Solitaryloner: I was pretty sure that I updated this already. It appears that I haven't. Ah well. Sorry for the long wait, people - I'm swamped with homework, studying and other stories to update. And yes, I think that's a pretty good excuse. So, enjoy Chapter 5!

Len and Miku hurried off to class. Len wanted to groan at the thought of being late for first period - which was Science. The teacher had told him before, if he was late for yet another Science lesson, he was going to have to call his parents. And Len did not want teachers calling his parents to complain about his tardiness.

The thing was, it wasn't that Len wanted to be late for class, most of the time. If anyone was to blame for his constant lateness, then it had to be his fan club. He didn't want to waste his energy fending off his fan girls' advances, so he had to hide from them. All the time. And because of that, he was always late.

Obviously, Tei Sukone blocking them in the hallway just now didn't help with his tardiness issues. He shot a glance at Miku - she was hurrying beside him, but her face was closed off and withdrawn. They shared the same first period, he remembered, and now he was going to drag her down along with him. A little speck of guilt filled him, and he tried to ignore it.

Had Miku ever been late to class before? No, not that he could recall. And today, there would be a blip on her flawless, always on time record - and it would be all his fault. Would she hate him for that? She wouldn't, right? It was just one small little tiny detail...surely she wouldn't mind that he had caused her to be late to class -

He stopped the train of thought. Now that was just stupid. Why was he worrying about something as inconsequential as that? It wasn't like she was even making a fuss about being late - she hadn't even mentioned anything about that. So why was he worrying about something as minor as being late to class? He wondered whether he was just using that to try and get his mind off other thoughts.

What did Miku think about the way he had got her to pretend to be his girlfriend? She hadn't seemed to approve much of the way he had broken Tei's heart - not that he really believed that she had just had her heart broken. Surely Tei didn't believe that she had ever had a chance with him. After all, she was just a fan girl. And he had never offered his fan girls the illusion that he would return their feelings.

He was actually rather surprised that Miku could feel so sympathetic towards Tei, even though it was rather obvious that Tei didn't like Miku very much. Since she was now Len's apparent girlfriend. He had to wonder whether Miku was just that kind, or whether she was dense enough to not notice the way Tei had glared at her, after finding out Miku was Len's 'girlfriend'. He suspected that it might be the latter.

Not that he was saying that Miku was dumb - the Hatsune twins were ridiculously smart, and they usually topped the class in terms of marks. Len and Rin were usually not too far behind them, but that was another reason why Rin felt so aggrieved about the Hatsunes. She hated being in second place for anything, even in tests and quizzes, and especially not when the people she was losing to were the Hatsunes.

No, Len thought that Miku was rather dense for not noticing that he liked her, as more than a friend. But then again, maybe that was his fault. He wasn't making his feelings for her extremely obvious either, now that he thought about it. Mainly because if he made his feelings too obvious, Rin would pick up on it. And then Rin would be pissed off. And she would kill him.

''Hey...you know, the way you just pretended to be my girlfriend?'' he swallowed, the words refusing to come out. He had to force the words out, and as he spoke he knew he sounded like he was being strangled. Miku blinked, her head turning around to stare at him. There was a faint look of surprise on her lovely face.

''Yeah, what about it?'' she questioned him, cocking her head so that her long teal hair fell over her shoulder, curling and draping...he tore his eyes away from her silky hair. No, this wasn't the right time to imagine holding a lock of that long hair to his lips, inhaling her scent - even though he did want to do that. Sort of.

''It's more than just a one-time thing, you know,'' he informed her, noticing the subtle widening of her green eyes. What, had she really not known? ''Tei would be telling the rest of those girls that...you're my girlfriend,'' he said hesitantly. ''And in order to convince the rest of them, we're going to have to continue pretending that...we're together.''

She blinked at him, her startled expression reminding him of a deer which had been caught in a car's headlights. ''Oh,'' was all she said, that one word conveying more shock than anything else she could do or say. She ducked her head, sighing, before she glanced back up at him. Len regarded her, feeling both hopeful and nervous - how would she react to the idea of that?

''Look, if you agree to this, then I promise I'll be your personal servant and do whatever you want for the same duration you have to be my girlfriend,'' he offered, desperate. He knew that most people wouldn't do anything without some form of reward in return. Besides, he didn't mind being Miku's personal slave - that would give him more chances to get closer to her.

''Fine,'' she agreed, to his surprise. ''But it will only be an act,'' she quickly warned him, before he could say anything more to her. ''Imagine what would happen if our siblings ever found out that we were dating each other...'' she groaned softly. ''They don't even want us to be friends. If Mikuo finds out that I'm actually your 'girlfriend', he's going to kill me,'' she muttered. Len blinked - he hadn't really thought about it.

