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The rooftop is her safe space. She was going to walk up the stairs toward it without detours, but she just couldn't help it. She's a sucker for cute things, and that cute voice is unbelievable. That beautiful voice. There's a beautiful voice singing a song, and her legs decide that she's going to walk through the hall toward it instead of up. She's okay with that– in fact, her curiousness goes hand-in-hand with her cat's tongue.
(She ignores the first part of the metaphor. After all, satisfaction brought it back.)
The melodic voice comes from the end of the hallway. Rui can wait for a few moments while she's a lonely explorer, she thinks. It won't be long. Just a little peek of her head into the doorway and then she can run up to her actual destination. It's not like anyone at this school likes her enough to want to keep her around, anyway.
But who she does see in the empty classroom makes her smirk. If she had mischievous cat ears, they would definitely be pointing up right now. Inside is one of the few people that actually doesn't give her a weird look every time she opens her mouth or adjusts her bow or combs through her hair.
Okay, well, scratch that. Nene gives everyone weird, distrustful looks. But they're fr… They know each other, and Mizuki knows it's nothing personal; it's just who she is. Nene's so cute that she can give her a pass. Right now, though, Nene hasn't noticed her, so Mizuki scootches a little further into the room without getting one.
Nene has her back turned toward the door. She's sitting on one of the desks, other empty ones spread out around her as she looks outside through the windows, at all the other students eating their lunches under the shade of trees on this perfect, sunny day. Or maybe her eyes are closed– Mizuki can't tell. What she can tell is that Nene has a hand on her chest from the jutting out of her elbow, that she's practicing rhythm with the way her foot taps on one leg of the desk and her hair sways back and forth, and that she's singing. That's what brought Mizuki here in the first place, after all.
It's not just any song, though. It's a particular song, one close to her own heart that she remembers staying up past 25:00 curled up on her desk chair in her favorite pajamas clicking at the video editing software to craft the music video to. One she remembers listening to instrumental and beta versions of before the final thing.
Actually… the beta versions came first. Yes, Mizuki particularly remembers that detail, and she is a stickler for details especially in these very important moments. Because the first element of this song to arise were the lyrics, written by their very own Asahina Mafuyu. Even if most people wouldn't know that because of their online aliases, she knows for a fact that Nene does.
Because, well, Mafuyu had asked the group if she could show her girlfriend some of their songs before she did. No one ever asks permission to talk about the group and its members, but giving the group name to someone and having them listen to their Vocaloid-covered songs… It's nerve-wracking. Mizuki isn't sure about the others, but she has a deep fear that someone would call her depraved and evil for the types of downer topics they cover. (Not that some haven't already called her that. A villain.)
Despite that, they all agreed– mainly because Mafuyu was actually opening up to her girlfriend, and having someone else she can be her true self with is a blessing. They're all proud of her. (Plus, the fact that she asked about it in the first place– it means she cares about their privacy. She does care.)
Hearing their (Mafuyu's) song in that cute singing voice has her intrigued. Sure, Miku's voice is cute, too, but all she can think about when she hears it is the image of a Miku with gray pigtails staring out into the empty sky in SEKAI. The exaggeration and the emotion in Nene's singing reminds Mizuki instead of a show-runner's musical solo. It makes sense, knowing the girl is a performer at Phoenix Wonderland (she made her costume, after all, as well as Rui's). But now with the connection Mizuki wonders how well Nene might pull off the Miku look with two ponytail bands and a pair of different-colored contact lenses.
She folds her hands behind her back and plays with the sleeves of her sweater as she carefully tip-toes up to the desk where Nene sings. She steps in time with the rhythm, just in case she's being too loud so the beat can cover her movement, and it makes the whole thing seem even more like a musical scene until she tilts her head and goes, "Heeeey–"
Nene jolts, spinning her body around. Her hands shrink into her torso and she looks like she's seen a ghost. She's not shaking, but her purple eyes are wide and her cheeks are red with embarrassment. Mizuki almost snickers. Cute.
"S-Seriously?" Nene starts, fighting Mizuki's smirk with a disgruntled frown. She channels all of her uneasiness into defense. "Can't you mind your own business?"
Mizuki summons as much playfulness as she can. Admittedly, it's not very hard for her. "I was!" she announces, sliding closer to the desk. She waves her arm out like a performer gesturing toward the crowd. "Oho, I was going on my merry way, but you left the door wide open. Like a sailor to a siren, I was drawn here by your alluring voice. Next time, I'll bring a cup of water to spill on you and watch your mermaid tail grow."
She puts a hand up to her mouth to partially cover her wide smile, easily seen regardless by the crinkle of her eyes. Nene looks wistful, she thinks, just for a second, but then the subtle expression is gone, replaced by a hard glare that Mizuki is pretty sure is instinct at this point. "You better not," she mumbles. "If you want to stay, that's fine, I guess. Just be quiet like an audience is and let me practice. And don't drag Rui down here," she adds, bringing her knees up to her chest. "He can hear it later."
