Type: Miku x Gakupo
Requested by TheUltimateKellicFan
Author's Note: I never knew this was an actual thing. Then, the aforementioned user told me about it. I looked it up and found beautiful fanart! I ship this now. :3
I tried to be original with this! *sobs anxiously*
NOTE: I wrote the above author's note many many months back, when I started writing this. As I was finishing it up just now...I started to hate it very much and found myself extremely upset with it...I apologize to the requester. This one shot went through a lot. I just...man, I screwed up so badly here...I'll write another one once I have a bit of free time.
Forgive me...
~~~~~

I was sort of a bookworm when I was younger, before school got harder and teachers started piling up the homework. I found that it was harder and harder to find the time to read.

Then, in grade ten, I joined the school book club and my life changed. I found that I was able to make time to read, and I liked that.

And I kinda developed a crush on this one guy in the club. That was the real life changing part, I guess.

I saw him the day I joined the club, and instantly, I fell for him. Maybe it was his hair. It was really long and really purple. My hair was also really long, but it was teal. Still, I liked his hair. It looked so silky. And his eyes were a matching shade of purple. They sparkled.

It could've been the way he read passages from books. He rarely stumbled over words and he was calm, confident and composed. I regularly stuttered, but now that I think about it, maybe I stuttered because he was there.

"Welcome to the school book club!" A girl with scarlet corkscrew curls on both sides of her face greeted me on the first day, as I entered the room. "I'm Teto! This is Gumi, that's Leon, Len and Rin, they're twins, and Gakupo."

I looked over each of them, scanning their faces. They all smiled and Gumi waved to me. Then, I looked at Gakupo.

You're probably thinking that he was asleep or something like that, or that he'd make some sort of snarky remark about me, because that's how these sorts of stories tend to go, but no, he didn't do any of that. He was reading a book, and when I looked at him, he put it down and offered me a welcoming smile.

"Hi," I said quietly, taking a few steps towards the round table around which the club's members were huddled, on chairs. Teto pulled a chair over for me. She sat down beside Gakupo and put me in between her and Gumi.

"We actually just finished discussing Len's book," Teto explained. "So now, we'll be picking out new books. It's a different book for everyone. We have a large collection that the library lets us keep. Every two weeks, we swap books!"

I nodded, offering a smile. "Sounds like fun," I said, eyeing Gakupo. He was flipping through his novel, absentmindedly playing with a strand of his purple hair.

That was the first day. I knew that there was something about him that I was drawn to. Well, it was all of him, really, I guess. He discussed the books he read with great passion and that also got to me. Weeks passed, and all I did was watch him from afar.

Then, one afternoon, things started to change. It was a rainy afternoon and I was waiting by the school doors for my parents to come pick me up. The only thing that really stood between me and the torrential downpour outside was the glass door. I pressed the palm of my right hand against the door and a sudden voice erupted behind me.

"I have an extra umbrella," the voice said. I spun around. Gakupo looked down at me. He wasn't really smiling or frowning, but he was just looking at me. I sidestepped away so that I wouldn't explode from being so close to my crush.

"No, it's fine," I said. "I'm just waiting for my parents."

He nodded. "I thought you were stuck or something," he said. "The book club meeting ended kind of late today."

"Yeah," I tried to laugh. The situation was probably only tense for me. "But it was nice. You and Len got into that whole debate today...I was kind of worried, honestly."

"Worried?" He looked at me questioningly and I looked away. There was a distinct sparkle in his eyes that kept captivating me.

"Y-Yeah, like..." I tugged at one of my hair ties, "I didn't want something to happen. I didn't want the club to break up, I mean...we're all friends, right? I like that."

"Oh," he smiled at me and I felt my face heat up slightly. His smile was so sweet, or maybe it was just me.

Probably just me.

"We'd never do that," he said, running a hand through his long locks. "This club is full of people who are special to me, you know."

"Special," I mumbled. Gakupo was special to me...but he didn't know that, of course. It was my little secret. "Are you waiting for your parents?"

"Nah, I'm walking," he said, "but it was nice talking to you. I feel like we don't talk enough..."

"Mhmm, I feel that way too!"

Gakupo laughed. I covered my mouth with both hands.

"Well, let's make a note of it, then," he grinned. I wasn't sure if he was oblivious or what. "We need to talk more!"

"Y-Yes sir!" I said. He nodded, still chuckling, before walking out and opening his umbrella.

"Later!" He called, waving and then walking away. I watched as he walked further and further away, mingling with the fog and rain like he was a part of it, him and his umbrella. It would be a while before my parents showed up. I had a lot of time to think about things, and about Gakupo.

