The rest of the school week went quickly, yet so agonisingly slow at the same time. So many due dates were set but time could not have come faster. Miku could only whine mentally. She dragged her palms downwards on her face to pause her focus on the class discussion.
Oh, the euphoria she would feel when this class finally ended. The more classes she endured, the closer she got to Saturday for two exciting events.
First was the meet up with Lily to begin Operation: Closure (that was how she would refer to the plan from now on).
Then there was the ultimate shopping experience Miku would rock out, and her wallet to suffer on.
She was more excited for the latter, as the shopping spree would come first before the meeting.
But all this would be possible if the teacher would shut up and wrap the class.
It was Tuesday, and Saturday could not have been fast-tracked for Miku.
She heaved a sigh as she took note of another assessment to finish within the week before Saturday. Miku only hoped this week passed by with a blink of her eyes.
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It was one of the rare days Miku enthusiastically woke up in the morning, on a weekend nonetheless.
So it was a huge surprise to her parents and her older brother when she went to the kitchen, grabbed the box of cereal and the litre plastic jug of milk all dolled up far earlier on a weekend morning.
"Why are you staring as if I grew another head!? I just prepared early and getting breakfast now."
"But you're always never up around this time, especially on a weekend!" Miku's older brother exaggerated his reply.
Miku rolled her eyes. "Please, I can wake up early if I want to."
Miku's parents asked her where she was about to go today. More likely they forgot the time she informed them in advance of this weekend plan.
"I'm heading to that shopping centre near the convention centre with Lu and my mates! I told you guys about this last week." Miku casually replied, right before she had a mouthful of milk with cereal.
Her parents had met all of Miku's friends, and were aware how frequent she was with them. They already had faces on their minds without Miku mention their names.
The youngest daughter finished her breakfast and tidied up her place on the table.
"You stay safe, honey." Her mother patted the collar on Miku's blouse.
Her father removed his gaze on the newspaper and looked at his daughter. "Please drop us a text when you're heading home." Miku replied with an excited 'Yup!'.
Miku headed to the door, not without a quick banter with her brother.
"Hey leek-mik, buy food for me." His brother duly informed her while he was on his phone.
Miku mockingly laughed. "Nope. You grab your own food, stupid!" She quickly closed the door behind her.
A five-minute walk was all it took for Miku to arrive at the nearest train station. On her designated platform she saw a woman with long, salmon-pink hair on one of the chairs in her phone.
Luka lived a bit farther from the train station, so she had to take the bus. She arrived earlier and had to wait a bit longer, compared to Miku who lived nearby. The two friends got together.
Shortly after, their train arrived.
Miku and Luka previously agreed from last night they would board on the last carriage, so it was easier for them to sit with Kaito, Gakupo, and Oliver.
When they boarded the last carriage, indeed the three friends sat on the farther end. They were nearby the door connected to the next carriage
Gakupo, Kaito, and Oliver all waved at Luka and Miku who approached them. Since their school issued uniforms on school days, weekend hang-outs like today allowed them to dress up to their heart's content.
Gakupo wore his long hair in a messy bun. He wore a dark purple dress shirt with black pants. Miku thought it was borderline formal for today's trip. But she thought it did suit the occasion, as they were about to go to the posh part of the city.
Oliver had his usual wound dressing on his left eye and his unkempt ash-blond hair. He had a sailor's hat with the white base and blue coated strap with black and yellow stripes. He wore a white dress shirt with a yellow ribbon on his collar underneath a matching blue cloak with yellow stripes, together with black knee-length shorts.
Kaito abandoned his scarf today with a black turtle-neck shirt underneath a leather jacket. It had a white collar, the upper half of the torso in blue, and black on the lower half. He wore black skinny jeans with grey stripes on the side.
The doors automatically closed, and the train moved to the next station.
Oliver sat beside the window with Gakupo on his left, and Luka beside him. Across them, Kaito was next to the window like Oliver. Miku was on his right.
Kaito held back a screech when Miku took the vacant seat next to him. He was prepared to sit with Luka as she was a few steps ahead. But she took Gakupo's side. It did not help now that the three of them sat in their row and were on their own topic.
And so Kaito had an internal crisis from being beside his secret crush for the next thirty minutes.
At that moment, he had a mini-heart attack when Miku initiated a conversation.
"I didn't know Rin played something else besides rhythm games." Miku looked from her phone and then gestured the screen towards Kaito.
Upon closer inspection, he saw it was a screenshot of a desktop with a MOBA game. On the farther left side was a narrow tab with small icons next to different usernames.
Kaito recognised the usernames of his former classmates from his previous cohort with Rin. The post seemed to be re-shared by Rin on her social media account with her own caption.
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: It was a fun game night! Thank you for tagging me along! :D
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"Yeah, she started playing that game two years ago when she got tagged along in an internet café and they taught her how to play it. She's not really that competitive like our former classmates who are super into it. But she didn't suck in it too. She'd get invites from them to play together and she'd join when she's in the mood, like last night." Kaito answered.
Miku nodded with a comment. "Well, I hope she's sleeping in right now. So she won't see all of us mysteriously being inactive in the group chat until then."
Then she changed the topic. "Say, tell me more about Lily so I could prepare myself how to act around her!"
Kaito obliged and told Miku details about Lily. He mentioned her outspoken personality that complimented Rin's and Gumi's since seventh grade, her hobbies, and interests. During his reiteration, their friends listened and gained insight for later's events.