''Damn,'' he mumbled, thinking about how Rin would react to the news that Miku Hatsune was his girlfriend. An image of Rin pointing a large kitchen chopper at him filled his mind, and he shuddered in horror. ''Okay, so what do we do?'' he asked her, noticing with trepidation that they were finally nearing the science lab. ''How long for should we act like we're a couple?''

Though obviously, Len would much prefer that they didn't have to act...he still wanted her to really be his girlfriend. She was just so pretty, and seeing her made his heart race. Despite his feelings, however, he didn't know whether Miku felt the same way about him - and then there was his sister to contend with. Rin would never approve of him dating Miku. If she ever found out, she would probably end up killing him.

Both of them paused right outside the science lab. Miku took a deep breath and turned around to face him. ''Okay, we need a set of rules if we're going to pretend to be together,'' she told him. ''I think about a month or so should do the trick - by then, your fan girls should have moved on to my brother or something. Then we can 'break up' and life will go back to normal. We can remain friends, though,'' she smiled.

The last line gave him a little shred of hope. ''So what are the rules?'' he asked her. One month...that would be enough for him to try and win her heart. Right? And perhaps, during that one month, he could even try and persuade Rin to learn how to accept Miku...not that he thought that he would succeed, not any time soon. But he could try. And even if he failed in securing Miku's affections, they would still be friends.

Being friends was better than being nothing at all. He thought. ''Well...firstly,'' Miku placed a finger against her lips as she thought. ''No hugging or anything like that. Or kissing or whatever. You keep your hands to yourself, okay? Especially if our siblings are around.''

Len blinked, registering her words. Then he began to protest. ''But if we're acting like we're a couple, then we can't avoid kissing and hugging! That's what couples do! Wouldn't it be suspicious if you don't allow me to touch you at all?'' a bit of smugness filled him - he knew he had just put up an excellent argument.

Miku blinked, hesitant. He could see the gears in her mind whirring. ''Fine,'' she said reluctantly. ''But! We only do this when your fan girls are around, so that we can convince them that we're deeply in love. There will be no such thing anywhere else, okay?'' she stared at him, waiting for him to agree. He did so grudgingly - that wouldn't be nearly enough for him.

''Secondly, we should go on at least one date a week,'' Len cut in quickly before she could say anything else. She spluttered at his words, her eyes widening in utter shock.

''At least one date a week?'' she stared at him. ''Isn't that...kind of a lot?'' she asked helplessly, folding her arms behind her back. Len smiled roguishly at her, enjoying her discomfort. ''I mean, it's not like I really like you that way or anything,'' she added, and he resisted the urge to frown at her. That was disappointing to hear - but he would change that soon. Somehow.

''Well, they'll only believe that we're together if we go out on dates a lot and everything,'' he pointed out. ''The more we go out together, the more they'll believe that we're deeply in love with each other. And then they'll give up and move on to your still available twin. By the time we 'break up', they'll hopefully be so obsessed with Mikuo that they'd forget about me.''

If Rin could listen to him talking about giving up his fan girls to their rival fan club, the way he was now, he knew that she would throttle him to death. As he had said before, he had completely no idea why his twin was so obsessed with popularity. This whole fan club issue was bringing him nothing but pain.

She sighed and nodded. ''The final rule...'' she glanced up at him from beneath long eyelashes, and he realised how much taller he was than her. She was about half a head shorter than he was, and that made him feel rather important. ''No matter what happens, we don't fall for each other. We're just friends, after all. This little act is not going to change any of that.''

He shrugged and smiled, agreeing to the condition. After all, that was one rule that he had broken even before this deal had come into existence. She smiled back at him, then they reached out to grasp each other's hands, both of them knowing that they could not ever speak of this deal to anyone. Not even to their own siblings. This was to avoid being scolded or embarrassed. But mostly to avoid the trouble.

''But what will happen if one of us accidentally breaks the rules?'' Len asked, curious. Miku shrugged, her green eyes meeting his - she seemed to be thinking about something, the expression in her eyes slightly vacant looking.

''I'm still thinking about it,'' she answered absent-mindedly. ''I'll tell you at another time. Um, I'll text you,'' she suddenly perked up. He blinked - she knew his number? Then again, she was Miku Hatsune. All the popular people had each other's numbers. Though he didn't say anything to her, he had her number too.

He nodded, then both of them pushed open the door to the science lab. All eyes fixed on them as they walked inside, and Len and Miku both blushed, averting their gazes. Though the teacher was giving them a stern glare, they found the intense scrutiny of the other students far more nerve racking. Mainly because amongst all the stares, there were two...

Rin and Mikuo both stared, horrified, at the front of the lab. What on earth were their siblings doing, walking in with the enemy? Len and Miku both looked at the empty seats next to their respective siblings, and both the blond and the tealette sighed in trepidation and resignation. Trouble was brewing.

They knew they were both going to be in for a very long lecture later, once they had sat in their seats next to their own siblings.