smile that threatened to reappear.

"Hi."

Len turned his head around slowly and stared at the girl standing behind him blankly. "You're here again." He drawled, his eyes dulled with apathy. "Why?"

Gumi sealed her lips into a tight line, fighting the ludicrous smile that wanted to offset the unbearable sensation that the confrontation was pouring over her. She noticed that his disposition was similar to that of a kicked puppy. Gumi bowed her head and held up the bananas.

"I got you these."

"Eating isn't allowed in the library."

Gumi offered Len a blank stare, stupefied at his quick response.

'Way to go, Gumi.'

"It's a banana. It's not like we're eating a three course meal in here." Gumi ripped a banana apart from the stem. She waved the fruit in her hand.

"Fine, go ahead, you eat them. I'm not getting in trouble over a banana," Len said (because he knew, with his luck, that he would.).

Gumi watched Len's eyes ogle at the pair of bananas in her other hand. She had him baited, but he didn't have his full faith in her. Gumi put the bunch of bananas on the desk while she held her banana.

"Okay."

The fruit, as tantalizing as it was to Len, made Gumi's stomach lurch.

'I have to eat this shit?'

Gumi touched the top of the banana and slowly began peeling it.

'Rin definitely fucking owes me for this.'

Once peeled, Gumi gazed back up at Len.

"Do you want it?"

Gumi blinked. Len gazed at the banana in her hand with interest. Gumi held it up eagerly, relieved. "Go ahead. I'm not that hungry."

Upon Gumi's eagerness, Len frowned with suspicion. "You can keep that one."

Gumi groaned internally. She stared at the fruit regretfully.

'Jesus Christ, Gumi, it's just a banana.'

Gumi bit into the fruit uneasily. She clenched her hand, unprepared for the mushy sensation in her mouth. Gumi quickly swallowed, ignoring her taste buds' disgust.

"Tastes like a banana." Gumi shrugged.

'And it was fucking gross, too.' Her brain sputtered back.

Len peeked at the banana placed next to him. "You said I can have one?"

"Sure, go ahead." She nodded eagerly, yet made sure her nod wasn't too enthusiastic, lest she gave the boy more suspicion. The boy carefully separated the bananas on his desk and held one up, staring at it eagerly. Gumi eyed the boy's thin wrists and baggy uniform, and debated if she weighed more than Len. Was he being starved? The thought caused Gumi to scratch her scalp with displeasure. She watched Len begin to remove the peel until he stopped himself and placed it back onto the desk.

"Never mind." He mumbled.

Gumi sputtered, "Why not? You look hungry."

"I said never mind."

"Fine," Gumi snapped, irritated over the displeasure of having to eat her least favorite fruit. Her face softened when she saw the math textbook on his desk. "Math test soon?" She asked.

Len's face darkened at the question. "Yes. I have to study. Do you mind leaving me alone now?" Len threw his head backwards and growled, his frustration finally reaching maximum capacity. "Why are you even talking to me? I told you to leave me alone."

Gumi kept her gaze on the banana. She muttered, "I can help you study."

"I don't think you get it." Len suddenly grinned. He faced Gumi with contemplation. The dark eyes that Gumi had her mind locked on since day one had become darker than a cloud threatening to strike bolts of lightning. "You see, in case you didn't know, I killed my sister. Everybody knows that. I'm sure you don't know that, but, judging by your lack of common sense, I'm assuming that you don't think that I can kill you, either."

Gumi's eyes froze at Len's wicked grin. "You don't mean that."

"Really?"

His eyes battled against hers, challenging Gumi's belief in him. Gumi hissed and shook her head.

"I'm sorry. Forget about it."

"Are you going to tell everyone that I'm a lunatic now? Are you?"

"No, because I don't care enough to." Gumi, with rage filling her face, spun around, picked up her backpack from her desk, and stomped off, anger exploding from each step. Her strut was interrupted by a quick thought. Gumi abruptly threw her backpack to the ground and ripped it open by the zipper. Len watched with raised eyebrows, and slightly cowered when the girl approached him again with a harsh glare, appearing capable enough to harm him. He knew everyone was stronger than him, and therefore more capable of causing him pain, and he prepared himself for it, until a chilled object was thrown into his lap.