The train's automatic PA system boomed through the speakers as they approached their stop. Miku and her friends gathered themselves.
They clutched their bags, set up their electronic tickets on their phones and stood from their seats.
When the doors opened, they were among the crowd who left the train before another set of people entered the carriage they just left. A few moments of being sandwiched in the crowded platform, the group finally ascended to the escalator and went to the exit.
Beeping sounds resonated as they tapped their phones on the ticket readers. They went to a bus stop to hail the bus that would bring them to the shopping centre.
After a ten minute ride, they finally arrived.
Miku visibly shook from excitement when they got off the bus. Luka had to hold her hand, like a parent who did not want to let their child go loose.
Gakupo and Oliver were in awe with the exterior design of the foyer, their heads tilted upwards.
Kaito's fingers scrambled on his phone to find the map of the shopping centre. He did not want his friends to get lost, like the last time he was here with his family.
"Let's fucking go!" Miku raised her fists in the air with great enthusiasm that earned a few glances and stares from people nearby.
Luka only sighed and covered her face with a palm at her friend's antics. They all followed her inside the building.
Huge waves of crowds was the first thing they encountered. It was a similar sight on the upper floors seen through the circular structure of the hallways.
A few fashion boutiques were already in sight, which did not escape Miku's vision that were now her first targets.
Ever since Oliver and Gakupo befriended Miku in tenth grade (for Luka, even longer), they witnessed first-hand of Miku's obsession with shopping. From the cheapest thrift stores, to the expensive big brands.
When Kaito and Rin joined the group a year ago, they also went through the same process of getting used to Miku's impulsivity with shopping.
No store that sold clothes escaped the eyeful inspection of a certain Miku Hatsune. But just because she visited every store, it did not mean she brought from every single one of them.
Miku was indeed more careful in what and where to spend nowadays, thanks to years of regretful choices from the past.
Today, she scrutinised each piece of garment she found interesting. Miku considered whether it was in its full price or in clearance, and heavily weighed its pros and cons before she brought it to the check out desk.
That was why Miku's first ever purchase was made on the fifth store they visited (in Gakupo's words, raided) so far.
It was also at that point the boys called it quits and separated from the girls. They agreed to reconvene at the food court on a specific time before they met up with Lily.
While Miku and Luka were on a mission to not leave a single clothing store undiscovered, Kaito, Gakupo, and Oliver had a more relaxed approach to explore the shopping centre.
Since Kaito was the one who had previous experience in the area, he became the guide who made sure they were not lost. They walked aimlessly and observed their surroundings. They often found themselves disinterested in the stores they passed by.
But who were they kidding? They visited the fashion capital of their region, so it should have been no surprise.
They dropped by a pop culture merchandise store and explored every nook and corner of it. They saw an item and discussed every topic that could relate to it, from its fandom or series or just their experiences on it. They also made jokes on the first item they'd see.
Gakupo bought a figurine from his favourite samurai show that was in good condition despite being on clearance. A great deal he was proud to take.
Next, they went to a music store. Various kinds of instruments were on showcase. Kaito attempted the electric guitar displayed for test plays.
He earned applause from his friends and the few people nearby. He and Gakupo went into different areas of the store to see the instruments.
Oliver was comfortable by himself in the corner as he analysed the specifications of the speakers on sale.
They left the music store and went to the game store on the corner. The three friends had the chance to play the newly released console displayed as a demo. The game only allowed two players so Kaito, Oliver, and Gakupo had to alternate after each round to let each other play.
They browsed the games on sale and had conversations similar to when they were at the pop culture store. Oliver purchased a game right before they left for an upcoming birthday gift to his cousin.
A few more stores were visited and explored. It was also around the time when Kaito had a quick chat with Rin.
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[CHAT SCENE] Kaito (sender) and Rin (receiver)
Rin Shimoda
Rin: Hello! My relatives stopped by and it was so awkward and boring just sitting and listening them talk with my parents djkfjsdkgjksdgs
Kaito: Oof that sucks. are they still there?
Rin: Not anymore, they left just now (thank god). Wyd?
Kaito: I'm at the other side of the city with fam rn. dad's visiting a mate there.
Rin: A road trip! Lucky you. I'm just stuck here at home with relatives during the morning and now an assessment to type up rn :/
Kaito: But it's okay, it'll be me time for you I guess?
Rin: Lol true. I have to hop off from social media and finish this. Have fun with the trip and get home safe~
Kaito: Thank you Rinny! 3
Kaito closed his phone and put it back in his pocket. He caught up in his phase with Gakupo's and Oliver's.
Their next destination was the bookstore. The branch was one of the largest bookstores in the region, to the delight of both Oliver and Kaito; eyes sparkled in delight on their first step inside the store.
Gakupo tagged along Oliver's side. His enthusiastic friend browsed the shelves, took a random book and skimmed through the pages as he dragged Gakupo into the plot, the characters, the themes and everything that was to know about the book.
Kaito explored the dozens of shelves at the store. He took a book and actually read the first few pages after he found the synopsis interesting. Eventually, he had three books under his left arm.
He considered getting Lily a gift as a token of gratitude for making her go out of her way to talk about their plan.
Oliver and Kaito brought more books than what was on their budget, and to the widened eyes of Gakupo.
The two bookworms reasoned that most of their books were on sale so it was a deal too sweet to not miss.
