The end of Golden Week meant the start of school on the following Monday. The classrooms were once again filled with students. The chalkboards were once again filled with a wide variety of the teachers' markings. The hands on the clocks diligently ticked away as they neared noon at a steady pace.
Miku's gaze wandered to the wall on a regular basis, checking upon the passage of time. While taking notes, now and then she glanced to her left, towards the window. And also, the empty seat of her friend still on vacation, Megurine Luka.
A soft sigh left her lips. It's so tranquil without her around, she observed. I've almost forgotten what it's like. Now, it almost seems kind of lonely. Boring, even. Funny how easily things change. In such a short time, I had grown so used to spending the school day with her.
Yeah, the entire school day... Where I should go during lunch break today? It would be sort of awkward to sit at our usual table all on my own. Perhaps it's time I visited the rooftop again, the tealette mused, inattentively doodling misshapen little spring onions along the margin of her notebook. That reminds me, the one month is up. But we haven't talked about it ever since. The chances of going back to the way things were are next to none, though. I have Luka-chan; Rin-chan has her classmates. Len-kun... well, I suppose he has Shion-kun. Or maybe more like had, with Luka-chan's brother in the picture now?
Miku lightly shook her head in an attempt to shoo away the memories of her visit from a few days ago that threatened to resurface. As those pesky thoughts had done all too often with each passing day since; it was an experience that she wasn't about to forget any time soon, much to her discontentment. To the rooftop it is. No chance of clumsily bumping into anyone up there, she decided.
After class was over, Miku slowly made her way through the halls and across the school grounds to the cafeteria, paying extra attention to her surroundings. The additional concentration did the trick: she spotted Kaito from afar and kept her eyes on him so as to avoid the unwanted meeting. At the same time, she kept herself out of his line of vision. The tealette didn't want to risk him noticing her, for fear of... well, she wasn't sure of that herself.
At last, she reached the staircase leading up to the rooftop with her lunch in hand. She skipped up on the steps and arrived at the large, grey door in a matter of seconds. It was already slightly ajar: a sure sign that someone was there. Still in Super Sneaky Miku Mode, she peeked out through the opening to ascertain the person's identity.
The usual pleasant breeze toyed around with the messy, blond ponytail of the youth sitting with his back to the door. He was preoccupied with adjusting the tuning pegs of the acoustic guitar he was holding. Len-kun...Were you always here during lunch time? That would explain why I haven't seen you around, she pondered.
The sight of his figure from behind instilled a nostalgic feeling in the girl. It was something like this, on that day, too. Just the two of us. It's a bit hard to believe that over a year has passed by now... She closed her eyes in reminiscence, leaning against the wall.
Valentine's Day: the modern holiday fixated on the concept of love; the time of the year when it's more likely to get a confession than to catch a case of the common cold. Obligatory chocolates, friendship chocolates and sweetheart chocolates; store-bought chocolates and handmade chocolates: with such a variety, in tastes and types as well, misunderstandings are bound to happen.
Oh, what a misunderstanding it became! I was at fault, really. I took it too seriously. Rather than making the mistake of not giving something special enough, I gave something too special. It was way too early for such extravagant handmade chocolates. After all, we hadn't even known each other for a year yet.
I just wanted to express how important they were to me! That our fresh friendship was something I treasured. Even after all that happened, I think it still would've been worse if plain, store-bought obligatory chocolates were the cause of a problem.
Thankfully, Rin-chan received the right message. With that sweet tooth of hers, her stomach did the thinking for her. She was just happy enough to get a sugar bomb first thing in the morning. "Thanks Miku-chan! These chocolates are delicious, you're an awesome friend!" was her reaction it, hugging me tightly. And I must say, she has quite the knowledge about quality brands, since her friendship chocolates were scrumptious as well.
I think that's where I made the fatal mistake. I gave them the chocolates separately. At the time, it seemed logical: why should I carry Rin-chan's package with me if I could just give it to her right away? Pure laziness sure is a force to be reckoned with.
Then again, that in itself might not have caused the catastrophe. I could've still saved the situation. When Rin-chan gave her chocolates to Len-kun, I could've used that as my chance. But it felt wrong to me to intrude on their twin moment by handing over mine at the same time. That overjoyed smile of his belonged to no one other than his sister.
The third component to the disaster was my own forgetfulness. It didn't even occur to me to give it to him over lunch; I left the package behind in my schoolbag, in the classroom. That left after school as my only remaining option.
