Well, I'm going to hold the next chapter hostage! let's try to get 32 reviews and no chapters get harmed, eh?

Disclaimer: If you are very prude, such as I, viewer discretion is advised. There are no sexual themes, but it is suggested. I promise, nothing detailed or bad. It's not even M rated... so...

Rin's POV

Since then, since that night, I've locked myself in my room. I remember hearing the constant pleas from my family to walk out of my sacred haven for once, but I ignored them. I ignored them as if I knew death was waiting for me downstairs- and it most likely was. I never went down, not once out of this entire time, in fear of seeing Len again... I never left this room. Not through hunger or thirst (just thank God a bathroom is connected to my room). They ended up leaving food at my door, which I appreciated. At least my family doesn't want me to die of starvation.

It's a pathetic world I live in, with hopes and dreams being nothing but a paper boat floating in crashing waters. At first, you think it'll keep you up and alive, out of the cold and violent waves that start reaching its sinful arms in a desperate attempt to reach you, but then you realize that you were only going to crash anyway, and you had no way out. The boat that you took such pride and faith in was just disintegrating beneath your feet. Then you start to panic and scream as if this wasn't supposed to happen. But we all know that paper sinks. It may float at first, but it always sinks sooner or later.

There were only two choices left: Either just sink in the boat of untrue dreams, waiting for what is- in truth- inevitable, or just jump into the cold and relenting world without hesitation and quickly greet what is awaiting you.

I sighed into the pillow my face rested on, my body still laying lazily under the covers in the cold morning. It's been a few weeks since the night that my brother and I had been torn apart, like the white ribbon I desperately loved. And to be completely truthful, I am nothing but a coward. I'm too afraid to even see my brother. I'm too fearful of confessing my love to him, even though it is too late. I was too afraid to walk out of my room, seek the comfort of my friends, and just try to move on with my life. And now, I wanted to die. I want to take the coward's way out of this world. Because, in all honesty, I am not at strong as I once thought I was.

I was never as strong as anyone thought I was.

My body sat up slowly and painfully, letting the muscles that I haven't used in a long time stretch themselves. I winced as I lifted up part of my shirt, seeing red around healing cuts. They didn't seem to be infected, since I nursed and cared for each one after they started to appear, but they still hurt. It was nothing but a constant reminder of how weak I truly was. It was nothing but a constant reminder that my dear loved one would never return my feelings, and would never forgive me. I felt my hand wanting to reach for it, but I kept the pocket knife in its home under the pillow...

Fresh tears found their way about, around my cheeks and down to the pillow below. Everything was a steel trap for me. I couldn't do a thing anymore but let my chest constrict whenever I thought about his precious Miku. Knowing how much she meant to him, and knowing how much he hated me right now for acting out. I knew he didn't want to be around my face at this moment. I must have been a monster acting out in his eyes. Nothing but a savage beast. But, I couldn't be a savage beast, could I?

I heard a few knocks on the door, but I didn't want to reply. Not now, anyway. Instead, my head looked lazily out the window. The world that was nothing but crashing and relentless waves was covered by this white illusion of snow. I could dare say it was beautiful, the way it sparkled like soft glitter underneath the warming light of the sun. It covered the streets and surrounded the house, and completely captured my attention in a daze.

That was, until the phone completely snapped me out of the daze once again. I don't know why I even bothered to keep it with me if I was ignoring calls, or anyone for that matter. And as it continued to buzz in my pocket- it was set that was because I didn't want to hear the annoying ring tone over and over again as people uselessly tried to contact me- I started to wonder. When it stopped, my hands went over the screen as I took it out to let my eyes see what was left for me. Another unread text message. My eyes closed shut as I recognised the number of my dear brother. Why did he want anything to do with me? Though I meant to press the 'delete' button, my heart decided to give it a chance.

To: Rin Kagamine

Subject: Happy Birthday

Message: Happy Birthday. Please come out. I have a gift for you. ~Len.

Was I dare to respond, or even follow the orders? He had something for me, for our birthday. What could it possibly be that would let Len forgive me, or even glance in my direction? I wanted to reply- even if it was with writing and not with real, physical words- and to say I'd never walk out of my room, not ever again. But my fingers wouldn't move as my eyes glanced at the 'reply to message' screen.

My heart started to beat.

He wanted to see me, and that was enough. My body found its way upwards and, hesitantly, unlocked and opened the door that remained closed for nearly half a month. My sleeves found their way across my face, wiping away any fresh tears, before walking down the stairs and to the living room. My eyes glanced around the dark and lifeless room, seeing no one here. Why would anyone, mostly Len, play such a trick on me? But it wasn't a trick, I soon found out, as I took the buzzing phone out of my pocket.

