Chapter 3
The Piano
An unceasing ringing resounded throughout the empty house. Len had just settled into a very comfortable position on the velvet couch in front of the television when he heard the annoying sound. Irked, he swung his legs off the couch and stomped to the rustic telephone set.
"Hello."
"…LEN! Man, it's been, like, forever! How are you doing?" a familiar, jocund voice could be heard.
Len grinned. "Kaito..? Long time no see! I'm doing fine. Good, in fact! What about you?"
Kaito answered joyfully. "I'm doing great. I finally got Miku to watch a movie with me. Hee~"
Len stifled a laugh. He could just imagine Miku and Kaito going on a date. No, wait, he found it hard to imagine them on a date, given Miku's rather dominant personality. "Really…that's good for you! How're things back there? I haven't seen you all in ages."
"Everyone's fine. Meiko finally got that part-time job she needed to pay for her alcohol fix," replied Kaito, chuckling. "Gumi, Gakupo, Luka…they're all fine. Hey, I haven't spoken to Rin in such a long time. Put her on the line, would you?"
Len's face fell. "She went to the hospital for some check-ups and medicine refills. She went early in the morning so I couldn't follow. She's coming back soon, though." Speaking in a quiet voice, he gripped the cord of the telephone hard. Kaito fell silent, and the atmosphere turned awkward and grim. They were saved, however, by Miku's loud voice from Kaito's side. "Kaito, is that Len you're calling? Gimme the phone, gimme the phone! I wanna speak to Ri—" her voice cut off mid-sentence. Len presumed that Kaito covered her mouth, telling her that Rin wasn't available now. There was a short moment of silence before Miku's voice burst through the speaker.
"Hello there, Len! It's been a while! Listen, we're all planning to visit you for a short while, how about it?" Miku spoke avidly down the phone.
A small smile returned to Len's face. "That'll be lovely! Rin and I would love to see you all again."
He could almost hear the grin in Miku's voice as she continued. "Alright..! How about we come over soon? In…like…1 hour?"
Baffled, Len almost dropped the phone. "W-W-What..!" he sputtered. "In an hour..? YOU ALL ARE COMING IN A FRICKING HOUR? WHAT THE HELL—"
Kaito took over the phone again. "Len, if you're worried that we can't find your house, don't worry. We can just tail Rin back. We're in the vicinity, anyway. We just don't know which street…"
Len wanted to reach into the phone and throttle Kaito. "You…you ice-cream freak..!" He had planned to wait for Rin to return and they would spend a blissful afternoon watching a movie he had rented, and then he'd bring her out to eat.
Kaito quickly gave him an incoherent reply and shouted to someone else before hanging up, something about "Rin", "ribbon" and "catch". Left hanging, Len stared at the telephone as though it was a bunch of infectious bacteria. Grumbling to himself, he pulled out a few more chairs from the storeroom and set them at the dining table. He looked out of the window. It seemed to be snowing a little heavily this year, and just at the start of the winter season too. Putting on a coat and a knitted scarf, he grabbed a shovel and went out to shovel the snow off the path. Just as he was halfway through, a blue car rolled up on the driveway.
~~~~~~w~~~~~~~
Len looked up. He saw Kaito's smug face behind the windscreen and sneered in return. Smiling like an idiot, Kaito pointed to a frowning Rin, who was sitting on Miku's lap and blushing furiously. "We kidnapped her," mouthed Miku as she patted Rin's head. The car moved sluggishly through the snow and came to a rest beside the flight of steps leading to Len and Rin's wooden home. Once the car stopped, Rin bolted out and ran to Len's open arms.
"Len..! That stupid ice-cream maniac made me sit there—on Miku's lap—like a kid! So many people were staring at us as we drove back here. Meiko just looked on and laughed!" Rin whined as she shot a poisonous glare at Miku. Len could feel his face thawing as Rin held onto his arms tightly.
