"Shit. I forgot the cookies!" Rin stopped as she stared at her empty hands. Then she checked her strapped purse. It was empty of said tupperware.

It felt as if Kaito's sanity dropped and broke on the floor. "I'll grab it for you! You can just stay here and wait for me while I run back for it!"

"No need, Kai! I already caused you too much trouble by walking me back to mum and dad. I'll do this quickly! Don't worry!" Rin shrugged off Kaito's offer.

"No, no! I insist it's fine! Seriously!" Kaito was desperate.

"Nah, Kai. It's my mistake for accidentally leaving it. I'll get it!" Rin turned around towards Kaito's house.

"Rin, NO!" Kaito pleaded in a much louder voice than anticipated.

With that, Rin turned back to face Kaito. This time with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, what's with the urgent reaction? Am I supposed to not see something back there?"

Even when Rin had no form of malice in her tone, Kaito tried his best to not show his nerves.

"No! Of course not! I seriously don't want you to go back, because it's tiring right? Especially when we're halfway to your parents. Just let me do this for you, Rin! Please?"

Rin stared at Kaito as she chose her options of responses. But it was clear she would not budge.

He was now on the verge of being forced to spill the beans.

Kaito berated himself. So much for trying to be lowkey. He wanted to sigh in disappointment for himself.

As if divine intervention was given to him, something distracted the two of them.

Rin's phone rang from her purse. She took it and noticed it was her sister calling.

"I'll just quickly take this call." Rin showed him the screen of her phone for a second and turned around.

"Yeah. I'm on my way there. Kaito is walking with me so I'm not alone… Yeah yeah, I get it." Rin's monotone voice echoed as she responded to the phone call.

Maybe the heavens were really merciful for him. This was his chance!

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[CHAT SCENE] Gakupo (sender) and Kaito (receiver)

Gakupo Kamui

Kaito: FALSE ALARM!

Kaito: GO BACK AND HIDE! RIN IS GOING BACK!

Kaito: I CAN'T STOP HER
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Everyone scrambled to hide once again.

Luka made a mad dash to the foyer to, once again, grab the shoes that she had just placed a minute ago. Oliver snatched the plate of cookies from the coffee table.

They all ran back upstairs for another time.

"Miku! The creases on the couch!" Gakupo convinced her.

"No time for that! She's coming! Hear the footsteps from the front balcony!" Miku rejected the idea, pushed all of them quickly and returned to Kaito's bedroom.

Just as the bedroom door was locked, Rin opened the front door with Kaito's key.

She returned to the empty living room they left a few minutes ago. And from a distance, she saw the forgotten tupperware.

The young woman approached the coffee table. As she took the certain item, Rin noticed a few things.

The plate of cookies was missing. Perhaps she did not notice Kaito placed it somewhere before they left. Or maybe his dad took it after they left?

And there was the couch. The surface was crumbled and there were creases on the outer sheets. It looked as if a whole group of people just sat together on it…

Rin stared at it longer. She recalled Kaito's reaction of not wanting her to come back…

It really felt as if: something else was happening here.

Rin just sighed.

What was the use of suspecting without any concrete evidence? Maybe his dad did have guests and left somewhere.

She looked up after she heard a soft thug of footsteps from above the ceiling.

Yeah! Maybe they are upstairs now. Rin thought.

After she glanced at the time on her phone's lock screen, Rin locked the door behind her. She made her way to meet up with Kaito again.

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Gakupo muttered and concentrated on any noises from downstairs. "Is she gone now?"

Oliver replied, hoping they could go downstairs for good. "I think so. The door was just closed"

Len whispered and avoided everyone's gaze. "Or she did it as a trap and is climbing the stairs now."

Luka agreed. "He's right. She could be suspicious by now."

Miku brought out her phone. "Let's text Kaito and ask if he's with Rin now."

A few seconds later, she got a reply.

Kaito was, in fact, with Rin and just separated ways.

"Let's bolt out, folks!" Miku proudly declared.

They all left the bedroom and finally, finally relaxed on the couch.

Miku dramatically sat on her knees on the floor and raised her arms.

"Oh my god!" She whined. "We could have been caught there!"

"I guess we're on lady luck's side. We've had so many close calls and we're still here." Luka commented and took a piece of cookie from the plate Oliver returned to the table.

The doorbell rang. "Let me in!" Kaito screamed from behind the door.

"I'll get it." Len stood from his seat and went to the foyer.

"Dumbass really said that in his own house." Miku snickered, which was appreciated by Luka, Oliver and Gakupo with their chuckles.

Kaito and Len went back to their previous seats.

"I think Rin's starting to get suspicious. She asked whether dad was having guests after she saw the creases at the couch and the missing plate of cookies when she dropped by."

"Ah, god damn it." Oliver cursed before he munched on another cookie. He lost count of how many he ate.

Gakupo lightly scolded Miku. "I told you Miks! We should have tidied that up!"

"We needed to get back ASAP there! And I assumed Kaito would have insisted he gets back instead." Miku replied in defence to herself.

Luka intervened and mediated the situation to de-escalate it. "Now, now, that's enough kids. It's already happened and we managed to get away from being seen by Rin. And Len here is still in one piece. All is fine!"

Kaito focused the topic back to their agenda for today. "Right, Lu. Now it's all over. All the more we have to act quickly because it won't be long until Rin will say something."

"So where were we?" Miku asked and grabbed the last piece of cookie from the plate. Oliver pouted.

Len hesitated at first but gathered the courage to speak. "Uhh… You were all saying that I'll be guided when I talk to Rin…"

Gakupo began. "Yes! Thank you, Len. Now I was thinking of an idea if you want to hear me out?" Everyone else nodded to hear him out.

"What if we use those radio earpieces so we could hear Len and Rin's conversation within a safe distance, and we can also talk there if we need to!"

Miku replied quickly. "I don't get it."

"People in stores use it. They have those earpieces to talk to each other even from the other end of the store, without needing to use the loud speakers. We'll use those!" Gakupo enthusiastically added.