To: Rin

Subject: Happy Birthday

Message: Walk outside the back door.

I could feel my feet leading my body towards the clear sliding door that led to our backyard. I could see the snow so clearly now, and it just shined. It even rested on our poor, dormant sakura that slept this time of year. My body led itself outside, leading to the middle of the yard. There was nothing- no one- here. What in God's name...? I pulled out the phone that buzzed once again.

To: Rin

Subject: Happy Birthday

Message:-

"Happy Birthday, Rin-chan," I heard a familiar and sweet voice call from behind me. I turned around, seeing nothing short of my dear brother smiling, his blue eyes shining. His hands that were behind him found themselves in front of my eyes. What I saw- it was an average box, wrapped in a paper so nicely and professionally. On top was an orange bow, and it glittered like the snow underneath the morning sun. I grabbed it, holding it in my hands as if it was as fragile as a porcelain doll.

"Open it," he urged, his face as cute as the day this reminded me of, ten years ago. Slowly I unwrapped it with shaking hands, letting the paper fall to the ground beneath. My breath was taken away from what I saw inside the box... tears started rushing in waterfalls down my face as a smile found it way on me.

'The object that lay in the box, it made me squeal with pure glee and joy. For inside the pretty box was a white ribbon, the color of pure pearls. It was so beautiful for me to lay eyes on.'

"Let me help you put this on," he repeated his exact words from those ten years ago. I could feel his hands run through my golden locks, getting out small tangles and getting it ready for the final piece. I could feel him putting on the piece of fabric that was meaning so much to me then, and to me now.

"There," he said, lifting his hands away from my hair. Without control, I let my body cling to his figure as I wrapped my arms around him, letting my face rest against his neck. The tears still escaped my eyes, but they weren't of pain this time. Every time my heart beat, it wasn't because of pain, but instead because of heart-wrenching happiness.

I could feel his arms wrap around me.

"Thank you," I whispered.

We were laying against the dormant sakura for some time, lying next to each other in the small circle of snow with our hands interlinked in what was- even if it only was- a sibling bond. The sky above, it was still a nice blue with few clouds, reflecting our eyes as we gazed into it, remembering memories from long ago. Memories where we used to play, and laugh, and just be happy-

"Remember that one stray we used to play with when we were little?" He asked, seeming to think the same thing I was. I nodded, looking at his face.

"Yep. I remember you were afraid of him because of how tough he looked," This stray dog was really rough looking, with slightly dirty fur, a scar on his shoulder and across his chest. Even this dog had some tough muscles. "It took some time before you finally let me ride him,"

"He looked strong, and don't forget those teeth," He pouted, looking into my eyes. He just looked so cute with those blue orbs of his. "Besides, I didn't think he wanted to be a horse,"

"He didn't seem to mind," I spoke, half in thought. I grabbed his upper arm and smirking, "At least he had muscles, compared to you, shouta!"

His hand quickly retreated from mine as a scowl on his face directed itself towards my sudden laughter. The way his face was, it was too priceless. "I'm not a shouta," he growled, launching himself at me. I squealed, landing on the ground and in the snow with a small thud as he began to assault me with tickles.

"No!" I laughed, trying to push him off me. When the hell did he get so strong? His smirk only grew.

"Only if you apologize," he sounded so calm. Heat found its way to my cheeks, hidden by the laughter.

"N-never!" I was running low on breath. He lifted his head, bellowing out a laugh. I slapped his hands away, finally getting some much-needed air. It was only a little while after when we were able to look into each others eyes, both with our light attitudes and our goofy grins.

General POV

As the girl with golden locks had predicted, the house was perfectly overdone with decorations. A plethora of balloons hung from the walls and the ceiling- letting the colors shine with enough light that it'd make a rainbow cry in jealousy. Ribbons of many shapes, sizes, and colours hung around the room, along with confetti and many other strange, yet beautiful, designs. Feathers of multiple- you guessed it- colors covered the floor to the point you couldn't even see it!

In the far corner one would see a large, pine green Christmas tree, barely touching the roof with the help of a golden, sparkling star. It was lush and round, and shaded the multitude of presents that lay underneath it. Big presents, small presents, presents that were round and presents that were oddly shaped. Every single one had bows and ribbons or wrapping that tried to stand out from the other.

Now that the room stood dark, it was easy to see how the unusual orange and yellow chirstmas lights hung from the ceiling and around the tree, lighting the void in the impressive room. Many tables were set up, but one stood between two smaller, paler Christmas trees with much fewer, but still many- decorations. On this table stood even more ribbons and glitter, but it held bowls of cookies, fruits, cupcakes, ice cream, some bread and some leeks, and of course, dozens of bottles of Sake.

Rin and Len's friends really outdid themselves this time, didn't they?