"Here. Sorry for bothering you."

Gumi didn't bother to cast him another glance as she walked off, picking up her backpack again during her harsh strut. She threw open the door in front of her and didn't jump when the door clanged against the adjacent wall.

'What do you want me to do, Rin? Honestly? I can't do it!'

Gumi shook her head as her shoulders sagged, her backpack beginning to weigh her down. Gumi's strut slowly morphed into a dejected walk. She rubbed her forehead as a throbbing sensation made itself known.

'I can't do it.'

He was left alone. Len slowly lifted up the object thrown onto his lap. He pressed the bag together and watched the cold blue gel swish around inside the plastic. She brought him an ice pack, a gift worthless for him; he didn't own a refrigerator. But, she brought him something, and more. Len gazed at the half-peeled banana on his desk. Guilt began to fill him; he picked up the fruit and continued to peel it.

'Shove it in your mouth, shove it- Shove it in there, you filthy-!'

The mental shouts and intrusive thoughts clanged against the walls of his skull relentlessly. Len tossed the fruit onto his desk again with disappointment. The fruit he once loved was now an object of disgust to him. Len's stomach churned quietly at the sight of the fruit. He was starving. Fruit was a luxury for him, but the sight of a banana only induced his nausea. At least she didn't know why he couldn't even stare at the fruit. Len comforted himself with that thought. No one knew about that. If anyone knew about that, about the humiliating trials he went through with him, then it would only lead to more endless insults. More severe beatings. More scorn. He couldn't endanger his life any more than it was at the present moment.

His lap began to grow cold. Len settled the ice pack onto his desk and observed it while his thoughts ran faster than an Olympic sprinter sprinting his final lap. This was a joke. Yet Gakupo, Miku, nor anyone else had harassed him about talking to that persistent, green-haired nuisance. She had kept her lips sealed from any gossip, a thought that wasn't comprehensible to him. He wasn't worth helping. He was only their punching bag. Nobody helped punching bags as they didn't have feelings. They were simply objects void of any emotion. That's what everyone viewed him as. She was probably just as crazy as he was, if she was, for some asinine reason, willing to help him. Hopefully, she knew how to conceal her madness well. It didn't seem like he had to deal with her anymore, either; she sounded completely finished with him. At least she finally realized how little he was worth.

Len sighed as his back pocket vibrated. He plucked the cellphone out from his pocket and gazed at the numerous texts he had received from his lovely peers. He really had to change his number. Len groaned heavily and gazed at his math textbook, his eyes crumbing little by little at the sight of the book.

'What the hell is the point?'

Len tossed his cellphone onto his desk and stared at the hefty textbook, his gaze berating the hardcover. He was close to graduating, so close, but it wasn't going to happen because of a stupid math course. He'd be stuck in Kahiru, and that was the end of it. He wasn't even going to graduate junior high school, just like everyone around him had predicted. Len shut his eyes, his eyelids quivering, until he reopened them and sat up, gathered the bananas, his textbook, and ice pack, threw them into his backpack, and exited the library.

"Gumi? Gumi?"

Gumi lifted her head up to find Miku walking the opposite direction. Gumi frowned and gazed up at the sky; it was dark, darker than she had hoped it would be. She would be home late- not that Piko cared, and her mother was most likely still working at the hospital.

"H-hey, where are you going?"

"I have to go back to school and get my textbook for math. I texted Yukari to ask if I could borrow hers, but she said she couldn't give it to me at the moment, even though I offered to pick it up at her house. She even said that she finished her math homework! She can be so weird sometimes. Well, whatever, here I am, I guess." Miku puffed her cheeks outwards with irritation. "Did tutoring Macne Nana go okay?""

"Y-yeah. Look, Miku, I'm not feeling well. I haven't been getting that much sleep lately, and-"

"Oh, really?" Miku frowned. "We haven't been pushing you too hard with tutoring, have we?"

"It's not that, Miku. I just...haven't been feeling right. Just sluggish. I'm going to at least get some homework done before I head in for the night."

Miku sighed quizzically as she gazed at the fence beside her. "I have something that might help."

Gumi watched Miku throw open her purse. Gumi stood in the cold awkwardly, lacing her fingers and rubbing her palms together in attempt to warm her hands.