Kaito had his eyebrows scrunched. "And where will you get those?"

"My parents have it!" Gakupo answered as a matter of fact.

Luka's sceptical tone spoke for all of them. "And why would your folks have those?"

Gakupo simply shrugged his shoulders. "They used to work for a company producing those things back in the day. We have heaps, all of us will have one! So what do you say?"

"Okay, sure…" Miku decided to leave the topic as it was and proceed to the next one.

"Before we move on, are you comfortable with us listening to you and Rin soon?" She specifically looked at Len, who was wide-eyed and fidgeted with the hem of his hoodie. He nodded quickly.

She looked at Kaito for reassurance, who nodded approvingly.

"Alright, that leaves us the last two questions, unless people have other ideas now?" Luka took control and gave them a chance for them to speak.

When all heads only shook sideways, it was her cue to continue. "First, how can we prepare in the case we need to push this back or pull it forward? Can we pull all of this impromptu or do we need to prepare now and be on stand-by until our original date?"

Miku raised her hand. "I'd say we should prepare starting from this day forward and be on stand-by." The people nodded in approval.

"Realistically speaking, we only need to drag Rin away. Len does his own thing, plus the part he needs to show up. We're just his moral support—"

"Which I badly need," Len politely interjected.

"Yes," Miku assured. "And if we can time it in the evening in that park, then it's easy peasy! Our only issue with scheduling is the annual festival. But we can do it later if we have to."

Kaito felt at ease as he drank from his glass of water. "Fine by me. I heard from Lily, Gumi, and Neru they're finished within this week or the next so they would be available if we need them."

Miku answered. "Of course we'll need them. They'll be the ones who drag Rin to the park."

Luka enquired in interest. "So it's not us, then?"

"Nah. We're gonna be busy preparing and helping Len, plus making sure the place is cool before Rin arrives. What if we can't find a hiding spot that could fit all eight of us!?" Miku reasoned out.

Gakupo nodded along. "Yeah. That's fair enough." Luka and Oliver did the same.

"Last question," Luka prompted. "Do we inform Rin about this beforehand or do we do it as a surprise?"

"Ohhh… Tough question." Miku commented.

"I'm saying 'yes' to tell her." Gakupo replies. "Because I think Rin's the type who doesn't like to be surprised and put on the spot."

"Do we have the same friend, Gakt? Rin never does not likes surprises!" Luka argued. "I'm voting 'no' to tell her. She loves being on the spot. Don't you guys realise it whenever she often takes the first step while everyone would be in serious doubt?"

There was silence and blank stares.

"I thought so then." Luka remarked.

"Wait, I agree with Lu here." Kaito said. "Remember Rin chickens out even on things she needs to do. Whenever she gets invited to parties from people outside our circle, she makes up excuses last minute to not show up. It's a yes from me."

Oliver contradicted his friend. "Not really, Kai. If it's something she needs to do, Rin will do it. There's a chance she'll walk out if she realises what we've dragged her into. So I'll say 'yes' until I'm further convinced."

"Oh you will be convinced, Oli," Miku referred to him. "Because Rin badly needs this and she would be a fool to walk away despite what her heart says deep inside about this closure. And what are the chances outsiders can intervene with this plan once we give in that notice?

"I'd like to serve this on a silver platter for Rin. And we won't fuck it up. Len won't fuck it up. We're planning for success!"

Len meekly added. "I think it's better to tell Rin before she meets me after all…"

"Nooo Len, not you too!" Kaito turned his head on the side to his friend and whined.

"I don't know if it's because of my insecurity. But I'm still scared of how Rin will react once she sees me that day. Maybe it's going to be safe informing her." He explained his reasons, and tried his best to maintain eye contact with every single one of them.

Even if it felt like he was being pricked.

"Wait, wait. Neru, Lily, and Megumi are with us. Let's ask them what they think about this. We do whatever the majority wants. Deal?" Luka made the agreement, and all of them agreed.

"Good. I think we're settled until then. If anyone has any questions, ask it away in the group chat. Kai, you need to add Len there, if he wants, so he can see our discussions there." Luka told Kaito.

When the consent was given, Kaito brought out his phone to do his part. "Don't worry Len. We try to stay on topic with a few memes and jokes being sent every now and then. We mostly bring our chaos in our group chat with Rin."

To which Len just nodded.

And so their agenda was finally accomplished. It was a perfect coincidence that Kaito's father, Naoto, arrived from the shops and the long list of errands finished before the week ended.

"Howdy everyone! The whole gang's here, even Len! It's been a long time mate! How ya doing?" Everyone exchanged pleasantries.

Kaito's father focused on Len. After he missed Len's visit for the first time in two years, Naoto did not miss the chance to catch up with his son's best mate.

"Alright. Lunch is on me, kids! Hold tight on your seats and I'll get it done as soon as possible!" Naoto proudly declared. To the applause and whistles of his friends.

"We can help prepare! It'll be good to pass the time too, and make the process faster." Kaito insisted. All his friends nodded. His father cooed at the gesture and enthusiastically distributed the tasks.

It was a pleasant time in the kitchen. They did their individual tasks side-by-side and had conversations that made the ambiance cheerful amongst the young adults.

"I remembered what you told me a while ago; about how I'll meet Rin soon," Len broke the somewhat quiet whispers they shared with Kaito's father who tended to the pots, pans and the rice cooker. He specifically looked at Miku.

"That the Rin I know from two years ago would be different from the Rin you all know now. So tell me, who is Rin to you? Who is the Rin I'll meet soon?"

All of them, except Kaito, had surprised expressions on their faces.

Miku flushed in shame after her own words were spoken by someone else. It sounded more ridiculous than she had thought.

But this was Len's effort right in front of them to witness. And so Miku repaid his effort

"The Rin I know is a ridiculously smart and talented girl." She started off. "Last year in music class we had to perform individually. We all prepared our own performances in advance. But Rin simply told the teacher she couldn't choose so they might as well choose a song for her. Then she performed a song she had never heard for the first time just by sight-reading it!"

