Disclaimer: I do not own Vocaloid.

Chapter 9

"And that's a wrap!" Gakupo announced from behind his signature megaphone.

The tense actors relaxed from their positions. Ia had her arm locked around Kaito's; they were rehearsing a quarrel scene with Phoebe and Isabella and, to say the least, it was intense. Miku had actual tears hanging off her chin, while Ia almost screamed herself hoarse (which Gakupo greatly discouraged, but it added to the realism). Kaito was directed to stay silent and hide his face from the audience but make them know that he's in despair.

The prism-haired girl tried to show a small smile on her lips to acknowledge Kaito's wonderfully subtle performance, but she was much too upset from what happened earlier. She approached her best friend, and gave her a supportive pat on the back. Miku smiled in return, wiping off the excess tears fighting to slip off her eyelids.

"You were all amazing," Luka complimented, jotting who-knows-what down her clipboard, "but," she tapped on the piece of rectangular cardboard, nibbling on the cap of her pen, "I'll start with you, Miss Hatsune."

Uh-oh, formalities. It meant Luka was about to say something possibly hurtful and unleash her inner dragon. Miku inhaled deeply, clasping her hands together. Please let it be mostly positive. In her own humble opinion, Miku thought she did a decent job. She was disciplined enough not to let her emotions get the better of her. Unlike someone else she knew.

"I found your performance breathtaking, as expected." Luka glimpsed at Miku, a small smile gracing her lips but her eyes were still icy, "but your words were drowned by your tears. You were barely understandable, we expect you to find a solution for this. Also, we want you to know your lines by heart. Be Phoebe, feel her. Don't just let her bounce off you, absorb her."

"Thank you, Director Megurine," Miku gave a slight bow.

It wasn't as bad as Miku thought. Phew. She felt like she was in an episode of those singing shows, but thankfully Luka was a frank lady with her opinions, but still found a way to slightly sugarcoat and be motherly.

"Miss Hoshino," Luka called out.

Ia immediately stiffened, her grip on Miku's arm tighter than before. The prism-haired girl pushed a stray stand of hair behind her ear and stepped forward, anticipating the pink-haired directress's input. Luka eyed Ia, then shifted her attention back to the clipboard, then back to the nervous Ia.

She opened her mouth to speak, "I believe this is your first time rehearsing with us. I have to say on our behalf, we were not disappointed." The two directors exchanged proud looks. "Although, your acting needed a little bit more work. Screaming doesn't exactly equal intense emotions. Try not to tire your voice out, okay? Your acting just needs a little more polishing. Like what I told Miku, be your character. That is all."

Ia nodded in response, her brows furrowing and her lips in a tight line. She had processed every piece of advice the directress had given her, giving her the motivation to improve in the next rehearsal. She let out a phrase of gratitude before reuniting with Miku, whom she shared a playful high-five with.

"Last but not least, Mr. Shion," Gakupo read over Luka's shoulder, startling the directress. She smacked the purple-haired man with the clipboard.

Kaito gulped, setting his foot forward. He raked his hand through his sweaty hair; he needed to take a shower later. They said showers boost confidence, and he needed confidence to be able to call Miku for a date.

"You were wonderful, as usual," Luka told him, wiping off the invisible dust from her clipboard, "but you didn't give it your all. We expected a little bit more, Mr. Shion. Indeed, your subtlety and charm was still there, but that was all that remained. You didn't put yourself in Ethan's shoes completely yet and, thought you did well, we expect you to do better."

The blue-haired actor forced a smile, and stepped backward. What Luka said was absolutely true; he didn't put his heart into this rehearsal. He did well before all the drama started, and it just distracted him. Instead of thinking of what Ethan would do in the scene, he was thinking of Miku and if she would accept his invitation later. The chances are sixty-forty, in favor of the negative. Kaito mentally sighed; he shouldn't be so pessimistic.

Luka held her clipboard against her chest, her arms crossed over them. Her expression softened, and her eyes were no longer the cold ones from a few minutes ago.

