Chapter Two
-Miku-
I look up at the black modern analog clock that hangs off my turquoise room wall. 11:58, it reads. Wow, I've been studying forever. I had woken up at seven this morning to start studying for random tests with acronyms that I can't even remember. Like a zombie, I reach blindly across my white desk for my cell phone to text one of my friends.
Right as I pick up my phone, my stomach growls unforgivingly. I had skipped breakfast this morning. I roll my eyes and turn it on, making circles with my finger on the smooth turquoise case. Okay, so I'm a little obsessed with the color. It's really no big deal.
Once it's on, I open the messaging app and find Luka in my contacts. Just as I do so, the doorbell rings. I look around suspiciously. I wasn't expecting anyone today, and both my parents aren't at home right now. I bite my lip, playing with the hem of my frilly white pajama shirt. The doorbell rings again. Jeez, I'm coming.
Once I make it downstairs, I peer outside through the front window, just in case. On my front porch stands a really impatient Luka. Next to her are Gumi and Rin, who seem to be arguing about something. All of them are carrying… suitcases? I squint, trying to get a better view. The doorbell rings again.
"Gosh! I'm coming!" I call, walking up to the front door as I fix my bunned teal hair, trying to look somewhat presentable. I open the big white door. Luka, Gumi, and Rin all smile.
"There you are!" Luka laughs, "What took you so long?"
"Studying again," I reply. They all nod apologetically.
"We brought suitcases and stuff," Luka confirms, "We thought it'd be a nice day to start packing up for the trip."
"I'm guessing you didn't eat anything yet," Rin shrugs. I nod my head. Sometimes, it's nice to have best friends who will help you pack up for a vacation.
"Alright! Show me to the fridge!" Gumi sings, skipping into my house. Whoops, I think I jinxed it. As we follow her into the kitchen, she drops her dark green suitcase onto my toe… and hard, too. I yelp in pain. "Whoops," she croons ignorantly.
"Gumi, come on, we're packing, not eating," I say, tugging at her arm.
"B-But… I'm hungry," she cries, her shoulders sinking deeply.
"Too bad," I say. She pouts. "Here, take a cheese stick," I growl, rolling my eyes. I reach into the fridge and toss her one. She gives a disgusted look.
"Do you know what's in these? Are you trying to poison me?!" she shouts.
"Shouldn't have asked," I retort, fixing my pajama top strap.
"What the heck?!" she screams, "I didn't!"
"Well, we're not even here to eat, like I said. Let's go pack. And get your suitcase off of me," I say, realizing it's still leaning against my leg. She picks it up with a disgruntled humph and the four of us stride upstairs.
Once we're back in my turquoise room, Rin, Gumi, and Luka toss their suitcases onto my bed. "Where's yours?" Luka asks. I fish into my closet for a teal bag. Once I find it, I pull it out. Luka shrugs. "Alright," she says in a business tone, "Paris is the city of love and fashion!" Upon saying the latter, she changes her voice to a playful French accent. I raise an eyebrow.
Rin gags. "Do we really have to do this? I hate fashion and love!"
"You might be able to play soccer with some cute French boys," Luka teases her. Rin blushes, rolling her eyes.
"Fine, but only if that's not a lie," she huffs. Luka and I high-five each other. Gumi giggles uncontrollably.
"Alright, Miku," Luka says, keeping her French accent, and calming us down. "Let's see… We should probably be there for about a week, so bring ten outfits. You never know what might happen!" Luka smiles.
"We set it up so that we have five casual outfits, three dresses, and two professional-looking outfits," Gumi informs me. "Rin hated that part," she giggles, only to earn an orderly slap in the arm from Rin. "Oh, and Luka packed her very best outfits," Gumi continues, adjusting her goggles, "You may want to do the same, I mean, not only is it your birthday, but you want to look good in the city of love!" she giggles.
"I thought that was just a stereotype," Rin growls, crossing her arms. Her blue eyes make their way to my closet, where a lacy white dress hangs from a thin wooden beam. "Why don't you wear that?" Rin asks with a shrug, "I think you look good in it. Right, guys?" she turns to ask Luka and Gumi. Luka and Gumi nod.
"I agree. Ooh," Gumi says, her attention snapping to a pair of tight black leggings that lies carelessly on the floor, "These are really cute. You should really wear them under the dress."