Looks of recognition crossed through the faces of their friends as Miku finished. "How fucking insane that was!? I need a good three days just to get used to the song before performing it. But sight-reading it on the spot in front of a crowd? I'd shake from the nerves! But Rin pulled it off flawlessly."

Len's eyes widened. "She would have thought that kind of stunt is impulsive…"

Kaito simply smirked while he peeled the carrots. "Like you, that was exactly my reaction. If that was tenth grade, she never would have pulled off that kind of thing."

"Oh I remember this from last year." Gakupo shared his story next. "Someone was spreading wrong information in our room about this class project we all had to work on. When Rin knew about it, she lost her shit.

"Like full on raging, cursing and making the person who started it, for the laughs, seriously cry! It was hilarious watching the quiet and shy new girl with the adorable headdress go ballistic!"

Everyone roared in laughter. Even Len couldn't remove a smile from his face as he visualised Gakupo's story.

"Oh oh and I couldn't hold my laughter that day when she said," Luka did her impression of Rin with a higher pitched voice.

" 'You really thought you made me laugh after that, Dex!? This is the shittiest joke I've ever heard and you did a shit job on executing it, you fucking dickhead!' "

As she finished, her laughing came back with more wheezes. The rest of them laughed harder, as Kaito had the loudest laugh. Even Naoto joined in at that point.

"B-But," Len controlled his laughter from that point. "That's the Rin I know. She rages if she gets involved in shit like that."

Gakupo chuckled. "Yeah. But imagine our surprise when she did that only during the second term of the year, when she was still new!" To which Oliver and Luka wholeheartedly agreed.

That meant she already felt comfortable with them. Len kept it to himself.

Oliver began to share his own experience with Len's love. "My favourite memory with Rin so far was when we were all hanging out together in the mall.

"We were in the arcades and Rin decided to play a rhythm-beat game. There was a cocky little boy who thought he could beat a 'wimpy girl' like Rin; saying girls were shit at video games. We all thought she wouldn't pay attention to him. But she actually did!"

Miku cheered after the story had been recalled in her head. "I remember that day! Oh my god that was hilarious!"

"So we ended up watching Rin and this boy beside her play the most difficult songs in the game. She was dead silent. Not a word, not a laugh, not even smiling at us. She was dead focused on winning. And the boy ended up crying because he lost all their rounds and dragged his mum to tell the 'big lady playing with him was cheating and being mean to him'. Guess what Rin did?"

Len was too eager to know. So he just nodded to Oliver with a smile, an indication that the story should be continued.

"She boldly told the mother to 'teach her son some humility and how to admit defeat' because she was 'doing a bad job on it'. The mother was ready to slap her at that moment!"

Luka puffed her mouth and held back a laugh as the image of the mother flashed in her mind. "That mother was a full on Karen . She deserved it if that's how she's raising her kid to be a self-entitled prick."

Once again, Len was shocked. Not only he knew Rin was competitive on any form of video games. But for her to tell off a stranger like that?

This was news for him. "She wouldn't have done all of that back then… And I didn't know she took rhythm games seriously now…"

"Yeah she does now. And also plays a few MOBAs depending on her mood." Kaito casually added.

Len gasped. "No way!"

"That's the way now. She would play with some of our old folks at YMH from time to time when she felt like it."

"I would play with the same people once in a while too! Why don't I get to play with her?"

"Well, considering what everyone knew about you two and not being aware of your current intentions…" Kaito slowly speculated loudly. "But that's okay. If this works out, maybe then you'll get the chance to actually play with her!"

Kaito's friends shared more stories about Rin and their experiences with her. It made Len relieved.

The more stories he heard, he slowly felt confident after being updated to what Rin had been up to for the past two years.

Of course, they were not enough to gauge how Rin would react if he were to show himself to her soon. But it comforted Len to know more about his love from her newer friends.

He hoped he could stay on good terms with these people.

With their help in the kitchen, lunch took twenty minutes to be cooked. Naoto proudly served the food, and everyone dug in after they gave thanks for the food in front of them.

The rest of that day was spent with more conversations. Len got more involved and talked more confidently with Kaito, Miku, Gakupo, Luka, and Oliver while they enjoyed good food.

Len was now more at ease compared to a few hours ago in the living room. He was thankful Rin and Kaito were in good hands with these people.

In his time, Len was not the good friend Rin and Kaito needed. This was one of his biggest regrets.

To this day there were still regrets, despite the assurances of new beginnings for the future.

Len was grateful to Miku, Luka, Oliver, and Gakupo for being the best friends Kaito and Rin needed.

He watched them bond with each other; big smiles on their faces, their natural closeness to lean against the other and gently held on each other's shoulders.

They were the perfect people for his two best friends after they settled in a new environment when Len left them.

He was a hundred percent sure they would all remain in contact even after graduating.

Late afternoon came and they all had to start heading back home. Miku, Luka, Gakupo, and Oliver helped clean up their mess before they left.

"Aren't you joining us, Len? We can take the train or bus. One of us will go to either." Miku asked.

"I'll stay behind. My parents will drop by here soon. But thank you for thinking of me." Len smiled out of courtesy as he adjusted his glasses.

"Yes, very polite. Definitely fitting for our feisty bunny friend." Luka, with Miku, nodded together. This earned a laugh from the men and an embarrassed blush in Len's face.

"We'll be heading off now, Naoto! Please send our regards to Kanako too!" Gakupo waved and made his voice louder for the cheerful father to hear.

Naoto beamed at Gakupo's salute. "You kids have a safe trip back home. Come back again soon!"

Oliver enthusiastically waved. "Thanks Naoto, Kaito. And see you soon, Len!"

All of them smiled, gave hugs and handshakes to their new friend before the group left. Kaito closed the door behind them.