"Found it."

Miku held out a small bottle. She shook the bottle slightly. Gumi listened to the soft sound.

'Like a maraca.'

Gumi frowned with worry. "Are those...yours?"

"Yeah." Miku tossed the bottle to Gumi. Gumi yelped when she caught the small clear bottle.

"M-Miku, this is yours- God, it's medication, Miku. Your medication!" Gumi exclaimed loudly at this revelation as she held the bottle out with a shaky hand. "I can't take this."

"They're just sleeping pills, Gumi. It's no big deal. There aren't a lot left anyway. I don't need them anymore, so why waste them? Did you know if you toss medication in the toilet and flush it, it gets into the water supply, and then animals end up absorbing the medication? Like, there are male frogs that turn into females because they end up ingesting birth control pills and-"

"Miku. Stop." Gumi rubbed her forehead. "I can't take these. I-I mean, thanks (I guess), but I can't. I don't know what's in these." Gumi lifted the bottle up to find the bottle filled less than halfway with small, white pills. She gazed at the label:

XANAX. INSTRUCTIONS: 1 MILLIGRAM PER NIGHT. 2 MILLIGRAMS MAY BE TAKEN IF NEEDED. DO NOT TAKE MORE THAN 4 MILLIGRAMS WITHIN TWENTY-FOUR HOURS.

"Gumi, they're not going to hurt you. I can see the dark bags under your eyes. That's not healthy. Just...take them. Even if you don't end up using them, it'll make me feel better. Just take one a night, and you'll be fine."

Gumi sighed quietly. She swung her backpack to her right side and opened a small gap in her bag to slide the bottle through. She zippered her backpack and gulped softly. "Miku, I don't get it."

"Get what?"

Gumi rubbed her lips together hesitantly, but forced the words out of her mouth. "Why do you hang out with me? Talk to me? Act like we've known each other for years? Why do you actually care?"

Miku's eye's flickered pensively. "It that a bad thing?"

Gumi breathed through her exposed teeth, rubbing them slightly against her lips. "Miku, you know that you're-" Gumi trailed off, then continued once she found the words, "you're much better at life than I am, let's put it that way. I don't even have an eighth of what...what you have. I-I mean, I'm not hideous or a moron- actually, no, I kind of am, when you think about it -but I'm not as pretty as you or as smart as you. I just can't comprehend why you accept me as your friend? I-I appreciate it, but I'm not anything like you."

Miku cocked her head slightly, gazing at Gumi, seemingly bewildered, questioning what she had just heard. Her lips slowly slipped into a frown once her thoughts were recollected, and held a steady gaze at Gumi. "Gumi, I think you're a good person. You're very loyal. I really can't say that about anyone else, well, perhaps Lily, but I can't even say that about Yukari. Sometimes, I can't even say that about Kaito, but that's just because he enjoys being empty-headed. Before Rin died, she was the only other loyal friend I had. I know I can be annoying and dramatic, but, you haven't left my side yet. It's only been a month, so you still think I'm 'amazing', but I can't say that's true. Your judgment is still slightly off. A lot of people think I'm 'out-there', that I'm missing a screw in the toolbox-"

'-just starts railing her, calling her a slut just for talking to her 'future' boyfriend-'

Gumi ignored the thought momentarily to focus on Miku.

"-and after Rin died, it was hard to trust anyone. I had the press after me, and- yeah, I got sick for a while, but who could blame me? I was stalked by a journalist one day who wouldn't leave me alone until I kicked him in the dick! I couldn't focus on school, nothing, and after Rin died, it felt like I had no one left besides Lily. I sort of bonded with Yukari, but it's mostly Lily who's best friends with her. I just feel like I have no one. That's not to say that I'm using you, that you're a replacement for Rin- not at all. Yet I figured you could use a friend." Miku paused. "I owe you an apology."

Gumi blinked. "For what? You just said that you aren't using me. I believe you."

The corners of Miku's mouth twitched with complete reluctance. Miku shook her head. "SeeU is my cousin."

Gumi's breath hitched. Her pupils dilated, and the greens of her eyes shook. "SeeU- how do you -how?" She felt her throat tighten as her voice quivered, her body suffocating under her sudden helplessness.

