Author's Note: Wow, 3 chapters in one month... I think that's a record for this story xD With September around the corner, I'll be slowing down again with updates, but I will surely finish this story! Thank you to everyone following it :) Well then, enjoy~

The harsh reality of a bleak Monday morning crudely barged in on the sleeping adolescents, guised as the irritating beeping of an alarm clock.

Before either Rin or Miku could voice their usual complaints about the unnerving noise, it suddenly ceased paining their ears. They had Len and his quick reaction time to thank for that. Instead, it was replaced by an even more annoying song playing as it switched over to radio mode. Even that ended when he pressed the button again, finally restoring the silence.

"Oh damn."

The words slipped out on their own as he became aware of his current position. Miku peeked out from beneath her fluffy blanket to take a look at Rin's bed. Len's presence was no surprise to her, since last night's events were relatively clear in her mind. On the other hand, it was surprising that he was now lying on top of his twin. That's definitely not the way I left them last night, she observed.

Beneath the blank expression he was wearing, many confliction emotions raged in his mind; he wasn't quite sure which of those his face should be portraying at the moment. Bright blue orbs flitted from side to side in uncertainty, but always avoiding Miku's drowsy gaze. His complexion, however, was getting redder by the second. Yet he didn't budge, as his brain was simply unable to fully process what he was experiencing and move his limbs at the same time.

What started out as Rin being a blanket for him, had turned into Len being a teddy bear for her. A very clingy and possessive teddy bear. His leg twisted around hers, similarly to a vine. He had already freed one arm in order to turn off the alarm clock, while his other arm curled around her waist and reached up along her spine. Luckily, above her shirt, not beneath it. There was enough awkwardness in the fact that she was hugging his head to her chest. He could clearly hear her steady heartbeat, which quickened as she started coming to her senses.

"Whaaa-?"

Rin's eyes fluttered open and she peered down at the golden tresses between her fingers. She carefully untangled them from the soft, fluffy mass. Simultaneously, her cheeks began to take up an intense crimson colouring.

"L-Len-nii?"

Hearing her soft voice call out his name in such a frightened tone was what urged his muscles to move. Untwisting his leg and liberating his other arm, he rolled off of her and plopped down onto the floor beside the bed. He was soon in a half-sitting position, supporting himself with his arms.

"I'm sorry, Rin! I swear I didn't do anything! If I did, I didn't mean it!"

He pressed his eyes shut as the repenting shouts tumbled out of his mouth, in a voice that was an octave higher than normal. This was a side of Len that rarely saw the light of day. He pulled his legs up, tightly hugging them with his arms to make himself as small as possible, and buried his face into his knees.

The last remains of sleepiness dissipating, Rin got out of her bed to sit down beside him. She wrapped her arms around her brother's figure, gently cradling him.

"Don't worry, Nii-chan. After all, I was the one who let you sleep in my bed," she attempted to soothe him. "Everything's okay."

Is Len-kun really the older one? For a change, Rin-chan's acting more like it now, Miku noted to herself. It was slightly uncomfortable for the tealette to witness such an intimate moment between the twins; it felt like they were in a separate dimension, more so than what she had become accustomed to over the past few years. Yet she couldn't tear her eyes away from the scene unfolding before her.

"Really?" he asked, lifting his face to look at her with a gaze full of remorse.

"Really," she assured him, even managing to crack a smile, her eyes shining with honesty and trust. She waited for a short while before continuing. "But we have school today, so, you should go back to your room and get ready, okay? We'll meet up at the usual place."

Len nodded in response and mirrored her smile. As of late, his sister had been meeting up with her classmates in the morning instead. This tiny gesture from her was exactly the fragment of happiness that he was currently very much in need of. After one last squeeze, she slowly released him from her embrace and they both got to their feet. He shuffled out of the room with hurried steps.

As the door closed behind him, a relieved sigh left Rin's lips. She looked over to Miku's bed, their gazes meeting. The tealette sat up, puzzlement scrawled all over her face.

