Vocaloid: SHADOWS IN THE SPOTLIGHT [Miku X Luka]

Pretty Like You - #23

A/N: strong language, girl x girl ship, trigger warning, blah blah blah... I've put the same message here for 22 chapters now, I think you get the point.

Miku's PoV

Even though Mikuo seemed so calm and collected, I could sense how angry he was when I told him what had happened. From the way he clenched his fists as he walked away, this just proves me right.

As of now, I'm sitting silently on the sofa, staring distantly into the steaming mug of hot chocolate Luka had made me. The treat is usually irresistible, but right now, I'm not in the mood. And plus, the drink is still boiling hot, all I'll achieve is a burnt tongue.

I can't stop myself from endlessly worrying. Me and Mikuo grew up to be really close. I look up to him, and I know he thinks the world of me. He knows he was always dads favourite, and he knows how I was treated as second, or even third class.

"If anyone ever does anything to you, you be sure to tell me. I'll always protect you." I remember him speaking those words to me when we were younger, hugging me tightly.

Silence. "...I promised him." I whisper into the quiet room. "I promised to tell him when I was hurt... and I didn't. Look at me now." A forced, breathless laugh escapes my lips, and a lone, silent tear rolls down my left cheek and drops into the chocolatey drink, causing the substance to ripple.

But now that Mikuo knows, I can't block out the reality of my situation anymore. For the past couple of days, I've been pretending that everything will blow over by itself. For the past couple of days, I refused to believe that anyone else had to get involved. For the past couple of days, I've been lying to myself.

The reality is that I can't keep pretending. I know I'll have to face my dad again, and possibly my mum as well. I know that I'll have to turn to the police before the cuts and bruises heal. I know I can't avoid it, despite pretending that this was all just a last resort, instead of an only option.

If it were up to me, I'd just hide. I would hide from all this responsibility, hide from all this hurt. But now, I don't seem to be in charge... if I ever was in charge in the first place, that is.

It's Sunday, also known as pre-Monday, also known as 'shit, school starts again tomorrow', and I'm absolutely dreading it. I can already vision what tomorrow will be like - students will point out my bruises and scars and will ask what happened. If I don't respond, they will start laughing and make up their own reasons, and then proceed to spread this false information as rumours.

I've not yet forgotten the situation with Rin, and my old friends. I can't discard the fact that they will obviously take advantage of this. They want to get back at me for betraying them, and I've just given them the perfect opportunity to do just that.

By now the hot chocolate is swiftly cooling down. "What am I supposed to do?" I ask myself with a sigh, taking a sip of the drink. The chocolate seems too bitter, and by now the drink has cooled too much.

Just then, the front door swings open, and Luka rushes into the apartment. Surprised, I flinch, spilling a few drops of hot chocolate on my jeans. A long sigh escapes my lips and I place the mug down on the coffee table, eyeing the stain.

Luka takes off her coat and tosses it onto the coat rack. By now, I can't remember why she went out in the first place, but I'm sure it doesn't really matter. She looks at me briefly, before turning her attention to the full mug.

"Didn't you want that?" She asks me gently, fumbling around with her boots. I bite my lip, glancing once again at the hot - or, in this case, cooled chocolate.

"Well... I was a little lost in thought and I may have forgot about it..." I tell her quickly, chuckling nervously to myself. "We have school tomorrow, right? I'm really not looking forward to it... what am I supposed to say if anyone notices and points out my injuries?"

Luka moves her boots tidily next to the front door, before striding into the living room and taking the mug into the kitchen. "If I were you, I wouldn't say anything at all. It simply isn't worth it, trust me." She advises.

"I really don't think that's a good idea." I argue, narrowing my eyes and fiddling with a strand of teal hair nervously. "If I don't say anything, they'll start making up their own facts and start spreading rumours throughout the school. Rumours spread quickly, you know."

Luka turns to me, a flash of anger in her deep blue eyes. "You think I don't know that?" She snaps, her raised voice causing me to flinch. She turns her attention back to the dishes as she continues to speak. "Rumours are like wildfires at school. I've had so many rumours spread about me - some true, like the fact my mother committed... and some false, like... I don't know, the stupid things. Some people have called me a slut, some people have said I've had breast implants... I'm pretty sure someone also once said I was involved in compensated dating. None of that's true... people took advantage of the way I looked to ruin my reputation. It's upsetting. I don't like how I look, and they just..." Her voice trails away. "Sorry. I'll stop ranting. Just tell them it's none of their business." I can tell she's upset from the tone of her voice, and I can feel my heart ache for her.

"You're really pretty, Luka. Anyone would be jealous of your looks. It sounds to me like they're just jealous, honestly..." Luka looks up from the dishes and turns around to look at me. She looks surprised, like she's never thought of this alternate option before.

"Th-Thanks..." She stutters, unintentionally tripping over her words. "But... I really doubt... there are so many girls at school that look pretty and I'm just not one of them. Take you for example, you're pretty. The popular girls are all pretty. The people that called me 'ugly' for so many years, they're all pretty."

I shake my head. "They might be pretty on the outside, but are they really a beautiful person on the inside if they say such horrible things to you? No. They aren't. You are pretty, inside and out. Not them, you."

And only you. I finish the sentence off in my head. Luka smiles a small, sad smile at me. "Thank you..." she mutters, before turning away again.

A/N: I hope everyone had a very merry Christmas, and a brilliant start to 2018! There has been some crap going down on the internet the past couple of days... but despite that, may 2018 be a great year. Thank you for reading this chapter, and I'll see you all in the next one!