Miku wrapped her arms around her purse, blocking her chest, as if she was using it as a barrier between them, and placed her eyes on the empty street. "It was weird, actually. I saw you and her in some pictures together online, and at a family thing a few months ago I mentioned you, but she told me you guys didn't hang out anymore. She was a bit bitchy about it, too- don't take it personally, Gumi. She didn't mention why, but -yeah, well, when I first saw you walking in the hallways, I did a double-take a few times before I talked to you in gym class. So, I asked SeeU one night if Gumi left her school, and she said that you did. I mentioned that you were in my school," Miku's eyes shifted to the ground suddenly, a gesture that could be taken for guilt, "and then she went on a tirade against you. She said that you had issues -like, a lot, and -oh shit, Gumi, I'm so sorry."

Gumi quivered with her arms crossed over her chest, heaving heavily as she tried to choke back her sobs. Miku rushed closer to Gumi and gently wrapped her hands around Gumi's shoulders.

"Gumi, I'm sorry."

"No, fuck, I'm sorry." Gumi slid her arm against her nose and blinked a few times to reduce the blurriness coating her vision. "Shit, why are you talking to me if you know how much of a freak I am?"

"You're not a freak, Gumi." Miku forced Gumi's head upwards. Gumi shivered at the sight of Miku's trembling eyes.

"SeeU is a bitch. She said all those awful things about you, that you were crazy and that you betrayed her promise, whatever that was. She just went off, and she seemed like the crazy one during her rant. Look: the bottle, those pills…you know that I'm not perfect either. Hell, SeeU said we'd be perfect for each other, because I'm just a mess, too." Miku smiled sadly as Gumi hiccupped. Miku's watched her hands shake at the vibrations of Gumi's shoulders. "She didn't tell me why you left Okinawa, but I don't doubt that you left because of her."

SeeU wasn't the cause, yet Gumi was willing to place the blame on SeeU as long as it prevented Miku from gaining knowledge regarding the true reason she left. Gumi bit her lip and nodded slowly, casting her eyes to the side.

Miku's eyes glittered with sympathy. "I'm so sorry SeeU did that to you. I'm really sorry."

Gumi finally caught her breath and shivered as the last of her energy left her. Gumi shook her head and mumbled, "She wasn't a good friend."

"No, she wasn't. She's not a good cousin, either."

Gumi nodded again, her hair remaining stale against the chilly winds. Gumi pulled a thin green strand of hair from out of her mouth and sniffled. "I'm sorry that you had to deal with that."

"With SeeU? Eh, you get used to it, being her cousin. She can jump in a ditch for all I care."

"N-no, with my blubbering and c-crying. I'm just a crybaby."

"SeeU knows how to twist people's emotions like that. She'll make you care about her, and then she'll rip your heart out and eat it once it's full of herself."

"She was never that cruel to me in person, though. She never flat out told me I was insane, she just...circumvented around the fact." Gumi stared at the fence again, noting the color fading from the wood. "She still ate my heart, though."

Miku smiled, but her eyes contained the sadness in them. "I bet she made you crazy."

'No.'

"Yes."

They stood for a few moments together, as Miku continued gripping Gumi's shoulders. A car passed by them, creating a slight breeze. Gumi gazed at Miku with brighter eyes to signal her appreciation. The girls parted once Gumi reassured Miku that she would be fine.

"Thank you," Gumi said softly.

"Yeah, it's no problem." Miku rubbed her hands together into a ball. "I think Rin would be happy about me and you, that I'm helping you. You almost remind me of Rin, to be honest. Rin tried to hide behind a facade, too, so people didn't have to worry about her, but in the end, it...killed her. She tried to hide from people how much of a monster Len was, but," The girl winced with pain, as if she was struck in the heart with a nail, "I don't want the same thing to happen to you. At least, I don't want you to hurt yourself. I still hurt, too, after what happened to Rin. You don't forget about stuff like that."

Gumi's nodded with thorough understanding. "Yeah." Gumi noticed that the brightness in Miku's eyes was not as noticeable. "It's really dark now."

"S-shit, the textbook." Miku moaned with annoyance.

"Do you want me to walk you-?"

