The sound of the alarm going off was what woke Shun up. He groaned before reaching out for the clock and then stopping it. He slowly opened his eyes and then rose up from bed. His eyes slowly drifting around the apartment room and then to his watch.

5:00? What kind of person puts an alarm on such an ungodly hour of the morning when it's a holiday! He was planning on going back to his bed and sleeping in when he heard three methodical knocks on his door. It was Reifu.

Groaning once more, he stood up to answer the door. He opened the door and groggily greeted Reifu, "Mornin'... what are you doing all dressed up?"

"Oi, idiot. Did you forget that we're picking up the girls at the station?"

His words slapped him awake and his eyes widened upon remembering. "Oh, that's right!" They were arriving on the first train to Akihabara. Oh man, he forgot. "Ah, come in first Reifu. I'll be quick!" He left the door open for Reifu to enter before leaving to wash up and put on some appropriate clothing.

Reifu walked into the apartment room of his friend and then sat down on one of the chairs, his eyes on his phone as his friend rushed around everywhere to prepare. This was a normal thing for Reifu. Whenever it's morning, Shun somehow always forgets about his plans for the day. That's where he comes into play. He's used to waking up so early and never forgets his agenda for the day.

But Shun is faithful to his words. He was quick with his preparations and before it was even twenty minutes, he was ready to go. "Let's go?"

Reifu slid his phone back in his pocket and then stood up. "Yeah. Kei should be waiting in front of the station." The two then headed out after locking the door.

It was so early that the sun hasn't even risen yet. But the trains should be going by now and the girls were already on their way. Besides, by the time they get there, the sun would be rising already. They greeted some old ladies from their apartment that have been out and about, doing morning shopping and cleaning and whatnot.

It didn't take long for them to reach the station. The girls should be arriving any time now too. Kei was sitting on the stairs that led to the entrance of the station. Since there weren't any trains arriving yet (and it was certainly not rush hour), he didn't worry too much with being pushed around. He was busying himself with his phone, but he looked oddly serious.

"Mornin' Kei." Shun greeted which made the male to look up.

"Yo, you took your sweet time huh?" Kei joked with a grin as he pocketed his phone.

"Shun forgot all about it."

"H-Hey!"

The two shared a laugh at Shun's expense. Kei stood up and then dusted himself off. "The train should be arriving anytime now."

"Good thing we weren't late." Reifu said, a sigh of relief escaping his mouth.

"I'd think they would beat us up for making them wait." Kei said. "Girls don't like waiting for boys to arrive you know?"

"I don't think 'beating you up' physically would do any good to our image. Perhaps berating you should be suffice."

Betraying her words, Eri lightly chopped Kei on the head and the male just replied with a light chuckle.

"Welcome back." Reifu greeted to the girls after Eri's actions.

"It's good to be back." Nozomi replied as she descended the stairs and gave her boyfriend a quick hug before letting go.

"I'd rather get a longer hug but…" Reifu said. "I suppose it'll work for now."

"Eh, we should've known what would happen when we fell in love with school idols, of all people." Kei said with a shrug. He then looked at the girls. Taking a notice that many were still relatively sleepy, Rin especially, and they were practically nodding off in their sleep. He said, "Come on guys. I think the girls would fall asleep on their feet if this continues."

Shun nodded. "Alright." He then looked around. "But wait, who'll walk who? Reifu, Kei and I are all headed in the same direction."

Reifu looked at Shun with what seems like unimpressed eyes. "I'm walking Nozomi back to her place of course. I can also get Hanayo and Rin back to their homes no problem."

"I'll take Eri-senpai and the second years then~. Maybe even Yazawa-san." Kei said with a smile. "Kazu's waiting for me anyway so it's fine."

Kei grinned at Shun and Reifu gave him a nod. "E-Eh? Wait that means…" He then looked at Maki who looked like she couldn't care less.

"I don't really mind." Maki said with a shrug as she twirled her finger around her hair. She had her bag hanging on her left hand.

The red haired male grinned. "Oh? She doesn't mind she says..." He was obviously teasing her.