"Aww, Rin, you're so adorable and petite! Of course I wanted you on my lap," teased Miku as she put her hands on her hips. "You're like a little bunny, with that ribbon on your head."
"I'm only two years younger than you, and you're not that much taller than me!" snapped Rin, her blush returning back to her cheeks. Len giggled uncontrollably at Rin's annoyed expression. She glowered at him as though he betrayed her and stomped back into the house. He followed in her wake, motioning for the others to do the same. "It's cold here, let's go in already!"
*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*OuO_*_*_*_*_*_*_*
As soon as they enter the house, Kaito tackled Len from behind and pulled him into a crushing bear hug.
"AAAGGHH" cried Len, trying to break free of the suffocating embrace.
"OH, MY PRECIOUS LITTLE LEN, I HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN AGES! I MISSED YOU SOOO MUCH~" cried the older male as he ruffled Len's hair.
"Go away, you idiot!" yelled Len as he pushed Kaito's face away from him with all his might. Breaking free of the deadly embrace, he paused for a moment to catch his breath, but when he looked up, the curvaceous figure of Meiko towered above him (strictly speaking, Kaito is taller than Meiko, but she's tall for a woman, I guess). A pair of hands with red, painted nails reached out and grabbed hold of his cheeks.
"LEEEEEEEENNNN~ Have you been treating Rin right?" Meiko cooed, her fingers pinching Len's cheeks and pulling at them as though they were mochi. Len whined in pain and batted her hands away. He sneaked a look at Rin and saw that she was being assaulted by Miku as well.
"RIN~~~"
"GO AWAY MIKUUUU"
"MY ADORABLE LITTLE ORANGE~ I MISSED YOU SO MUCH" shrieked Miku, hugging Rin, acting as though she was crying. Rin squirmed, her face a little blue from the lack of oxygen.
Meiko and Kaito grinned and joined in the fun, leaving Len strewn on the wooden floor. Glancing up, he saw that Rin was laughing, despite being a little blue. Smiling to himself, he realized that he could hardly remember the last time the house was filled with such life. Lost in his own train of thought, Len spaced out. Rin looked over to him, her cheeks being abused by the brunette. She was about to call out to him when Kaito announced that it was time for a tea-break. That only meant one thing—ice cream.
"See, Len, I just love you too much. I bought you pints of banana and chocolate ice cream!" Kaito giggled as he brought tub after tub of ice cream out of the numerous bags they had brought with them. "Now, Rin, we haven't forgotten about you. This is from me, to you; the latest orange-flavoured frozen treat that is taking the world by storm!" he exclaimed grandly, flinging his arms out in the air as though he was the creator of the dessert. Len and Rin gaped at him in exasperation; funny that they were younger than the blue-haired youth, but their energy was already long spent. Miku was just sitting beside them, chomping on a raw leek as she laughed, the pungent scent of the vegetable filling up the enclosed area. Meiko was cackling as she opened beer after beer, drunken talk coming out of her mouth.
She sauntered over to Len and ruffled his hair. "Say, Rin—where's that big, white bow of yours? I…I wanna try it on for size." Everyone burst in hysterics, excluding Len, whose face glowed like a red Christmas tree bauble. He frowned and took the beer away from her, throwing it in the trashcan. "No…no need to get all angry…R-Rin…you might grow some wrinkles on that pretty face of yours." hiccupped Meiko, her eyes barely focusing.
Christmas music blasted from the television abruptly—Kaito had turned it on without warning. He and Meiko began waltzing to Christmas jingles, with Miku laughing hysterically and egging them on. Rin clapped and sang along. Sighing in resignation, Len took his place beside Rin. She blushed happily and held onto his arm, her knees drawn up onto the couch. The fair-haired duo chortled as Miku joined in, waving the half-eaten leek around like a conductor's baton.
"I'm glad they came today," giggled Rin, her eyes shining with mirth. Len nodded. "They're all so crazy and noisy." He sighed, pushing his bangs out of his eyes.