"Overall, you all did a wonderful job. But if I were to give you a grade, I'd give you an 85 percent out of 100. Good, but you can all you better. Please memorize your lines as well." She beamed proudly, her face showing no sign of disappointment or dishonesty.

"I believe that is all," Gakupo said, giving a warm grin, "please take care on the way home. See you all next rehearsal."

The day was finally over. Ia stretched her arms upwards, exhaling deeply. She walked over to the directors to express gratitude. They patted her on the back for the good work and did the same thing with Miku. The tealette smiled gratefully before she followed Ia to the door.

The two girls slung their bags over their shoulders after checking if they forgot anything. They bade goodbye to all of the people in the room, Kaito included, and walked out of the theatre.

As they were on the hallway, Ia whispered to Miku, "You've been doing well. No breakdowns so far."

"That's because I'm an actress," the tealette replied. She zipped her hoodie up, and proceeded to walk faster than her best friend.

They couldn't bring themselves to talk to each other on the train ride home. Miku kept silent the whole way, and Ia wasn't in the mood for her 'witty' comebacks. For the love of God, please let Kaito fix this already. The prism-haired girl thought, fingernail dragging on the rubbery seat of the passenger train.

xoxoxo

As Kaito walked to his house, he was greeted by the rain. The weather application on his cellphone didn't forecast any rainfall. He used his leather bag to shield himself from the droplets. He could not get sick! He had to bring Miku to a date! Where would he bring her though?

Luckily, it was just a drizzle and he was wearing a hoodie, so he wasn't affected by the sudden downpour. He brushed the soles of his shoes against the doormat to get rid of some of the muck that he might have stepped on. He dug into his pocket and fished out his house keys. He opened the door and the first thing he saw was a little girl with a huge grin.

"Daddy, you're home!"

The sound of his daughter's voice almost made him forget of the problems he had during rehearsal today. She greeted him by the doorway, where she hugged his torso. Kaito gave her a chaste kiss on the forehead and told her to go play with her toys.

"Where's your uncle Akaito?" Kaito asked her. That bastard left Yuki all alone again; she must have been so lonely.

Yuki scratched the side of her face, "He went out with a girl, I think."

The blue-haired actor sighed, massaging his temple. It must have been a great woman for him to leave Yuki all alone without anyone to look after her. Oh, Akaito was going to get it.

Kaito eyed Yuki, who was clutching at his hand. She was already in line with his knees; she was growing taller than most kids her age. The child's pigtails were disheveled, one side higher than the other. There was a smudge of coloring material on her cheek, covering the beauty mark she had in that spot. Still, she kept that optimistic aura along with her.

"Did you have dinner already?" Kaito crouched down to her level, meeting her black eyes.

Yuki shook her head. That Akaito… Kaito growled mentally. He was going to have a long talk with his beloved cousin when he would come back home.

She looked exactly like her mother and not a bit like him. The same black hair and the same caramel eyes, he wished she had inherited even his goofy nature but no, she was a born lady. Of course, he had to teach her the proper table manners and to always eat her vegetables. It was Akaito who fed her apples, thus leading to her obsession with the fruit.

It was then when he realized how essential a mother was to a child's development. His mother wouldn't even call him anymore; he was no longer part of their family. He had to raise Yuki by himself, while Akaito's family helped him take care of the baby, like changing her diapers and feeding her. It all had to be done in secret though, so he and his cousin, Akaito, had to move together to a new apartment.

In some ways, Kaito missed her… Yuki's mother. He was certain his teenage self found "the one" but he had to screw up and get her pregnant. She was ripped away from him, and Yuki was supposed to be taken from him as well. She was transferred to a foreign land for her the safety of her family's reputation, but decided to leave Yuki with him. It was him who wanted to keep the baby, anyway.

She was now only a memory to him, an ironed crease in the cloth. She disappeared from Yuki's life like a coward. Kaito would sometimes think what would happen if she had stayed, if they had raised the child together. Would Yuki still be the same person? As soon as he thought about it, though, he would shake it off.