The last place they went to was the arcade centre. They tried various games that made them compete against each other individually, or in team games as a single group.
It was in the arcade centre they spent the majority of their time that they almost lost track.
Oliver called out his friends, and they made their way to their agreed meet-up place at the food court. A few takes on the escalator was all it took for the guys to finally arrive. They occupied a table that would fit the five of them.
Luka and Miku had not only gone to the clothing boutiques. They visited a few places like a cosmetics store, a stationary shop, a skin-care store, a department store, the same music store, and even the arcade centre a different time from when the boys did.
They were earlier to decide they start their way to the agreed place to reunite, since they were farther.
But they got lost due to Miku's bad sense of direction, and Luka forgot the way in the process.
A phone call to Kaito and his continued guidance was all it took for them to finally arrive at the food court and approach the boys at the large table.
The ladies carried a handful of bags from their hours-long splurge. Kaito felt painful as he observed them carry all of it as they approached.
It was the twenty-minute mark before Lily was expected to message Kaito. The group killed time with their phones and shared their previous exploration.
Luka visibly gasped with her phone. "What the fuck, Miku!? We're not supposed to post anything so Rin won't know we're here!"
"What?" Miku paused her chat with Oliver and took a glance from Luka's shoulder and saw the phone screen.
A post from Miku's social media account was displayed with a timestamp of two hours ago.
Miku's arm was covered from the frame in the selfie. Her other arm held multiple shopping bags. She posed with her leg bent on the knee and foot raised to the air with a big grin on her face.
Luka was just behind Miku. Her gaze turned at the side; unaware she was included in the selfie.
An active tag of their location with the shopping centre's name was on the photo with background pop-rock music inserted.
The caption read: "Finally did the shopping splurge extravaganza after months of cancelling it!". Luka's social media account was tagged.
"Dumb fuck, you just forgot our number one agenda to not post anything so Rin wouldn't know. We just talked about this when we were on the bus!" Luka explained.
Instantly, something clicked in Miku's mind which made her react with one word.
"Oh. SHIT!"
"We can fix this!" Gakupo assured the growing nervousness at the table. "It was just Miku and Luka, right?"
Oliver averted his gaze from his friends towards the bottom of the table. "Sorry to burst the bubble, Gakt. But I made the same mistake as Miku..."
Gakupo had his mouth agape. "No way Oli?"
Oliver awkwardly nodded. "I might have posted a photo from the book store we were in without thinking about it."
Kaito replied to Oliver. "I mean, you didn't surely tag a location, right?" He brought out his phone to verify Oliver's post and assure the table it was not a grave mistake as Miku's.
But upon closer look at the photo, the name of the shopping centre was evidently shown with the store's signage that was caught in the image.
"Wait, nevermind. The branch name is there…" Kaito did not remove his gaze from his phone screen.
Oliver cried. "I'm sorry!"
"It's okay, Oli!" Gakupo replied. "Rin won't connect the dots, right? It's just the three of them. Kai and I aren't included anyway!"
This time, Kaito gulped. "I might have told Rin I'm on the other side of the area today when she sent me a message."
When Kaito mentioned the specific suburb, Luka responded. "Oh my god Kai, this shopping centre is literally the only place everyone on this side of the region goes to. Rin can still assume you're here with the rest of us."
Gakupo cried this time. "What the fuck, mate? I was so confident we were both bullet-proof here!"
Miku spoke faster out of nerves, alongside her hands fumbled and shook in front of the table in an attempt to calm the anxiety among her friends. "Oh my god I'm so sorry everyone I swear I will fix this I'll compose the reply when Rin sends a message to any one of you!"
Kaito assured her. "We can still fix this, Miks. You were not the only one who bluffed this."
Luka pouted. "Yeah, I was caught up in it without doing anything." She emphasised the word 'caught up' to defend herself.
Gakupo crossed his arms with a whine. "I'm the only one here who literally only followed today's agenda."
Oliver optimistically beamed. "We can still think of a solution eventually!"
Luka rebutted, arms crossed under her chest. "When is that 'eventually',before Rin starts to suspect we're purposely excluding her today?"
"We can ask Lily for help." Oliver simply replied.
Luka whined in reply. "Dear god, why are we involving the person we'll only meet for the first time with our collective stupidity here?"
Miku grinned. "So you do admit you're also an idiot like the rest of us?"
"Oli is right," Kaito supported his friend. "Lily can help us. She's one of those people who start pranks and come up with a way to cover it up. She can figure out a way with us what to say to Rin."
Luka squinted her eyes. "You better be right, Kai. It would be hella embarrassing for someone we're just meeting to help us fix this."
Before Kaito could deal with Luka's scrutiny, his phone vibrated with a notification.
It was a message from Lily. She finished her meeting and was on her way to the shopping centre. She suggested an affordable family restaurant in the outdoor area and that they should reserve a table when they arrive.
Kaito updated to his friends. Everyone at the table all stood up from their seats and followed the young man.
They actively read every sign they passed by. Until Gakupo spotted an establishment with the same name as the one Lily referred to in the text.
Luka asked for a table for six people. They were brought to the outer area of the restaurant. It was in an open space, with fences that separated passers-by from dining patrons.
When menus were given, the group began to choose their own meals but decided to wait for Lily before they flagged a server to take their orders.
