a/n: Welcome to Chapter Eighteen. I wasn't going to upload this yet since this is the last chapter I've written, but I felt I needed to. I've got a lot going on at the moment; both good and bad things, so my writing time is rather limited. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter. A little longer than most have been recently :D

Chapter Eighteen

"You fucking idiot!"

Kaito winced, though nothing changed on Hibiki's face. Aiko was standing over him, lecturing her boyfriend of the idiocy of his actions. Everything happened so quickly that Kaito was still trying to work out what happened. Hibiki stepped out the change rooms, alone, holding a piece of cloth in his hands. He'd looked angry, yet ready to cry in the same instance. He'd walked slowly towards the pool, every step appeared heavy and hard. He'd walked right past them, kept walking towards the pool. Then, everything was a blur. He'd screamed something at some boys, something horrible then charged at them. It took four teachers to pry him off the boy he'd attack. Hibiki fought, fought damn hard to continue his attack. Everything he said was confusing and horrible, but something that stood out in his mind, something Kaito could vividly remember Hibiki was saying was: "I'll fucking kill you."

"You could have killed him!"

Hibiki didn't say anything.

"What caused you to do that, anyways?!"

Hibiki looked at Aiko for the first time since they'd arrived in the staff room, his eyes red and angry. "You have no idea what those guys did."

"How would I know if no one tells me what they did?!"

"Didn't you see what was in my hands? The bastards swapped Len's bathes for that. They insulted him!"

Kaito winced again. So that was what happened. "Bathes can be replaced."

"I told myself the same damn thing! Didn't change the situation! They pick on anyone who is an easy target! I'd seen so many guys distressed over what happened. One guy from my school, my best fucking mate, killed himself because of what they did! AND YOU'RE ASKING ME TO CALM DOWN AND APOLOGIZE FOR WHAT I DID?! YOU'RE FUCKING KIDDING ME!"

Aiko stepped back, a little shocked. Happy-go-lucky Hibiki was mad beyond words. "Hibiki… I…didn't know…"

"I know," Hibiki said after taking a deep breath. "I… never talked about it. I never talked about Daisuke… it's hard, you know. One day your friends there, seemingly fine and telling you he's ok; then the next day you're told he hung himself… it wasn't easy."

"Hibiki… I'm sorry."

Hibiki laughed bitterly, looking ready to cry again. "I… didn't want Kagamine-chan to do the same thing, you know. I didn't want to lose another friend."

"Kaito… can you give us a minute"

Kaito nodded, even though Aiko could see him as she wrapped her arms around Hibiki's neck to comfort him. With no other choice, he left the room. He knew Hibiki was going to be in a lot of trouble, so he at least owned it to Kagamine-kun about what happened after he left.

There was a knock on the door that scared Len a little. He'd not been expecting anyone to turn up today, so he was worried who it might be. He glanced at Rin who was colouring on the floor. The knock came again, this time making Rin look at the door, then at him. "Nii-san?"

"I've got it," Len said, placing his book on the couch and getting up to answer the door. He left the chain locked, so the door only opened up enough to see who it was. Who it was surprised Len.

"Can… I come in?" Shion-senpai asked, a little nervous. "It won't take long."

Len closed the door, unhooked the chain and reopened it, letting Shion-senpai in. "What… happened?"

"It's about Hibiki," Shion-senpai said, looking around the apartment then looking at Len. "He's been suspended as of the first week back. It sounds like it's going to be about two weeks long."

Len stared at Shion-senpai, shocked of this. "Why has he been suspended?! What did he do?"

"He tried to strangle the guy who hurt you," Shion-senpai sighed. "I don't think he was in the right frame of mind, you know." He looked around again, then said nervously. "Can I… sit down?"

"Oh! Yes, you can," Len said, moving over to grab his book. "Sorry, I should have said something earlier."

"No… it's fine." Shion-senpai gave him a wary smile that didn't last long. "Are you ok? Hibiki didn't really… explain what happened."

Len crossed his arm over his chest, not sure what to say before he looked at Rin. "Rin, do you wanna go see Gakupo? Nii-chan needs… a moment."

"Can I take my picture?"

"Yeah," Len smiled at her. She got up and left, and only when he heard the door at the other end of the hallway did he turn back to Shion-senpai. "It's… hard to explain," Len said, sitting on the coffee table in front of the couch. "I found… a pair of ladies bathes in my bag. I couldn't find mine and it… upset… a lot."

"I can imagine," Shion-senpai replied. "Then Hibiki found you?"

"Yeah. He helped me out and got be away from the change rooms. I got home and couldn't find the bathes that had replaced mine… what happened to them?"