The pair of twins walked in, curious to find the house darkened and so quickly put up after- okay, so it wasn't that short of a time. A smile was written on their face as Rin took her sibling's arm, leading him to the center of the room, making vivid feathers fly up beneath their feet as they tread the ground. They both new what to expect... but when would it start?

3... there was still silence

2... the room moved around them

1... the lights suddenly flashed on, showing not normal white, but instead colors.

Everyone jumped out of their hiding places- Kaito from behind the staircase, Meiko hidden by the door, Ted hidden by the table of bountiful treats along with his sister Teto who was busy munching on some bread, Miku and her older brother Mikuo hidden behind the lush green Christmas tree and some of the gigantic presents that were twice their size, Neru somehow hidden under the feathers on the floor, and many more people with many more places to hide. Laughter immediately followed as a group formed in the center, with Miku and Teto pulling both siblings across the room.

"Presents first!" The aqua-haired girl that Len loved- who Rin despised- pulled both of them by the arm. At least, until Teto grabbed them by their other arms.

"No, it's cake!" The two girls started their own tug-o'-war, while the rest of the group could only stare with sweatdrops as the two siblings were being pulled and tugged by their arms like ragdolls.

"Presents!"

"Cake!"

"Presents!"

"No, Cake!"

"PRESENTS!"

"CAKE!"

"Ladies, please!" the dear mother of the birthday twins spoke. Her hands were clashed together, trying to find a compromise. The pair of hostage siblings were soon let go as both girls lowered their head in embarrassment, red covering their faces.

"Gomen," they spoke in unison. She seemed to nod in approval.

"Alright, so let's get things started on a good note," The father of the two stepped forward.

Things seemed to happen all at once for the group at the party. Many friends, family, guests including strangers stepped in line at the snack table, grabbing greedily at the sweets of candy and cookies. People danced in time to the music that started playing. Meanwhile, the group of friends sat in a tight circle around the twins as if to allow them no escape as the two blonde sat back to back, each with stack upon stack of presents surrounding them.

"Open mine first!" Miku cheered out.

"No mine!" Kaito called, eating most of the ice cream from the table previously stated.

"No, Mine's the best!" Called out Teto.

"No it isn't!" Someone called out.

Len lifted his hands, trying to stay out of the source of the argument. He was nervous, seeing these people argue over such a thing. Rin, however, wouldn't be as moved. She huffed, pouting, and finally speaking. "We'll open all the presents eventually. Besides, it's our birthday," She stuck out her tongue to all the people. "So we choose which ones to open,"

There was muttering, but it was soon shushed as people watched the stubborn sister unwrap her second present today, a round one not giving any regard to the paper she torn. Slowly it revealed itself to her to be a giant orange plush... which was quite literally an orange plush. She smiled, hugging it, wondering who gave it to her since she tore off the 'from' tag in the process.

"I'm glad you like it!" Miku cheered from the crowd. Rin's smile inwardly started to falter as she realized it was from the one she hated more than anything. But this wasn't the time for her to be sad. She had plenty more presents to open!

Now, unlike his ruthless sister, Len picked up his rather oddly shaped present and started to unwrap the present that read it was from his girlfriend. Carefully, he tore off the wrapping, leaving most of it perfectly intact- despite Rin's impatience. It turned out to be yellow and, much to his surprise, a giant banana plushie? Len's head shook as he smiled at his girlfriend, pretending to enjoy the gift. After all, it was from her, right?

"I made it myself," she spoke, hugging him and giving him a soft peck on the cheek that drove Rin wild.

"Thank you," He spoke, giving the Aqua-haired girl a hug in return. For the rest of the group, it was, in general, a cute moment for the two. But to Rin, his sister, it became nothing but sadness and rage. Part of her knew it was silly, but she was overtaken by the fact that Len had spent much of the morning with her, and yet this... betrayal happened. But her attention was caught by the attack of another present.

"Come on Rin! Open mine next!"

"No, Mine's awesomer~"

"Len, you've gotta see MY present!"

Here we go again...

Presents were all unwrapped, and everything that was on no importance was thrown around on the floor. The presents? Well, Miku happened to take the right about of time and effort to put everything neatly under the tree. Meanwhile, we find the group out in the living room while all the adults left for some important thing, claiming that being eighteen meant being capable of being home alone. Feathers were dusted aside as drinks were being passed (now that everything was legalized, except for a few cases such as Teto, who was still a year too young).

Meiko had already lost her soberness long before and was now leaning against the wall, trying to make some new rules to a game. Kaito, who was still refusing to part with his ice cream to drink some alcohol, sat stubbornly in the group. At least, until someone had the brilliant idea to make a root beer float... with wine instead of actual root beer. Wasn't long until he was dancing in the snow with only a scarf to cover himself.

