Chapter Thirteen
As soon as I get to school on Wednesday, Len runs up to find me. "Madoka! You're here!" he exclaims. "Do you have the notebook?" he asks, holding his breath. I pull it out from behind my back and smile. "Thank goodness," he breaths, taking it from my hand. He sighs of relief, then suddenly gasps. "Did you read anything?" he asks. I look away and shake my head. He smiles and hesitates.
Suddenly, Len wraps me in a giant hug around my waist. I can hardly breathe. He holds it for what seems like forever. As soon as I relax a bit from the shock, I find my cheek pressed against his chest. I can't keep back a smile as I am wrapped tightly in his arms and immersed in his aroma. As soon as he lets go, a blush fades onto his face, and his blonde hair falls across his deep sea-green eyes. I'm sure that I look the same way.
"Sorry, um…" Len stammers, rubbing the back of his neck. I tilt my head and look down.
"No, it's okay," I smile. No matter how hard I bite my lip, I can't hold back a grin. "Really," I assure him, finally meeting his uncomfortable gaze.
As soon as the bell rings, I find myself in my seat for Songwriting. "So, is Len a good hugger?" teases Miku. My eyes widen in shock.
"You saw?" I ask, then burst into laughter. Miku nods. "Wait, did everyone?" I whisper, suddenly not laughing anymore. Miku exchanges a glance with Rin, then they both nod. I shake my head, chuckling.
The door cracks open, and Len comes walking in. Miku nudges me in the ribs. I glare at her, still half-laughing. "Hey, what if I did that to you every time Kaito came in the room?" I ask her. Rin practically falls out of her seat. Miku takes a heavy breath and kicks my calf, her face turning red.
As soon as Len sits down, Mrs. Tokara comes in as well, wearing a similar outfit from Friday. This time, her simple back pumps are tipped in white, and her white blouse has cream buttons all the way down to her black knee-length skirt. She also wears a short red scarf that complements the whole outfit wonderfully.
"Okay, today is the fourth day of working on our songs for the band competition!" she says, excitedly. "Alright, separate into your bands," she says. "Wait! Do you all have your notebooks?" she asks. Len and I exchange a glance and smile down to ourselves with rosy cheeks. However, my smile vanishes when I see Teto shuffling her feet in the corner of the room.
I hesitate. "Uh, Mrs. Tokara?" I ask. Now that I have her attention, I can't go back. "Teto doesn't uh, have her notebook," I say strongly.
"Why not?" Mrs. Tokara asks, with a raise of her sharp eyebrow.
"She um, she lost it," I say. Out of the corner of my eye, Teto sighs of relief.
"Okay. Teto, you can borrow some pages of Neru's notebook for today. I'm sure she'll be willing to share," Mrs. Takara says, eyeing Neru intently. Teto swallows and nods her head.
As soon as Len, Miku and I gather in the side of the room, Miku's face brightens up.
"We should do a love song!" she suggests, staring at me with an evil grin on her face. I swear, I could kill her right here and now. Len's face contorts into some kind of frown.
"No way. I was writing some lyrics in my notebook. They're kind of deep, though," he says. Miku turns her head around, shrugging her shoulders.
"I was messing around on my piano last night," says the teal-haired diva. "I came up with a melody. It was really… pretty," she swoons.
"I kind of saw some inspiration last night," I admit. Len and Miku both turn to face me. "A drawing. It was really good," I clarify. Something hardens in Len's eyes.
"Right! We should let the songwriter here write the song!" Miku laughs, nudging me. Len chuckles, loosening up a bit.
"If you want, I could write something down," I suggest with a shrug of my shoulders. Miku nods. I open my strawberry-colored notebook and flip to a blank page. Suddenly, Teto catches my eye on the other side of the room. Rin and Neru are arguing about something, while Teto sits in the corner with her head down silently. I wish I could do something. Instead, I write.
They always laughed at you but you never tried to fight back
And although you tried your best, you could never guess
It would all be swept away by the rain
Miku leans over my page. "How'd you think of that so quickly?" she marvels. I shrug.
"Keep writing," Len whispers, gazing at the lyrics on the page.
And when that new umbrella was torn away in the wind
I knew by a print or two that umbrella had
Gone to something like a stray trapped in the rain
I pause. "Why'd you stop?" Miku asks, looking up at me. I shrug.
"I guess… I just need a bit more inspiration," I say, an idea coming to my head. "Len, toss me your notebook!" I say. His eyes widen. "What's so personal in there that you keep hidden?" I ask.
"Song lyrics… and drawings and stuff…" he admits, keeping hold of his notebook.
"You trust me, right? Can I at least see the first page?" I ask. Len flips open the front cover and hands me the drawing.
"You drew this?" I ask, just making sure. Len nods, a blush falling onto his cheeks. His turquoise eyes refuse to meet mine. "Len, it's spectacular! Why don't you show this to anybody?" I ask. His blonde hair falls over his abysmal eyes. He doesn't answer.
It's just another day when they hate you being alive
With no reason to be kept at a distance from
Them when every time you tried your hardest
What did I do to make them all want to leave me behind?
And when they don't understand you end up wanting to be alone
Miku's eyes widen. "Madoka! That's amazing!" she breaths. "I just wish I had words to express how I'm feeling right now- just like you can!" she sighs.
Why not add up all the words you were just trying to scream out
Put them to a bunch of notes and let me sing them
How could such a bunch of noise be fit for human ears?
Miku smiles at me. "I'm not that bad a communication," she jokes.
But you wouldn't give up
Surely getting better every day that you try
In an instant you can make me sing for just you and I
So keep your words and let me sing them for the world to hear
Miku exhales with a smile on her face. "I can't wait to be able to hear this," she says, eyes wide. I beam at her amazement.
"It's nothing really," I say modestly.
"No, Miku's right," Len says in a deep voice. "These lyrics are incredible!" My cheeks burn a bright red as I push a loose strand of hair behind my soft ear.
"Thanks, you guys, but really," I say, "I actually don't understand half of what I just wrote down," I admit. Len and Miku exchange a glance.
"Then… where do those words come from?" Miku asks. Yet another mystery that needs to be solved.