"No, I don't." She sent a very subtle glare at him and he raised his hands.

"Okay~" Kei then gestured for the four girls to follow him. "Come on, Kazu's waiting closeby. I think you girls need more shut eye."

"Hai~" Honoka replied sleepily and half-walked, half-stumbled towards Kei's direction and the male decided to help her at least walk straight. The red haired male looked at Eri and the blonde stared approvingly at his actions.

"You two need help?" He joked, looking at the fully awake Umi and Kotori, who seemed fine.

"No thank you." Umi replied with a shake of her head.

"How about you Yazawa-san?" He looked at the black haired girl who was almost in the same state as Honoka who was then leaning on Eri.

"She already has help." Eri said with a light giggle.

"Eri-chan~" Nico called out.

"Hm? What is it Nico?"

"I'm going to be the number one idol in the whole universe! So watch out!"

Eri smiled softly. "Right, right."

Kei wanted to chuckle but couldn't since he'll be disturbing the half awake girl leaning on him. He then adjusted his grip on Honoka so he felt comfortable helping her. He was obviously careful not to touch anything on the girl, fearing what would happen to him should the girls notice it. "Come on girls." He urged the girls to get a move on.

"See you tomorrow then girls." Eri said, waving goodbye to the others and then left with Kei and the other second years. Kei had visible struggle with keeping Honoka from falling over, falling asleep and walking. But he seemed to be having fun steering the ginger haired girl. It wasn't soon until they were out of sight and presumably heading for his car.

"Kousaka-senpai is surprisingly heavy." Kei commented.

"Hey, I'm not heavy!" Honoka complained, thrashing around causing the male to laugh as he tried to regain control. It only lasted for a few moments before she slumped back to her original sleepy state.

"Indeed she is." Umi said with a nod, but Honoka thankfully didn't retaliate. Maybe she was truly asleep this time and was sleepwalking?

Kotori giggled. "She's cute when she's asleep though."

"It's weird how she's still walking though. Is she even conscious?" Eri asked, looking at Kei who's the one holding her.

"Doubt it." Kei replied. "She's really leaning onto me."

"Do you need help Taka-kun?" Kotori asked worriedly. She knew Kei was physically fit, given that his condition needed it, but his condition was precisely why she was worried.

Kei shook his head. "Nah, the car's over there anyway." He pointed at the black van that was parked, alone in the lot. Not suspicious at all. He waved at Kazu who had opened their doors. "Hop in."

The others nodded and waved goodbye. "We should probably get going too." Reifu said to Maki and Shun. He turned to the yawning Rin who seemed to have exerted herself yesterday and was paying the price.

Walking towards his orange haired best friend, he poked her cheek. "Want me to carry you?"

"Yeah~" She replied, arms outstretched towards him. Reifu smiled, turned around and then carried Rin on a piggyback.

"No fair!" Nozomi jokingly got upset.

"Well you're not sleepy so I didn't think you'd need a lift." Reifu said with a shrug. "Although I promise to carry you if you fall asleep on dates."

The byzantium haired girl crossed her arms. "Yeah but carrying another girl while in the presence of your girlfriend is ungentlemanly." She then realized the mistake she had made and corrected herself, "I mean you shouldn't carry another girl if you have a girlfriend."

Reifu chuckled at her mistake. "But Rin's my best friend and kind of my childhood friend too and I bear no feelings to her. You should know that you have my undivided love."

This made Nozomi blush. "Let's go." She said before proceeding to walk towards the direction of their homes.

Hanayo quickly followed with Reifu close behind. The blue haired male felt Rin's head on his back and her light snoring. "She's out cold."

The brown haired girl smiled. "It remind me of when we used to go out and come back really late. Rin-chan always falls asleep and you had to carry her back."

"Always."

Nozomi peeked back at the two conversing but decided to not interrupt. She happily listened as the two looked back on their past, when they were all so close. Back when they weren't terribly busy with their lives that caused a rift in their friendship, and how glad they were that they were able to reacquaint themselves with each other and stitch up the rift that had formed.