"Let's go cook some apple pie, okay?" Kaito suggested, a kind smile stretching his lips.

"Yay apple pie!" Yuki exclaimed, pulling her father's sleeve behind her to the kitchen.

The dishes from earlier this morning remained unwashed and created a fort of sorts in the sink. Maybe he could teach Yuki how to wash dishes soon, plastic ones first of course. Thankfully, she was a fast learner. She learned how to write first name when she turned three, and her full name three days after that. That fact alone made Kaito a proud father.

Kaito slipped off his blue apron from the rack. He hung it over his neck, and tied the strings to his waist in a ribbon. Yuki also took her adorable white apron with her favorite red fruit sewn in the middle and hung it over her neck.

"Would you please pass me the pie mix from the drawer?" Kaito requested, gesturing to the drawer. As if he would make an apple pie from scratch, come on. He knew how to cook, but he wasn't talented enough to make anything without ready-made mixes. Perhaps one day he'll bake one on his own…

An imaginary lightbulb lit above the blue-haired actor's head. HOLY CRAP! I JUST GOT AN IDEA!

That's it! Instead of those regular, boring restaurant dates, he'll invite Miku over and they'll bake cupcakes together. Yes! Genius! Kaito started mentally congratulating himself. It was a new experience; he needed to buy ingredients and everything else. He needed to plan;he needed to clean the house as well, starting with the mountain of dirty dishes on the sink.

Yuki doesn't approve of (future) girlfriends in the house though, so he might need to ask for help from his beloved cousin Akaito. Since it was the weekend, there wasn't any school. He needed him to stall for at least until night, like taking Yuki out to the park or to an apple orchard. Somewhere she won't look for him or think about him. It was a little bit of a farfetched idea, but he needed to set things right.

"Here's the pie mix, daddy," the little girl held out the box with outstretched arms, standing on her toes.

"Thank you, Milady." Kaito received the pie mix with a grin before giving her head a pat and swiping his index finger on the tip of her nose, making her giggle. "Do you think you can read this for me?"

"I-I'll try…" Yuki cleared her throat before she began to read the instructions, "Add… water… to the… m-mix…"

Kaito listened eagerly to the four-year-old, who was struggling with her words. She had difficulty in saying the more "big kid" words; he had to teach her the correct way to say it. She couldn't pronounce the words "sophisticated," and "elegant," the two words her father always described her as. She would always say, "sofis-cated" or "el-gunt" but Kaito thought it was adorable, so he decided to leave it to her teachers to correct her on her little mispronunciation.

In all honesty, he had already memorized the procedure to make the pastry, but he loved hearing his daughter improve every time he asked her to read for him. She was much brighter than he was when he was her age. He couldn't even read a nursery rhyme book at age four, how much more the instructions to a pie mix?

He had just finished cracking the eggs and adding them to the mix when a ding-dong! interrupted their cooking moment.

"Coming!" Yuki called, untying her apron and setting it on the counter.

When he opened the front door, he saw his long-awaited red-haired cousin carrying a crumpled bouquet of flowers. Akaito couldn't even look them in the eye when he stepped inside the house; he dragged his feet like a zombie past them and fell face first on the couch. His exaggerated sobs were muffled from the pillow he squashed his clean face into.

He slammed his fists unto the pillow. "She stood me up! She said that she would meet me at the park but she just left me waiting under the rain!"

Kaito smirked, his shadow looming over his cousin's miserable body. "Serves you right for leaving Yuki all alone." His daughter hummed in agreement.

Akaito moved from his position, sitting up. He took the child's small hands and held it between his folded ones. "I'm sorry, Yuki…"

"It's okay! I watched TV so it wasn't too scary," Yuki reassured her uncle, her beaming face glistening with childlike innocence. The red-haired cousin expressed his happiness by securing his arms around Yuki's little torso.