Their collective noises slowly became distant as they began their way to their own homes.

The two friends went back to the living room to rest after the surge of energy from being with the large group.

"I actually enjoyed meeting your friends." Len began, leaned his back against the back of the now unoccupied couch.

"Really? I was really worried Luka and Miku scared the living daylights out of you there." Kaito commented. "You don't have to lie to me, I'll understand. They're just really protective of Rin."

"Yeah, I'm not lying. I mean all of it. And that's why I respect their reaction to me." Len answered. "I'm glad Rin met people who would be concerned for her besides her old friends."

Kaito sighed. "I was definitely glad Rin got along with all of them. I would have felt bad if I hung out with them and Rin was all by herself. I mean she can handle being alone. But she's the type who thrives with others."

"Right." Len agreed. "It was like the three of us back then…" His comment had a lingering hint of guilt within his tone.

"You need to give yourself some time. I mean, socially wise." Kaito began. "Not everyone is that good around people like Rin. It was already a god-sent miracle when Gakupo approached me and introduced the others."

"Back then, I was ashamed. I knew you thought the same thing as everyone else around our break-up and I felt I didn't deserve your help. Even when I've almost come to terms with the break-up, my shame is still with me. Is it karma? I think so. Do I deserve it? Yes." Len smiled bitterly.

"Oh please can we cut the self-deprecation? You sound like Rin all those years ago," Kaito complained.

"Saying she deserved to be dumped by you because of her flaws and insecurities. No way I let that shit slip through. And the same will go for you. Stop blaming yourself on things you can't control. You two need to learn that lesson the hard way."

With the last part, Len chuckled. In turn, it brought a laugh from Kaito.

The two friends had the world by themselves and it enhanced their reconnection.

"Everything's gonna be fine," Kaito said, and gave a pat on the shoulder. "It's not only you who's gonna lose something if this plan doesn't work. All of our friendships with Rin will be at stake if she walks out. We're all risking something here."

He paused and observed Len's speculative gaze. "But it's a calculated risk we're taking. It's worth it." He smiled.

Len returned that smile. "Then we can only hope for the best."

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"Stupid train got delayed because stupid door wouldn't close…" Miku grumbled behind her scarf. She scrambled to walk on pedestrian crossings at busy intersections.

Here in the city centre with the tall, high-rise buildings, people who wore clothes like they were in the catwalk, and the busiest traffic she saw that never existed in the suburbs. The ten minutes to supposedly navigate her way to the entrance of the university became five minutes.

She only had a minute left after she misunderstood the GPS's instructions and went to the wrong street.

After the right pedestrian crossing was taken, she only walked straight to the side of this old building and saw a person at the entrance.

"Are you here for the Open Day?" The man, with a shirt in the colour of the university asked.

"Yes!" Miku replied. Finally, she made it!

"Right this way. Just go to the reception desk on the left side to check-in." The man smiled as he gave the instructions.

Miku thanked the man and went straight to the reception desk set up on the side.

"Hi! I'm here for the one p.m. session." Miku told the receptionists behind the table. She hoped she was not too late!

"Hello! You're here just in time! All we need is your name, please." The receptionist asked, opened her tablet, and tapped a few times on the screen.

"It's Miku Hatsune."

The lady tapped on the screen. "Awesome! If you could just fill up this form for us first." When she gave her tablet, Miku did what she was told and finished it within seconds.

"Thanks for that. Looks like you're really just in time. Your tour guide actually is here now. You will be with them until the end of the session. We hope you'll enjoy the experience! Thank you for coming!"

"Thank you and have a good day!" Miku politely thanked the receptionists. She turned back to join the gathered group of people nearby the lady who seemed to be the tour guide.

"Good day everyone! My name is Sachiko and I'm part of the Student Services here. Today I will be introducing you to our Performing Arts department for today's session. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask anytime!" The tour guide, Sachiko, enthusiastically started the session and prompted everyone to follow her.

Miku chose to be on the last tail of the walking group, especially since she knew no one.

Most of the people in the entourage seemed to know each other; friends who took the tour together, or others accompanied with family. Only a very few of them were like Miku who seemed to be alone and kept to themselves.

Sachiko the tour guide spoke about the history of the university, the background of the historic building they were in at the moment, and how they renovated it through the years to suit the needs of students. There was also the plan to build a new building nearby the area that catered more to the needs of students in this department. Miku only agreed in her head.

They were brought into an empty classroom and everyone grabbed their seats. Those in groups occupied a whole table. Others with a few companions shared a table or two. Some people, like Miku, chose to sit behind everyone else to have the table to themselves.

"While I set myself here and prepare today's presentation, please feel free to chat amongst yourselves."

Only whispers and hushed tones lingered in the room. Most of the noise came from the groups where the people knew each other. Others kept to their own business.

Miku was supposed to do that, had she not noticed a familiar figure, specifically the back of their head.

It was something Miku was proud of that she could recognise a person right away shortly after she met them. And for someone she had recently met once last week, Miku was quite surprised at her skills sometimes.

Today was a testament to it.

She stood up and slowly walked to where the person was. They had long, messy blond locks tied in a long ponytail. They wore a different hoodie this time with black skinny jeans for today.

Miku could have been a decent person and sent a message first to the person to make sure. But it was too late and here she was, a weirdo who approached a stranger in a room full of them.

"Is there anything I can help with— Miku Hatsune!?" Len's eyes widened from the same glasses; behind him stood Kaito and Rin's friend.

"Len Kagamine!?" Thankfully Miku had the mind to mutter her surprise. "What the hell are you doing here!?"

Len blinked twice at the question. Did she seriously ask why he was here?

"I'm here for the open day…?" His reply allowed for an open-end, in case he needed it to be either a question or a statement.

"No shit, mate! I mean, why are you here?" Miku whispered with gestures from her palms for emphasis.

"I'm applying for uni next year. And I'm still deciding and exploring options, if that's not obvious?" Len barely raised an eyebrow.