"Let's go shall we?" Shun awkwardly invited the red haired girl who nodded in response. The two then began to walk towards the way to their home.

There was an awkward silence that hung above them. Shun's nervousness being the main cause of it. While he had no problem interacting with her with friends around, alone was something else entirely. Whenever he's alone with her, he remembers the time of his confession especially since it was only a few weeks back.

"Uh, er, so how's the song?" Shun asked to fill the void.

"We managed to do it, somehow." Maki replied with a sigh before taking out her phone and her earphones. She then offered one to Shun and placed the other in her ear.

"Huh?"

"Do you want to hear it or not?"

"Oh." Shun then placed the earphone on his ear. Maki played the song and Shun happily listened to it. It was just the piano version of it though.

"No accompaniment yet?" Shun asked as they continued to walk and listen to the music.

Maki shook her head. "I was planning to do it later."

"How do you get the accompaniment? Do you have someone working with you?"

"Hm? Oh I use computer generated music for that." Maki replied. "It isn't as good, but it does well enough."

"Isn't that a lot of work? I heard that making it sound natural is quite a challenge."

"It is. But it's worth it."

"We'll help you then." Shun offered with a grin. "I mean, we are a band. Reifu, Heiji and me. Kei knows how to play a guitar too if I'm not mistaken so we can ask him to play with us."

"You will? I didn't even ask for help..." She raised her eyebrow at him.

"It sounded like you need help with me. Besides, it'll sound better and you'll get more rest." Shun replied, the grin never disappearing from his face.

Maki smiled. "Thanks."

"I'll call them later then. Er, you have a recording studio?"

"Of course I do. Who do you think I am?"

"Right, right." Shun replied with a light chuckle. They fell into silence, with the music of Muse filling the silence for the two.

Once they reached Maki's house, Shun said, "So, we'll meet later… how about ten?"

Maki nodded. "Sure."

"Make sure to get your rest. We'll wait."

The red haired female saw the concern in his eyes. With only a nod in response, she entered her house and waved goodbye. Satisfied that she gave a nod, Shun went back home with a grin on his face.

It was around ten in the morning.

Five people stood inside the recording studio. Two of them had their jaws open at the sheer shock of the place and the last one looked very impressed. It was obviously a top-notch recording studio, even if none of them had even heard of the place before. The instruments itself would've cost a ton of money, since they were top of the line brands.

"Is this yours Nishikino-san?" Heiji asked, looking around in wonder.

Maki nodded. "Father owns this place. He used to be in a band before and they used to do some recordings before he ultimately quit and let this studio be rented." She explained the history behind the place.

"Did they release albums? I mean, they are in a recording studio, they must have some CDs of their songs." Shun asked, curious about the band that had first played in this place.

The red haired girl shrugged. "He only told me the story but never told me the name of the band or where the CDs are." She would often ask for it before, when she was a child. But her father just won't budge. It must've been embarrassing for him.

"I see." Shun replied before taking a seat behind the drums and then took hold of the drumsticks that was placed near the drums. He started to get the feel of the instrument before him, the others did so as well with their instruments. "Who'll be recording it? You're going to play too right Maki?"

"I have a friend who will arrive later on. For now, we'll have to come up with the arrangement." Maki replied.

"Got it."

"Roger that!"

The four began to talk on what they should do. Kei didn't really have much knowledge in music to contribute. He knows how to play and read notes but he wasn't as skilled as the others. They were quick about it and, while they failed the first few times, they did make good progress. They would continue for two hours before Maki's friend had entered.

Turns out it was one of his father's employees who took care of the studio. He brought some lunch for the kids. They happily accepted and ate the lunch provided. They began talking with the employee and other stuff. The man's name was Amatsuki Ichigo, a man around his mid-20s. He was new, a highschool dropout thanks to lack of finances. He was looking for work when he saw that the studio needed a new employee. He jumped at the request. Not only was he a musician, but he also knew his way around a studio.

"Wait, what happened to the previous employee here?" Heiji asked with a tilt of his head.