I decided to let all my feelings out that night. He was obviously not going to realize anytime soon that I wanted to talk to him a lot more. And I didn't want to make a fool of myself in front of him. He probably thought of me as his quirky friend from the club or something. It was probably best to take things slowly. First, however, I had to empty out myself.

The idea was just something I used to do every now and then. I didn't exactly write for fun, all the time, but every so often I'd write down my feelings on little bits of paper. It definitely got my feelings "out," writing them down like that, and I found that if I read these every time I felt the emotions, they'd help me calm down a bit more.

So that was it. That was the plan. That night, after finishing my homework and helping my mom with the dishes, I headed upstairs and pulled a notebook out of my bag. As I was doing so, I saw the book I had to read for the club.

My bookmark was jutting out, a mere fifty pages into the volume...and it was a pretty hefty book, too. Maybe writing out my feelings would have to wait. I had to finish the book soon. Meetings were twice a week, two days in a row. After school one day and at lunch the next. Books switched every two weeks.

I frowned and pulled out my planner. Started to flip through until I got to this month and when our last book switch happened.

Nearly two weeks ago. I paled. Tomorrow's meeting. That was when we'd switch books again.

And I had only started. How could I have forgotten? Tomorrow, I'd have to talk about the book.

"Well, I only read the first fifty pages."

"Was it that bad?"

"Well, no, I...I sort of forgot."

That wouldn't be very responsible of me.

"I can't 'sort of' forget," I said to myself, pulling the novel out and setting it down on my desk.

I had to read the book first. It was my responsibility!

And so I did. It was a dark sort of romance, with crime and mystery woven in. I liked it. Pretty gripping and gruesome, good stuff, but I started to feel sleepy after about three quarters in. Maybe I could finish it during study hall tomorrow. What I couldn't do in study hall tomorrow was write about my hopeless feelings for a certain purple-haired boy. I'd be too anxious and paranoid...anybody could glance over my shoulder at any time.

It was three in the morning when I tore a sheet out of a notebook and started writing on it. I didn't care if it sounded cheesy or corny or cliche. Nobody was going to be reading it, anyways. It was just me, talking to myself, about why I felt the way I did.

Do you think it's his eyes? I think they're definitely really nice. They sparkle and it's really really hard to look right into them? For him, it's probably no big deal. He doesn't know how I feel. And it's too early, Miku! We have to slow down and take our time. If you come off as skittish and odd, he might think you're weird...maybe he already feels that way...

I wrote a whole lot, and I was yawning quite a bit when I flipped the sheet to write on the other side, taking care to make sure that the ink wasn't bleeding onto the novel's pages, as I was writing with the sheet right on top of where I had stopped. I yawned again, setting my pen's tip down onto the paper.

...he doesn't argue and always stays so calm. I wish I had a cool head like that. He's just....ack he's just so cool! If I didn't like him like this, I'd probably look up to him. I still do, I guess, kind of. Besides liking him...

I kept writing. Yawned again. My handwriting started to get sloppy. I needed a break, a really short break. Just two minutes to rest my eyes.

I reached for my desk lamp's switch and the light clicked off. Closed my eyes. Just two minutes, I kept telling myself. Just two minutes. I put my head down on the sheet and the book.

Two minutes...

"Ugh....two more minutes..."

"No, Miku, it's late! School starts in seven minutes!"

My mom's voice shook me like a jolt of electricity. I sat up, groggy but panicking.

"Wha..."

"Don't you have a report due in first period?" She asked. I looked at her blankly. I did have a report due first period. And it was finished, typed and printed, and in my bag.

But there was a late penalty...

"I-I'm done it, it's in my bag, I...I need to go!" I started out the room and stumbled downstairs, washing my face at the kitchen sink and grabbing an orange and a leek out of the refrigerator. I stuck the latter in my mouth and slipped my feet into my shoes.

"Miku, your things!" My mom threw my bag down and I somehow caught it. What was the point of hurrying if I was going to forget my report, right?

Exactly.

So I slung my backpack over my shoulder and bolted right out the door. I don't think I've ever run as hard or as fast as I did that day.

And I made it. I gave the report in on time and everything was good. I spent the rest of the morning just following along with what the teacher said and then catching up on sleep during study hall. You're probably thinking that I shouldn't have done that. That there was something else I had meant to do during study hall, but it didn't cross my mind until lunchtime, when Teto came to my locker. I took one look at her and my heart stopped.

"You're coming to the club, right?" She grinned.

"O-Of course, I...yeah, I'm coming!" I nodded quickly. I must have looked sick or something because she frowned at me. "I'll be there in a bit..."