"The house always seemed kinda quiet with just the two of us." Rin replied. Len glanced at Rin's face, a little lost for words. She was gazing at the trio with a face of contentment, her eyes half-closed.
Len's heartbeat quickened. He knew that Rin wasn't talking about the lonely company; they were always happy with each other for that. It was true, too—the house was always rather quiet, especially now, since the birds around here are always the migratory species that disappear whenever the cold starts to set in. The snow mutes out any sounds that may come from the town nearby. Whenever he leaves Rin's side to retrieve something from his room, the silence actually hurts his ears.
Stroking Rin's head tenderly, his mind drifted here and there. He was about to ask her something when he noticed that she was sleeping. Her angelic face was framed by her flaxen hair, and for once, she looked as though she was perfectly fine.
*~*~Len's Viewpoint~*~*
"Say, Kaito…" I started off, but my mind just drifted off to somewhere else immediately. Recently, I caught this habit of spacing out randomly. It was actually rather inconvenient, seeing as I wouldn't make much sense to my conversation partner.
"Hmm..? What is it?" Kaito looked up from his tub of vanilla ice cream, the spoon in his mouth. Miku was resting on Meiko's shoulder; much to his chagrin, watching some show about touring the northern part of Japan during winter, namely during Christmas.
"I was wondering if we should all go out for nabe. Seems like a good way to warm ourselves up," I continued, falling into the seat beside him.
He smiled brightly at the idea. "That would be awesome. Do you know any place that serves delicious nabe nearby?"
"Yeah, actually, I do. The town you passed on your way here—there's a nondescript shop that serves the best nabe I've ever tasted." I muttered lazily, stretching in an attempt to shake off the sleepiness.
Kaito nodded slowly, chewing on the ice-cream as though he were pondering something. He glanced at Rin and then at me. "Say, Len; Rin's getting a lot better lately, hasn't she?"
"Only for a day, after she returns from the hospital. She'll be energetic for the whole day, and then it'll be back to the bed for her." I replied shortly. "She IS getting kinda better, though." I added quickly, rebuking myself for my pessimism. It would be wonderful if she really got better, though.
Kaito nodded again, looking back at me.
I fiddled with my fingers, reorganising my thoughts. "I was thinking that I should buy a piano, seeing as the house is always too quiet." I sighed, glancing at Rin, who shifted into a more comfortable position on the couch. Looking back at Kaito, I noticed that he had just finished the whole pint of frozen vanilla ice-cream in a matter of minutes. Flabbergasted, I gaped at him like a stunned goldfish. "Are you even human?" I cried, and received a cheeky smile in return.
"ALRIGHT EVERYONE," Kaito jumped up, his blue scarf being tugged along as though it were a flag. "IN FIVE MINUTES, WE'LL ALL BE HEADING BACK INTO MY BLUE BABY." Everyone stared at Kaito as if he was from another planet—presumably from the planet of blue-haired idiots.
"First things first," asked Meiko, surprisingly sober. "What's this…blue…baby you're talking about? Secondly, where are we going?"
"We are going to have NABE~" screamed Kaito as he played an air guitar, head-banging to cheerful Christmas music booming from the television's speakers. Meiko stared at him for a good 10 seconds before returning her gaze back to the television.
"Psychopath…" she muttered.
*~*~*w*~*~*
The whole company were sitting on comfortable cushions set on a tatami floor. Rin and Len were, of course, sitting beside each other. Meiko was jeering at everyone in general out of impatience as she waited for the sake. Kaito was pouting tearfully at Len; who was choosing to ignore him, as Miku was refusing to sit beside him.
"Y…You and I, we are one, so why can't we behave like a couple and sit beside each other just like the precious blonde babes?" He whined, twisting his dark blue scarf wistfully.
Miku sit on her cushion, prim and proper. "I've only agreed to watch one movie with you, so don't get your hopes too high."