They were both confused.

Miku was not aware the group of friends already stared at her and Len with their little commotion. Sachiko was still in the process of setting up her laptop with the projector.

"Well by all means, the fates have worked their magic today! We attended the same day and the same session for an open day, in this uni of all the chances!" Miku called off, in disbelief with the turn of events today.

Len gestured for the empty seat beside him. He knew they would end up together for the rest of the session. She relented and put her purse on her lap.

"Are you interested in getting into the arts too?" Len asked and stared ahead at their tour guide to avoid eye contact.

"On entertainment only. I suck at combining lines and colours; can't write for shit. And I always get last place in Mario Kart." Miku answered, also stared ahead at the front.

"Aw, you poor thing. You know Mario Kart is the easiest out of all the games there." Len rested his elbow on the table, his cheek on top of his palm as he waited for the orientation to begin.

"Excuse me?" Miku had to call out the audacity she witnessed right now. She turned her head to the side towards Len.

"Shut it, gamer musician genius. Not everyone is as freaking talented as you!"

"What are you talking about?" This time, Len turned his head to Miku.

"Don't you know who you are? You're the famous Diva, Miku Hatsune! Your singing, songwriting skills and charisma won you dozens of competitions ever since you started competing! I only heard about you two years ago, but everyone says they've known you for that long with how active you are! You're the talk of the district in our city!"

"Not really. These people don't know me." Miku contradicted him.

She was indeed aware she may be more recognisable in their local area, with how often she joined competitions especially during early high school. Len merely exaggerated it.

"Because they're likely not from our side of the city! That's where you're known!" Len replied back. Did he miss it or had Kaito never mentioned his former crush was not aware of her status?

"Thank you very much for your patience, everyone!" Sachiko stood from her seat and called for everyone's attention. "Today we will begin our orientation first before continuing our tour."

"We'll continue this later." Len settled in his seat to listen at the front. Miku just shrugged and focused on the tour guide.

Miku absorbed the information. So far, the general offers this university had were good. But she was not compelled enough to choose them.

The travel distance from home was already a negative point for her. And the fees for the courses were a bit on the expensive side, even if they would be deferred as loans.

But that was why she visited their open day today to see if there were any redeeming factors to consider.

Len had not talked to her during the orientation. He was focused as he typed on his phone. Miku took a subtle peak on his screen. It showed his notes application.

He literally wrote notes on the orientation. There were a few occasions he asked questions out of his own will. And that was when Miku realised someone else took their research more seriously than her.

The orientation concluded and Sachiko dragged them to tour the rest of the building. It was the holiday break for university students so they were the only ones in the building.

Len and Miku stayed together on the rest of the tour. They barely talked, especially when Sachiko or some other staff caught one of them in a conversation.

Miku felt it was a comfortable silence, nothing too awkward or uncomfortable.

After they went through the building's five floors (Miku thought it was ridiculous the building was renovated yet there was no lift), the tour group returned to the meeting point.

Once formalities and last few bits of information were delivered, they received a thanks for attending today's session. And so the tour was finished.

Everyone quickly left the campus. Just as they crossed through the area of the campus, Miku had an idea.

A very clever one, if she could say so herself.

"Len! Are you busy today?"

Said person stopped on their tracks and turned around. "Uhh… Not really. I was just thinking of grabbing lunch before getting home."

"I'll tag along with you. I don't know anywhere good to eat here so you'll have to help me get into a decent place." Miku answered; basically invited herself. "No hetero with all of this, I swear!"

"Ahhh… Sure…?" Len was confused on why Miku said that. He knew the phrase was commonly said as a joke on the internet.

But who was he to pry on her sexuality? Besides, he was not available as long as Rin was still around…

Len opened his GPS and set up the directions at the local place he knew. "They serve nice rice meals in good portions. I hope you're into that."

"That's perfect. I ate breakfast in the early morning so I'm very hungry now." Miku answered. She let Len lead the way towards their lunch.

It took three straight crossings and two street corners. The five minute walk took them to a small local restaurant. The menu was plastered on the walls so they stood outside and read it.

"Yeah, there's the menu. They have a lot of options. I usually choose deep-fried chicken dipped in cornstarch in a rice meal. It's my usual here." Len shared, in hopes to help Miku.

Miku took a good minute to analyse the photos and the details of each meal until she made a decision. "Alright, I picked something. Let's order now."

"Tell me what you're getting. It's on me." Len casually said, about to push the door before Miku stopped him.

Miku raised an eyebrow. "Uh, what for? I can pay for myself. You don't have to!"

Len adjusted his glasses. "If Kaito heard about me not paying for your food out of courtesy, he might whoop my ass."

"If Kaito scolds you for not paying for my food, I will whoop his ass." Miku argued and tried to sneak at him to open the door. "Now let me pay for my own meal so we can eat very soon."

Len sighed in his mind as he opened the door for Miku and told her to order first. Miku, who was taught by her parents that kindness is the free currency, thanked him.

She waited for Len to finish his order after her. After he tapped his phone on the card machine and received a confirmation, he grabbed his cold matcha tea to join Miku and they sat on a table.

"I didn't expect you to be such a gentleman and we've only met just last week. I can imagine how it would be when you're with Rin?" Miku had a teasing smile as she tested out how he would react to the mention of her friend, and his ex-girlfriend slash crush.

Like a fuse, Len's face reddened. His gaze averted to the side and his lips formed an awkward straight line.

"Awww~" Miku cooed and continued the teasing. "You're getting all worked up when I just mentioned Rinny! That's cute."

"S-Stop teasing me!" Len protested, his gaze returned his focus to the table's surface. "You know I still don't know what she thinks of me. I-I don't want my hopes to get up…"

Their conversation was cut when their food arrived. Miku was impressed with how large the servings actually were. Len only had a relaxed smile on his face at the sight of his bowl. He removed his glasses and began to eat.

"Oh, you removed your glasses." Miku noticed after she took her first bite.