"Hibiki had them," Shion-senpai spoke in a quiet voice. "What happened with Hibiki wasn't just related to you. From what he said, the guys who did this to you… led his best mate to his death."

Hibiki was carrying scars that none of them knew of. What kind of pain had he'd endured? One day his best friend was there and then… he was gone. The thought was painful, and he felt guilty that at one stage of his life, he'd too considered suicide as a way out. "…Do you think Hibiki would want to see me after… this?"

"I think he'd be glad to know how you're holding up," Shion-senpai replied. "If you like… I can take you to see him at his place Sunday?"

"Would you?"

"I'll be here at ten then."

Len followed Shion-senpai Sunday morning to a rather rundown looking apartment complex. It was just ten thirty, yet the place seemed empty of any life. There were cars lined up in its puny car park, and while some looked like they'd never been driven, he noticed a few slightly nicer looking cars. The building looked ready to fall down, yet someone seemed to have been taking special care of the small garden out front.

Maybe Shion-senpai had guessed what Len was thinking because he spoke up. "The owner is a little old lady," Shion-senpai explained as he led Len to the stairs. "She's about eighty I believe, and can't do very much. Her husband passed away five years ago. He used to take care of this place, but since his passing, it's gotten like this. Unfortunately, she can't afford to have the place renovated, so the residents have to keep track on anything that needs replacing. The men living here, including Hibiki, help out with anything that needs fixing, while the women tend to the small garden and help support the owner when she needs it. They're a pretty close community this lot. The downstairs apartments are bigger, having an extra room for sleeping in; upstairs, however, are only small enough for one, maybe two people to live in. Hibiki's place is pretty small."

"That's ok, it's probably as big as I was living in before I got my apartment," Len smiled weakly. "My… mother was into drugs, so we couldn't afford a nice place. Believe it or not, this place is a lot better than what we were living in."

Shion-senpai nodded, leading Len down to the last door on the left. He knocked once, waited, and then knocked again. It wasn't Hibiki who answered the door however.

"What are you two doing here?" Aiko-san said as she opened the door right up. She looked like she'd rolled out bed, her hair all over the place. This was the first time Len had ever seen her so… disordered. She was even still in her pa… no, they weren't her pyjamas Len realised. They were too big, hanging off her smaller frame. If they'd been any bigger… well they wouldn't be covering her breasts. Len also noticed the lack of pants. Len could feel his face heating up. It wasn't like he'd not seen her naked, but this was still awkward.

"Am I… disturbing something?" Shion-senpai asked, appearing amused.

"Huh?"

"When was the last time you looked in the mirror?"

Aiko looked down at herself, then shrugged it off. She stepped aside to let them in. "Hibiki is in the shower, he won't be long," she said, ignoring Shion-senpai's question. "I was gonna make breakfast, do you two want anything?" She asked as she shut the door behind them, turning around to face them.

"No thank you," Len replied as Shion-senpai said; "Nah, we made pancakes with Rin-chan this morning."

"Pancakes? Yum!" Aiko-san beamed. "Go have a seat at the table, I'll at least make you both something to drink."

Shion-senpai wasn't kidding about how small Hibiki's place was, but then again, he used to live in a place just as small. Stepping into the main area, Len noticed the bed in one corner was in disarray, but the futon that also had been used had neatly been rolled up and placed by the TV at the other end. The table had been set up for two, but with some rearranging, she set it up for the four of them. "We're fine for food," Shion-senpai said when he noticed what she was doing.

"You can have something to nibble on. Hibiki would feel awkward if you two weren't eating."

"Why is Hibiki having a shower?" Shion-senpai asked as they sat down.

"He… didn't sleep well; about four o'clock this morning he gave up and went for a run. He didn't get back until half an hour ago. I've been staying here the last couple night because I'm worried. He hasn't really been in the right frame of mind since…" Aiko-san's voice trailed off. "He took it too personally, but considering the circumstances, he probably couldn't help."

"His friend," Len whispered, clutching his hands.

"Kaito told you?" Aiko-san didn't appear surprised as she returned the kitchen and began preparing breakfast. "It surprised me… we sat and talked about it for several hours. He told me that you reminded him of Daisuke. Shy and withdrawn. Daisuke apparently always had trouble making friends, so Hibiki was possibly his only one." Aiko-san sighed sadly.

"To think… Hibiki-san was holding so much back," Len replied, leaning back against the bed. "You'd never think that, since he seemed so laid back."

"He's had it rough, that's for sure," Shion-senpai agreed. "To think, he'd lost his father first… then his best mate. That'd hurt someone rather deeply."

