Okay, so I got a review telling me to write the next chapter just after I opened the document to do just that. It was weird.

Hope you enjoy whatever this nonsense is. The writing is just getting more and more lazy as time goes on...

Excuse this poor author. She hasn't slept well lately. But she had looked up some things about how to write dialogue. She plans on using this new information in the future. However, there are still mistakes she didn't feel like fixing in this chapter.

Anyway, I haven't been working on this story very much because I've been planning two new stories that will come out as soon as I have this one finished. One is another LenxMiku one and the other is MikuoxGumi, if anyone can be persuaded to look into them when they are finally published.

Please enjoy the following chapter :)

/

"K-kaito?" Miku managed to stutter out, eyes almost bugging with shock. She felt shaky and her stomach was doing flips, curling in on itself as her heart began to pound. Nothing happened for several seconds as she watched Kaito and Len exchange a glance. She had to think of a cover up, quickly. The look in Len's eyes made her sick; the desperate, pleading fear. He needed help. He needed her help. Gulping down guilt and nervousness, she tried to place a playful smile on her face.

"Kaito, this is Kagine Lin. She's Len's cousin," Miku began. Len turned wide eyes on her, almost relieved. Almost. They didn't know if Kaito bought Miku's lie yet.

"Oh? What's she doing here? Len's never mentioned her before," Kaito sounded suspicious, but other than that there was little emotion in his voice. Miku did her best to smile wider. But she should've known a smile wouldn't fool Kaito. He knew her well, and smiling was not something Miku did for real without reason.

"Len had to run out to meet Rin somewhere, I think. I don't know. It's not like he tells me these things," Miku added a convincing shrug to her act, "She's taking care of Len's mom with me while the Kagamine idiots are out."

It kind of sounded like something Miku would say, but Len shot her a glare, which ruined her acting a bit.

"Huh. Well, I brought some medicine for her. Rin called me up to tell me she was sick and Len was stuck at home in the snow," Kaito tossed the bag at them, a cold look on his face. Miku's blood ran icy and frozen at the look he held on his handsome features.

"The idiot decided to go out in this God forsaken weather, despite my warning. What can I tell you?" she sighed in irritation. Or, at least, she thought that's what the sigh sounded like, "He didn't know you'd be coming over."

"Whatever," Kaito said, turning around to leave, "Bye, Miku."

Neither teen let out their held breath until he had walked out of sight. Len turned to Miku with a strange look in his eyes.

"He didn't buy it," the boy whispered, "Thanks for the effort, though."

"Sure," Miku replied. She didn't feel good at all. That look on Kaito's ever-smiling face made her want to curl up and die.

Len examined her. She looked so sad and lonely. Did Kaito really mean that much to her if hurting him resulted in this? It made him jealous, although she had chosen to help him, as opposed to abandoning him to his desperation. But he was sure Kaito would hate him far more now, if he really didn't believe Miku's lie. Which he clearly didn't. That look in his eyes made all his feelings clear.

"Come on," Len nudged her elbow with his own, "Let's go change back. You can use Rinny's room."

Miku nodded dully, felling her arm being tugged. She lifted herself to her feet. Following Len back up the stairs. She felt herself being pushed through a doorway and into an unfamiliar room. It was Rins' probably, but she didn't feel like looking around at it. Her clothes had been quickly tossed in after her and the door was shut.

Slowly, she began to pull the dress over her gently. In a few painstakingly slow minutes, Miku managed to straighten out her clothes. Once, she put her shirt on backwards. Actually, she might've done it twice. She didn't really know.

Silently, she exited Rin's room and stood in the hallway outside Len's door until it opened, revealing a flushed and very boyish Len. He wouldn't meet her eyes, but she frankly didn't care.

"S-so," his voice seemed to shake a bit. Was he really stuttering? Miku might've been laughing normally, but not then.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"What do you want to do?"

The answer she wanted to give clung on the tip of her tongue. But she forced those words down her throat and replied evenly, "Whatever you decide to do. I don't really care."

And that's how they both ended up in front of the television with first XBOX then Wii then PS2 controllers in their hands. Miku didn't mind; it was a nice distraction. But the video game marathon literally lasted hours, all the way up until a soaked and giggly Rin appeared in the doorway of the giant television room.

"Heya!" she greeted, flopping next to Miku on the couch. This cause Miku to shoot completely off-target on the first-person shooter they were playing. She didn't know the name, but it involved a hell of a lot of violence. She loved it.

Miku shot the blond girl a glare and she giggled an apology.