Still doesn't excuse you from being a neglectful guardian, Kaito thought before prying to remove Yuki from his cousin's tight grip.

He was glad he raised his daughter to be a sweet child; always saying "thank you" three seconds after receiving something, and always so forgiving… at least, to the family she knows anyway. She would just stay quiet when Kaito would bring a woman to the house, and Yuki was usually talkative, so it made most home dates quite uncomfortable.

But not the next one! That reminds him… he needed help.

"Hey, Akaito," Kaito whispered to his cousin's ear, "I need to talk to you. Alone."

xoxoxo

"That'll be 60 Notes." The cashier told the prism-haired girl before her.

Ia thrust her hand into her handbag and took out her chubby coin purse. She picked out three twenty-Note coins and handed the cashier the exact amount she asked for. She left the convenience store skipping, plastic bag swinging in her hand.

What did she buy exactly? Ia thought it was really insensitive to bring back a ice cream stick when the mere mention of ice cream transformed her best friend to a weeping mess, so she thought to buy one for herself and eat it on the way. Sure, she was still annoyed at the bastard, but she didn't associate him with ice cream like Miku did. Can you blame a girl and her cravings?

Ia found a nearby bench which was no longer wet from the rain and decided to indulge herself there. She ripped open the plastic wrapping of the fattening ice cream stick covered in chocolate with vanilla inside. It was half-cracked and almost broken (she didn't pick well,) so she had to eat it quickly before it melted. Ia bit off the top portion of the cold stick of frozen sugar, making a crunching sound as she sank her teeth into it. For a moment there, she almost understood why Kaito loved ice cream so much.

Speaking of the devil, Ia watched as a familiar blue-haired actor passed by her. He was engrossed in a piece of paper and her face was obscured by her scarf, so he couldn't have noticed her. Why was he here? She quickly consumed her dessert and decided to stalk—no, stalk was too heavy a word—investigate Kaito.

He was heading to the same convenience store she was in! Oh well. She thought that having two sticks in a day wasn't too bad. Besides, Miku had an ice cream parlor date with him and she didn't get fat or hoarse, so what's the harm in having two? Then again, Miku's most envious aspect was the fact that she never gained weight, no matter what she ate.

She tailed Kaito, cleverly hiding her face with her scarf and tying her hair up in a bun. She also thought to wear sunglasses but it was nighttime, so she would probably attract some unneeded attention. Instead, she wore a pair of fake eyeglasses. Why did she have that in her purse? She liked being ready for everything. Plus, they were cute.

Surely the blue-haired actor wasn't clever enough to see through her (paper-thin) disguise? At least, if she stayed a few feet away from him, she wouldn't be that easy to identify.

They were both at the baking aisle, where everything from flour and shortening could be found. Meaning, he wasn't going to buy chocolates or anything to apologize to Miku. Ia frowned at him before she pretended to read the contents of a random bag of flour she found.

He carried a shopping basket with him, and on his left hand he held a list of the things he needed to buy. Ia decided to stride past him, taking a peek at the list on his hand while carefully making sure he didn't hear her footsteps or her breathing.

It was a baking list for baking a cupcake! Maybe he was going to bake cupcakes with his daughter. That would be sweet. But what if he was baking cupcakes for Miku? That would induce diabetes. If that's the case, Kaito wouldn't want to be bothered by Ia the stalk—SLEUTH. Ia the sleuth. Yeah, that had a nice ring to it.

She smiled to herself and walked to the ice cream carts. She surveyed all the options, and settled for the strawberry flavored popsicle stick. She pondered for a moment, and decided to bring a small box of vanilla ice cream home for Miku. Things like these should be eaten by pairs, and Ia didn't want to be lonely.

xoxoxo

Miku woke up with the sunlight steaming in her face, her pink curtains blowing in the wind while refracting the ultraviolent rays. It was like a natural alarm clock, and she loved it whenever she was woken up that way. She thought, what a beautiful day. Better not waste it sulking around about… she decided to stop her train of thought right there.