"I should explain a bit, huh?" the blonde offered, scratching the back of her head nervously. "I don't know how much you've noticed it before, but... Len-nii's a bit fragile. Honestly, I feel like I should stick a 'Handle with care' sign onto him sometimes."

The comment elicited a few soft chuckles from her. When Rin mentioned his fragility, a sensation of familiarity came over Miku. The 'hug me' expression... is that when he cracks?

"So when he breaks, I fix him. And then he goes back to being the usual Len: grumpy, unsocial and sharp-tongued," she began to explain the situation briefly as she crossed her arms, her tone warm and caring. "I must say, he's been holding up really well, because the last time this happened was years ago, before we transferred here. I'm not even sure if he remembers it."

Not as well as you think, she countered. But I can't tell you that.

"I had no idea..." she uttered the false words without thinking it through. Why am I lying again? To Rin-chan, my best friend? If she knew how much Len-kun is hurting, that he even went as far as pouring his emotions into a song for her, maybe she wouldn't abandon him to this extent...

"Anyways, we'd better get ready, too. Mind if I use the bathroom first?" the blonde inquired, pointing to the door.

"Not at all, go ahead," the tealette acquiesced with a friendly smile.

After everything that happened that morning, the previous evening, and since the start of the school year, a single question echoed in her mind. Is everything... slowly falling apart?

On their way to school, Len acted like the events from a short while earlier had never happened; as if he had mysteriously teleported to his own bed and had woken up in his own room, the awkward moment being nothing more than a forgotten dream – a pitch-black hole in his memory. It was just like his twin had said: he returned to being the usual Len. Neither Miku nor Rin brought it up; it wasn't an option to risk breaking him again.

Nevertheless, the tealette was worried about him. What should I do? What can I do? The questions echoed in her mind all throughout the morning classes, yet the answers evaded her. The seconds ticked by at a painstakingly slow pace. Amidst the occasional tapping of her pencil, a folded note landed on her desk. She opened it without even bothering to check if the teacher was looking or not.

What's up, Miku-chan? You seem pretty out of it today. Did you have a nightmare about zombie seals eating your brains out or something?

She knew right away that those elegant strokes belonged to Luka. Also, it had become a habit for them to exchange letters during class; it made the day less boring. She had to stifle a giggle while reading it. She glanced to her left and saw a cheery grin on her features. It infectiously brought a meek smile to her own.

No... Did you? I just have a few things on my mind, that's all. No big deal.

She tossed the note back to the pinkette. Here I go again, another lie to a friend. Well, a half-lie. Because it is a big deal. But Luka-chan wouldn't be able to help, anyways. She doesn't really know how things are with me, Rin-chan and Len-kun.

At that moment, an ingenious idea popped into her head. Maybe it's time to change that. Luka-chan's eccentricity might have a positive effect on the twins. There's no reason for me to keep my two sets of friends apart anymore; things can't really get any worse from here on out. The letter soon returned to her desk.

Nightmare? No. Zombie seals eating brains? No. Fancily dressed seals drinking tea? Yes.
Just saying, you can tell me what's bothering you, no matter how small. I might not be able to help, but I sure can listen :)

That brightened her mood right away. It was the first time someone in her class had said something like that to her. The remark at the beginning also played a part in cheering her up.

Actually, perhaps you can. Sorry for not suggesting it sooner, but, would you like to meet the Kagamines sometime?

She had to resist facepalming herself as she read over her response. It makes it way too obvious that there's something wrong. She quickly erased her scribbled characters and tried to phrase it differently.

Thanks, Luka-chan. But really, don't worry, it'll sort itself out ^_^ I won't even comment on the seals... Anyways, I just realized something. You haven't met the Kagamines yet! That simply won't do.

There, that's better, she observed. The message flew back to the pinkette's desk. She could see the excitement and anticipation in her eyes as she read it.

