Chapter Twenty-Seven
As soon as my black bag is in my possession and Miku releases us from the room, I dash out into the hall, for once being excited about an outfit. I search for a bathroom, finally seeing one, but Len beats me to it.
"Len," I whine, rolling my eyes playfully.
"Sorry," he shrugs, "Found it first." I scoff.
"Since when did you like fashion?" I ask. Len shakes his head, his messily-ponytailed blonde hair swinging as he does so.
"I don't, I'm just excited to see what Miku did this time."
"So… you like fashion," I say, grabbing hold of the door handle and pulling it open. Len grabs my wrist just in time as I look up at him. My face is only a couple centimeters from his. My blush is almost as huge as the house we're standing in. He holds me there for a second, daring me to move. We're so close that we're sharing the same breath, which makes my heart race. "Len…" I drift off.
"Are one of you gonna like… use that bathroom?" Yuma cuts us off. We both turn our heads sharply in the direction of the noise. I break apart from Len and walk in Yuma's direction.
"Yeah, Len and I were fighting over who got to use it," I chuckle, throwing Len a cold, yet silly sarcastic glare.
"I'm so glad I set you two up," Yuma jokes, "And on accident, too!"
Len and I both scoff at the same time, sending us into a round of annoyed laughter. "Yeah, well, whatever. Miku will be expecting us soon," I say, walking down the hall with my black bag in my hands.
I duck around the corner, trying to find another bathroom. Instead, I find a small bedroom that looks unused, considering the dust that is collecting on the furniture. I can smell the sweet, fresh scent of the wind blowing in from the open window, which sends the sheer lilac curtains blowing lightly into the room. I close the door behind me as I take a look into the black bag and begin to pull the contents of my outfit out.
First, I reach in and pull out a short, cropped black skirt. It's simple, yet shiny, as if it resembles faux leather. I set it aside on the bed and pull out the next item. It's a turquoise jacket with white outlines. I tilt my head I as realize that the material seems to be some kind of flexible… metal. It shimmers in the light as I tilt it. The white on it frames the turquoise, like our school uniform does. I notice that on the sleeves is some kind of strange screen. However, at the moment, it's turned off. I fumble around with the jacket, looking for an on switch. I can't find one.
Instead, of looking further, I pull out the next item. It's a pair of mid-thigh length stockings that resemble the ones from my school uniform. Instead, these are grey with orange outlines. Turquoise and orange, what a strange combination. The fabric also seems to match the one used in the jacket. The next item inside of my back is a pair of white headphones with the same orange outlining on it. However, these ones have a captivating pattern that I can only really describe as robotic.
Suddenly, the word robotic echoes all throughout my mind. It seems to describe the entire outfit… robotic and mechanical, but somehow contrasting. I think back to the lyrics of the song.
And although you tried your best, you could never guess…
With no reason to be kept at a distance from them…
...You end up wanting to be alone.
For some reason, the way that the song lyrics and how the outfit pieces together does not form any correlation in my mind. I remain puzzled, mentally running through the entire song, while taking a glance at the outfit every once in a while.
And then you hear the voices of the odds and ends sound
Ringing out a message they can never keep down
Let me hear it now, the power of your voice
I look back to the mechanical screen that lays embedded in my jacket sleeve. Might this have anything to do with the song? I quickly get changed into the outfit. Suddenly, the loose, uncomfortable, cold metal stockings and jacket begin to tighten, closing in to fit the petite shape of my body. I gasp in surprise as a low humming noise radiates from the jacket. The orange outlining on the headphones and leggings suddenly lights up, emitting a glow that changes the uniform, robotic look into something colorful and artist.
Most amazingly of all, the strange screen on my jacket sleeves starts to light up, flashing a white light. It then calms down to a faint orange, displaying the word sing in bright turquoise letters. I stand, baffled, not knowing exactly what to do. I take a breath and stare at the word sing. Suddenly, I open my mouth.