Miku, Luka, Oliver, Gakupo, and Kaito had separate small conversations in the meantime as they waited. It did not take long before Kaito mentioned that Lily was nearby the restaurant now. He began to anticipate and kept an eye at the entrance they went through a few minutes ago.
They saw a lady in conversation with the staff at the door. She had long, blonde hair to the waist, aquamarine eyes and a choker on her neck. She wore a black blouse with the shoulder area bare through the multiple thin stripes connecting it to the torso; revealed smooth and pale skin. She wore a white skirt with knee-length black boots.
For most people at the table, it was a stranger. But for Kaito, it was a familiar face from his younger years since primary school.
He raised his hand and waved; hoped the girl's gaze turned towards their table.
The girl in question met their gazes, smiled and waved back. She approached the table.
"Hi everyone! It's nice to meet you all! My name is Lily. Welcome to this side of town!" Lily smiled, waved and made eye contact with everyone at their seats.
Kaito gestured to the vacant space beside him they saved for Lily.
Gakupo, Luka, and Miku had their mouths open agape at Lily.
Oliver smiled and offered his hand on the table. "Hey Lily! Nice to meet you, the name's Oliver. You can call me Oli instead."
Lily took his hand and shook it. "Hi Oli, thanks for having me here! I hope you guys enjoyed the area so far."
Kaito elaborated for Oliver, who just nodded enthusiastically. "We just went straight here to the shopping centre. We've been exploring it for hours and we had a good time." He gestured to the gathered shopping bags on both rows of their table.
"Oh, wow! That's a huge haul there. Then in that case I hope you enjoyed the exploration! I tell you, even after multiple times being in this place, you won't be able to see everything. There's always that one corner that you'll see for the first time." Lily laughed. "Have you guys ordered yet? I'm starving!"
Kaito answered. "We're actually waiting for you to arrive so we can eat together."
Luka volunteered. "I'll call for someone now."
"You guys didn't have to do that!" Lily assured them. "I wouldn't mind joining you when you're all eating. I can wait for my food by myself. I don't want you guys starving yourselves."
"Don't worry about it!" Oliver answered. "It's better if all of us are digging into the food and enjoying it together. Am I right, everyone?"
Oliver's attempt to include everyone else in the conversation was empty-handed. The people he was meant to include were still stunned.
Kaito intentionally coughed to cut the dazed looks of Luka, Miku, and Gakupo. He even kicked his foot on Miku's leg who was in front of his seat for extra measure.
Miku was able to speak for the first time. "Oh my god, you're so gorgeous!" Her gaze remained om Lily.
Gakupo and Luka seemed to compose themselves together at that point, but could only merely nod in agreement with Miku.
Lily laughed it off and shrugged the compliment with a gesture on her hand. "Oh, you guys, you don't have to say things like that. You all flatter me too much."
A staff member approached their table right after. When all their orders were taken, the group were left by themselves once again.
Kaito coughed again. "Perhaps an introduction from each one of my friends here is in order?"
"My name is Gakupo. You can call me Gakt. Thank you for meeting with us today." Gakupo offered his hand to Lily, who took it and shook it like Oliver's.
"Nice to meet you, Gakt. I love your hair, by the way!" Lily smiled.
Gakupo clutched his chest and smiled at her. "You're too nice!"
Luka introduced herself in a similar fashion as Gakupo's, but more laid-back.
Lily had a hunch that she was the 'mom friend' in their group, to which Luka replied.
"Well, there has to be someone who manages these rascals."
Lily chuckled. "It's almost like Rin in our group back in the old days!"
"Rin being the 'mum friend'? She's one of the big pranksters today!" Luka was surprised but chuckled at the same time.
The small talk followed with Lily's assurance that Rin was much more serious when they were younger.
Based on the reactions on the table, it seemed Rin became more aloof these days.
"My name is Miku! Nice to meet you, Lily! Sorry for coming off as very weird there. But Kai didn't mention you being so cool!" Miku waved at Lily, who also waved back with a reciprocating smile.
Kaito murmured that he did, in fact, mentioned it beforehand in the background.
"I love your name and your hair, Miku! Kai told me much about you, actually." Lily greeted Miku with a smile.
Kaito had indeed told Lily about his secret crush, though it was out of force from Lily's skilled persuasion.
"Oh, I feel honoured! Hopefully he hasn't mentioned anything bad!" Miku chuckled. Kaito restrained himself to release a choking sound.
"Don't worry! Nothing bad at all! In fact, I was told you're the one who started this daring plan. That's a bold move to do it."
Miku solemnly replied. "Well, it just feels like I have to. Especially when I've been thinking Rin might not be nearby soon from god knows when."
Lily nodded with an affirming hum. "It's something we also dreaded four years ago when she shared the news. But we graduated and everything. There's not much news about it... yet. So who knows when that update will come, especially with this year's graduation."
Their food arrived. Two servers put down multiple plates, some were large main course meals to be shared, alongside individual meals on their table.
Gakupo got pasta with tomato and eggplant sauce. Miku ordered leek and potato soup. Kaito had a bento-inspired dish with various portions of meat and vegetables, and black sesame seed ice cream for dessert. Luka and Oliver shared a huge plate of fish and chips.
"Oh, this is delicious!" Oliver grabbed bites of his food.
Luka and Kaito let out appreciated hums over their own bites.
Miku and Gakupo shamelessly moaned in delight.