Kaito flailed around their table like a dying fish out of water as the others read the menu. Soon, the food arrived, and even the blue-haired male cooled down to enjoy the delectable meal set out before them. An hour or two passed, and soon, the party of five were strolling along the streets of the bustling town. Rin walked near to Len, who glanced shyly at her. She smiled sweetly, and Len blushed lightly, smiling back. Wrapping his arm around her waist, they gazed at the snowflakes drifting from the Cimmerian sky as they strolled, leaving footprints in the thin layer of snow. As they passed by a quaint shop, Len's eyes widened as he caught sight of the piano displayed at the window.
Rin looked back at him, noticing that he'd stopped. Speaking through the scarf wrapped around her mouth, "Len..? What's wrong?"
Glancing back at her for an instant, he replied through a matching muffler. "…nothing at all, Rin. I'm just looking at something." Kaito caught sight of the scene before him and trotted over to him, leaving his teal haired princess's side.
"That's a really lovely piano." Kaito commented casually, folding his arms across his thick blue jacket when he followed Len's gaze to a shop's window. Nodding silently, Len hesitated. Should he buy it?
"Isn't there an empty spot for you to place that piano somewhere?" encouraged Kaito, a smirk crawling onto his face.
"Yeah, there is." Len's gaze shifted to the shop's entrance, and even though Kaito couldn't see it, he could tell that Len was grinning widely. Letting go of Rin's hand, he ran into the shop, a copper bell signalling to the shop owner that a customer has just entered. Slightly confused, Rin gazed at the spot where Len had just been standing at.
"Aww, surely you can do without your beloved for an instant?" teased Kaito, an annoying, smug smile plastered across his face, his cheeks pink as a result of the cold, biting winds. Miku frowned at him and Meiko giggled; their cheeks pink too, but there's no telling whether the latter was cold or just drunk.
Rin glared at Kaito and pulled his blue scarf down viciously, a devious smile peeking through her scarf. He felled into the snow; head first. The trio of girls laughed at the pathetic sight, dumping more snow on the defeated male.
- A -`
Len took off his gloves as the warmth of the shop seeped into his clothes. His ears began to thaw and he rubbed them. "Welcome." An elderly man greeted him from across the counter at the far end of the shop. He nodded back politely and strolled to the piano he had seen from outside the shop. It was an 1881 Vose & Sons Square Grand Piano. He ran his finger along the intricate carvings on the piano, before setting his finger on a piano key. He pressed down on it and the pristine sound of a High C resounded throughout the shop. Smiling to himself, he looked over to the shopkeeper who was observing him with interest.
He was about to ask the shopkeeper if this was for sale when a young adult couple burst into the shop, holding each other's hands, their faces glowing with happiness. They immediately made their way over to the piano, and Len backed off, surprise written all over his face.
"This was the piano I was telling you about," the man began, beaming pleasantly. The woman's eyes shone, her voice quivering. "You bought this..? It's so beautiful..!" Len's heart sank; he had already thought of where to place this beautiful piano, despite its bulkiness and size. His eyes widened as he watched the man kneeled on the ground as though he were proposing. The man bit his lip, his cheeks red as he fumbled with his pocket. Beaming, he took out a small, red, velvet box. Len did a double take. He WAS proposing to the woman!
"Initially, I had thought of proposing to you in the streets just now…but…I thought it'd be more…romantic…here…" the man mumbled, his voice trailing off. "Will you marry me, my love?" His lover stared, wide-eyed, her gloved hands on her face and her cheeks a pretty pink. The whole shop was silent; as though waiting for the final answer. Len swallowed hard, feeling his face heat up as well. He had never seen someone propose marriage before.
A deathly silence ensued, and even the old shopkeeper's wife poked her hoary head out from the counter. Even the man who was proposing began to get a little on edge. Finally, tears came to the woman's eyes. "Y-Yes, yes, I will!" Laughing in elation, the man jumped up and hugged the woman, and the couple were locked in an embrace, kissing. The aged shopkeepers shouted a 'congratulations', their wrinkly faces stretched by grins as wide as the banana Len had for breakfast this morning. The newly engaged couple bowed in gratitude. Wringing his hands, Len congratulated them in a shaky voice, his face the colour of a beetroot.