But that turned out to be no good, either. When the twins joined me at the school gate in order to walk back to the dormitory, they were in the middle of a heated discussion. Len-kun held a small box in his hands. Undoubtedly, it contained chocolates of the sweetheart kind. He had found it in his shoe-locker. However, there was no name attached to it, so now they were trying to figure out who the sender was. More precisely, Rin-chan was suggesting names and Len-kun was disproving each one. It was a given that I couldn't steal this moment away from the nameless student! That would've been very unfair of me.
I was so engrossed in the conversation that it slipped my mind to give my chocolates to him as we parted ways at the dormitory entrance. I only remembered once we were up in our room and I began taking out my belongings from my bag. It was no short of a miracle that the sweets were still mostly intact after getting carried around all day long. I decided it was finally time to get it done and over with. I made my way towards the male section of the dormitory building.
I was almost at his door when I realized that I could've just waited for him. Most of the time, Rin-chan and Len-kun wrote their homework together in our room. They loved using me as their Omniscient Encyclopaedia of Knowledge, too. But it was a little too late for that realization. He opened the door and stepped out just as I came to a halt in front of it.
"What is it, Miku-chan?" he asked in surprise.
"Happy Valentine's Day, Len-kun!" I announced as I extended my arms toward him, presenting the nicely-wrapped package of chocolates with a bright smile on my face.
"Ee-eeh? For me?" he wondered, with a hint of disbelief in his voice as he pointed a finger towards himself. I nodded in affirmation.
"Th-thanks, Miku-chan," he said with a small stammer as he finally took it from my hands. His fingers gently brushed against mine and I think I saw a faint tinge of pink colour his cheeks.
"I... forgot something. You... go on ahead, Miku-chan," he stated, his voice faltering on occasion while looking to the side.
"Sure. See you in a bit," I replied, still smiling. I turned around and walked back to our room. With a little detour towards the kitchen to grab some snacks, of course.
That was probably the last component in creating the misunderstanding. I should've said something to make it clear that they were friendship chocolates, although homemade ones. I should've considered the possibility that his flustered state could be the start of something more than temporary timidity.
Unfortunately, I didn't put together the pieces of the puzzle until later. I paid no mind to the changed atmosphere between the three of us. Those looks he began to give me... How he was with us a bit more than usual, which was already a lot... How he was physically closer to me... I was blind to it all, mistaking it as a deepening of our friendship.
Then, White Day came: the occasion for boys to give presents in return for the girls' chocolates. For Rin-chan, Len-kun bought a bracelet with little orange-shaped charms on it. I received a similar one, but with spring onion charms. And there was a note beside it, asking me to meet him on the rooftop after school.
That still didn't sound the emergency bells in my head. Sure, it seemed a bit weird, why it had to be there of all places. But I assumed he had something special planned for Rin-chan and I.
As such, I happily headed to our favourite spot once classes ended, anticipating Len-kun's surprise. The door slightly ajar, I knew he was there already. Without a moment of hesitation, I pushed it open and walked out onto the roof. He was standing with his back to the exit, his hands in his pockets as he stared off into the sky. The sound of my footsteps reaching his ears, he turned around to look at me. He looked so unbelievably cute, the warm colors of the sunset accentuating his features. I've been aware of his charm since the moment I had met the twins. They were literally a double dose of adorable. But now, it was a different kind of attractiveness.
I quickly glanced around. Rin-chan was nowhere to be seen. Finally, the gravity of the situation dawned upon me, to an extent. Judging from the peculiar mood, something serious was about to go down. I started to feel a little nervous, my heartbeat accelerating accordingly. An awkward silence settled between us as our gazes interlocked. His blue eyes were like gleaming sapphires. So clear, yet so unfathomable.
"Thanks for the chocolates," he said, breaking the silence. He took a step towards me, closing the distance between us a bit. "They helped me understand... Miku-chan, I like you."
He confessed to me with a great deal of determination in his voice, followed by a sheepish grin and rosy cheeks. It was easily discernible that he had gathered all his courage and strength in order to keep himself from stammering or tripping over his words. True, he kept it concise. But anything longer than that would've been overkill. These simple phrases were just a vessel for the emotions. Those emotions, however, arrived loud and clear in their entirety. No heart could've stayed unsoftened from such a sincere display. I came dangerously close to falling deeply in love with him right then and there because of it.