No, she was having a wonderful day. Today, she swore to herself not to cry. She should invite Ia out to the mall or to breakfast at some cheap fast food joint. Maybe she could call the twins or Gumi or even the directors for a day out? So many ideas going through her mind and she didn't have the capacity or the time to do them all.

She plopped herself back to the bed, the back of her hand bumping Ia's side as her teal hair splayed out against the soft futon. She wanted to go back to sleep and just spend the whole day lying on her bed but it was such a beautiful day outside! She couldn't afford to put such a rare kind of day to waste.

This was Miku's time to wake Ia up. The teal-haired girl smiled deviously as she pulled Ia's blanket away. Reflexively, Ia cuddled herself into a fetal position.

"Ia! Ia, wake up!" She told her best friend, shaking her back and forth.

"Another minute…" Ia mumbled, a mark of dried saliva made a trail on her face when she was asleep.

"Ia, go out with meeeee..."

"WHAT?!"

Heh. She knew that would wake her up.

Miku stifled a giggle. "I mean to the mall. Or the park. Wherever. I want to get busy, and it's such a pretty day to today."

Ia glanced at the window, where rays of yellow sunlight peeped from the curtains. Yes, it did seem like a nice day today, birds chirping and all, despite being the last few days of autumn. She propped herself on her elbows, and took a while to think.

"Fine, I'll take a shower, you get dressed. But first, make up your mind. I won't be treating you." And with a playful wink at her best friend, she entered the bathroom.

Miku nodded and looked for proper clothes to wear in this cold weather. She chose a thick coat she bought from Teto's store over a fluffy sweater and a pair of skinny jeans. She accessorized with a pair of pink ear mufflers and a blue scarf. She thought the blue scarf was too much and slipped it off.

Ia stepped out of the shower in only a towel when the doorbell buzzed.

Who would visit at this time? The two girls exchanged curious looks before Ia seemed like she remembered something and started panicking.

"Pass me some clothes, Miku, quick!" she commanded. Miku picked out some clothes and undergarments from the top of Ia's drawers and tossed them to her. The prism-haired girl rushed inside the bathroom and slammed the door behind her.

The doorbell rang again. Miku nearly forgot about the person at the door and used the peephole on the door to see who as at the other side.

…No way. No. He wasn't going to ruin her perfect day. No. What was he doing here? How did he find her? How did he know which room they stayed? Oh yeah. He drove her here. But still how did he know which room she lived in? She was snapped back to Earth when the doorbell rang the third time.

Ia, whose hair was tied up with a towel, pushed her gently out of the way and whispered, "I'll take care of this."

The prism-haired girl opened the door halfway and saw the accursed blue-haired actor standing patiently with a bouquet of red tulips at hand. No cupcakes! How disappointing. Wait—no cupcakes, flowers… could he be asking her out again?

"Good morning, Miss Hoshino. Is Miku home?" Kaito asked her with the most sugary smile a man could muster. Perhaps the beautiful-day-syndrome was infecting him as well.

Ia blinked, unable to speak. "A moment, please." She shut the door; her hand gripped tightly on the handle and flung her head to the side, facing Miku.

"He's looking for you."

"Tell him I'm not here!" Miku replied in a hushed tone.

"But he has flowers and he's like a puppy out there!"

"No. I'm still sore from what happened."

"I know that," Ia almost sounded defeated, but she needed them to make up, "talk to him at least?"

The teal-haired girl sighed. She approached the door, her hands on her hips. Ia opened the door for her and she found Kaito standing there, holding out the red tulips in front of him. He hung his head, hiding his eyes with his long, blue fringe. Since the flowers were on his face, they couldn't see that he was blushing.

Miku closed the door, much to Ia's satisfaction. "What are you doing here, Kaito?"

"I-I came here to apologize a-and t-t-to…" Kaito gulped, nearly bending the stems of the flowers from his tight hold, "t-t-to i-invite you o-over m-my place to m-make C-CUPCAKESWITHME!"