Gakupo commented, after he emptied his mouth and took a sip of his drink. "Wow, Lily! This food is so~ good!"
"Glad to see everyone liking the food. This place is one of the best, and it's also pocket friendly. I'd come back here once in a while." Lily shared cheerfully while she grabbed a bite of her own food.
Everyone engaged in pleasant conversation, specifically to Lily as she said more things about herself and her own experiences with Kaito and Rin when they were younger.
Kaito slowly began. "So Lily, before we start to convince you into supporting our plan, we may also need you first with a little hole in this plan that might be seen by Rin."
"Huh? What's that?"
"You see," Luka began. "Dear little Miku here," She pointed at their friend with the twin-tails, who meekly smiled. "-posted in her social media we're here shopping. We were not meant to do that in the first place to avoid Rin seeing it. We're worried she might take it the wrong way and start suspecting or be upset."
Lily nodded throughout Luka's explanation.
"But apparently she's not the only idiot in this table who did it. Oli accidentally gave his location in his own post. Kai told Rin he's on the other side of the area near this shopping centre. We're basically screwed once Rin connects the dots."
"Did she leave all of your posts on read?" Lily asked.
Oliver nodded on his end. It was the same with Miku. While Kaito explained Rin even replied to his messages.
"Well, if I have to be honest with the ones who did the posts, I think Rin would not have even noticed it." Lily had smiled amusingly.
Miku doubted their new friend's sudden optimism. "What do you mean? It's so obvious Rin seen'ed the post in my list that showed who saw my post."
"Hear me out here." Lily began her explanation to dissipate the worried looks on the table.
"Rin left me a message when I just arrived here for you guys. She was apologising for leaving me on read this morning because she thought she replied, but it never got past her head to type it out. Said something on being distracted with an assessment that she forgot to lock her phone after browsing social media. All your posts could have transitioned after the timer since Rin would not have swiped it herself." With that finished, Lily casually poked her fork through a piece of meat from her plate and brought it to her mouth.
She hummed her pleasure with the food.
Gakupo started off, but paused to allow anyone to fill in first, and then took his chance. "So when it said Rin saw the posts…"
"She might actually not have seen it after all…" Luka finished off with the thought that provoked the rest of them at the table.
Miku clutched the edges of the table in front of her and heaved a huge sigh, and leaned against the back of her seat in what seemed to be relief. It earned a chuckle from Lily with how open Miku was with her emotions.
Lily added. "Did you all end up deleting your posts by now?"
Oliver answered quickly. "I did."
"Yup!" Miku enthusiastically added. But her mood quickly dampened. "Though I didn't get to save it for myself before deleting it. A good shot, gone forever!"
"Oh shush you, Miss diva," Luka mockingly replied with a hint of sarcasm. "You always take selfies every minute so you can replace the single photo that could have almost incriminated us."
Kaito concentrated to avoid a weird expression on his face that could be pointed out by anyone.
He actually took a screenshot of Miku's post before she was forced to delete it.
And Kaito would take the fact with him even when he was six feet deep underground.
"Okay, now that problem is solved. We need to talk about the real reason why we're all here then!" Kaito steered the topic away in fear his cover could be revealed at any minute. The faster they get distracted, the better for his sake.
Gakupo agreed. "We would like to ask for your permission, Lily, to reunite Rin and Len together before we finish the year!"
"Like, hooking them up together?" Lily clarified, with an interested stare.
"Not really. That is, if either one of them or both of them want to." Oliver replied, then he elaborated.
"If either Rin or Len, or both of them as I said, want to get together, then we'll help them. But if they're not interested, we'll help them get the closure they both need. We think Rin badly needs it, while we just confirmed Len wants it."
"I can confirm Rin definitely also wants it." Lily put her elbows on the table, her hands clasped together to support her chin.
"I mean the closure. I told Kai here about one time Rin and I talked about this particular book. It's basically about a couple that dated but separated in the end. Rin said she hated the ending since it left that unresolved tension. Now the surprising part for me was for her to take it personally." Lily chuckled.
"She mentioned that if she were in the protagonist's place and given a chance to go back, she'd take it before it's all too late."
The faces of Miku, Gakupo and Oliver were shocked in astonishment with the development.
Luka muttered 'Oh my god' under her breath.
Kaito had a small smile. Things were about to get real.
"Fast forward to a week ago, Kai reached out to me about what happened with Rin. I'm so surprised you guys are spooked out by it. Rin has always been a bitch when someone irks her off, even the slightest bit." Lily chuckled and Kaito joined in their collective recall of their younger days, where Rin's blunt behaviour was common knowledge to most people in their former cohort.
Lily continued. "But I do get where you're coming from. I also think Rin should get that closure. Besides that hint I just mentioned, it would seriously help her internally. She didn't want to do anything with Len a year after the break-up. She thought the disassociation and apathy would help. It did work for a while. But there were always repressed emotions that she needed to address.
"The break-up still does affect her, even before that whole thing in your school. Rin disdained the idea of dating after Len. It's unhealthy, if I have to comment. She may not be crying over him anymore, but the thought of Len and their past is at the back of her mind. Rin would set it aside and then think she can take care of it some other time." Lily finished when she shook her head with a disappointed sigh.
Miku held out her palm in front of the table to capture their attention quickly. "Wait, so you basically agree with what we'll be doing with Rin? Just like that?"