Create a song, and let me sing
Thousands of colors flash around my body as I sing the words. I stop, suddenly, being surprised at the new technology. Suddenly, I hear a knock on the door.
"Madoka?" I hear a cheery voice ask.
"Come in," I manage to get out, my eyes not leaving the sleeve screen. The colors start to fade away into thin air as Miku enters the room.
"So, what do you think?" Miku asks me, a big smile on her face. She is wearing a white jacket similar to mine; however, hers does not have the screens on the sleeves. Instead, it has a variety of different buttons. The chest part of the jacket is a bright orange that contrasts with her turquoise ponytails, yet the two colors go together perfectly. She is wearing a black ruffled skirt with shiny white trim, which I'm guessing is metal as well. She also has the same grey light-up leggings that I was so fascinated by.
"These are amazing," I breathe. As I do so, the sound-wave lines on my sleeves light up to match the volume of my voice. "Did you make them yourself?"
"Actually, my parents did. My mom's a famous model, and my dad is a scientist," she says, messing with the fingerless gloves that sit tightly against each of her fingers. I notice that they are attached to her jacket. "Did you sing yet?" Miku asks, snapping my thoughts away.
"Yeah… how… what?" I stutter. She giggles.
"I didn't understand either," she admits, looking at my outfit enviously. "But it's so cool," she sighs, shifting her weight onto her hip. "Sing for me," she says quietly after a silence.
Create a song, and let me sing
I know this time I hope that you try and see
The beauty in this life
And make a stand, believe in me
I know they'll never hurt you again
For saying what you feel
As I sing the last chorus of the song, shades of turquoise, white, and orange burst out from my outfit, sending graceful sparkles into the air in every direction. I can only really describe it as magic. The colors twist around each other, forming shapes, lines, and swirls all throughout the surrounding air. Some even escape out of the open window as my voice echoes through the room.
And then you hear the voices of the odds and ends sound
Ringing out my message that can change your life now
Let me hear it now, the power of your voice
"Stop!" Miku suddenly shrieks. I pause my singing immediately, looking at her in total confusion. The colors fade away into the air, replaced by a shocking silence. "I don't want you to ruin the surprise," she whispers, a cute smile on her innocent face. I almost would have reached in and tickled her, if the king of tickling himself hadn't just knocked on the door.
"Miku? Madoka? Why aren't you guys out yet?" Len's voice says through the closed door.
"Sorry, we'll be out in a second," Miku says for me. I drop my arms. Miku grabs my black bag, pulls it open, and holds it out for me to put my school uniform in. "I'll have Miki wash it for you," she says nonchalantly.
"You can open the door, Len," I call. The door swings open, and Len is wearing his outfit. He's wearing fitted black pants that somehow fade into orange boots. I can't stop staring, trying to figure out how it works. His shirt is a grey jacket that looks like Miku's but it's not as tight on him, yet it still fits closely. On the grey jacket are orange buttons all across the side of the sleeves as well. He is wearing a pair of turquoise headphones to match his deep turquoise eyes. To finish it all off, he's wearing a turquoise tie to contrast the orange trimming on his outfit.
"Wow, Madoka, your outfit looks so cool," he says.
"Thanks, Len," I reply casually, smiling. Miku smiles too at her hard work.
"Woah, Madoka… your sleeves," he says, his face becoming serious.
"I know! It picks up my sound waves, isn't that cool?" I beam, watching them twinkle across the screen.
"So, when you sing, that'll light up like that?" Len asks in disbelief.
"That's not all," Miku cuts in, "Show him the colors, Madoka!"
"Colors…?" Len drifts off, before I start singing.
And then you hear the voices of the odds and ends sound
Ringing out my message they can never keep down
Let me hear it now, the power of your voice
Len shakes his head in awe as colors start to form around me, creating shapes in every size and hue. The colors swirl and dance around my body as my voice vibrates throughout the room. The wind from the open window picks up the colors and moves them in every direction, tossing my hair and ruffling my skirt.