"He… er…" Ichigo rubbed the back of his head, shooting a glance of help towards Maki.

"He passed away, three years ago." The red haired girl replied pretty bluntly. "He had a disease, I forgot what it was though. He owed a debt to my father and decided to take on the studio."

"Kurosaki-san was a nice guy… I worked with him for a good six months before he passed." Ichigo admitted.

"Oh…" The room went silent. They had just finished their lunch so they couldn't focus on something else.

Ichigo then clapped his hands once. "Alrighty then! Are you guys done with practicing so we can start recording?" He asked.

"We're still not done." Maki said.

"Ah, maybe you can help us Amatsuki-san. You're a musician right?" Reifu proceeded to say.

"Oh, uh… alright." Ichigo said with a nod.

And so the six went back and started making the arrangement once more. It had been easier with an older and more experienced person with them and they were soon ready for the recording. It took them only another hour to finish.

The recording was definitely a success. With Maki's voice and the notes written for them as their guide, they only took three tries before perfecting it. Well, technically they have been practicing for the longest time now so it was understandable that they got it on the third take.

Shun grinned as he looked at the others and held the drumsticks in his hands. "Haha, that was fun!"

"Indeed it was." Reifu agreed with a nod. "The instruments sounded great too." He continued, patting the bass guitar that he was holding.

"Is this the first time you guys actually recorded something?" Maki questioned.

Heiji nodded. "Yeah, we never had the funds to rent a studio. Between club needs and our personal needs, we never really had enough money to pay for it."

Maki sent a glare at Kei who raised his hands. "Hey, budget's really low. Father might be sponsoring Amagiri but even that's limited." He reasoned. "I may be his son but that and this are two different things."

As they talked, they exited the recording room. "Well if that's the case, you can use this studio free of charge." Maki looked at Ichigo who was listening. "That should be fine right?"

Ichigo nodded. "If you say so Maki-chan." He then looked at the three who were joyful at the idea. "But of course, since you are using this place for free, that means that you can't record when someone has already rented for it."

"That's fine with us." Reifu replied with a nod. "I dare say we still have the upper hand on the deal."

Ichigo and Maki looked at each other with a smile. The former looked back at Reifu, "I see you aren't aware of just how many people rent this place. The only reason why you had it all to yourselves for this day was because Maki-chan asked for it in advance."

That made Reifu frown. "Maybe we'll try renting it then."

"Good luck with the funds." Kei replied. Maki sent a sharp jab to his side, careful not to aggravate his heart, but it still stung like hell. The red haired male grunted at the contact. "Fine. I'll try to tie some ends to get you the money. But don't make it a regular occurence. We still have other clubs to fund."

Shun chuckled in delight, "Thanks kaichou!" He exclaimed. He had the sudden urge to hug the male but decided against it. He could easily say that things are going his way. He got to spend time with Maki, actually record something and help their new friends with their little dilemma.

Kei's phone began to ring. His happy expression turned sour for only a moment before he excused himself. Only Maki could catch the change in his expression but she ultimately decided not to pry. Kei will tell her in time, just like how she'll tell him her secrets when the time comes.

"How was your trip?" Reifu decided to ask to fill with idle conversation.

"It was fun, at the very least. The others helped us with the lyrics, music and costumes." Maki shared as she idly played with her hair.

"I hope nothing bad happened in your camp." Heiji said.

"Actually, Rin and Nico-chan fell into the river from a cliff." Maki said and the others exchanged worried looks. "Don't worry. They were fine. You saw them earlier."

"Even so, I'm glad they aren't hurt." Reifu said. "Rin doesn't get too injured when you think about it. She probably has the best luck out of all of us." He looked at Shun as he said this.

"Yeah, she does! But she drained all the luck out of me!" Shun said with a huff. "I'm always the one that gets hurt in the end."

It was at that time that Kei entered.

"Who was it?" Maki asked, looking at her best friend.

"It was father. He wanted to know how mom was doing."

"He still hasn't returned home?"