"Yeah?" Lily smiled while she raised an eyebrow. "I told Kai about it in our chat. I thought you guys were already under that impression before we met here."
"I thought you only meant that you're up to having lunch with us," Kaito replied. "I assumed we have to convince you into agreeing with the plan for the first time here."
It was then that Lily laughed heartily. "Lucky you, I won't need further convincing with this. But that doesn't matter now. I like the plan and if you will allow it, I'd like to be involved too!"
Gakupo gleefully stated. "Of course we will! We're glad to have you on board, Lily! Any friend of Rin's is welcome!"
While the others were enthusiastic about their newest recruit, Miku discreetly jabbed Luka through her elbow.
Luka glared at Miku. But her eyes told something that the mastermind had always wanted to hear.
Now that Lily entered the plan, Luka would officially join them.
"Speaking of Len though," Lily began, and everyone's gaze once again focused on her. "I think this bit of information might alter the course of this plan."
"What do you mean, Lily?" Kaito asked. He dug up any memories from the past that could give him a hint on what she would say next. But nothing came up.
"I don't know if Kai told you about this certain event, since he himself was involved in this." Lily began.
At the mention of his name, Kaito had his eyes widened towards her direction.
He felt all the gazes of his friends were on him.
"It was our tenth grade graduation. The whole thing was finished so everyone was just socialising. I was with the girls, Neru, Gumi and Miki together. And then behind me, someone just shouted that they love Rin. Like they said it at the top of their lungs."
At the last part, the faces of Miku, Luka, Gakupo, Oliver, and especially Kaito lightened up. Widened eyes and mouths agape displayed an expression of familiarity for the story.
"... Wait, do you all know what happened after all?" Lily blinked after she noticed the surprised faces of people at her table.
"I told them…" Kaito started. "Len told me he was thinking for weeks whether he was in love with Rin again. He just accepted it when graduation finished."
"Oh my god," Lily gasped. "I thought it was just a completely random made-up thing for him to say. Gumi even thought it was a cruel joke."
"No, it wasn't. He was dead serious. I was hesitant with his intentions at first. I didn't want Rin to know about it with graduation approaching." Kaito replied with a soft tone.
"Yeah, I also thought so. Yet I changed my mind when I saw Len push you and catch Rin together. You two ran for your lives that night. Everyone nearby watched." Lily replied.
Gakupo coughed. "May I also add something?"
With the nods of Kaito and Lily who were active in the conversation, Gakupo finally continued. "We also saw Len's messages with Rin ever since the summer of tenth grade. He sent multiple messages to Rin until last month, actually. So it's basically just confirming things here."
Lily shook her head in disappointment once again. "Len, just what are you doing?"
She took a sip of her drink before she spoke again. "I knew something felt weird about him at the start of tenth grade. He would try to approach Rin but chicken out at the last minute. The few times he actually approached her, Rin admitted to me she's hesitant and uncomfortable with him. As the months passed, she taught herself to be apathetic to him. She thought his approaches were like the usual people who'd ask for her help. Nothing more, nothing less."
"On Len's side, he was actually trying to be friendly with Rin again. But for some reason he wasn't even 'conscious' about it." Kaito added to Lily's flashback.
"Once we hung out after rehearsals for graduation. He admitted he found himself thinking about Rin a lot since they broke up. He mentioned it started a few weeks before we started our research paper but he doubted it. Then he finally accepted everything during graduation.
"But based on his messages to Rin and what you told us today, it could have started all the way back in the summer of tenth grade. The timeline I have doesn't make sense, unless Len is unreliable with his stories and did not tell me everything." Kaito scrunched his eyebrows in contemplation.
Lily nodded. "The timeline is confusing. But what you just said made my side of things a lot more sense. I'd catch Len staring at Rin. I know it's inevitable because they were assigned to sit beside each other. But staring at your seatmate during class when you could look anywhere else? My gut feeling told me there was something."
Miku and Gakupo made quick eye contact. They returned their focus to Lily who continued.
"Then I noticed Len never left his chair when Rin was sitting. It was usually Rin who leaves and trade seats for the rest of the class, or hang out with Gumi and I whenever we sat on the floor during workshops at Maths class."
Miku asked with enthusiasm. "Woah, you guys can sit on the floor during class?"
"Yeah we did, it was fun despite what everyone thinks it's unhygienic." Lily enthusiastically replied. "I guess this is when things get confusing. It's either Len is deliberating not telling Kai something else, or we're still early into our investigation here."
Luka shared her sentiments. "It's more likely we're in the latter. But something in my guts tells me it could be the former also."
She smirked afterwards. "I bet thirty bucks Len is actually an unreliable narrator with all of this."
Gakupo smiled and cheered from his spot. "Mate that's insane, I like it!"
Oliver expressed his doubt. "Uhm Lu, don't you think that's a bit too presumptuous to think of that when you've never met the person?"
Luka defended her opinion. "Kai and Lily can slam me with this. But based on the stories, I think Len doesn't have a backbone with being honest to himself. Remember, this is the dude with bad self-esteem. It didn't help that he got cancelled by his class when he broke up with miss goody-two shoes achiever. I'd completely understand if he's struggling and then change bits of information when sharing it."
The euphemism she used to refer to Rin earned quick chuckles within the table.
Lily shared her sentiments. "Well, I was never that close with Len so I can't vouch on anything unlike Kai. But I agree with Luka. Len became more reclusive after the whole fiasco on their break-up. He was practically alone. He definitely developed trust issues along the way."