For a moment, I wasn't sure if I had heard it right, my eyes widening from the surprise. I had to mentally stop my jaw from dropping. In a second, the entire picture came together. Everything made perfect sense. And I cursed myself for being completely oblivious to it up until that moment. Even more so for being the core of it. I created it and as such, I had to end it as well, while I still could with minimized hurt. I had to save our friendship, keep things the way they were in our trio.
Besides, I can't go out with my roommate-slash-friend's brother. That would be the very definition of awkward right there. Especially if perchance things take a turn for the worse and we break up. Not to mention that he's two years younger than me. At our age, that still counts for a lot. I just couldn't see it working out, no matter how I looked at it.
"Thank you for conveying your feelings to me, but I'm sorry, Len-kun. This misunderstanding is entirely my fault," I explained to him. I took a step backwards and bowed down in accompaniment to my apology.
As I straightened myself, guilt welled up inside me, constricting my heart with pain, upon seeing his expression. The faint shade of pink remained, but paired with lips tightening into a straight, thin line and a distant, dejected look in his eyes. I felt like the worst human being in the Universe. I wanted to take back my words and say that it was just a mean joke; I wanted to repair his shattered smile. Yet I knew that such a lie would only hurt him more and that I've hurt him enough already as it is. I had to make things better again with utmost care.
He genuinely looked like a little boy in need of a warm hug. Before I knew it, my feet were leading me to him and I was by his side. My arms gently wrapped around his petite body. I could sense that his heart rate was just about skyrocketing. Following his initial bafflement, I felt him cautiously put his arms on my back.
"Len-kun, I'm sorry," I repeated my words from a moment ago. "I'm to blame for your confusion. To 'like' someone is a very complicated emotion, with many different sides." I paused, trying to arrange my thoughts properly. All the romantic movies I've seen, all the romantic anime I watched, all the romantic books and manga I've read: thank you. You have proven to be useful, giving an inexperienced girl like me a decent set of tracks for my train of thought to reach its destination of rescuing this friendship.
"Saying 'I don't like you' wouldn't be truth. Because I do. But, not in the way you think I do. My 'like' for you is the type between friends. That's why I made that kind of chocolates. To show how much I care. How important you are to me. And not just you; Rin-chan, too. I gave her the same ones. The two of you are the best friends I could ever wish for. That's the kind of feeling I wanted to convey. Perhaps, this is more than just friendship."
As I was explaining the situation to him, I was re-evaluating it at the same time. I wasn't so certain about my feelings anymore. Labelling it 'friendship' was inadequate, a sheer insult.
"Rather than my friends, the two of you are like... siblings to me. Yeah, that's it. I get the impression sometimes that I'm an elder sister to you and Rin-chan. This kind of 'like' is one that can't grow into 'love' in a romantic sense." I found my answer. To a question I didn't even recall asking.
"We're still young; simple adolescents. You're still in middle school and I'm only at the end of my first year of high school. Figuring out the 'likes' and 'loves' we feel towards the people around us isn't easy and it's only natural that we confound one for the other. One isn't worse, or any less, than the other; they're just different, yet similar to a point." I stopped, letting him process the information. I was barely making sense to myself; I could only imagine how much harder it was for him to comprehend.
"Len-kun, if you think it over carefully, which 'like' is it that you feel for me?" It was his turn to find an answer. For the sake of us all, I hoped it would be the same as mine. In fact, it wouldn't hurt to point him in the right direction. I broke out of the hug, instead placing my hands on his shoulders and staring directly into his eyes. I smiled in encouragement. "Doesn't it resemble the 'like' you feel for your sister?"
"I... guess so..." he replied after pondering it over, casting his eyes to the side. "Because after you gave me the chocolates, it didn't feel like a new 'like' to me. It was probably there since a while already, but it was only then that I acknowledged its existence. What you said... sounds reasonable. I over-exaggerated a 'sibling like' in my mind. I'm sorry, too, for troubling you."
"It's okay, because we managed to clear up this misunderstanding in the end," I reassured him.
The cheerful smile returned to his face. I was so happy to see it in its original brilliance. Happy to the point where I involuntarily hugged him again. He had no complaints against it and reciprocated the motion.
"You'll always be a brother to me, Len-kun. You can always count on me as a sister," I informed him. He nodded in agreement.
"In that case... may I have two requests?" he enquired, breaking free of the embrace.
"I just said so, didn't I? Go on," I urged him on, living up to my earlier promise.