"C-Congratulations..!" Len said as he stuck his hand out, immediately wishing he hadn't. Beaming, the newly engaged couple shook it warmly. "Thank you, young man." And as abruptly as how they had appeared, the happy couple left the shop after thanking the shopkeepers.
Len was smiling to himself, a thought forming in his mind when he remembered something. "T-The piano…oh, no, I had wanted to get that..!" He walked over to the old man, who greeted him with a smile.
"Too bad about the piano, eh…I was about to tell you about it when they came into the shop," he started, referring to the couple.
Len nodded a little sadly. He glanced back to the shopkeeper, clasping his hands in front of his chest. "I…I wanted to ask if you had another piano like that one."
The shopkeeper scratched his head, thinking. "…no, no, we don't. We only managed to get our hands on that through a friend. Heck, I was so reluctant to part with it, despite the price that man offered, but when he mentioned that it was an engagement gift…"
Len's face fell. He had wanted to buy it as a gift for Rin too. The elderly man caught sight of his expression.
"Let me guess; you wanted it as a gift too? For a girl..?" The elderly man said the last sentence a little slyly.
Len nodded. "I wanted it because our house always seemed a little too quiet. My…eh…there's this girl…" Len didn't know what to refer to Rin as. She wasn't his girlfriend, she was more than that. But it wasn't as if she was his wife, thought Len. As soon as he realized that thought, his face heated up and turned frighteningly red—almost crimson. The shopkeeper chuckled at the sight before him.
"Seems as though this girl is really important to you," the shopkeeper commented as he took off his glasses and began wiping them. "Say, do you happen to live in that wooden house not far from here?"
"Yes, I live there with…my…this girl called Rin." Len replied, smiling politely at the elder.
"Oh…oh…so you and this girl, Rin are the couple that live there…" said the shopkeeper, more to himself than Len. Suddenly, the shopkeeper's eyes sparkled. "Say, young man, if you're thinking of getting a piano for that young lady…" he motioned for Len to come behind the counter.
Len bowed to the shopkeeper's wife as he followed the old shopkeeper.
"You can call me Sano, young man. I think I have seen you and the girl Rin around these streets before." The shopkeeper spoke over his shoulder as he led Len to a workshop behind the counter.
"Yeah, I think you may have, Sano-san. I take Rin along with me when we need to do some shopping, seeing as I need to take care of her." Len answered, thinking of Rin as she laughed, pointing to various shops with a slender finger. Smiling to himself, he looked around in wonder at the various piano parts, a workbench that looked as though it has been put to good use, and a functioning clock made of old, recycled piano parts. When Sano stopped in front of him, Len followed suit.
"Sano-san..?" Len asked, and the shopkeeper gestured to a large object covered with a thick blue cloth.
Hesitantly, Len removed the cloth gently, placing it on the ground. His eyebrows raised in surprise when he laid eyes on the piano before him. It was another piano made by Steinway & Sons. This one, however, was a studio upright model 1098. Its simplistic beauty and satin finish really appealed to him.
"I had planned on bringing it home when I got it from the distributor at Tokyo…but…" Sano said as he toyed with his walrus moustache. Len looked over at him, almost afraid to ask.
"H-How much is this piano, Sano-san?"
"…" Sano eyed Len with a critical eye, as though he were considering something. He had heard about the young, flaxen haired couple that lived in that wooden house. The young girl was supposedly struck with some incurable disease. He wasn't sure if it was pity he was feeling for the youth standing in front of him, or admiration.
"Take it. It's a gift from me to your beloved Rin." Sano sighed as he crossed his hands across his chest, gazing at a bewildered Len.
"I…no…Sir…I can't…possibly..!" started Len with some difficulty, but Sano cut him short.