"I'll wait for you!"

She was being too nice. I rummaged through my bag for the book but I couldn't find it. It was a pretty big book. Though...my bag had felt kind of light this morning. Maybe that's how I ran to school so quickly. The book was at home.

"No, no, please don't wait," I turned and smiled widely at Teto. "I just...I just need a few minutes and I'll be there."

"Alright," she said. "See you there, then!"

I waited until she was out of sight. Then I went crazy, loudly rifling through my bag. I pulled out my notebooks and pencils and binder. No novel. No book. I was a big, fat screw-up. The book was at home. It had to be at home...where else could it be?

I called my mom.

"Hello?"

"Hey, yeah, mom, there's this book in my room and I think I left it there this morning and I need it for the book club meeting so could you please bring it to school for me?" I said it all in one breath.

"A book?" It seemed like she was trying to remember something. "Oh, I remember that book! I put it in your drawer...but honey, the car's not starting, so..."

"It's not? What?"

"No, I wanted to go grocery shopping, but..."

I didn't wait for her to finish. "It's okay, I'll just run home!" I forced a laugh. "I ran to school this morning anyways..."

I threw my things into my locker and headed downstairs. As I ran out of the schoolyard, I told myself to relax. They would understand. I was just having a bad day. It happens sometimes.

When I got to my place, I saw my mom sitting on the porch steps, the door wide open. She had a glass of what looked like lemonade in her hand.

"I've been expecting you," she offered a crooked smile. I huffed. There wasn't enough air in my lungs to even attempt a joke. Besides, my thoughts were racing anyways. But then I noticed something in my mother's lap: my book. She handed it to me, saving me the trip upstairs. Before I could turn and run back to school, she pulled me close for a quick kiss on my head.

"Good luck, sweetie," she said. "You'll make it."

I just ran, glancing at my wristwatch. We were twenty minutes into lunch hour. That wasn't so bad. I could make it. Sure, I hadn't finished the book completely, but I was almost done and I had tried. I worked on relaxing myself. Tried to think of the run as more of a leisurely jog back to school than anything else. It kind of worked. At least I had the book now, I told myself.

By the time I got to the book club, everyone was exchanging books. That was the first thing we usually did. Teto saw me as I ran in and handed my book to her. She was laying them out on a table and everyone else was picking up new ones from the ones she was setting down, once that they hadn't read yet. I had meant to tell her that I wasn't done my book yet but it was just too busy. I'd deal with it later.

"You alright?" She asked me. I plopped down next to her and nodded, huffing a little.

"I...I had some trouble with something," I said. She offered a concerned look.

Everyone sat down, putting their new books away. Teto handed the last one over to me. I tucked it away, not bothering to glance it over.

We started off talking about how our books were going and how they went, then Gumi asked me if I was done mine. I opened my mouth to say something, not really sure how to go about it, when Leon started yelling something about how the romance in his novel was horrible. That lent itself to a bit of discussion. I kept my eyes on the clock, hoping that time would pass quickly and I wouldn't even have to explain my whole issue about the book and how I didn't finish it. But then it happened.

"So Miku, how was your book?" Teto asked me. Everyone's eyes were set on me.

"Well..." What could I do besides tell them the truth? I couldn't make up the ending. "It's kind of a long story."

Len snickered. "No kidding. It's huge."

"No, no, not like that!" I shook my head. "My story is a long story. I forgot about the book and only remembered last night. I read as much as I could...I almost finished, but then I fell asleep and woke up really late so I ran to school and I forgot the book at home so I couldn't..."

Rin stopped my rambling. "It's okay, Miku," she said. "I finished my book early, so I'll talk about it instead."

I was glad she saved me from any more embarrassment.

As eventful as the morning had been, the rest of the afternoon was pretty ordinary. Classes went on as planned. It didn't rain that afternoon, which was a good thing, I guess, because the car still wasn't starting and I didn't have an umbrella. I didn't see Gakupo.

That night, I was lying in bed and flipping through my new book. It was a horror novel this time, but I had only started so it wasn't so bad. As I marked my page and put the book away, I felt like I was forgetting something.

I'm not sure what...

I didn't think too hard about it. Sleep came quickly, too. Morning followed, and this time, I woke up early. Had a nice breakfast, told my mom I'd walk to school. It was looking pretty sunny outside anyways.

Then I opened the front door and saw Gakupo standing on my doorstep. I freaked out and almost jumped back. He was just standing awkwardly though, running a hand through his hair.

"Uh...good morning," he smiled, but it was a strange smile. I couldn't quite put my finger on it.