Kei shook his head. "Father apparently had an extended business trip. When I told him that mom came back, he wanted to ditch everything and go home… but he couldn't."

"Anyhow! What were you guys talking about?" The red haired male redirected the conversation so they would stop.

"Just reminiscing about the times when we were kids." Reifu replied. "Hm, that reminds me." He then looked at Maki and Kei. "You two are childhood friends right?"

Maki nodded. "That's right."

"Then what was it like?"

"Oh, Kei before was different." Maki started and Kei remained silent. "When I met him in the hospital, he was silent, cynical and pessimistic. Surprisingly so for a kid."

"It actually took me around five months to be all chipper and happy." Kei continued, an oddly blank look on his face. He was staring at nothing, like it was some sort of traumatizing event in his life. While it is traumatizing in a way, it was still odd how he claims that he has gotten over it and yet here he is, staring at a wall. "And another four months to get out of the hospital."

There was a stunning silence, no one would speak. Maki sighed. "But anyway, after the whole hospital ordeal, we continued playing with each other, talking with each other and such. Our houses were pretty close to each other so we often visit each other."

The blank look on Kei's face disappeared and was changed to a more happy one. "I used to sleep over there too!" The quick change of demeanor was quite shocking but they ruled it out as his weird and eccentric behavior. "That's why Maki-chan's parents know me so well~"

Maki nodded. "I slept over at his place too."

"So you two never went to school together?" Reifu asked.

Kei shook his head. "Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, no."

"What do you mean by that Kei?" Shun asked. If anything, he would consider it lucky to actually be classmates or even schoolmates with her. Then again, that just might be his love for her talking.

"Maki restricts a lot of things I do, especially when I was a kid. Couldn't relax with her around." Kei admitted but Maki didn't react. It seems she knew about it as well and just didn't care enough to call him out on it. "So when I'm in school, I get to kick back and relax and do whatever I want."

"As for me, I didn't want to be burdened with looking out for him twenty-four-seven.." Maki said with a sigh. Sure she had to look after him and she kind of enjoys it but it is tiring. "And he does know what's good and what's not for him so I think he can take care of himself perfectly fine. Besides, if I had to look at his face for any longer than a whole day I might go crazy."

"I think our parents are psychic or something 'cause they didn't put us in the same school together." Kei said with a shrug. He honestly had nothing to do with that. He had only been a kid back then, untrained in the arts of persuasion.

"Interesting." Reifu said with a nod. "You two never fell in love with each other?"

"I'd rather give up tomatoes than date him."

"I'd rather die first than date this girl."

The quick and negative response took the two by surprise. "But I thought you two liked each other." Reifu questioned. "Not like in a romantic way but you know…"

Kei leaned back on the chair, slouching on it. "I mean, yeah, I like Maki… but dating her? I'm not too keen on the idea."

Maki nodded in agreement. "He's fun to be with and all, and he's been with me ever since we were kids… but I just can't see myself entering a romantic relationship with him."

"It disgusts me for some reason." They said both at the same time.

Reifu nodded his head. "It's weird, but if that's what you guys say then I suppose it's the truth."

Kei grinned. "How about you Reifu, Shun? Didn't you fall in love with Koizumi-san or Hoshizora-san?"

Reifu shook his head and replied, "I'm not exactly looking for a love interest back then."

Shun, on the other hand, rubbed the back of his head. "I kind of had a crush on Hanayo-chan when we were kids. I still admire her up to now to be honest." He looked quickly at Maki would had no visible reactions. "But it's only a friendly kind of admiration."

"Well to be honest, Hanayo is a charming person." Maki said and everyone turned to her as she shared what she had to say. "She's cute, knows how to cook and overall pretty mellow."

Kei chuckled. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have a crush on Koizumi-san. "

"If you got to know her better, I know you'll agree." Maki pointed out as she crossed her arms.

"From what I have seen so far, I know what you mean." The red haired male replied with a nod.

"Should you even be saying that even if you have a girlfriend already?" Reifu asked, looking at the school student council president.