"Woah, Rin. You're home," Len blinked as he gained another kill.

"Yep! Hello to you, too!" she pouted at him childishly. He smirked and cuffed her over the head, pausing the game as he did. Miku also shot him a glare.

"You're not allowed any sort of advantage over me, Mi-chan," Len told her. She gave him a look of exasperation. He had about fifteen kills more than her and far fewer deaths. She thought it was perfectly fair.

"How's Mom been?" Rin asked, settling back into the couch as the game unpaused.

"She's been good. I think she went back to bed. Probably watching bad daytime T.V. by now," Len replied, eyes glued to the screen

"It's almost dinner," Rin stated.

"Oh, really? What are you going to make?" Len asked, smirking.

Rin wacked him sharply over the back of his head, causing him to toss a grenade directly at his feet, which proceeded to kill him in a large explosion. Miku couldn't help smiling at the glare the boy shot his sister.

"Ass," he muttered.

"I know you are, but what am I?" Rin challenged childishly. Turning to Miku, she smiled widely, as if seeing the light for the first time.

"Hi, Mi-chan!" Oh, God, that stupid nickname. Hadn't she been Miku-san not too long ago?

"Hello, Kagamine-san," Miku replied, smashing down buttons with her thumbs.

"Why're you here?"

"Len was bored," Miku told her bluntly, receiving a look of betrayal from the boy she spoke of.

"I see," Rin raised an eyebrow at her brother, as if she knew something and chose to hide it. He glared back, and Miku punished him for his lack of focus on the game by killing him via head-shot. Rin giggled as he silently fumed, waiting to respawn at a safe place.

"You. Will. Die," Len warned in a growl. Miku smirked.

"Sure, sure. Just come and try," she insisted fearlessly, grinning cruelly as she spoke.

"Oh, it's on now!" Len declared, button smashing as soon as he was revived.

It's amazing how easy it is to amuse teens with a simple, violent video game. They sat for at least another hour, dying and respawing and charging after one another. Rin nearly busted a gut laughing at their reactions and their crude language. Miku didn't mind; she was enjoying herself. It was a great distraction from the events involving Kaito and Lin. Or, more accurately, Len.

Finally, Len set aside his controlled in defeat. He had only managed to get three more kills than Miku in the end, and he was way pest ready for something to eat.

"Alright, ladies. I understand the attraction of video games, but I'm starving," he stated, standing and stretching. Miku heard his back crack.

"We aren't making dinner, if that's what you're suggesting," Rin told him. Miku could only agree.

"You two are useless," he complained in a voice edging toward the whiny end of things, "Alright, I'm making spaghetti and you won't be complaining."

The girls nodded in agreement.

"Don't destroy the house, or any tiny part of it, while I'm cooking," Len instructed, as if they might actually do such a thing. Well, Rin might. Miku would on accident. So maybe they would, after all.

"I'm going to go change. I feel contaminated by work," Rin sniffed her shirt and faked a gag, "See you, Miku. You can explore anywhere you want."

"Just remember what I said," Len warned. Then, he left the room to the girls. And soon Miku was alone as Rin traipsed away to change clothes.

Sighing, Miku dug in her pocket. She had a feeling she might have a few inquiring messages from Mikuo by now, wondering where she had gotten off to. Scanning her phone, she knew she was right. Five texts, three voicemails. Couldn't get worse than that.

But she was surprised only four of the texts were from Mikuo. One was from Kaito.

Miku hated to admit it, but she was terrified to look at it. Her finger hovered over the enter button on her keypad, almost but not quite ready to open the message. In a fit of anger with her own unwillingness and weakness, Miku slammed her thumb onto the button, opening the message.

To: Miku

From: Kaito

Message:

I know you were lying.

And her heart stopped.

Kaito had not only written in a complete sentence, without a single mistake, but he knew. Oh, God, he knew. Or, at least, he had guessed and was fairly sure.

That horrible sick feeling returned.

Miku's hands shook violently. Was he angry? He was most definitely hurt, by both Len and Miku. She couldn't lose Kaito. His friendship meant so much to her. He was like a child; forgiving and forgetting faster than she could make a mistake. During her year of being bullied, he had tried to pry the information out of her, sulking when she did and said nothing. At that time, they had been dating. Kaito had been more kind to her than any other human being. He could guess what was wrong when she showed up in front of him with a black eye or bruises on her shins from harsh kicks. One time, he had given her a present; a small pendent she wore around her neck. He had said it was meant to protect whoever wore it, and the smile that was on her face showed true and honest concern

He had stuck with her through hell, despite her rotten attitude most recently. Even after she beat up those bullies beyond recognition, he hadn't been frightened of her. The only look Miku had ever seen on his face was sadness and hate. He wished Miku had told him so he himself could destroy those pathetic girls who had harmed his "cute girlfriend," as he put it.