"Should we help him?" Len whispered into Rin's ear while the rest of the group was watching a sake chugging contest between Meiko, the current winner for five straight games, and Mikuo, who was losing on half of his first bottle. Rin turned around, trying not to lose eye contact of Mikuo suffering.

"Nah, he'll be fine," She spoke, as if the drunk Kaito was normal.

Len sighed, not liking the idea of a dancing, drugged Kaito alone, but what could they do about it? His head turned around, seeing Mikuo pass out after his first bottle. Meiko smirked.

"Wiiimp. Swowhos next, huuuh?" She challenged, drunkenly of course. No one wanted to go up again. She had already beaten Mikuo, Ted, Luka (despite much refusal), Sonika, and even Gumi. They all directed their attention to one another, before their heads turned at once to the twins.

"Let them have a chance,"

"Against Meiko? I doubt they could win,"

"Nooo. I mean against each other!"

"Oh~ Yes!"

"My Money's on Len!"

"No way! Rin would win for sure!"

Both twins turned their head towards each other, as if sharing one thought... Run. They got up, trying to flee out the window, but some were too fast for them. Mikuo (somehow magically revived) grabbed Len while his younger sister grabbed Rin. They struggled, trying to get free, but it wasn't enough against the two that held them against their will. A simultaneous sigh escaped their lips as they gave in. There was no escape. Not now, or ever. Not until the two drank to their limits.

Both glanced at the sake before them, not really wanting to drink. For Len, it would cause so much problems that he had heard about. For Rin, she just didn't want that stupid hangover like last time. But there was no turning back now. All their friends watched them with close eyes, and Meiko was watching with- wait. She was passed out cold on the floor. So much for her winning streak.

It was hesitant, and pure, dead silent. Both twins picked up the bottle of sake, giving each other once last glance as the crowd waited in pure anticipation. They brought the bottles to their lips as the liquid touched their tongues and rested in their mouths, leaving a strange flavor as they swallowed. The crowd became less silent as the twins started to gulp down the liquid quickly with the sudden urge to end up victorious.

"My bet is still on Rin,"

"No way, Len is totally going win this,"

The two continued drinking away, throwing empty bottles onto the ground. Two, three, four. They were totally synced in this competition. You'd think one would win, but the other would catch up. Friends started getting excited as the amount of bottles grew. Five, six, seven. Attention was unmovable.

Well, in an attempt to break the fourth wall, the author had typed that sentence too soon. Kaito, who was ignored in his naked snow dances, had now found his drunken ass back into the house and started twirling around with his scarf into the tables and into the trees.

"What the hell?" The friends turned to see this strange sight, and in an attempt to keep things sane, tried to handle the situation in uncanny ways. Attention was taken off the two, as Rin had finally lost every one of her restraints in her drunken daze. Slowly, she crawled over to her brother and had taken his bottle of sake, tossing it on the floor as she sat in his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck. It was then she took his lips in a heated and sloppy kiss.

Being lost in his senses, he separated too soon for Rin's liking, but instead grabbed her arm, leading her up the stairs- surprisingly well for a drunk- and led her into his room. His arms found hers as he quickly pressed her against the wall, arms above her head. Their lips once again met eagerly, hungrily, as his body pressed against hers. His hands soon let go of his sister's wrists, trailing down her the side of her curves and breasts before stopping at her waist.

Her hands ran pulled out his ponytail so that his blonde locks ran down. Rin pressed his head closer, deepening the kiss. Tongues dances and wrestled for dominance in each other's mouths, as her hands slowly trailed up his shirt, feeling his lightly toned chest. The two finally, reluctantly, separated for air.

Looking at her hungrily, Len attached his lips to her neck, sucking and biting hard from the jawline down to the collarbone. Rin let out a squeal, taken by surprise, but let out a short moan, pulling at Len's hair. He pressed against her harder, slowly unbuttoning her shirt. Pushing his leg between her legs, Rin let out another short, restrained moan, pulling his head towards her neck. Suddenly, Len pulled her from the wall and pushed her onto the bed, himself falling on top. Rin reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, slowly kissing his neck. Pulling at the collar of his shirt, she followed as low as the shirt would go, until she pulled it off his head. Letting out a groan, he began to work on her shirt as the bed creaked.

Needless to say, no one downstairs heard the easily-identifiable sounds the two made upstairs.

Dear Goshy Gosh~ 4000 words exactly without any author's notes!

Well, I didn't want to make Len a bish anymore. So I brought you the first hint of Rin/Len. Oh~

~Miko

PS: Danielle, my editor, has important news! She has created her own set of stories at http:/www(DOT)wolfysstories(DOT)webs(DOT)com Please remember kids, some of her stories are 18+