"Madoka, that's incredible," Len breathes when I'm done singing. The colors start to fade away and Miku leans back with her hands on her hips.
"I'm heeee-ere!" sings a high-pitched cheery voice from the doorway. Len and Miku turn around to see Gumi giggling to a very humiliated Yuma.
"Do you like your outfits?" Miku asks, clapping her hands together. Yuma gives a nod and shrugs, while Gumi starts jumping up and down.
"This is better than your whole closet!" she cheers. Miku furrows her eyebrows, pondering on whether that is a good thing or a bad thing.
Gumi is wearing a white metallic cropped tank top with large, shiny turquoise buttons all down the center. The outline of the top is all done in black. She has black detached sleeves that reveal her shoulders, outlined in turquoise, which goes down to turn into fingerless gloves. Her skirt is bright orange, with shiny silver fabric weaving in and out every so often in a delicate, subtle plaid pattern. She wears tall mid-length black boots that resemble the ones on our school uniforms. The outlining of the boots is done in a bright orange, and the same mechanical buttons that were on Miku and Len's sleeves go down across her boots. She smiles brightly to finish off the look.
Yuma is wearing turquoise pants that go down to his ankles, where a pair of black army boots take over. From the belt loop of his pants hangs a silver keychain with the words Odds & Ends on it. I can't help but feel a little bit envious. He is wearing a black V-neck shirt that also seems to be metallic. He also has a wristband-looking bracelet around his arm that includes the same buttons that Len, Miku, and Gumi all have. I am the only one without the buttons, but instead, I have the sound-wave screens.
"Miku was just talking to me about the screens on your sleeve," Yuma says, motioning to them as he walks further into the room with Gumi skipping behind him. "Sing for us," he orders with an enthusiastic smile. I open my mouth to sing, after holding out my arm for so he can see the sound waves.
And then you hear the voices of the odds and ends sound
Ringing out my message they can never keep down
Let me hear it now, the power of your voice
The colors once again fill the room with joy and delight. I smile as they start to fade out when I stop singing. However, the sound still reverberates through the room, accompanying the harmony of the songbirds perfectly.
"That was so cool! How did those colors… like…" Yuma was speechless, at a loss of words, trailing off into his own amazement.
"I know. It'll make for quite a show, won't it?" Miku boasts. I grin at her.
"It really was all Miku," I admit with a wink at Yuma and Gumi.
"How come I don't get colors?" Gumi nearly screams. Miku's eyes widens suddenly as she puts her hands up in defense. Len facepalms.
"I-I-I'm sorry!" Miku stutters, "N-Not everybody gets them, I mean… She only has them because she's our main focus… a-and, and uh, she's singing!"
Gumi scoffs. "Calm down, Miku," she says ironically, "I was only kidding!" she laughs, rolling her emerald eyes up to the ceiling, her cropped, wavy emerald hair bouncing around her. She suddenly drops seriously. "I do get something special, too, right?" he asks, her stare piercing into Miku.
"Of course," Miku half-laughs, "Your guitar glows in the dark," she lies. Gumi giggles, falling for it easily, only earning another facepalm from Len.
"What time is it?" Yuma suddenly asks, breaking the frivolity. Len checks his watch, eyebrows furrowed.
"Uh… 5:31," he replies. Yuma's caramel eyes widen in shock.
"I have to get home!" he says abruptly. I bite my lip.
"Why?" Miku asks weakly, already fetching Yuma's black bag.
"It's Luka's shift to make dinner. She usually wants for me to be there, because when Luka makes dinner for us, it's really special," he sighs.
"Shift?" Miku mumbles quietly. Yuma nods.
"Yeah, my mom is sick so she can't cook," he says, rushing to gather up his change of clothes. "So, instead, we take shifts feeding Ia and ourselves," he says. "Ia is too young to cook for herself," he adds. Miku's face falls immediately.