"I only want one thing from you; a promise." Sano took a firm hold of Len's shoulders and shook him. Len gulped; Sano's eyes were deadly serious. "You must take good care of Rin, young man. Don't back out of this responsibility."
Len's eyes narrowed. "I have never once thought of doing so."
Satisfied, Sano snorted. "I'll send someone to bring it over to your house tomorrow."
As they exited the workshop, Sano's wife apologised for her husband's brusqueness. Apparently she heard what he had said to Len. Len smiled toothily and thanked the elderly couple profusely. Sano winked at Len before returning to his workshop, slamming the door behind him.
OWO
Len burst out of the shop, his face flushed with happiness. He saw his friends leaning against the opposite shop's window. Running to them, he saw that Miku was holding Rin.
"What's wrong?" Len asked, noticing that Rin was shuddering, despite the layers of clothing she had put on. Rin, hearing Len's voice, opened her eyes and flashed him a smile. Miku frowned, ruffling Rin's blonde locks with her gloved hands.
"We need to get her someplace where there are no cold biting winds. She's nearly at her limit for tolerating the wintriness." said Miku, raising her voice over the fervently blowing wind.
"I'm fine, Len. It's just a little chilly here..! If we could just have a cup of tea of something…I'll be right as rain." Rin hastily assured Len, who took her hand. He hugged her tight, looking around for a café. Five shops down, there was one which they patronised every time they were in town.
When they entered the shop, the pungent fragrance of coffee beans hit their nostrils. Miku and Meiko immediately rushed Rin off to the ladies to warm her up using the hand dryer, leaving the boys to look for seats. Len led Kaito to a table large enough for five and sat him down.
"I bought the piano." Len blurted out.
Kaito grinned. "Good. Now you wouldn't complain about the house being quiet. You might even hear it playing in the dead of the night…" he moaned and raised his hands, imitating a ghost. Len smacked him on the head for having such a morbid thought; he was going to put it in Rin's room, and he certainly did not want anything like that to happen.
"Say, Kaito, did you see the couple who entered the shop a while after me?"
"Yeah, I did. They entered and left with big smiles on their faces. They left empty-handed, though."
"You idiot..! Who would buy a piano and bring it out of the shop with their bare hands?" Len cried, smacking Kaito on the head again. "…the man proposed to the lady in the shop. I saw the whole thing, even congratulated them."
Kaito, rubbing his head with an annoyed expression, stopped and stared at Len. "W-Whoa, so…you saw the man going down on one knee and all that?"
Len nodded, staring off into the distance.
"S-so…that's so cool! Oh, man, did the woman agree to his proposal?"
Len nodded again.
Kaito punched the air, excitement written all over his face. "THAT'S SO AWESOME. I'd wanted to see that for myself…"
Len laughed. "Yeah, it was quite awesome. Even though it happened so quickly, and the whole thing's really, really simple and all, it's just a little…magical, I guess?"
Kaito nudged Len, smiling coyly. "Hey, how about you propose to Rin, eh? Hee~"
Len's face turned a frightening shade of red, thus resembling a weird tomato with a yellow stalk. He didn't retort back, however; he stayed silent, his eyes a little distant, and it was as though he really consider proposing to Rin.
Kaito slapped his cheeks, forming an "O" with his mouth. "Len, you really do want to propose to Rin…don't you?" he shrieked, and Len hastily clamped his mouth with his hand. He nodded and smiled sheepishly at a few people staring, who were shocked at the pitch of Kaito's voice.
"You imbecile—be quiet! I don't want the girls to hear this!" snapped Len, frowning. Kaito wrenched Len's hand from his hand, his speech running out of his mouth as though they were bullets from a machinegun.