"Don't be silly." A smile returned to Miku's face. "Go home and rest. Be careful."

Gumi blinked and smiled back at her. "Y-you too."

Gumi gently shook the bottle wrapped around her fingers. She held the bottle as she sat on her bed, her toes barely an inch away from touching the floor. She squeezed her toes together unconsciously. Carefully, Gumi opened her nightstand's drawer and slipped the small bottle into its depths, hiding it right behind the miscellaneous objects that mingled in her drawer. Gumi shut it with an outward sigh. She couldn't take them. She knew better than that. Gumi repeated these thoughts to herself as she buried herself under the layers of blankets. She rested her head against her pillow and shut her eyes, but her brain remained awake, with words swarming around her head like bees.

'SeeU is a bitch.' Miku's voice echoed.

Gumi took comfort in the fact that she and Miku weren't too different, but picturing SeeU with a smirk, spewing such baleful words from her small lips, made Gumi almost wish that she had never encountered her. It was rare for SeeU to be so mean-spirited, yet she did gossip often, but more to her other friends rather than to Gumi. She should have taken that as a hint. Gumi wasn't willing to say that she couldn't trust anyone, however. After all, Miku had come to her defense.

Gumi's body relaxed as she began to settle into sleep, but SeeU's name was etched into her mind until she was no longer conscious.

A small playground, a small backyard, small children, small garden; a large gift. The parents stood on the patio and smiled, gazing at each other with satisfaction, amazed that their love had produced such a wonderful life for them.

The happy mother, after pouring a small bottle of champagne in a crystal glass for herself, wrapped her hand around her husband's. She rested her head on his shoulder and let his stronger body support hers as she watched her children play.

The proud father, eyes glistening, turning his gaze from his wife to his children, pointing to his daughter gently as she pushed her brother on a swing, with all of his admiration filled in his low voice for the girl.

The carefree girl, while laughing her worries away (the nonexistent worries she never had) pushed her younger brother on his swing, shoving her hands into his back to ensure that he'd fly higher into the sky every time. The sleeves of her sweater dangled from her smooth wrists every time she shoved her brother into the air.

The happy boy, giggling through the wisps of wind, his hair flailing in every direction, as if the white strands had freedom of their own, as he watched his feet touch the clouds, but turned his head every time he went downwards to ensure that he'd fall into his sister's hands, the hands he was sure that would never abandon him.

Suddenly the voices became silent. The family froze like a portrait. Their smiles were promptly shattered by a car's loud horn.

BEEEEEEP

Gumi threw her hands over her ears and screamed silently.

BEEEEEEP

She lunged herself out of bed and threw herself onto the floor. She collapsed as she felt her legs liquidize underneath her. She threw her torso onto the floorboards while her palms covered her ears tightly.

BEEEEEEP

"I'm sorry." She shuddered.

She should have gone to the funeral.

BEEEEEEP

"I'm sorry!"

The horn stopped. Gumi slowly removed her hands from her ears while she panted painfully. Her eardrums ringed, as if a horn had actually blared into her ears. She threw her hands into her lap and then bowed her head deeply, her body racking repeatedly with deep sobs. Her wrists twitched and throbbed regretfully.

"I'm sorry."

Apologizing wasn't going to be enough. Gumi knew that she could scream her apologizes over and over, but it would do no good. She had to apologize to her father face to face. To do so, she'd have to cooperate with Kagamine Len.

Gumi glanced at her pillow, where Rin's letter hid underneath, from when they shared their first encounter. Gumi swallowed the lump in her throat and finally accepted Rin's request. The dead girl had Gumi's complete devotion now.

Gumi felt as if she was betraying Miku.

She walked to the school with the speed of a zombie, staggering numbly onto the blacktop. Len had taken Rin from Miku. Miku was still hurting, even years after Rin's death. Was Rin even aware of Miku's suffering? Gumi's glazed eyes found themselves staring at a gossipy pair of girls. They seemed infuriated, as if they knew themselves what Gumi was up to. Yet, mind-readers didn't exist, nor were the girls giving Gumi any direct stares of disgust. Her self-consciousness still grew, and Gumi buried her wrists deeper into her sweater before making her way to the entrance of the building.