His reason for breaking up with her was because she lied too much, had too many secrets when it would be better to have none. Miku was okay with that; she knew she had hurt him by not revealing the truth. But she was glad her first relationship had been with Kaito Shion, the most kind, gentle, sweet, stupid boyfriend ever.

But just as she lost him as a boyfriend, would she lose him as a friend, too?

Probably. Not even Kaito could put up with her forever. And she never really expected him to. It really would be better if she didn't exist at all.

She would have to add Kaito to the list of people who would be happier if she hadn't been born.

/

Len literally dragged her out of her wholehearted depression about twenty minutes, probably more, later. He yanked on her arm and pulled her through the house to the kitchen, where Rin was already sitting at the table. To Miku's surprise, two other people sat in chairs around the large table, as well. Their mother, for one. She was still in her bathrobe and looking tired, almost completely worn. Miku wondered whether she should be out of bed.

The other person was Neru. How the girl had managed to sneak in the house without her noticing, Miku couldn't guess.

"Yo, Hatsune-san," Neru greetd with a lazy wave. Miku barely bothered nodding in response.

"Neru is joining us for dinner tonight. Her father didn't want her to be home alone all day, it seems," Misayo told Miku. She had a feeling her own children already knew or just didn't care. Miku was probably the only one with anything against Neru, anyway.

"He ruined my plans of blowing up the house," Neru sighed dramatically as she accepted a plate of pasta covered in rich tomato sauce. Miku could smell basil and other herbs she just couldn't name.

"That's probably what he was afraid of," Rin giggled, digging in almost instantly.

"How'd you get here? Walking?" Len asked.

"I had my friend Gumi drive me. You've seen her, I think," Neru replied, twirling her fork into her food, "Kind of tall, green hair, shy-looking. That's about what she looks like."

"Oh, yeah. I remember her," Len realized, "She's adorable, for such a tall girl."

Miku didn't like the way he put that. What did he mean, 'for a tall girl?' Tall girls could be just as cute as short girls.

"Len prefers short girls," Misayo stated, more for Miku's benefit than anyone else's. Rin and Neru already knew his ideal girl.

"Probably 'cuz he short," Neru supplied, wiping a bit of sauce from the corner of her mouth.

"Jerk," he told his cousin.

"Shota," she replied evenly.

Miku couldn't help snorting at the horrified look on Len's face. It seemed whatever Neru had just called him was basically unforgivable. She didn't know what it meant. Probably some anime term, like tsundere. Teto called Neru tsundere a lot.

"You ever say that word again," he threatened, brandishing his empty fork at Neru, "and I will eat your cell phone. No joke."

"It would be easier just to smash it, you know," Rin informed. "A cell phone would be hard to digest."

"Stay away from my baby," Neru ordered.

Neru's obsession with her small, yellow flip phone had always bugged Miku. The blond girl hadn't gotten a new phone in about three years, according to Teto. That was just insane. Who could make a phone last that long?

The phone, endearingly called "Little Phone-kun" in some of Neru's stranger moments, was almost like a person. A mini person who didn't talk. Or have a personality. Maybe Miku was getting a bit too detailed about such an unimportant thing. The point was, Neru probably cared more about her phone than she did about the entire human race. If she had to choose between saving the lives of every person on Earth and saving her phone, she'd pick the phone and Miku wouldn't be the least bit surprised.

"You need a hobby," Len told his cousin, who was making sure he hadn't somehow managed to get her phone and would gnaw on it next time he found time alone.

"Or a different obsession!" Rin added

"My hobby is bugging Hatsune-san," Neru assured as she reached for the tray of garlic bread placed in the center of the table.

Len glanced at Miku, who rolled her eyes in return. Neither Kagamine sibling seemed surprised by this bit of information.

"It's something," Misayo decided with a gentle smile. She didn't see her niece very often due to conflict between her brother (Neru's father) and her husband. The last time she had seen Neru was maybe last summer, and before that it had been years. The blond girl had grown wonderfully; Misayo thought, and even Miku had to grudgingly admit this, that she must be fairly popular because of how much she had matured physically. Minus her height. Which was still a bit below average.

"Sounds like a fun hobby," Len told her, casting Miku a teasing grin.