"I-I-I can't believe it, Len! Oh, my god, I'm in shock, I'm surprised, very surprised, but in the pleasant way, of course. What would Rin say? What would she say? Oh, holy ice cream, I never thought that my Len would grow up to be a man. Have you purchased a ring? Was the piano some sort of engagement gift? Are you going to have a ceremony? Are you…"
"Shut up, Kaito! You're yelling! Thank god the toilet is rather far from here." Len interrupted Kaito, who gaped at him nevertheless. Suddenly, as if he remembered something, Kaito raised a finger.
"Len, you aren't even old enough to have sex."
Now it was Len's turn to screech, as he attacked Kaito's head in a fashion similar to Rin's. His cheeks felt as though they were on fire. Kaito yelped pathetically, using his coat to block the torrent of blows.
"Len, what are you doing?"
Len stopped; his fists clutching tufts of Kaito's blue hair. His gaze shifted to Rin, who was crossing her arms, looking at him questioningly. Kaito reached out for Miku. "Mi-Miku-chan..! Our blonde angel here has grown into a man!" Miku guffawed, having absolutely no idea about what's going on. Rin cocked her head, confused.
"A-A man..? Kaito, what are you talking about?" Rin asked, nonplussed. Kaito opened his mouth, about to spill the whole load of secrets when Len stuffed it with his scarf.
"N-Nothing at all, Rin, he wasn't saying anything. We were just talking about some…some…boy stuff. Manly stuff…that's all." Len grinned nervously; he was terrible at telling lies.
Miku stared at Len sceptically for a few seconds. "Oh…kay…manly stuff huh." She gave Rin an exasperated look, as if saying, can you believe this guy? Rin eyed Len, who was now wringing his hands.
"What would you guys like to drink?" Rin's sudden question caught everyone off guard. Meiko slapped her forehead and sighed as though she had given up.
"I'll go with you to buy the drinks. Hey, Miku, come along, we need another pair of hands." Meiko said, motioning for the teal-haired girl to follow. She whined, muttering something about wanting to stay and eavesdrop on the boy's conversation, but was dragged off.
Kaito stared at the retreating backs of the girls before turning to Len. "Hey, sit down, they're gone now." Len sat down, shooting him a vicious gaze. "Okay, on to serious business now. You really are serious about proposing to Rinny-kins?"
"W-WHAT—what the hell is with that name?" Len spluttered. "Even I don't call her that!" Kaito giggled, but forged on nonetheless with his questions.
"Have you thought of how you're going to do it?"
"N-Not really…it's just that…she's more than a girlfriend to me," Len mumbled, his face tinged red with embarrassment. "And…you know…I don't have all the time in the world to do that. I really love her, Kaito." Ignoring a clapping Kaito, Len continued. "Of course we can't get married, but it's the same thing to me. Just as long as both of us know that we engaged or something…that's…that's enough for me."
"Are you going to buy a ring?" Kaito threw a glance over his shoulder to check if the girls are within earshot. Len nodded, smiling cheerfully. Kaito stared at him, his childish demeanour gone.
"W-What..?"
"I'll get one for you. I'll send it over to you from the city using the postal service. There's a shop near our apartment that sells really pretty jewellery. I bought Miku a really pretty necklace there." Kaito ruffled Len's hair as he said that. Len gazed at Kaito, speechless. He had thought that Kaito would be against it, seeing as…well, he just thought that Kaito would be against it.
"T-Thanks," Len managed to get the word out, and Kaito smiled at him rather paternally. Len's heart thudded against his chest when he thought of Rin and him being engaged. Passion blazed in his eyes, though, and he resolved to propose to her as soon as he was ready. He could not care less if she rejected him or no; he loved her and that was that. If he did not do it soon, he'd live in regret forever.
"Here you go~" Rin sang as the trio of girls returned to the table, each bearing a tray of drinks. Kaito winked at Len before returning to his usual behaviour. The friends told jokes and created a lot of noise in general, causing the some patrons of the café to look on and shake their heads in disapproval.
* A *
"I guess the next time we see you, it'll be a surprise visit again?" Miku giggled, as Len frowned jokingly.