Just as Shion-senpai finished speaking, they heard the shower jut to a close and a door open a moment later. "Ai, is someone here?" They heard Hibiki call out.

"Kaito and Len are."

"…Could you get me a change of clothes…? I didn't bring anything in when I got in the shower."

Aiko-san stopped what she was doing to grab something for Hibiki to wear before disappearing into the bathroom. "How could you forget to get anything?"

"I didn't say forget, I said I didn't bring anything in with me."

Aiko-san made a remark that Len didn't catch before she went back to finishing breakfast. A few minutes later, Hibiki made an appearance. He looked tired. "Yo," Shion-senpai said in greeting, smiling at him. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, now," Hibiki grinned despite his exhausted look. "Nothing like a shower in the morning to help sore muscles," he added as he sat down at the table. "I wasn't expecting you two, so what brought you here."

"I-I wanted to thank you," Len said quickly, feeling a little silly once he realised he'd squeaked it out. Hibiki just grinned.

"It's cool; I'd been meaning to give those guys a piece of my mind eventually," was is answer before he began to look around the room. He grabbed something nearby and handed it over the table. "…Aiko and I looked for them. We found them discarded near the gym… I took them to the dry cleaners so they look particularly brand new!"

Len took the paper bag and opened it, feeling his eyes water. "H-How much do I own you for the cleaners?"

"Huh? I don't need anything," Hibiki replied, a little startled. "It's fine, really. Aiko and I went half on it anyways. Besides, it wasn't that expensive."

"But-"

"No buts," Hibiki laughed. "Seriously, it's fine Len. Really, you don't need to worry about it."

Len clutched the paper bag tightly. "Thank you Hibiki-san… Aiko-san."

"Woah, formalities," Hibiki looked embarrassed. "It's just Hibiki, that's it."

Len smiled tearfully. "Thank you, Hibiki."

"You're welcome!"

Kagamine-kun went with Aiko to get something at the shops, leaving Kaito and Hibiki back at the apartment. He watched Hibiki who rattled on about things that went through one ear and out the other. It wasn't that he wasn't interested, his mind was just racing. Once Hibiki went quiet, Kaito knew he was able to speak up. "Do you… have any idea what Len's hiding?"

Hibiki looked a little confused at the question. "What do you mean, Kai?"

Scratching his cheek, he tried to find the best way to word it. "There's been something bothering me since the confrontation with Meiko the other day."

"Speak your mind."

"Len said something about castration-" Kaito saw Hibiki's hands clench and unclench "-when he was yelling at Meiko… I can't help but feel bothered about it."

"I just think he was making a statement," Hibiki replied stiffly, convincing Kaito he knew something. "Have you asked him?"

"Ask him what?"

"Whatever you're thinking about," Hibiki replied. "You think the reason why Len hides his body is because of something along those lines, right?"

"Well, his parents were abusive, right? Particularly his mother; it just… doesn't sit right with me."

"Then ask him."

"You can't just ask someone if they were castrated, Hibiki."

Hibiki watched Kaito for a moment then shrugged. "I don't know what I can tell you, Kaito. We all have our secrets, including Len. For all you know, you're overthinking it. I think you're overthinking it anyways. Besides, Len has to be the one to tell you things that involve him. Wouldn't that sit better with you, hearing it from Len and not from a third party? I would, at least."

"It's just frustrating. It's like you and Aiko know something I don't know. Hell, it feels like Ryu is hiding something. Didn't you see the glance between Miku-san and him that day? Something unspoken, but something they were aware of."

"Kaito," Hibiki sighed softly, shaking his head. "Ask Len. You're going back to his place after this right? Ask him then, before he picks up Rin or Gakupo-san is in the picture. I think he'll be willing to tell you since he knows about… you know," Hibiki pulled a face.

Yeah, he knew Hibiki was talking about his legs. He was just glad Hibiki didn't bring it up directly though. He didn't want to be reminded. Sighing, Kaito leaned back against the bed. "…I'm scared to."

"I don't blame you," Hibiki agreed. "…You like Len… don't you? In a love like manner, right?"

Kaito didn't say anything, but it was clear to both of them the truth.

Yes, Kaito had fallen in love with Kagamine Len; and that was why the next question he was going to ask Len was going to kill him deep down.

Some part of him just didn't want to know the truth.

a/n: Next time; Kaito asks the hard question. Will Len tell him the truth? Who knows :) Also, it must be hard for Hibiki; he probably feels responsible for his friends death :'( It's ok, Hibiki; it's not your fault!

Also, RinRinSignal, I haven't published anything yet, but I am writing a novel. It's a fantasy novel based in a alternative Earth :D Hope that answers your question :D