"The steam from the food fogs it up, so I'd rather remove them. I'm near-sighted so I can still see my plate anyway." Len explained in between bites of his food.

"Huh, you do look different without your glasses. Much like from when you, Kai, and Rin were in YMH." Miku commented.

"How did you know I only recently wore glasses? Did Kai tell you?" Len tried to hide his shock. He surely mentioned this fact to Kaito alone.

"Yeah, partially. We had to look into your social media before we went through the plan to check if you weren't dodgy. Then Kai pointed out how you were wearing glasses, 'a new thing', he said." Miku shrugged off, as if it was natural to admit that after a week of meeting someone new.

Len stared at her. He still processed the fact that someone he did not know had the time to browse his social media.

He reminded himself to stop forgetting to lock his account for strangers.

Miku added. "Yeah, I know. You find it weird. Kai and the guys scolded me and Lu for doing that. But that was only once!"

"Don't worry, I'm not bothered. I do it too, a bit more than you think." Len assured her before he had a sip of his drink.

"So you visit Rin's social media every now and then?"

Len merely ate his food, purposely lowered his head to hide his blush.

"I knew it!" Miku smiled, enthusiastic about this development.

Wait until Kaito hears I'm not the weird one for checking people's social media!

Miku only did it once on Len to do a background check. But Len himself did it multiple times to Rin's accounts!

"Can we skip this part already? It feels embarrassing just doing it. But I can't help it!" Len pleaded, covered his blushing cheeks with his palm, and once again avoided Miku's teasing gaze.

Miku had mercy, so she decided to give this man a break.

"Alright. I didn't mean to rile you up there. I think it's understandable. You wanted to know what was happening to her and had no other option besides it. That's fine. Hopefully soon you'll be able to know what Rin is up to from her own words!" Miku beamed to cheer up her new friend.

Len nodded in appreciation. "Yeah. Hopefully it works out. Until now she hasn't unfollowed me or removed me from her list of friends. But I don't want to assume she still wants to talk to me. She could have forgotten we're still connected and had not noticed all this time…"

Miku assured him in return. Mainly on the fact Rin did a few 'rounds' to clean up her followers list. If Len survived those purges, it meant something positive.

They were half-way into their meals when Miku initiated her plan for today.

"I'm asking a favour to you right now. We can have a deal once you agree. You like Rin. I like someone from Rin and Kaito's friend group, who you would most likely know. I tell more stuff about Rin, you tell me stuff about them. Deal?"

"Oh. Are we talking about the same person here?" Len blinked. Since the food was not steaming hot anymore, he opted to put his glasses back. Miku was no longer a blurred teal blob in front of him.

Len speculated in his mind. Obviously Neru was removed from the options, she already has a girlfriend. There was only Lily and Gumi. Who could it be?

"If it's Megumi Nakajima, Rin's best friend, then yes it's her!" Miku once again beamed. This time she felt a faint blush on her cheeks. It was the right time for Len to put back his glasses and notice it right away.

"Oh! So you actually meant it when you said 'no hetero..." Len had a surprised expression on his face. A few gears on his brain worked, and a few things finally clicked for him.

Miku glared. "You've got a problem with that? I've met tougher people before and I'm not hesitating to tell you off if I need to."

"No! No!" Len immediately shook his palms in surrender. "I didn't mean that. I respect that part of you. I don't mind it! I was just surprised you were talking about Nakajima…"

"Why wouldn't I? She's adorable! Even when she was all grumpy and intimidating when we were talking about Rin, she looked so hot there!"

Len was flabbergasted. Never in his life had he thought he would meet someone who actually adored Megumi, his oddball of a classmate since primary school.

"So do you have any problem with her then?" Miku had a curious gaze, her lips pouted in contemplation.

"Not really…" Len gulped and avoided Miku's gaze. "More like she has problems with me… She hates my guts, even before I dated Rin."

"Huh…" Miku thought. "You're actually aware of it? Yeah, you're right. When we met her, she was against us reuniting you two at first."

"Are you this blunt?" Len had to take a second check that Miku really admitted it straight away. "Is this Rin rubbing off you or are you always like this?"

"Oh shut up or I won't tell you anything about Rin anymore. Would you want that?" Miku dared and crossed her arms in defiance.

"Fine, I won't say anything about your frankness." Len reluctantly agreed. He was a man who needed something so he could not just surrender. "But I was serious when I said Nakajima hates me, especially after what I did to Rin."

"Now that makes it all confusing for me how we were able to make her say yes at the end." Miku paused, as if she had not desperately fought for it.

"To this day, I still don't know how we made it to that point." Miku recalled the memories of that day where they thought the tides were against them.

"... She confronted me, Megumi, when Rin and I just broke up." Len admitted while he stared at his bowl.

"Wait what? Really? What happened?" It was Miku's turn to be surprised.

Kaito never mentioned this. He might have omitted it or he might not have known at all.

"She was furious. She screamed, cursed at me, dabbed her finger at my chest and once pushed me to deliberately provoke me. But I was apathetic from all of it, so I just stood motionless there.

"She cursed the air I breathed, the ground I walked on with how much of a rage she was in. I thought anyone surely must have heard her with how loud she shouted at me."

"Holy fuck… That's harassment! Does Kaito know about this? Did you report it!?" Miku was shocked and horrified.

She never expected to learn that her budding crush harassed someone.

"No, Kai doesn't know. No one else knows, as far as the rumours didn't mention it. It happened after school and I didn't see anyone staying back that day. I didn't bother reporting it." Len casually mentioned, as if he was not involved in a traumatic experience.

"Why the fuck you didn't?!" Miku managed to contain her voice.

"Look, you were in the asshole in the break-up. But you can't possibly think you deserved that form of bullying. Yes, even if that is my potential crush and my friend's best mate."

"But I do. She wasn't the asshole, I was." Len answered. "She did it because her best friend was experiencing her lowest point. You know what happened to Rin after I left. With everyone not wanting to talk to me, I thought it could be another thing that'll be put against me." Len took another bite of his food.