Yeah, it sure won't! I was considering stalking you all the way back to the dormitory sometime soon, if you weren't going to suggest it yourself.

The statement brought an amused smile to her face. She could actually imagine Luka going through with that plan.

We could all go out somewhere on the weekend to have a bit of fun. Your brother can come, too.

Before she could change her mind about that last phrase, which suddenly wrote itself out from the end of her pencil, Miku folded the note up and passed it back.

Sooner than Luka could write a reply, the bell rang and dismissed them for the lunch break. As they stood up to bow for the teacher, she sneakily showed her a thumbs-up, to convey her consent to the idea.

The girls decided to eat their lunch in the cafeteria building; considering the dark rainclouds that loomed in the sky, it seemed like it could start raining any minute.

Kaion Academy's cafeteria was befitting of the institution's image and reputation. It was a spacious, three-story building, so as to provide enough space for all the students when the outdoor tables couldn't be used. The lunch period itself was split into two parts: the elementary students came first, while the middle school and high school students shared their lunchtime afterwards. The interior design wasn't anything out of the ordinary: chrome chairs surrounded the circular, chrome tables with white laminate tops. Normally, sunlight flooded the area through the large, floor-to-ceiling windows. A couple of shrubberies were placed here and there, to liven it up a bit. The cooking was nothing to complain about: granted, it couldn't compare to the servings in a 5-star restaurant, but it possessed a tasty flavour and there was a decent variety of meals to choose from.

They had settled down at a table on the ground floor and had begun eating when something caught Miku's eye from her peripheral vision. It was none other than the source of her worries, Len. She quickly excused herself to the toilet (another white lie for the count) and went after him.

"Hey, Len-kun," she called out to him, once she was only a couple of meters away. He turned around, clearly surprised by her sudden appearance as he almost dropped the two canned drinks in his hands.

"Ah, Miku-chan. What is it?" he wondered as she took the last couple of steps toward him.

"Where are you going? To the rooftop?" she replied with a question of her own.

"Actually, no," the blond answered. "Why do you ask?"

"I thought that maybe you could join me and my friend, Luka-chan, for lunch today?" she relayed her sudden idea, covering her unease with a smile. Images of the broken Len from that morning kept appearing in her mind. "Since you've been eating alone, and, yeah."

"Uhm, I'll pass," he stated after a moment of thought. He held up one of the beverages he was carrying: iced coffee. A pout began to form on his lips. "Shion's holding my banana hostage, so I have to tag along with him and buy him a drink. I swear that guy's deranged, beneath all those irritatingly jolly grins."

At the mention of a certain blue-haired male, a soft blush tinted Miku's cheeks. So he likes iced coffee, she mentioned to herself. And in his own way, he's being kind to Len-kun. Somehow, I can totally imagine Luka-chan doing something odd like that.

"I see. That's good, then," the tealette managed to blurt out. "Good luck with the rescue mission."

"Yeah, thanks. I'll make sure he thinks twice before pulling a similar trick again..." he vowed, his features turning grim. "See you later, Miku-chan."

After an exchange of waves, Len turned around and walked away from her. She stood there for a couple of seconds, watching his retreating figure before she made her way back to Luka.

Perhaps I really don't need to worry that much. It's taking him a bit longer, but Len-kun's also befriending people other than me and Rin-chan. We're all drifting apart, but to safe seas. Probably. Right?

In the days that followed, Miku's thoughts often wandered to the twins and the current state of their friendship. Times were changing. Obviously, these changes weren't all rainbows and sunshine for the trio; far from it.

We used to get along so well... We used to hang out so much...

The jumbled up mess in her head was too much to keep bottled in. So, they spilled onto the margin of her notebooks, slowly turning into lyrics. By the end of May, the phrases found their rightful places in verses and moulded together as one.

But the song still lacked a melody and the instruments to bring it to life. However, she didn't lack in people who could help her with that. Especially if she wanted to finish in time to be able to sing it at the Midsummer Music Festival. She desperately needed to, as an attempt to mend the trio's bond.