"Ah, don't worry, I'll leave you alone," Mizuki replies, exaggerating a sigh. "I promised that I'd meet him up on the rooftop soon, anyways." Not exactly; it's just something they do, no words or ahead planning needed. Her serious expression soon lightens up when a thought pops into her head like a brilliant lightbulb. "Besides, if I stay here long enough, you might charm me, hm? And I can't fall in love with Mafuyu's girlfriend… especially when she's singing one of her songs."
Nene goes bright red– not that the blush ever fully left her face in the first place. "I shuffled my playlist, that's all. It's random… Don't poke your nose into my business."
"Okay, okaaay," Mizuki sings, holding her hands up in front of her in surrender. "You tsunderes are all the same. I don't know how the two of you do it together! I could ask Mafuyu about you and she'll be all vague, but when I ask for more details other than 'our date was fine', she gets all defensive. It's romantic how protective you two are of each other–"
Like a match made in heaven, she's about to say, but she's stopped in her tracks when she registers the look Nene's giving her. It's not her normal glare, like she's putting up walls to cover her doubt– instead, it's rigid. Confident, a fire burning in her sight. But there's a glossy look to it, too. If Mizuki had to give it a name, she'd call it dead fish eyes– and she's seen those before.
"That's exactly what she does, too…" Mizuki is no longer fazed by them at this point, but seeing the expression on someone else makes her shift. At least she knows it's not from a lack of emotion– more like an overload of it. (Of love. That's cute.) "Mafuyu is really rubbing off on you, huh?"
Nene says nothing more. Mizuki, not wanting to step on any more toes, ducks her head and turns to leave the classroom. The rooftop is waiting, after all.
Before she can make it to the hallway, Nene murmurs from her spot on the desk. Mizuki turns her head back, but she's staring out the window again. This time, she's sure that Nene's eyes are fully open as she wrings her hands together.
"I hope she'll tell you guys more about them. Our dates. Later. But you can't push her into it; she has to be comfortable." There's a pause. Bringing a hand up to run through her hair, she quickly adds, "D-Don't ask for too much. If you do, I'm not going to be happy."
Mizuki chuckles. "The juicy details stay between the lovely couple, got it," she says. "I'm a curious cat, but alas, I'll keep myself from asking!"
She doesn't respond. Mizuki takes this as her true cue to leave. She hugs the doorway with one hand and waves with her other even though Nene's focus is somewhere else entirely. "I'll say hi to Rui for ya. Bye bye!"
She swings the door in when she steps out– but leaves it open, just a little bit. The melodic voice follows her as she walks down the hall and up the stairs.
.
The rooftop is her safe space. It's where she finds herself at the end of the school day, observing everyone else heading home. She has to stay for remedial classes, so why bother getting caught up in the crowd? She leans against the fence, peering through the holes in its links. Rui left just a moment ago, not wasting a moment to head to Phoenix Wonderland for troupe practice, which means it's just her.
It's quiet up here.
There's not much she can do before her extra classes start except watch everyone else. It's almost like a different world down there sometimes, she thinks, even when Rui joins the crowd. There's something so carefree about everyone chatting and walking along together. As much as she pretends, it's not a barrier she thinks she can pass.
That is, until a Miyamasuzaka Girls' Academy uniform catches her eye. It's nothing too special, really, since Rui and Nene's friend Emu likes to crash the place every once in a while (and she never fails to announce her presence), but it's not her this time. The tall girl's hands rest neatly in front of her, but the only thing Mizuki recognizes Mafuyu by is her full purple ponytail. The smile, the body language, it's nothing like her, until she sees Nene approach, hands clutching her bag's strap, head ducked down, looking all embarrassed in the most obvious way even if Mizuki can barely see her. That's when Mafuyu relaxes. Her smile eases into a neutral line, and she takes a step forward, putting a hand of her own over one of Nene's. They close in on each other– nothing exciting, or even too affectionate. Just existing as one.
Most people would think it odd for the two of them to be so strange. They're not a typical couple, especially with the way Mafuyu doesn't blush, and the way neither of them flirt. But Mizuki thinks their oddness is romantic.
It's cute, and she's a sucker for cute things. They fit like puzzle pieces. Together, they can relax. She watches as Nene leans against her shoulder and Mafuyu's eyes soften, just a tiny bit. They're learning how they work, one step at a time, learning how to be their true selves.
(Learning how to stop their pasts from haunting them. She could pick up a thing or two from them.)
She closes her eyes against the chain link fence and– as if she was standing right beside them– hears their footsteps echo against the pavement as they walk away.