"What?!" He lost her at "invite you over."

"I won't do anything suspicious! Just you and me. And possibly Ia, if you want to bring her along."

Miku's jaw hung open, and only staccato vowel sounds came out of her mouth. Ia, who was listening along, replied in her stead.

"We'd love to, but what about your—"

"She's at an amusement park with her uncle," the blue-haired actor explained, "a-and she won't be back until the evening."

Ia hid an amused smile with her fist. Ah, so he took the initiative. Good for him!

"I-if Ia will come with me, t-then I guess I can come along…" Miku murmured, blushing just as hard as her kind-of boyfriend was.

"You will?!" Kaito's face lit up, emphasized by the glaring sunlight.

Ia's lips tried to hold back a huge grin. The two were bumbling idiots together, but cute bumbling idiots. Like puppies. She excused herself to fix her hair and get ready.

When she left, Kaito found the opportunity to ask for forgiveness. He gave her the flowers, which she graciously received. Her eyes softened as she realized they were red tulips… the same kind of flower he gave her on that day. She noticed something else: a white tulip standing out from all the red ones.

"Miku, please… forgive me… I was stupid and an idiot and I can never forgive myself for making you cry. But I hope you can forgive me, so that I can at least make things better. I really like you, Miku. I really, really do."

The teal-haired girl stared wide eyed as she listening to his confession. Every word resonated sincerity, and her heart was warmed by his small speech. Maybe she could just forgive him; she wasn't one to hold grudges anyway.

…Wait. Did he just say that he liked her? He liked her? As in like like? Infatuation? Or maybe…

Ia burst the door open, her hair still moist, "I'm ready! Shall we?"

Miku gave a small nod and they were both escorted to Kaito's car, where they drove to his humble apartment room which he called 'home'.

Nobody took the front seat, despite Kaito's insistence.

xoxoxo

Kaito's apartment was a lot bigger than Miku's. His apartment actually had a room for the kitchen and had separate bedrooms for everyone. Ia wondered how he could afford all this with a child on his shoulders, but he did mention an uncle. Maybe he lived with the said uncle, seeing as there were two big rooms.

"Please make yourselves at home," the actor welcomed them to their humble home with a bow.

The house had been thoroughly cleaned and prepared for their arrival. The coloring books on the tabletop were arranged in one neat pile, and there was not one speck of dirt on the floor. Did Kaito clean all this himself? He would make a good housewife, from what they witnessed.

He led them to the kitchen, which was also sparkling. The counters were spotless, the silver sink was gleaming and the microwave oven was good as new. On the counter were the ingredients for the cupcake, neatly lined up like handed them two spare aprons from the rack; they were slightly tattered, but smelled like it was recently laundered. Wow, he really didn't leave one thing tainted.

"Miss Hoshino, do you want to help us with baking?" Kaito offered, securing the apron on his waist.

Ia let out an awkward laugh as she waved her hands sideways. "No, I can't bake for my life."

"Really? Then it'll be a new experience for all of us." The blue haired actor let out a grin, rubbing the back of his head with his hand.

Miku turned to Kaito, her expression spelled worried, "You mean you've never baked before?"

"I have, if ready-made mixes count."

Ia sighed; she was happy she was here. They needed someone to extinguish the fires, and knowing Miku, there was going to be fire. Or at least something burnt.

"Well, little experience is better than none. I'll just leave you lovebirds and watch TV. Don't do anything nasty." Ia left the kitchen with a wink at the two, making herself comfortable at the couch. She turned on the TV and waited patiently for the smell of smoke.

"So, uh…" Kaito searched his pocket for the recipe, "we'll just follow the instructions on this…"

The blue-haired man showed her the piece of paper where he carelessly wrote the recipe. His handwriting was barely cohesive, like squiggly lines with occasional spaces, but Miku could understand it a bit.

"Well, I'll start the creaming," she suggested, starting to gather the needed ingredients, "can you preheat the oven to a hundred and eighty degrees?"