Kei shrugged. "Eri-senpai hasn't really gotten angry when I say things like this. I think she understands me well. How about Toujou-senpai?"

"I think Nozomi is just acting all jealous, but it's all fine." Reifu said with a shrug. He then looked at Shun. "So how are you and Nishikino-san?"

Shun's face immediately turned red and Maki looked away. "R-R-Rei! What the hell man!" It was met by a boisterous laughter from Kei.

Kei started patting Maki's back while saying, "Yeah, yeah, you never told me what happened next."

Maki leaned back and swatted Kei's hand away which was met with more laughing. Her cheeks were as red as her hair. "Shut up Kei!"

Ichigo, who had been listening while cleaning, commented, "Oh so Maki-chan has a boyfriend?"

"A suitor to be exact." Reifu replied to which Shun covered his face with his arm in a vain attempt to cover and hide his embarrassment.

"Oh? Good luck kid. That's a Nishikino you know. Top class." Ichigo crossed his arms with with a grin on his face.

"Only child to boot." Kei mused as he leaned back on the chair.

"Doesn't look all that interested either." Reifu continued as if to rub salt on an open wound.

"Jee, thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Anyway, things are getting pretty awkward, talking about this while both subjects are present." Kei said, gesturing to Maki and Shun.

Maki stood up. "I'm going back home. Whatever little rest I had before this has burned out." Ichigo gave her the hard drive with the song in it. Earning a quick 'thank you' from Maki, Ichigo then headed inside the studio to clean up.

Kei stood up. "You want me to-"

"No thanks." Maki shook her head and waved him off. "I'll be fine."

"You just said you don't have much energy." Kei said, oddly worried this time around.

"I can take care of myself." The red haired girl said passively with a shrug and then placed the hard drive in her bag and shouldered it.

"I'll walk you home though." Shun offered and quickly packed his bag.

"I can…" She stopped and then sighed. "Fine, you won't listen to me anyway." She already headed outside but she could really feel Kei's snicker from behind her. Shun quickly stumbled towards her. "I think I would be the one to walk you home."

Shun smiled bashfully. "Sorry." He then straightened his posture and then began walking with her.

Kei and Reifu looked at each other, the former having a big grin on his face. "Improvement?" The blue haired male asked.

"I would think so. Maki's really warming up to him." Kei said with an approving nod. "Hey, did you know, that if someone confesses to you, you slowly start to actually have feelings for him even if you originally did not. It's mostly because you notice them more." He shared. "Ever heard of that before?"

"No." He replied. "But I guess it does make sense. You think that's what's happening with Maki to Shun?"

"Kind of." Kei shrugged before standing up. "But Maki probably has feelings for him too. Somehow."

"How are you so sure?" The other male asked as he stood up as well.

"Well, when you grew up with someone, it becomes easier to spot things." Kei grinned at his friend. "Trust me, Maki knows a lot of things about me."

Reifu shrugged, "I guess that is true." He then looked over to Ichigo who had just exited the studio. "Until next time Amatsuki-san."

"Bye Ichigo-san!"

"Stay safe kids." Ichigo waved back at them as they left the studio.

Kei yawned rather loudly as they walked down the near empty road. It was still afternoon so it was odd that no one else was there. But oh well. "I'm heading straight home and collapse on my bed. You Reifu?"

"Probably continue the chapter I was working on." He replied. "The release is expected around next week I think? I'd have to finish it by then."

Kei nodded in understanding. "I see. I assume you're halfway done by now?"

"Something like that."

His passive answer made Kei think he wasn't really telling the truth. Then again, Reifu wasn't known for lying. "Cool."

"I still think you should put ghosts and monsters into that manga of yours."

A/N: DEAR NEPTUNE, THIS TOOK LONGER THAN EXPECTED. Forgive me for the caps and for the extremely long time this took. Remember when I said I moved schools? Did I say that? Anyway, that happened and well… readjusting wasn't as easy as I originally thought. I am truly sorry and will be rewatching the whole series (or select episodes) of LL to get my brain working again. It's Christmas break after all.