Rin hugged both Miku and Meiko before tackling Kaito, who laughed and patted her head. The trio waved goodbye to both Rin and Len as they drove away, the falling snow rushing to cover up the tracks made by Kaito's blue car.
"Did you have fun today?" Len asked Rin, smiling as he grasped her hand tightly and led her up the stairs. Rin nodded vigorously, beaming.
"Say, what did you guys talk about, really?" Rin asked, as they entered the house.
"Nothing much, really…we were talking about him and Miku. Did you know that he and Miku finally went on a date?" Len uttered, his heart throwing itself against his ribcage.
"Haha, yeah, I knew about that quite some time ago. Miku and I send a few emails to each other sometimes, you know."
Len blew out the breath he had been holding in shakily; his white lie had not been exposed. Taking off their coats, he told her to take a bath before doing the same.
He had just finished his bath when he walked past Rin's bathroom. Rin could be heard singing Ievan Polka in the shower from behind the door, and he chuckled. She really seemed to be in a good mood today, and also seemed to be feeling exceptionally well. He was just about to enter his bedroom when he heard a loud noise from the same bathroom. It was as though something had fallen down in the bathtub. Fearing the worst, Len kicked down the door. What he saw send a cold stab of fear through his heart.
Rin was lying in a messy heap at the bottom of the bathtub. The shower curtain had been ripped down from the ceiling and was lying atop of her, her right fist clenching a handful of it. Water was still pouring out of the showerhead. Len grabbed the towel from the rack and rushed to her side, wrapping her naked body in it. Neglecting to stop the water from pouring out, he stepped into the tub, taking care not to fall or he would be of no help at all. Holding her in his arms, he saw that her eyes were closed, her cheeks pale. Wet, blonde hair clung to her neck and face and her colourless lips were slightly open.
"R-Rin…Rin..! RIN!" Len yelled, pushing his wet bangs out of his eyes.
His clothes were getting soaked, but he could not care less. At a loss at what to do, he looked around for a phone. On the wall beside the entrance, there was a yellow phone to be used in emergencies. It was a direct line to the nearest hospital's emergency reception. He gently placed Rin down and switched the water off. Rushing to the phone, he waited for the call to be picked up before hollering for help. A cool, female voice responded professionally that an ambulance would be there in approximately 6 minutes.
Without even bothering to thank the receptionist; Len hung up and rushed to Rin's side once more. He carried her out of the tub, dried her swiftly and dressed her clumsily, closing his eyes to her nudeness. He then carried her down and wrapped her in her winter coat and knitted scarf which were drying at the fireplace.
"Rin…you're going to be okay…" Len mumbled, more out of assuring himself. He hoisted her in his arms once more and carried her out of the house to the short flight of steps to wait for the ambulance. A minute passed; which seemed like eternity to him. Suddenly, a loud, wailing sound of an ambulance could be heard, and he saw the large vehicle drive up to them. As soon as it stopped, three adults burst of the back. Two of them prepared the stretcher and the third one ran up to Len.
"R-Rin, she…she just…I…" Len stuttered as he looked from Rin in his arms to the man in front of him, his nerves shot. The man took Rin from Len's arms wordlessly and jogged to the readied stretcher, placing the limp girl on it gently. Len looked on dazedly, his mind unable to process anything. He made to follow the ambulance, however, but the man stopped him with a hand on his chest.
"Just leave her with us, young man. We'll contact you when anything comes up. Just stay at home and take a rest." The man spoke firmly. Len opened his mouth to say something, anything, to object. They were taking Rin away from him, and he always stayed by her side. He could not think of anything, though, so he just stared helplessly, his mouth hanging open. The man gave him a look of sympathy before running to join his colleagues in the back of the ambulance. Len caught a last glimpse of Rin, who had an oxygen mask fixed on her face and a drip being attached to her arm.
"Rin..!" Len called out urgently, his hand reaching out before the ambulance's doors closed with a loud bang and drove off onto the snow-covered road.
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