"Sure."

Kaito headed for the oven and turned the temperature knob clockwise. He felt the surface of the appliance heat up by the second. Did he wash the pot holders? They needed pot holders to open the oven without getting burned.

"Kaito, where do you keep the bowls? We need bowls."

The blue-haired actor swiped a plastic bowl from the dish rack and gave it to Miku.

"Thank you," Miku flashed a grateful smile as she started to mix in the ingredients. Did she measure them beforehand? They looked a little bit… more… than what was prescribed. Nah, he must be overthinking.

The teal-haired girl began moving the wooden spoon in a clockwise motion, combining the butter and sugar together. She asked Kaito to beat two eggs for her and to prepare one tablespoon of vanilla extract. The more she mixed the ingredients, the paler it got. Perfect! She was doing it correctly.

"Kaito, the eggs please."

He dropped the eggs into the mixture and Miku started spinning again. He added the vanilla extract, and everything looked fine. So far, so good. He had a fire extinguisher at the ready if anything involving flames were to happen.

The teal-haired girl asked for the flour. Kaito cheerfully handed her the prescribed amount of flour in a small bowl. Miku walked forward to receive the bowl of flour, but when she stepped towards him, she felt something slippery on the sole of her foot and she fell on her bottom, the bowl of flour covering her apron and the bottom half of her hair in white powder.

Instead of whimpering like a child, she began laughing. "This always happens when I try to bake."

"Are you okay?" Kaito knelt down in front of her, removing the bowl of spilt flour from her torso and grabbed a hand towel and started wiping her apron.

"Yeah, I'm totally fine," Lies. My butt hurts like hell. But I'd rather not let him know that.

Kaito dusted off the excess flour from her torso. "Let's get this gunk off you, then we can continue, okay?"

She grasped his hand, stopping him. His palm felt rough, especially from all the cleaning he did to the house. Miku suddenly realized what she was doing and stammered, "T-this is just a minor setback, we can continue right now."

"No, it was my fault. I accidentally spilled a bit of egg yolk to the floor and didn't wipe it off in time. In fact, everything was my fault." Kaito let out a hopeless sigh, feeling sorry for himself.

"But it isn't." Miku replied, "I was careless, I didn't watch where I was going."

The blue haired actor sighed and held out a hand to help her sit up.

"Tell me your story," Miku said, swiping off the flour from the tips of hair.

"Do you really want to know my story?" Kaito asked somberly, setting the filthy hand towel down. Miku nodded, her attention undivided.

"I was sixteen, and seriously in love. I wanted to be a doctor, but then I got her pregnant. I was kicked out of my own house, disowned by my own family. I went to my cousin's family for help, and luckily, I was able to move in with my cousin, Akaito."

"She was going to be transferred to a school in abroad, but she was able to convince her parents to stay and take care of the baby with me. In the end, that plan fell through. She left for another country a month after giving birth. She didn't even get to see her own child. I didn't want to betray Yuki the way my parents betrayed me. So, I took her in; I raised her. I signed up for a part-time job in some fast food joint, but I screwed it up and was fired. This part is going to be a bit embarrassing…"

Kaito laughed awkwardly, but Miku was intent on listening to his whole story.

"I signed up for Vocaloid-P as a janitor. I needed an income to take care of Yuki, and to pay for the rent. I was caught singing by Mr. Leon, the CEO, while on duty. He asked me to audition for the role, but I told him that I was still a high school student. He waved that off, and gave me the job as an ensemble actor. So I finally had a source of income, and I could feed Yuki with my own money."

"I think you're wonderful," Miku said absentmindedly, "You love her so much, don't you? Yuki, I mean."

Kaito nodded, sweeping off a patch of flour from her hair. His eyes shifted to her face, staring straight into her teal eyes. He took her hand and helped her sit up and said, "I like you very much, Miku Hatsune. Maybe a bit more than like. No. I love you, Miku Hatsune."