Remembering the sound of the horn sent Gumi into a short, twitchy shock. She concentrated on burying the sound back into the recesses of her memory. Her father had to be her first priority. If she did what Rin told her to do, she could see him again and apologize. Perhaps he could erase the memory of the sound of the car horn as well. But, even first and foremost, she had to relive Len of his suffering, whether he agreed with the idea or disagreed. If the dreams continued to be like the one she had the previous night, then Gumi was afraid to think of what her life would come to. Gumi heard the gasps of a group of students as they walked by her and began to speak in hushed, angered tones, as if they were swearing revenge on an enemy. Gumi raised her eyebrows and wondered if the people around her were actually reading her mind.

"Yo."

Gumi's startled eyes fell onto Lily. Gumi attempted to smile.

"Hey."

"You shouldn't be smiling right now."

Gumi's face easily slid back into a frown as the beat of her heart increased. "I have a feeling that I'm unaware of something."

Lily nodded. "Miku was wondering where you were?"

Gumi felt her blood freeze."I just got here." She walked next to Lily as she watched the students' faces around her become twisted with rage and repulsion as they talked among themselves. "L-Lily, did I do something wrong?"

Lily peered down at Gumi with furrowed eyebrows. "No. Why?"

"Gumi?"

Lily and Gumi turned towards the hunched-over, depressed form of Hatsune Miku. Miku sniffled loudly as she ran to Gumi and let out a sob.

"M-Miku, I'm sorry!" Gumi blurted, her heart racing wildly.

"T-this isn't your fault, Gumi. I-It's that maggot-!"

"Miku, calm down," Lily said sternly.

Gumi's frozen veins began to thaw when she realized that the growing anger on the blacktop was not due to her. She stared at Miku urgently.

"Miku, what happened?"

"You didn't know?" Miku asked with a hiccup.

"You said you were going to tell her."

"It sounded like as if you told her." Miku stared at Lily and then at Gumi. She drearily took her cellphone from out of her pocket. She pressed the screen a few times before presenting it to Gumi. "Here."

Gumi scanned the screen of the smartphone, and the blood that had started to thaw became frozen again.

RE: LEN
YOURE CRAZY

RE: LEN
JUST ANOTHER SLUT AND WHORE LIKE EVERYONE ELSE

RE: LEN
GO HANG YOURSELF BY YOUR PIGTAILS, CRAZY BITCH

Gumi reread the messages until the phone was taken out of Gumi's hands.

"Holy s-shit," Gumi finally said.

Lily's top finally blew as she crunched her foot into the ground. "I fucking hate him!"

Miku wiped another test from her eye as she slid her phone back into her purse. "I've had enough of him."

Panic and disbelief filled Gumi's face. She stuttered in attempt to defend Len, but her attempts were rendered useless at the memory of the texts. "Miku, you need to drop it. Just report this to the office."

The useless suggestion was thwarted by Miku's cry of indignation. "You've seen him act him like an animal now, Gumi," Miku stared at her with exhaustion, "and I'm tired of it." Miku turned towards the crowd of students, as if she was looking for Len. She turned back to Gumi with her eyes filled with a rage that caused Gumi to look down at her shoes. Miku gritted her teeth with frustration as Lily tried to comfort her.

"I'm dealing with him personally," Miku hissed. With her feet firmly planted into the black asphalt, she kept her eyes on the crowd of students, waiting for any sign of disruption in the crowd in order to jump after her prey, all the while Gumi slid against the wall, her stomach caught in her throat, breathing heavily as she witnessed Miku's formerly weary stance transform into the agitated pose of a provoked tiger, ready to pounce and sink her claws into her victim.

Uuuh I owe you guys an apology

I had midterms, projects, homework, social obligations...all those kinds of 'fun' college stuff. The good news is I passed my exams! The bad news is that I have finals within a month QwQ But, more good news is that I have a month off for winter break and I return to the U.S., so I might be a bit more active during the time from mid December to January.

I wanted to post this chapter before I went to Madrid tomorrow, and before my time is eaten up by something else, sooo savor this chapter, if you end up liking it. The major ass kicking takes place next chapter! It's going to be thrilling! And I know that you'll all want to poke me with pitchforks afterwards *w* See you soon~! Thank you for the reviews and for all of your patience!