"I'm so… sorry. I-I guess I didn't know your mom was sick. What about your dad?" Miku asks. Len and I exchange a glance at Miku's density.
"My dad… is uh…. Dead," Yuma stammers, his soft pearl hair falling over his sharp unforgiving honey eyes. An uncomfortable silence fills the entire bedroom. Miku plays with her hands and shuffles her feet.
"I-I'm sorry about that, too," she mumbles, sighing. Suddenly, she perks up. "You said you and Luka take turns cooking for Ia, right?" she asks. Yuma looks up as well, his face softening. "You guys could stay for dinner! I think Miki is making some kind of pasta from America!" she boasts enthusiastically.
"That's a great idea!" Yuma smiles. Gumi claps.
"I've always wanted to visit America!" she sighs dreamily.
"Gumi-chan, we're not visiting America," I point out, "Just eating pasta." Gumi sighs in disappointment. Sometimes that girl really confuses me. "Miku, until Miki is ready, can I go and pick out a dress in your closet?" she asks, moving on from the previous issue almost instantly. Miku sighs.
"Fine, come on Gumi," she says, tugging guidedly on Gumi's arm. Gumi skips along behind her, closing the door with a click. This leaves only Yuma, Len, and I. Len clears his throat awkwardly.
"So, um, how are you guys?" asks Len. I sigh.
"Len, please learn how to start a conversation," I tease. Len chuckles.
"Sorr-rrryyy," he drags on, laughing. There's suddenly another awkward silence that fills up the entire room as I shift my weight.
"Len!" I joke, punching him in the shoulder.
"What?" he asks laughing harder. Yuma chuckles as well, catching on.
"Madoka-chan and Len-san," he says, "You two are so weird."
"It's all his fault," I laugh, as he flicks me in the cheek. "Ow!" I whine, clutching it. Unexpectedly, Len leans down and his lips brush against my cheek softly… and right where it hurts. I scoff in protest, shooing him away with a wave of my hand.
"Hey!" he chuckles, "Since when did you not like my kisses?"
"You smell like bananas!" I retort in between giggles. Len quickly grabs my shoulder with one hand and my chin with the other and pulls me closer to him. My eyes widen in surprise as my heart thumps out of my chest. Our lips lock together in an awkward, yet classic kiss. I am the first to pull away, gasping for air. "Len!" I complain sarcastically. He laughs at my objection.
"Get a room, you two," Yuma says. We both stare at Yuma. Crap. I had totally forgotten he was even there. I could tell by Len's red face that he was thinking the same thing. Suddenly, the door opens again, relieving some of the awkward yet playful tension. Gumi walks in, wearing a white lace dress. At the top, it was fitted tightly against her petite figure, exposing some of her chest. The thin straps were lined with lace. The bottom loosened out from the bodice, with a delicate lace pattern cascading out from the light green ribbon that combined the two parts of the dress. At the bottom, a couple inches up from her knees, the edge faded into a sheer material of which created an innovative, yet transparent look.
"Do you like my dress?" Gumi says, striking a pose in the doorway, only to hit Miku in the face as she attempts to walk in.
"Was that Miku's?" Yuma asks, suddenly interested. Miku squints, steeping back.
"Yuma, why would you of all people be interested in fashion?" Gumi snorts.
"I don't know… that dress just looks really good on you," Yuma says shyly. Gumi's face untwists into a more serious expression.
"Why, thank you, Yuma-san," Gumi says softly, with a nod of her head. I've never seen either of them like this. Gumi seems so… appropriate and relaxed now that Yuma has complimented her. And as of Yuma, he seems so… affected by Gumi. I can only explain it as… the way that Len looks at me sometimes. I sigh and smile down to myself. Pathetic- getting caught up in other people's love lives, whispers a cold voice in my head. I ignore it.
