''Brother,'' Miku called out as she opened the door to the house, fumbling with the keys.

Her brother, Mikuo Hatsune, looked up at her. He smiled. ''Miku. How was your day?''

''Fine,'' she shrugged. ''Did Mom and Dad call today? I need to ask them about my piano exam fees. The teacher told me I have to pay soon.''

''They haven't called. They'd probably call later. Anyways, I've made dinner, so have some food first. There's leek porridge.''

''Thanks, Mikuo!'' Miku grinned. She liked leek porridge - actually, she liked anything with leeks in them. Leeks were delicious.

Mikuo smiled back at her, then he hesitated, taking a deep breath. ''Miku...I need to ask you something,'' he began. ''Something that Akaito said he saw, earlier in school today. Outside the library.''

Miku froze. ''Yes, Mikuo?'' she tried to feign innocence. ''What did Akaito see?''

''He said that he saw you kissing Len Kagamine. Is that true?''

Well, since Mikuo already knew, there wasn't any point in acting like she didn't know what he was talking about. She loved her brother dearly, but his overprotectiveness could get a little irritating.

She understood why he felt so protective of her though. Their parents had always been working, frequently going overseas for long periods of time for work. Ever since young, she and Mikuo had been relying on each other, and Mikuo was both parent and elder brother to her.

Though he was barely a year older than her.

''Yes, I was kissing Len Kagamine.'' Miku picked up her bowl of leek porridge, intending to go to her room to savour it. Mikuo frowned.

''You shouldn't get too close to Len Kagamine. It's not that I have anything against the guy, but...from what I heard, he's a playboy who toys with the affections of girls, treating them like prizes one day and like nothing the next.''

''I know that, Mikuo. He's been in the same school as me for six years.'' Miku sighed. ''I'm not interested in him that way,'' she lied convincingly. Or, at least she thought she was convincing. ''He's just a good friend. That kiss didn't mean anything to me, or to him.''

Mikuo raised his eyebrows. ''If you put it that way. Len's a good guy to have as a friend, but I wouldn't want to fall prey to someone like him. If I happened to be a girl. Which I am not.''

''You're just paranoid, Mikuo,'' Miku giggled. Carrying her porridge, she walked up the stairs to her room, careful not to spill any of the yummy food. After dinner, she would start on her homework.

But an uneasy feeling lingered in her mind as her brother's warning echoed in her thoughts. She knew Len was a playboy. Had known for quite some time, in fact - Len Kagamine had never bothered to hide that.

So why did she still like him that way? Why did his mere presence make her heart flutter, make her breaths quicken? She felt so stupid at times, liking someone who would never like her back.

She didn't like liking him that way. But she couldn't help it, and she had long given up trying to catch his attention that way. Instead, she tried, to the best of her ability, to ignore him.

However, ignoring him was hard. She could feel him, the moment he entered a room. Feel Len. And she couldn't help but stare, helplessly drawn to him. It was frustrating.

She wondered why Len suddenly started talking to her. She wondered what had changed, whether he might actually be interested in her now. She immediately squashed that hope - she wasn't stupid, and she wasn't going to hope pathetically for something impossible.

Resolutely she reached for her bookbag, taking out her homework. She had algebra problems to solve, and she wasn't going to sleep until she had finished every single one of them.

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Len reclined in his chair, hands folded under his chin. Meiko stood before him, dressed in nothing but a sheer red top and a tight, short skirt in a similar shade of crimson.

He smiled as she approached him, her hands cupping his face. He remained still as her hands moved down from his face to his shirt, tugging at the buttons. He let her undo the buttons of his shirt, let her slide it off his body. Her hands ran up and down his chest, and he let his head fall back.

No emotional attachments. That was how he did this, for the sex and nothing else. He didn't believe in forming emotional bonds, and the women he bedded knew that. They all knew that, every single last one of them.

He rose from the chair, tugging on Meiko's wrist as he pulled her over to the wall. He pressed her against the cool wall, her back facing him as he gripped her wrists, trapping her between him and the cold wallpaper.

His hand moved down, to between her legs, and he found she wasn't wearing any underwear. She was already wet, more than ready for him, and he smiled, nibbling lightly at her neck. His fingers trailed feather-light patterns over her waist.

She arched against him, gasping, and he pressed into her, teasing her body with his. Swiftly he undid his pants. Making sure she really was ready for him, he slid himself inside her body from behind. Meiko cried out, her red hair tickling his cheek as he thrust in and out of her, hard and fast.

When she came, so did he, and once he came back down from his release he withdrew from her, as detached as before. No emotional attachment.''Did you like that, Meiko?'' he purred.

''Yes,'' she panted, her body trembling. ''Again, Len. Stay with me,'' she was pleading.

''No,'' he said softly. ''I don't stay, remember? I leave once we both get what we want. You know that, Meiko.'' He cupped her cheek, running his thumb against her skin. ''If you want me to stay longer next time, take a longer time to come.''

With that, he turned and left, pulling on his shirt and buttoning his pants. Unhurriedly he left Meiko's house, and she made no attempt to stop him - for what he had said was true.

He didn't stay, and she knew it. If she forced him to, he would stay, but he wouldn't pleasure her, and he would never go back to her again.

''It's time to go home,'' he said softly, looking down the street. His house, Rin's house, was just a few houses down the street. He knew Miku lived near him too, though he wasn't sure which house she lived in.

Miku. At the thought of her, a sudden flash of desire went through him, desire that only came when he was thinking of his sister. Frowning, he shook his head, and the desire was gone.

Strange.

Maybe tomorrow, he would ask her where she stayed. He was curious, for some reason, and he badly wanted to know where the pretty, endearingly shy girl stayed.

And maybe persuade her to invite him over for a short visit.

He blinked. No. He was too busy, and anyways why should he go and visit her? He barely knew the girl.

Which was a lousy reason, actually, it had never stopped him from sleeping with someone before. Stranger or not didn't concern him - he was happy so long as he knew the girl's name.

What is wrong with me? He didn't know whether or not he wanted to bed Miku. A little bit of yes, a little bit of no. He was confusing himself.

How did he even start thinking about Miku Hatsune anyway?

He was probably thinking of her because he was lonely. That's right. Rin was still out with Kaito, and he knew that he would be going back home to an empty house. Yes, that's right.

Cheered, he pushed Miku Hatsune out of his mind and walked back home, trying not to focus on the jealousy he still felt when he thought of Rin being with Kaito.