"Wow, Rin and Gumi, I'm impressed," Luka laughs, tilting her head admiringly, "But Miku, you need the boots to finish it off," she smiles. She opens my closer door wider, tossing her long pink hair behind her back. She finds a mid-calf pair of brown leather boots. They have a white trim at the top and a heel. "Oh my gosh, Miku," Luka swoons, her rain-colored eyes locked onto the boots, "Since when did you have these?"
"Actually, I didn't know I had them," I shrug. Luka scoffs.
"What a shame. So much fashion wasted," she sighs. I choose not to take that as an offense. Gumi nods her head sensibly, her shoulder-length green hair bouncing as she does so.
"What about these?" Rin asks, holding up a pair of black strappy sandals on a cork wedge. Luka widens her eyes in shock.
"Wow, Rin, for someone who hates fashion so much, you sure know what really looks good. Where'd you even find that?" Luka marvels. Rin motions to my corner in which I keep all of my shoes.
Gumi tugs on the edge of her dress. "Miku, these are so cute," she says, holding up a pair of dark wash skinny jeans, "How come you never wear them?"
"Oh, I do, outside of school sometimes," I shrug. Gumi flips them around, examining them in awe.
"We're packing these," she instantly decides, tossing them into my teal suitcase. They fall off the edge and onto the floor, only for Rin to catch them just in time. She folds them carefully and places them back in.
"Miku, this is so cute!" Luka gasps, holding up a pair of white shorts with a lilac and light turquoise floral design on it. "Where do you shop?" she exclaims.
"Hey, can we quit all this girly stuff and just pack already?" Rin sulks, crossing her arms. Gumi and Luka sigh. I chuckle.
"I think Rin is right. Believe it or not, we've already wasted thirty minutes just looking at my closet," I point out. Luka and Gumi sink their shoulders in defeat.
"Alright, Miku, I found an outfit already," Luka says in a professional tone. She holds up the shorts and a light teal sheer top in her left hand and my pair of white beach sandals in her right.
"Go ahead and pack it," I say. She hands it to Rin who folds it and places it into my suitcase.
In no time, we're already done filling my suitcase with outfits I never even knew I had. Luka gives a satisfied nod. Rin gives a sigh of relief. Gumi wipes her hands against each other, admiring her work.
"Wait, you guys! We're missing one thing!" I say suddenly. All three of them turn their attention toward me. From my jewelry box, I delicately pull out a small golden necklace with a topaz-studded heart charm hanging from it. Luka, Gumi, and even Rin all gasp at how beautiful it is. Of course, they've never seen it before, because well… I guess I never really wear it. Maybe now would be a good time to start.
My childhood friend Piko had given it to me- before he had moved. I'm not sure why he gave it to me, and not Luka, whom he was better friends with, and was still prettier than me. Even back then, she would steal the spotlight away from me. I don't mind now, at least she's not trying to. Even now, I still wonder why he gave it to me that afternoon on the playground.
The memory is crisp in my mind- almost as crisp as the winter wind that tore through the air the day he approached me at recess. He had tears in his miserable, multicolored eyes. We were really young, and even then I had my signature teal twin tails, tied up with pink ribbons. He told me he was moving far away, and he gave me the golden necklace that now falls tangled around my dainty fingertips. I wish I could remember where he said he was moving to- I could have visited.
"Hello? Miku!" Rin calls, waving her hand in front of my face. She snaps her fingers strictly. "Snap out of it, okay?" she glares.
"Sorry," I mumble, "How long was I out?" Gumi checks her watch.
"Twenty-one seconds. Still need eighteen to beat your record," she reports.
"Hey," Luka chuckles, "Don't encourage her." I shake my head dismissively at my weird best friends. But then again, they all probably think that I'm weird too.
"Hey, Luka," I ask quietly, "Do you remember Piko?" I nearly whisper.
"What was that?" Luka asks, her periwinkle eyes brightening.
"N-Nothing," I mumble, rubbing my elbow and looking at the floor. A strange silence lingers uncomfortably over our heads.
"Look, it's been like, three hours," Gumi drones, "I need to go. My parents aren't at home, so I've gotta feed my pets." I nod understandably.
"It's okay. Thanks for helping me pack," I say with a light wave. Gumi nods.
"No problem. It was really fun," she smiles, clenching her fists over her chest in enthusiasm. I smile back.