"First of all, I don't want Rin-chan to know," he revealed, looking down at his feet. "She might try something weird. But I don't want anything to change."
"All right, I won't tell Rin-chan," I complied. "The other request?"
"Just this one time, would you..." he hesitated before continuing, once again returning his gaze to mine. There it was again, the expression begging for a hug. I managed to resist the temptation this time around. I had a feeling that he wouldn't have appreciated my interference with the reveal of his important wish. "...sing with me? A secret duet, for just the two of us."
"Of course I would!" I replied automatically, my lips spreading into a smile full of enthusiasm. "You don't even have to ask."
That's how 'Kimi no Sekai Boku no Sekai' was born, a few weeks later. He came up with the melody, the lyrics, everything. I just gave my voice to it, in perfect harmony with his. It was an amazing duet. It served as proper closure, for the both of us. It's pretty misleading to call it such, but in a sense, it was our first love. Despite the fact that it ended before it even began.
Afterwards, everything went as normal. I don't know if he deliberately hid it or not, but I couldn't sense any kind of awkwardness in the days that followed. Even when we sang a version of 'Kimi Ijou, Boku Miman' together for an assignment, it didn't seem to cause him any discomfort. Quite on the contrary, we really enjoyed ourselves while recording it.
He wasn't right about nothing changing, though. Weird as it may be, but I think that this little secret of ours happened to strengthen our mixed bond of non-related siblinghood and friendship.
Miku opened her eyes once her reminiscing came to an end. She was too caught up in her thoughts earlier to notice that Len had begun playing a song on his guitar. It was probably a new composition: she would've surely remembered such a melody. The rhythm was nice and steady, with a bit of bittersweet melancholy to it. His soft and gentle voice was mesmerizing, smoothly fitting with the tune. The tealette soon found herself bobbing her head along to it.
"Ano egao ga mada, boku wo kurushimerunda..." he sang the final lines of the song, finishing with a short guitar solo.
She chose that moment to bring her presence to his attention. She pushed the door open enough for her to pass through it.
"Hi, Len-kun," she greeted him merrily. Her voice startled him, his back straightened as he turned around to look at her.
"Hey, Miku-chan. What brings you here?" he asked, the surprise audible in his tone. She walked over and sat down opposite of him.
"Just felt like it," she replied with a nonchalant shrug of her shoulders. "What about you?"
"Obviously, to eat lunch. And practice in peace," he answered. Becoming conscious of the implication of his response, he quickly added, "but I don't mind if you're here."
"Oh, what an honour you have bestowed upon me, Len-sama," she replied cheekily, flicking her hand out in a dramatic motion. "To permit such a preposterous thing as me visiting our usual hangout place!"
"Yeah, treasure this opportunity well, for you may not be so lucky next time, Miku-chan," he continued the teasing, ending his sentence with a hearty chuckle.
"Then, play that song again," she requested, an eager smile appearing on her face as she pointed at the several sheets of music lying in front of him.
"No," Len scoffed, rejecting her without a moment's doubt.
"Aaaawww, why not?" Miku began to complain, tilting her head to the side. "It's a great song; I want to hear it again."
"Because I said so," he reasoned. It wasn't nearly enough to convince his friend.
"Please, Len-kun? Since I've heard it partially already, it doesn't matter if I hear it again in full," she explained. He let out a deep sigh as a sign of his surrender.
"Bah, fine. But just one more time, all right? And no negotiating on that," he told her. She willingly nodded her head in compliance to his terms.
He started strumming on the guitar again, the enchanting melody resonating in the air. This time around, she properly paid attention to the lyrics as well. The words complemented the tune well, strengthening the bittersweet effect.
"Ne, Len-kun, what's the title of the song?" Miku asked, once the last note faded away.
"It's called 'orange'. Real creative, I know," he commented with a hint of sarcasm.
"And so painfully obvious," she added, shaking her head in pity. "Even I could tell and that's saying something."
"E-eh? What are you talking about?" he wondered, unsuccessfully attempting to feign innocence.
"More like, who are you talking about in the song? It's Rin-chan, isn't it?" the tealette asked him directly. "No doubt about it. You miss her, don't you?"
"Well, just a little, itsy-bitsy, teeny-tiny bit," he answered, shifting his gaze from side to side.
"Yeah right, and the Earth is flat, with the Sun revolving around it," she retorted, rolling her eyes.