Miku was conflicted. Now there was one more agenda to add on the closure plan: Make Megumi apologise to Len.

"What if I make Megumi apologise to you? In return, you should tell all of this to Kaito. No more keeping secrets from the past. If you still keep some, you won't be able to heal yourself properly.

"Setting aside my growing feelings for her, I know Megumi is capable of remorse. When she agreed to our plan, I thought that was an indicator she was at least open-minded to all these." Miku considered being a therapist for Kaito and Rin's other friend group after all of this.

"... Sure. I can do that." Len meekly replied.

"It must feel depressing, being isolated from everyone." Miku commented.

"Yeah. But it did let me learn some lessons in a tough and hard way." Len tried to joke about his previous predicament. "Because now I just want to correct everything I've done wrong. I'm sick of regretting."

"If I may comment," Miku excused herself. "It's not only you who needs to do the correcting. There's Kaito who abandoned you and failed to get a hold of you for two years. And then there's Megumi who bullied you one day after school—"

"That wasn't bullying—"

"Nah, shut up, that was bullying." Miku continued. "Lily and Neru were part of adding petrol to the flame by being bystanders. Most of all, Rin has to work on her own issues, especially her issues with you."

Miku prepared herself. "Don't take all the responsibility, Len. You weren't the only one who was hurting at that time. Everyone played their part there. So they all have a role to fix it. All of you need to resolve those problems you guys had years ago. And now is the perfect time."

Now Miku definitely would assign herself as their therapist for friendships, relationships, and hardship rehabilitation.

"Now I realise how much this plan is not only for you and Rin, but to all your friends." She concluded.

If it were not for Miku and her friends to reach out about the plan, Rin and Kaito's friends would have still let those issues from the past be left unresolved. That was the message Neru insinuated that day.

Today's events allowed things to make sense for Miku. That plea from that day was manifested through this conversation.

Len was dumbfounded. Well, Kaito already told him everything Miku just said.

But it felt more profound from someone who was not involved all those years ago.

"Thank you, really. Kai already told me that earlier. But every now and then I need to be reminded of that, I guess…" Len admitted.

"And coming from someone like you who was not there, it was wise of you to say it. You seem like an expert in this stuff."

"Don't put me in such a high place there, gamer boy," Miku replied. "You were all teenagers at the time, at the prime of letting hormones and emotions get the best of you. And to be fair, all of you were inexperienced with life and relationships, things like that.

"Now that you are all older and know better, you would have realised about those mistakes and not just blame yourself or others only. It's just part of growing up." She assured him, a shrug of her shoulders for emphasis.

"Wow, you're very observant in this kind of stuff." Len was amazed.

"Eh, we all have to experience it eventually." Miku shrugged her shoulders once again.

"Kai told you about me and Yuki. We hated each other's guts in primary school. Through the years, I don't invest in those emotions anymore. It's a waste of time. And I realised my pettiness wasn't productive after all, especially after learning Yuki's insecurities, that I surely am not in the place to talk about.

"I only get riled up when she does something that really hits my nerves, like when she says shit about Rin or any of my friends." Miku sighed, eyebrows scrunched as she crossed her arms.

Len thought that was what a good friend would have done. And it was commendable of Miku to do it for Rin.

Kaito once elaborated to him on the infamous argument with Rin and Yuki, and what happened to Miku after Rin left.

"Then there was Gakupo and Oliver. I actually didn't get along with those two until tenth grade." Miku shared.

"Really? I never would have thought that happened! I was under the impression you were all together since primary school with how close you all are today."

"Oh, Gakt and Oli weren't with us until seventh grade. But it took three years for Luka and I to talk to them." Miku shared.

"It's funny, isn't it? I thought Gakt was a closeted pervert under that eccentric samurai persona so I stayed away from him. And back then, I found Oli fucking weird. His whole eye bandage, his thing with true crime and creepypasta, and his dank memes were cringe.

"I was only with Luka ever since primary school, despite what everyone said of how 'popular' I was. That's what Gakupo and Oliver also thought of me. A snob, just because everyone else saw me that way."

"So… How did you all end up being friends then?" Len asked, intrigued with the history of her group's friendship.

"We all grew up." Miku had a small smile.

She continued. "Gakupo and Oliver learnt to see me beyond the diva image. I taught myself to not judge people. Gakt was actually a chill air-headed bloke. I learnt to not be spiteful of other people based on their preferences. That's why I was able to notice how approachable and witty Oli was. So Luka and I had new friends just when tenth grade was ending."

"Oh." Len paused. "That's a nice story to hear. I'm glad things worked out for you guys." He timidly smiled.

"We all thought either one of us would move schools after. I was ashamed we only became friends just when we might separate soon. But we all ended up staying for one more year at CFH.

"And then Gakupo dragged Kaito, who then brought Rin, to us. Those two also assumed we were all good friends for years until we told them."

Len nodded, impressed with the turn of events for them. Now he realised it was such a bittersweet thing to think of.

He, Kaito, and Rin left YMH with an ambiguous state of their friendship after their abrupt fall out.

At that same time, Miku, Luka, Oliver, and Gakupo at CFH started their close-knit friendship that endured to this day.

He showed a small smile in front of Miku. But the creases around his eyes and the melancholy he desperately hid revealed every ounce of guilt and shame.

Miku noticed it and encouraged Len. "It's never too late for you and your people to turn around and fix things. If my folks did it, you guys can."

The path won't start until he starts paving it for himself first , Len thought.

He was thankful for Miku's encouragement. "I can see us resolving it. I can only hope for the best while doing my part until that day comes."

"Perfect!" Miku felt proud. "For that, I think it should deserve a prize. And what better prize than embarrassing Rin when you bring up one of these stories!"

Miku began the story of how Rin ate multiple pies that fitted a whole oven in just one sitting. While she detailed her stories, one after another as promised for their deal, Len had another realisation today.