Miku directly asked Lily. "I mean, all of this information is still vital even when it doesn't make sense yet today. Maybe we'll find a way to do some confirmation and deduction once we connect with two of your other friends?"
Lily was intrigued at the part of approaching other people besides her. "Wait, which friends are you referring to?"
"Apparently, it's Gumi and Neru. Kai chose them, including you, when we asked for people to approach this plan for." Miku replied.
Lily's eyes sparkled in glee. "Ohhhhh! Of course they'd be the ones! Smart choice there Kai."
Kaito scratched his neck at the praise. "We have Miki, Kokone, and Nana as back-up, in case one or two of you between Gumi and Neru are unavailable. We won't contact them even if all three of you don't like our idea. We just needed three people to make the decision if we're stepping any boundaries with Rin and Len."
Lily confirmed her decision one more time. "Just as we previously established, I support this idea. Who are you planning to approach after me? I can let them know and brief them in advance so it saves you guys the time and the energy to explain everything all over again."
"Are you sure? It feels imposing on you, especially with your busy schedule!" Kaito's worried tone was evident with the offer.
"It's nothing Kai! Besides, it's time I get a quick chat with the two of them! I barely get to talk with Gumi these days, and it's a longer period with Neru." Lily insisted.
Luka smiled and spoke on behalf of the group. "That would be very helpful. Thank you very much Lily. We're reaching out to Gumi next."
Oliver, Gakupo and Miku nodded in approval and gratitude to their guest.
"Nice! You guys will be in for a ride with Gumi next. I'm not sure if she changed her mind about Len, so I can't say anything to you guys today. But you'll be meeting someone who knows Rin the most. She'll be your biggest asset if she wants to support you." After accepting their thanks, Lily brought up a new point of discussion.
"And speaking of the plan, do you guys have a date, or an estimated time to execute the reunion? It's okay if there's nothing so far! I understand if you'd want to focus on talking with three of us first before doing anything else."
Miku replied and clapped her hands in eagerness. "You're right that we want to collect your approvals! Any information that Gumi and Neru may know would help us with how we can plan the reunion."
Oliver teased Miku. "I almost thought you forgot the check-list I so elaborately wrote for this whole meet-up, and almost ruined our plan when Rin took your notebook that I wrote it on."
Gakupo commented on the side. "For a mastermind in this whole scheme of events, you did make some mistakes during the process Miks."
"Oh my god, why is everyone roasting me right now? And in front of Lily of all places! Don't you guys have pity for me?" Miku mockingly cried, clutched her chest for pitiful effect.
Luka rebutted, and to Miku's defence. "Don't worry Mimi. You started this whole plan and brought us all together here. That's something commendable after all." The girl with the twin-tails noticed the turn of events.
"Lulu!? Are you seriously defending me?!" Miku cried out with a mix of suspicion and hope.
Kaito leaned towards Lily and whispered. "If you could excuse my friends here. It's normal of them to banter like this. But it can be a handful from time to time."
"No worries there Kai." Lily assured her friend on top of the background noise from their friends' banter.
"It actually makes me feel happy you and Rin have awesome friends in your current school. Especially for Rin. She used to tell me how nerve-wracking it was for her to fit in your new place. But meeting your friends right now makes me grateful all my worrying was for nothing."
Kaito smiled in gratitude.
Miku apologised to Lily for leaving her out. The girl in question merely shrugged it off and felt no slightest offence to it.
When Miku mentioned that they planned to get into contact with Len after Neru, Lily was taken aback. But she quickly realised that it 'made sense'. She gave all her good wishes for the group.
Eventually, their stay at the restaurant went through two hours thanks to the in-depth conversations.
Lily had to call it a day as she needed to head home.
Kaito thought it was good timing. He and his friends needed to start their journey to the other side before it got late.
Miku, Gakupo, Luka, and Oliver expressed their sincere appreciation for Lily.
Kaito gave her the book he specifically bought for her from the bookstore.
Lily gasped and now was her turn to thank the group. "You guys are adorable! Thank you so much!"
They also exchanged social media accounts before they settled the bill with everyone's splits.
When they left the restaurant, Lily parted ways with Kaito and her new friends.
"See you at the reunion!" She waved goodbye after their hugs and left.
Miku and her friends made their way to the bus stop. They hailed the bus that took them to the same train station they departed in.
The short trip on the bus and the wait for the train were mostly spent in silence, with a few soft conversations from Gakupo and Luka.
Oliver was his usual self to spectate his friends and only talked when necessary.
Kaito was busy on his phone, perhaps followed up with Lily or casually scrolled through social media.
Miku stared at empty space; took in the events of today.
They finally got to board their train and relax on their seats. It was their chance to discuss the whole lunch meeting.
Luka was actually eager for the first time at the once considered 'bold plan' of Miku's.
Oliver and Gakupo were intrigued on the possibility of Len's intentional redaction of crucial details about his true feelings for Rin.
It was unanimously agreed by all of them that Len doeswant to get back with Rin.
The only question was whether Rin only needed the closure, or also wanted to get back with Len.
Miku and Oliver particularly looked forward to how their next meeting with Gumi would go.
Kaito was about to drop his insights when Miku immediately covered his mouth with her palm.
"No spoilers! Let me and Oli enjoy the suspense of waiting!" She enthusiastically reasoned.