"I thought you knew at least the basics of astronomy. Guess not," he commented with a smirk. At a momentary loss for words, she merely glared daggers at him.
"By what standards does writing an emotional song like that count as missing her 'a little'? What would you do if it was 'a lot'? Build her a monument?" she inquired with raised eyebrows, in order to prove her point.
"Geh, no, that'd creep her out," Len explained, a scowl forming on his face. "And then she'd spend less time with m-... us."
"Yeah. She sure has been with her classmates a lot lately," she stated, taking a mental note of his almost-slip-up at the same time. "But this is good for her. It'd be worse if she were an outcast in her class, no?"
"Yeah, but... Out of all her classmates, does it have to be Utatane?" he voiced his main complaint, his scowl becoming ever fiercer. "Even the girls in my class are all over that freak. I swear I'd break that annoying face of his if it means that they'd shut the heck up about him already."
"My, my, Len-kun, from this angle, your complexion looks absolutely green. With jealousy," Miku sniggered, amused by her own witty remark.
"I'm her brother, I have every right to be," he claimed with confidence.
"Then how do you plan on dealing with it, brother almighty?" she asked out of pure curiosity.
"Exactly the problem. I can't do anything without hurting Rin in the process," he admitted with a sigh, yet still scowling. "I've no choice but to tolerate that she's slowly drifting away, leaving us behind while she moves on."
In an attempt to bring an end to the discussion, Len zipped open his black guitar bag and delicately placed the instrument inside it. As he was ranging the papers, his expression began to change. A brush of pink appeared on his features while his lips formed a thin line and his eyes seemed to stare into the past.
There it is: the face that just screams 'hug me' and melts every heart nearby, Miku recognized it, sensing its effects without delay. She quickly gave up on resisting against her instincts. She leaned forward and enveloped him in a warm embrace.
"H-huh?" he asked in puzzlement, resting immobile in her arms.
"Don't you 'huh' me. You were the one asking for it," she replied, not intending to let go of him just yet.
"You're not making any sense," he stated. "I never said anything of the sort."
"Well, yeah, you didn't say it with words," the tealette clarified as she finally released him from her hold and sat back into her initial position. "It was that expression! Len-kun, just so you know, you've got a lethal weapon in your hands. I mean, on your face. Well, it is your face."
"What the heck are you talking about?" the boy posed the question sceptically.
"You know, the expression you were making a minute ago. Not yet blushing, but almost there, your lips firmly pressed together and your eyes spacing out into sadness," she described it to him, counting the telltale signs on her fingers. "If you were to show that face to Rin-chan, I'm sure she'd never consider leaving your side again."
"That's one of the stupidest ideas I've ever heard," he harshly stated.
"All right, maybe I exaggerated it a little," she admitted. "I suppose she has already encountered it on more than one occasion, ne?"
"I don't know, actually. I don't think I usually feel the need to make such a face when I'm with her," he mused. "And I intend to keep it that way."
"Suit yourself. But at least now you know about it," she pointed out.
"Hey wait, how did you know about it?" he demanded. "Do I make that expression so often?"
"Nope, I wouldn't say that. This was roughly the second time I saw it?" she said, half asking and half replying in uncertainty. Not to mention that I was remembering it just a short while ago, she added to herself.
"When was the first ti-... Ohh..." he cut himself off in mid-sentence as the realization hit him. He nervously scratched the back of his head, forcing his mouth into a clumsy grin. "So, uhm, what are we having for dinner tonight?"
Miku went along with the changed direction of the conversation. After all, they had treaded onto unsafe territory. This was pretty much the closest we got to bringing it up since that day, she noted to herself. It's still not easy to talk about it, but not so uncomfortable either. I'm glad he didn't get stuck in it and put it behind him instead, for the most part.
They avoided their initial topic for the rest of the lunch break. It was almost like the good old days, other than the absence of Rin.
Author's Note: I don't own any of the songs mentioned throughout the chapter. "Kimi no Sekai Boku no Sekai" belongs to Amyu (fatP), the NND code is sm10333339. "Kimi Ijou, Boku Miman" belongs to DECO*27, the NND code is sm8298201, the Len cover's code is sm10350599 and their duet version's code is sm10546644. "orange" belongs to ShounenT, the NND code is sm13926857.
So yeah, this chapter marks the introduction of song inserts ^^ In a way, this story is like one, huge, crossover songfic xD I haven't forgotten that they're at the Academy for their musical talents :)