"Yep," Neru agreed chomping into a piece of garlic bread and smirking.

"That's what Len does!" Rin exclaimed happily, as if this was a sudden revelation of great maginitude. Miku sighed quietly, amused by Rin's odd way of thinking.

"Didn't I ever teach you that boys only tease and pester you when they like you?" Misayo asked her daughter, the same smile she had kept throughout the meal still resting across her lips. Len made a face as Rin giggled.

"Like Miku? Are you serious?" Len grumbled. "She's the exact opposite of everything I'd want in a girlfriend."

Miku felt a stab of hurt in her chest. That was kind of a mean thing to say, even for Len. She covered her hurt with a half-decent retort.

"Luckily enough for you, I'd say the same," Miku smirked coldly at him and he seemed to realize he had gone a bit far with his teasing.

"But I said girlfriend," Len replied suspiciously.

"And I'm not going to change that wording," Miku winked. Most everyone, excluding Misayo, found this action surprising. Miku was actually teasing Len in return? Usually she'd just be rude or threatening.

"I resent that," Len stated, his voice edging to a whine. Rin giggled again and Neru found herself smirking. The ways Len and Miku interacted were so amusing, really, even if they themselves didn't understand that.

Dinner was finished slowly as the five of them held long conversations with occasional outbursts of laughter. Miku had almost forgotten what eating with a family was like. She liked the Kagamines. They were nice to her. The way Misayo smiled and looked at her children made her both happy and jealous. Len and Rin had so many things she didn't. A loving family, money, so much happiness, a home they wanted to return to. That was just the beginning. They had each other, as well. Len had his fans, who would love him even if his family didn't. Miku wanted all of that. She hoped Len and Rin knew how well they had things.

"Yo, Mi-chan! Help me with dishes!" Len demanded before she could stand from the table.

Miku scowled. "Why me?"

Len's grin widened. "You'll actually help. Those two over there," he gestured to Neru and Rin, who were looking at the pair with almost matching smiles, "Won't do anything, even if I ask."

Miku sighed. "I'm not surprised," she replied. Len kept smiling as he stacked everyone's used plates and silverware together, leaving Miku to grab the cups. The teal-haired teen followed her blond idol, letting her own mouth form a smirk.

"Come on, Ru-chan! Let's go to my room!" Rin demanded from the dining room.

"Help Mom to her bed first!" Len told his sister, mild exasperation slipping into his voice as he ran warm water over the sauce-stained plates.

"Oh! Okay!" Rin sounded awed, as if she completely forgot that her mother was ill. Miku watched as she pulled Misayo out of her chair. The woman was shaky as she stood and Rin had to support her when they left the room, Neru trailing behind.

Len sighed, almost exactly as Miku had before. "Rin needs to pay more attention," he complained, turning the steaming water off.

"You just realized this?" Miku questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I've told you before; she's a bit crazy," Len stated, rolling up his sleeves.

"I don't doubt you," Miku replied, "Not after she attacked you with muffins."

Len grimaced. "That was pretty undignified," he admitted, "You rinse and I'll scrub." Len moved the tap to her side of the sink, letting the water settle on cold.

"Alright," Miku agreed, leaning against the counter. Her side was pressed lightly against his and she could feel the warmth of his skin through her jeans. They were silent for a moment as Len ran a sponge over a plate, his eyes fixed firmly on the glass object in his hands.

"Hey, Miku?" he began.

"Hm?" Miku replied curiously.

"I'm sorry if I was a bit mean earlier. About the whole girlfriend thing," he told her, "You have nice qualities."

Miku blinked, resisting the urge to glance at him. Why was he bringing this up? It wasn't that big a deal.

"Okay," Miku accepted the apologies.

"Actually, you're really cute," Len added. Miku saw the corner of his mouth tilt up even though he still wasn't looking at her.

"Wh-where did that come from?!" Miku demanded as her face became warm. Leave it to Len to make her uncomfortable just as she was beginning to feel safe around him.

He chuckled. "Oh, it's nothing. Just thought you could use a bit of a confidence boost."

He passed her two plates and a cup. In retaliation, Miku filled the cup with cold, soapy water and dumped it over his head. She heard him laugh as she stormed out of the kitchen.

Unknown to her, Len smiled to himself as she left.

So she's back to normal again, he decided, I'm glad. Happy Miku is kind of creepy.

Unknown to him, Miku also smiled as she left.

Dumb Len, she thought with her own small, bright smile lighting up her green eyes, He sure as hell knows how to cheer up a person, I have to admit.