"I should be getting home too," Rin says, checking her watch, "It's already getting dark out." I furrow my eyebrows. Why is everyone so eager to leave all of a sudden?
"Oh, um, alright," I say with a fake smile. "Bye!" Gumi follows Rin as the two girls grab their suitcases and make their way out of my room door, leaving only Luka and I.
"I uh, gotta go too," Luka says, an apologetic look on her face. "I've got an appointment at the spa. I would totally cancel it, but well, you know," she mumbles. "Bye," she says, awkwardly slipping out of my room and shutting the door behind her.
I blink. They had all left so suddenly. In pensive thought, I place a finger lightly onto my chin. Suddenly, my thoughts are shattered by the sound of laughter sifting through the crack between my door and the wall. Were they laughing without me? Possibly… they were planning something against me! They can't be- they're my best friends. Best friends don't do that to each other… right?
More giggling follows as I stare after them. It's not long before I decide to listen in on their conversation. No, it's too distant from here. Suddenly, I spot it sitting on my bed- Luka's pink and brown leather suitcase.
The sound of laughter is now replaced by the sound of my hurried footsteps as I dash down the hallway. I remain silent, carrying Luka's suitcase, until I get to the hallway that they're all in. I hold my breath as I pin myself against the wall, unwilling to make any noise.
"Do you think she'll find out?" Rin's voice asks.
"No way! This plan is infallible!" Gumi's sassy voice sings. Those… snakes.
"Argh," Luka's voice groans, "I kind of feel a little bad." I raise my eyebrows innocently and turn down the hallway as if I hadn't heard a thing.
"Luka-san, you left your suitcase in my room," I say, shoving it out in front of me. "I thought you might need it, since, well, you know," I smile.
"Oh," Luka chuckles nervously, "Thanks!" I raise my eyebrows once and drop my smile as if to threateningly say Yeah, you're welcome. Oh, and you owe me. I have a feeling by the panicked look on her face that she got the message.
"Well, bye!" I cheer, waving them off. Luka takes a deep breath, grabs her suitcase, and follows Gumi and Rin as they rush out of the door.
What did I just do? What are they doing? In defeat, I collapse down onto my white kitchen barstool. I relax my cheek onto the palm of my hand as I lean against the counter. I look down in downfall, my teal twin tails falling over my shoulder. I sit this way in silence for what seems like forever.
Suddenly, the silence is shattered by the sound of raindrops splashing against the tall glass window that faces the lifeless, dreary, grey sky. I look up and sigh. Right as I reach for the TV remote, the house phone rings. I get up from my chair to see the number. 216-664-7065. I freeze in my tracks, squinting in disbelief. It can't be… Len Kagamine? Why would Len Kagamine be calling me right now? The phone rings again. I hesitate to pick it up. Why…? I bite my lip and force myself to lift it up to my ear.
"Hello?" I ask.
"Uh, hi Miku," Len's voice says, "I just got on my break."
"Um, okay…" I trail off, waiting for him to continue.
"Word got out that you and your friends are vacationing to Paris," he informs me. I raise my eyebrows. People know already?
"Really? I mean, that's true, but," I start.
"Can I please come with you guys?" he splutters, completely interrupting me. I gasp, fumbling with the phone.
"You… want to come with us?" I ask, "Is this because of Rin? You want to apologize to her? I mean, she-"
"I don't… no, not… ugh!" Len argues. I can practically see his face getting bright red. "Listen, I know someone in Paris. We kind of left off in this fight, and I wanna settle the score," he says in a serious tone.
"Is that what this is about?" I growl, reaching to hang up the phone.
"Hey, wait!" Len says frantically. I lift the phone back up to my ear. "Why so grouchy? That's really not like you, Miku," he sighs.
"Sorry, I just- Fine. I'll have to talk with my friends, but I'm sure they'll let you go. Especially Rin. I gotta go now, Len. Talk to you later," I rush. I hear a sigh.
"Alright, bye Miku," he says. A click and a silence follow. I sigh. What kind of mess have I dragged myself into this time?
-A/N-
Alright, okay, so... Gosh, I don't know what to say. First, I'd like to thank my fans... hah, just kidding. I've got none. :P
Instead of thanking invisible people, I just dropped by to say that the next chapter will be in Luka's p.o.v. because I thought of giving a little change! The chapters after that should be in Rin's p.o.v. and Gumi's p.o.v.!