"Good...good morning!" I stood straight and tall, my arms plastered to my sides. My backpack suddenly started feeling a lot heavier. I glanced back into the house. My mom was taking a shower. She had headed off just a minute ago.

"Are you...coming to school?" He asked. I don't know why he kept pausing like that. And he kept looking at me. At my face. Like he was trying to find something on it. I didn't have a new pimple, did I?

"Yes, yes, of course I am!" I nodded, frantically pushing my bangs to the sides of my face. He blinked. I couldn't meet his eyes.

"Yeah, so, uh, I was wondering if you wanted to walk...uh, with me?" He was scraping his sneaker against the doormat.

"What? Me?"

"Yeah, I need to...argh, I need to tell you something!" He practically screamed the last part at the sky. Then he cupped a hand over his mouth. "Sorry..."

I was freaking out so much, but then I found myself giggling. He was cute. I already thought so, but the look in his eyes and the tone of his voice was adorable, right then. I wanted to squish him.

But that would be inappropriate. So, I told myself to breathe a few deep breaths.

After that, I smiled my best platonic smile and said, "Sure, let's go."

I sounded so cool in my head. He laughed a little though. A weird laugh. Like he was unsure about something. Like every laugh was a step, and the floor he was treading was slick with ice. Something like that.

I closed the door and we started walking, side by side, slowing down then speeding up until we found middle ground, a pace that suited both of us. I kept my eyes on the ground until he commented on that.

"Something on your shoe?" He asked. I blushed, kept my head down, and shook it.

"No, I just..."

"It's awkward, right?"

I bit the inside of my cheek. We stopped walking. He looked down at me, and it was probably only for a few seconds, but that was all I could take. I looked up at him, really at him. There was softness in his eyes. Warmth.

"What makes you say that?" My tone was so soft, it seemed unlike me. And my heart...it was drumming against my ribs. Hard. Like it'd break through and burst right out, and then he'd know what I felt.

Then he put a hand in his pants pocket and pulled out a folded up piece of paper.

"This helped me a bit," he smiled a little. I stared at him. His cheeks were slightly red. And then I looked at the piece of paper in his hand.

"What's that supposed to be?"

He unfolded it and held it out in front of me.

"Your feelings...on this sheet," he had a hard time saying this; I could tell, because he kept looking down at the ground and mumbling his words.

I had to take the paper from his hands to believe it. It was all the stuff I had written down about how I liked Gakupo. My face started heating up and I looked at him, not sure of what to say.

"How did you..."

"It was in your book," he said before I could finish, shrugging as he did. "I didn't expect it, honestly."

I tried to laugh. "I forgot all about it..."

"Thank you."

"Huh?"

He blushed. It was very obvious. "Can we keep walking?"

"Sure..." I said. He scratched at the nape of his neck. We started to walk again.

"I thought it was really sweet," he said.

"I'm sorry...you barely know me, and I...I don't know. I thought I could tell you someday, after you got to know me better."

"Well, we could give it a shot, you know."

I stopped walking again and looked up at him. "What?" I gaped at him. He just smiled, and so sweetly, too.

"I like you so far," he said. "It sounds weird, I know. But I do."

"I...I...this...I wasn't prepared for this!" I said. My cheeks were burning. Emotions flared inside. I was happy but caught completely by surprise. This wasn't meant to happen. But it did. Now what was I going to do?

"See?" He grinned.

"See what?"

He just shook his head. "Let me just say it. Do you want to hang out today? All day? At lunch and stuff?"

"You...want to make something out of this," it wasn't a question at all.

"Yeah, Miku," he said. "I want to try. I'm falling for you. Really. I liked you the way you are, quirky and cute, and after reading this..."

He gestured towards the paper still in my hand. I quickly shoved it into my pocket.

"...I feel like we could do it," he finished. "So will you? I know it's not how you planned it, but maybe this'll be a different kind of story. A better fairy tale, as corny as it sounds..."

"Do I have to answer right now?" I was conflicted on the inside. I wanted to say yes and hold his hand. I was holding back, scared, I guess.

"No, I guess not..." He said. "I don't want to force anything on you. I just wanted you to know that...well...I like you, Miku. I thought about it all night. I really do."

"W-Well, I do, too!" I burst out. Then I huffed, bringing my hands to my flushed face. "Goodness...you don't have to be so silly..."

He laughed, fingers in his hair. "So I'm the silly one?"

"Yes, definitely! Now hold my hand. We're going to be late..."

He did hold it. Very gently, and then we started walking, our paces matched, my legs shaking, heart racing. He squeezed my hand reassuringly. I looked up at him and couldn't help but smile.