When Miku's palm left his mouth, Kaito spoke. "When I get home, I can reach out to Gumi and begin planning for our next meet up."
Miku replied. "Hey Kai, don't sweat about it today. You can do it tomorrow. I'd be honest and say that both of us are not the only tired ones today." She paused to turn her head to the direction of Luka, Oliver, and Gakupo for further emphasis.
After he saw all of their nods, Kaito relented and only agreed with Miku.
When their energy died down, the group went back in silence.
Miku had one of her earphones on the right and watched the moving scenery on the train's windows. She briefly sent a text message to her father, as promised, that she was on her way home.
Oliver stared downwards on the floor in a daze. Luka had her head leaned against the seat and stared at the ceiling. Her arms were crossed across her chest and she closed eyes.
Gakupo and Kaito were the only ones who paid attention to their train's location. They looked up and glanced at the LED banner inside the carriage, or gaze at the window to find the sign of the train station they currently stopped at.
A few more minutes later, they saw the familiar scenery of their area. They passed through familiar streets in their area and shops that were recognisable.
Soon, the train approached the first station and started their separation. It was time for Luka and Miku to leave.
After the two ladies prepared themselves (gathered the multiple shopping bags), they bid their farewell to the men and stood in front of the door, as the train slowly stopped.
Luka and Miku crossed the platform after the doors opened. They waved at the boys from the window inside, until the carriage closed its doors and slowly moved away.
The train sped up until the smiling faces of Gakupo, Kaito and Oliver disappeared and their train became a dot at the horizon.
"Lu, I can ask my parents to drive you home. You won't be tired from carrying all those bags." Miku started when they both went to the chairs and put down their bags.
"Thanks for that, Mimi. But there's no need for that. I can manage with these on the bus." Luka replied and gestured with her own set of bags.
"If you say so. Anytime you change your mind before the bus arrives, it's up for grabs." Miku stated.
"I'm good, thanks sis. That's actually my bus, I better catch it," Luka quickly pointed. "Thanks for today Miks, and get home safe!"
"You too, girl! Let me know when you've gotten home!" Miku waved as Luka speed walked to her bus. It was a few bays from where she left Miku but not too far that she needed to run for her life with a handful of shopping bags.
One thing Miku only hated with shopping sprees was to carry all her beloved loot.
The agony was tenfold whenever she had to take public transport, such as today.
A few huffs and turns in a few streets later, Miku got used to the weight she carried in the walk on her street. It did not take long for her to stand on the foyer of her family home.
Instead of being a civilised person and ring the door after she put down her bags, Miku bumped her forearm to the door and shouted for her brother.
"Hey! I can't open the door right now! You have to open it for me!"
A distant voice was heard from the other side of the door. "Maaa! Miku still expects me to open the door for her just because she doesn't want to put down her bags for thirty seconds!" Miku's brother whined.
Footsteps approached until Miku was in front of a face she least expected.
Her father gently chided her to cut the habit of expecting someone to open the door for her when her hands were occupied. It was the usual banter within the Hatsune household that followed on.
It continued as Miku was told to join them for dinner just in time. The family of four eventually moved on from their bantering about Miku's front door habits and went on tangents with the most random of topics—whether it was the latest memes explained by Miku and her brother, or serious talks about politics usually brought up by their parents.
When the plates were all empty and the weariness of each person showed up, the family retired for the night and left the table.
Miku's brother was assigned to wash the dishes according to their roster of choices within the week. Miku was glad to only be assigned to clean the table and check the laundry hung from the afternoon.
When all of the chores were done, Miku was finally able to go to her bedroom. She changed out of her outfit and into her pyjamas.
She unloaded each bag, removed price tags and stickers with it, and gathered all the bags after they were flattened. The organised but huge pile of paper bags made Miku think it was very much high-time she got into the habit to bring her own shopping bags. All the clothes went straight to the laundry bin to be washed on the next round soon.
Miku grabbed her phone and laid down on the bed on her side. She aimlessly scrolled through social media, mindlessly absorbed every post that she saw on the endless feed. It lasted for a considerable amount of time until she had to get up when she realised there was homework to be finished.
They were all due for next week, and cramming it was not the best decision based on previous experience. She groaned and went to her desk.
It was a peaceful session when she did her homework. No annoying brother suddenly barged into her room. No mum or dad knocked on her door and talked to her. No messages that made her phone ring and lost her focus.
Miku gave herself a pat on the back for that flawless burst of productivity.
After her night time routine that consisted of her skin care regime and her hair care (it was her pride and joy), Miku went back to her desk and recorded today's events in her journal.
She turned off the lights, went to bed, and wrapped herself with the blanket. The cosy and warm feeling embraced her as she closed her eyes.
In all honesty, Miku was very nervous about the next step in their plan to meet with Rin's best friend.
What if she did not approve of the plan?
What if Rin discovered everything and felt offended about it?
All these spirals with her thoughts made it anxiety-inducing for Miku.
Yet she realised that she was not alone in this.
Gakupo and Oliver were her first supporters. Luka was finally convinced to join them. Kaito, the most trusted with Rin's wellbeing, gave his approval and kickstarted the process when he made it possible for them to meet with Lily.
All of them agreed with what Miku expressly voiced after they all heard about her past.
Rin definitely deserved that closure.
And Miku would make it possible for her, no matter what.