He felt comfortable around Miku Hatsune. He saw why his best friend had a crush on her. He and Rin were very lucky to have her as their trusted friend.

If circumstances allowed Len and Miku to be in the same university, it would be a relief for him to settle into a new environment next year.

Len fulfilled his end of the bargain when he exchanged stories about Megumi Nakajima.

Luckily he was her classmate since kindergarten, so he has a considerable supply of experiences to share with Miku. He filtered some of his stories so it made Megumi favourable.

For all the bad blood she had with him, Megumi was a nice person. She may be a huge klutz, an airhead and sometimes a buffoon, yet she can be serious and an insightful friend. When the job needed to be done, she may not be the right person to lead it, but she was a helpful teammate.

She had a great sense of humour, with how her jokes hit the spot when no one expected. And despite what everyone else thought of her, she was a softie who understood and gave everyone a chance. And she never judged people in a superficial way.

That was one of the reasons why she and Rin got along so well. Len thought Miku was on the winning side, and so he would support them to get together someday.

With more and more stories from Len, Miku was afraid she fell deeper in love with Megumi Nakajima.

Oh dear, looks like I'm head over heels.

There was no longer any denial. Miku should gather the courage to ask Gumi out.

But before that, she needed to also ask permission from Rin. Miku began to formulate another plan for that.

Len and Miku continued their exchange of stories of the two best friends.

If they succeeded with their own romantic pursuits, they might be the lovers of the two best friends.

It did not stop even when they finished their food, cleaned up, left the restaurant and boarded the train. The conversation diverted to some of their shared interest in music and songwriting until their throats finally rested from all the talking.

It was a long trip home for Miku. She needed to transfer between trains towards her area in another train line.

She looked forward to getting home and continuing her celebration for finishing exams and to graduate high school. It was a bummer as the last one within the gang to have finished. But those days were behind her now.

Their comfortable silence broke when Len asked a question.

"Do you and your friends really support me confessing to Rin?"

Miku wanted to raise her eyebrow. Had they not clarified that?

But Len was a person who needed to be reminded of some things. This was among the things that had no harm in being repeated.

"Yeah. We were told you're a hard-headed idiot like Rin. That's one thing you both have in common. So if we tried stopping you, it's useless for us since you might have sneaked it in on that night.

"And it's what Neru and Lily want you to do. They think you guys can have a shot on it, now that you both have grown as people and found yourselves separately."

"They really said that…?" Len was surprised to hear even Rin's friends supported him.

Miku simply nodded with a smile.

"Guess I really have to prepare myself for the big day."

"You better be. I sacrificed my personal time throughout the year for this. When you and Rin end up together, best to expect a commission fee from me." Miku crossed her arms with a sly smile.

Len chuckled. "Sure. If I'm short on cash, I'll give you Gumi's number instead. With her permission, of course."

With that, Miku's eyes sparkled.

There were only a few stops left before Miku had to go. It felt like the perfect time to say this.

"Maybe it's not so bad to be in the same uni as you after all. Tell me where you get into next year, and we'll see." Miku confessed. She felt good about this new friendship with Kaito and Rin's friend.

"I feel the same. And yeah, I'll do that. I have to get your social media account first." Len replied.

"You say that so politely as if you're not aware I did sneak into your account way back." Miku had a dry chuckle.

"Everyone does that. But now you have my permission so Kaito won't scold you again." Len put up the search bar on his social media for Miku. She went to her profile and followed herself in Len's account.

She could not help but notice the mutual friends section that was shown. It included Kaito and Rin's accounts. Miku had a smile on her face as she remembered the possibility she assured him a while ago.

And so the two new friends began their friendship in the most unexpected ways.

"It was nice being with you Kagamine. I hope you get into the course and campus you like!" Miku hoped for the best for her new friend. A whole day with him was all it took her to verify the sincerity and conviction Len had to make things right from his past, for Rin.

Miku was not a person who prayed. But it was this time she prayed for Rin and Len's relationship to work, no matter what.

"This is my stop. Let me know when you've gone home." Miku stood up and walked to the door of the carriage. A few people already stood with her and were expected to hop off.

"I will. Thank you for today Miku. I enjoyed your company. See you soon and have a good evening!" Len waved from his seat. This was a day to be remembered.

He had a new friend and was given the most hope of getting back with his abandoned love. Len looked forward to the hopeful future.

"Call me Miks, like everyone else. Have a good evening too! See ya!" Miku waved as the doors opened and she joined the crowd that departed the train.

She took a step on the platform and went to the other one where her train towards home waited.

She had not expected to enjoy this day, if Miku was honest. But today's events made her hopeful for what was to come after the plan she and her friends worked so hard for.

Miku had no regrets for herself and so she smiled, hopeful for the future where they could send off a happy and joyful Rin.

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[CHAT SCENE] Gumi (sender) and Rin (receiver)

Megumi Nakajima

Rin: Yo Gumi

Rin: I know you weren't able to make it last year and you're pretty busy this time of the year, but I'm taking my shot rn

Rin: We're doing our school festival (our last one) 2 weeks from now and I'm giving my visitor pass to you. Can you come? ? ゚ᆬᄎ?

Gumi: No lol

Rin: Fuck off

Rin: ? ゚リᄀ? ゚リᆳ? ゚リᆳ

Gumi: Don't be stupid Rin of course I'll be there

Gumi: When is it and what time does it start?

Rin: At the 30th, gates open at 8am

Gumi: Ok cool I'll just skip my classes

Rin: GUMI WTF NO

Gumi: GUMI FUCK YES!

Gumi: They're my virtual classes, it's recorded and they don't ask for my attendance anyway. It's no biggie!

Rin: You sure? I don't want you missing out

Gumi: Come on, it's easy to catch up on classes. It's hard to miss the one last chance to hang out with my best mate in her fancy school's big festival

Gumi: Anyways see you on the 30th! ? ゚ᄂᄅ?