Luckily for her, she was the only one foolish enough to try composing a song from scratch in less than a month's time and make it presentable. Luka had decided to perform one of her older songs. Despite Miku's relentless efforts to convince him otherwise, Len wasn't going to sing 'orange' as a not-so-hidden message to Rin. As an alternative, she was going to perform a song with him, and another one with Miku.

Before the tealette could seriously get to work on her new piece, she had to check if Gumi-sensei would agree to include an unfinished song in the concert; though, worst comes to worst, she could always perform an earlier one.

She couldn't go empty-handed, so she dragged out the visit until at least the lyrics were complete. Before she knew it, it was already Friday, the last day of the month: the deadline for the concert signups. That afternoon, she headed straight towards the music room once classes had ended.

As soon as Miku entered the club room building, she could feel the tiny, faint tremors signalling that someone was vigorously playing on the drums. Once she arrived on the second floor's hallway, she could pick out the melody, although it was entirely unfamiliar. Gumi-sensei must be composing a new song, she figured.

The tealette strolled to the music room, her steps gaining a bounce as the drumbeat flowed through her veins. By the time she reached the door, her fingers were tapping the rhythm on her thigh. She opened it without hesitation and walked inside.

"Hi, Gumi-sensei," she began to greet her teacher. "That's an awesome-"

Her words died at the tip of her tongue as her gaze travelled to the drum set at the other end of the room. It took all her effort to keep her jaw from distinctly dropping. The person playing on it was most definitely not whom she expected it to be.

"Hey, Chibikko-senpai. It's been a while since we last bumped into each other."

Earth, please, open up below my feet and swallow me whole. Like, right now. If it wouldn't be too much trouble.

She remained frozen in the same spot, unable to emit a sound, or make a move, or anything at all. Once she realized her wish won't be fulfilled anytime soon, panic began to set in. Her legs felt wobbly, her heart seemed to burst, her cheeks were aflame; just the usual, whenever she encountered Shion Kaito.

Oh my gosh, what do I do. This can't be happening to me. No. Freaking. Way. Why am I so helplessly unlucky? The thoughts zipped through her mind. With each passing second of silence, the atmosphere between them became more awkward.

Okay, okay, just, calm down. Breathe. Your brain needs it, she instructed herself. Keeping it the least exaggerated as possible, she emptied her lungs and filled them again with fresh air, clearing some of the fog in her mind. Good. You've got this under control. Now, say something. At this point, doesn't really matter what, because the embarrassment levels are already skyrocketing.

"Y-y-yeah, it s-sure has b-been," she clumsily blurted out the words, her gaze drifting everywhere in the room, except towards him.

Ah, how pathetic. Get a grip on yourself, girl. You're at a safe distance. And he's fully clothed this time. She tentatively took a few steps forward and turned to look at Kaito, willing her mouth to form into a timid smile.

Seated at the drum set, his height didn't stand out as much and shrunk his presence by a bit. The afternoon sun's orange rays deepened the blue tint of his hair and drew attention to the sweat drops on the bridge of his nose. The trademark gentle smile that she had become familiar with in the time before the Golden Week incident adorned his features.

"Sorry about last time," she apologized. "It was my fault."

"Don't mind it. Nothing went to waste, so I got my full pay check at the end of the month," he reassured her.

Wait, what? The accident at Clover Club was before the one I'm apologizing for. Perhaps... he forgot about it? He was still pretty sleepy-looking, so he might've thought it was just a dream... I should get out of here before he remembers, she reasoned.

"I have something to take care of, so I'll be going now," she told him. "Bye, Shion-kun."

Without wasting another moment, she made her escape from the music room and dashed down the hallway. She headed back to the high school building, hoping to find Gumi-sensei in the faculty office. The sooner she could leave school grounds, the better. And she still wished the ground would gobble her up.