Miku's eyes got wide as her face turned bright red. She gawked at him, his announcement taking a little bit of time to process into her nervous system.

"I love you, Miku. You're a wonderful person, and I can't believe it took me this long to find someone like you. I want to spend more time with you. I want you to meet Yuki. I want to get to know you better. I know it's kind of early for me to decide that I'm in love with you, but I am. I am in love with you."

She couldn't breathe, as if her heartbeat was blocking her windpipe (if that was possible.) Is this really happening? Miku couldn't look him in the eye, bashfully hiding her face with her fringe. His calloused hands remained on top hers.

Kaito sliced through the silence. "I-it's fine if you don't give me an answer. I can wait. I just wanted to know if you at least liked me back—"

In a sudden and swift motion, she placed his face in between her hands, pulled him towards her and pressed her lips against his. Their teeth clicked, their noses bumped but they would both agree that it felt perfect. Kaito was definitely surprised by the action, but instead of pushing her away, he held her closer, deepening the kiss. His chapped lips were soft against hers, as if they were made to be together like this. He smelled like apples and men's perfume. Miku drew away to inhale, but she had just realized what she had done.

She covered her mouth, her whole face the shade of cherries. Kaito leaned forward, gently putting her hand down. He brought her hand to his mouth, his lips brushing her knuckles. They were soft, as if she never worked her entire life.

"I need to make up for what I did last time. Maybe I can kiss you properly this time…" The blue-haired actor murmured against the back of her hand. Miku bit her bottom lip, unsure of what to respond. The uncertainty remained reflected in her irises, but by some involuntary reflex, her head bobbed slightly.

Kaito smiled, his hand reaching out to lift Miku's chin. She gazed into his striking azure eyes, full of emotion and, possibly, love. He moved closer to her, their faces now merely inches away from each other.

With a sharp intake of breath, they kissed.

Miku latched her arms around his neck, her fingers playing with the locks of his hair. She felt him round his arms around her waist, his hands playing with the ribbon on her apron. His arms were so huge around her body, it made her feel secure.

She wondered if Yuki's mother, whoever she was, loved Kaito the way he loved her. Did Kaito hold her like this once too? Miku didn't want to fill in the empty patch in his heart; she didn't want to feel like a replacement. She wanted to be with him, to make him happy.

"Wow, I knew it was going to get hot and steamy in here but not this kind of hot and steamy."

Ia snapped the both of them out of their little romantic liaison. They were both on the floor, their arms entangled around their bodies. Kaito's shirt was raised high enough to expose his toned stomach, and the teal-haired girl had her leg wrapped around his calf.

The lovebirds looked at each other, while Miku, in her embarrassment, pushed Kaito away. They didn't realize they were already on their way to the next base…

"Sorry for interrupting you guys," Ia teased, leaning over the counter, "but ants are swarming your mix…"

"Oh crap!" Miku bolted up and checked the bowl with butter and sugar. Ah, amidst all that emotion, they had forgotten the real reason as to why Miku was in the kitchen in the first place.

Kaito sighed. "Seems like we'll have to start again."

"I'll help this time." Ia said, smirking. She took an apron from the rack, and secured it to her waist. "Baking first, because I'm hungry, then I'll leave you two alone to do your stuff."

Miku blushed furiously, taking a handful of flour and throwing it at Ia, landing straight on her face.

"What the heck, Miku?" Ia grabbed more flour and tossed it in Miku's direction. Soon, the two girls were having a flour battle.

Kaito decided to stay in the background, trying to be a pacifier at the same time.

"...We really shouldn't be wasting the flour…"

-end of chapter 9-

A/N: Hi there, loyal readers! I am so sorry I took so long to update. But here's an XL-sized chapter for all of you~ Good news: the house is perfect. Also, Kaito's confession sounded better in Japanese. Forgive me for being a weaboo, but I think the confession translates to: "Suki da. (some complicated Japanese words here) Iya. Daisuki da." OH GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE I WROTE THAT

Anyway, reviews are love!