"Dinner is ready!" calls a light, high-pitched voice from downstairs. Following the call, a bell rings merrily. Miku's shoulders drop.
"Already?" she says, opening up the door for us all to go down her glass spiral staircase. "I can't wait for you guys to meet Miki," she say, a feeble smile on her round face.
"Oh, I know Miki!" Len says. Miku turns around to face him as she runs down the stairs. "Miki is Piko's crush," he chuckles. Miku's eyes widen.
"Piko?But Piko is Miki's crush!" Miku giggles, her face flushing. Len lets out an obnoxious laugh. I catch on, laughing along.
"Really? I'm surprised they haven't confessed yet," Len says, nodding pointedly at Yuma, whose face flushes as well. Miku giggles even harder. Is there something I'm missing out on?
"Hello, Miki," says Miku once we are finally in her kitchen. I am surprised to see a young girl, possibly younger than me, with bright cherry red hair and a warm, round adorable face.
"Good evening," says the girl, Miki, before giving a small bow to Miku.
"Miki-san, I told you, there's no need to be so formal with me," says Miku. "Have you met my friends?" she asks, her mood floating up to normal.
"I know Len," Miki says. "You're friends with Piko," she quickly adds, a bright smile popping up on her face that matches her hair.
"Yeah, I think I've seen you around," says Len with an amiable smile. His kind sky blue eyes light up as he smiles.
"I don't know the rest of you, though," Miki says with a chuckle, "Do you mind telling me your names?"
Gumi reaches out first. "Hi, I'm Gumi Megpoid!" she says, just like the first day that she'd met me. I chuckle to myself. Miki smiles and shakes her hand. "You're really pretty," Gumi goes on, "Piko was totally right." The room suddenly goes into laughter, all except for Miki, as soon as Gumi's words sink in. Miki's entire face goes cold, than fades into the biggest blush I've ever seen on anyone.
"That blush is way bigger than any of the ones I've ever seen on Madoka," Len jokes. I scoff in protest, only for Yuma to laugh as well. I roll my eyes.
"Sorry about that, Miki," I say, letting out a laugh. Gumi crosses her arms over her chest and rolls her eyes as well. Miki giggles nervously, her blush still present.
"And who might this be?" Miki says regally to a flattered Yuma.
"Oh, uh, I'm Yuma," he says. I almost burst into laughter at how tall he looks compared to Miki, who could be a dwarf for all I know. No wonder she and Piko go so well together.
"Hello, Yuma-san. This is great! I know all you guys now!" cheers Miki. "I feel like I've heard your voice before, though," she says to Gumi with a puzzled face.
"You probably have- I'm over here all the time!" Gumi smiles, "But how come I've never met you?"
"The maids don't usually have permission to speak with guests much while they're working," admits Miki, playing with her cerise hair. Miku shrugs apologetically.
"Sorry, I uh… Don't really make the rules," Miku says, looking away.
"You don't enforce them either," Len jokes with a wink.
"Why did I have to be stuck with such a stupid boyfriend?" I tease, flicking him in the shoulder.
"Remember what happened last time you did that?" he asks with a mischievous, playful grin. I roll my eyes.
"That was you!" I half-yell. Len chuckles to himself, opening his mouth to argue. "And don't say it wasn't!" I add aggressively.
"You two are so weird," says Yuma, shaking his head to himself.
"Déjà vu!" Len and I both say at the same time, and then burst out into frivolous laughter.
"Sorry, ignore them," says Miku toward Miki with a lighthearted tone. Len stifles his laughter. I bite my lip, my mood still alive.
"So…" Miki asks with a playful eyebrow raised, "Does anybody want dinner?"
- A/N -
Sorry about this chapter being so... I don't know... boring. I've totally been slacking off as a writer lately, but the next chapters leading up to the actual band competition should be a bit better overall. Anyway, leave a review and tell me what you think! Thanks for all the continued support! :)