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I had just finished playing the song I chose for my practical exam. I felt a wave of relief when my song finished and my classmates clapped for me.
“That was great Akamatsu-chan!” said Tenko.
“You never fail to amaze me!” said Kaito.
“It really was something else.” said Shuichi.
“You still sure you aren’t gonna go on tour?” asked Kokichi.
“That was AMAZING!” said Kiibo.
My smile widened with every kind word. Soon lunch time came and I told everyone that I would eat alone in my lab.
‘Amazing.’ I thought to myself. I haven’t heard that in a while, at least, not from someone my age. I took the lid prop out and set the lid of the piano down flat. I then laid a pink picnic blanket on it and climbed on, taking out my lunch to eat, thinking back to elementary school.
Back then this blanket was used for more people than myself. I always wanted to eat outside like the other kids but didn’t want to get my outfits dirty, even if only a little, so I got that blanket and waited for my fellow students to come and ask me a million questions.
“How was your day?” the kids asked.
“Are you gonna play at another concert?” some others would ask.
“Teach me how to play! Teach me! Teach me! Teach me!” a few others asked.
It was nice back then. It was even nicer before, back when my sister ate with me.
Oh right, I forgot to mention, I have a twin sister. We were as close as you’d expect; I even got her to play piano with me. We had a lot of fun together, even if she had trouble with the harder notes. I remember our teacher had her stay back a little longer. She always looked grumpier after talking with him. Eventually though, she quit and began sitting with another girl from the states. I don’t know why.
Things really changed when I got into middle school. That was where I got my nickname; the “piano freak”.
This was when people stopped asking me questions about my talent. I would say that I played piano and they just said “cool” before moving onto another topic, one that I likely didn’t understand. I tried to converse with them, but I couldn’t help but talk about some kind of piano song or about one of the concerts that I’ve been to. Eventually people just stopped talking to me. I tried to follow what was popular, like my sister did, but I just couldn’t focus on that long enough for it to be effective.
Speaking of her, me and my sister only got further apart. She started to dress in like a gyaru around this time. A lot of the kids at school talked to her because of how much she stood out and she was actually able to talk with them, while I was left alone. I tried to talk with her while she was surrounded by one of her smaller crowds, but when I did I heard one guy say, “I can’t believe that THING is your sister.”
I stopped having lunch in the classroom after that. I would always go up to the roof and eat on my blanket. I also began drowning myself in my piano work. I booked up my schedule with my practice and performed at as many concerts as I could. I didn’t even notice the arguments my parents had with my sister every day about her new look. It was definitely news to me when she decided to move in with our aunt. I remember everyone in our class coming over to say goodbye to her after school. I always wondered if they would do the same thing for me if I was the one leaving. And why my sister left. Sometimes I wonder if there was something I could have done, something I could have said, to make her stay. It doesn't matter now though.
I stayed at my old school for about a month before I was discovered and I became the ultimate pianist. It’s much nicer here than before. Since everyone values talent, everyone is interested in me and I’ll always have an opportunity to perform. I’m even allowed to just play piano all day if I want to. Not too much though, I wouldn’t want my friends to think I’m antisocial; I could lose my class rep position if I did that. It feels great being in such a position; these people need me, or at least, they feel like they do. The position isn’t anything too special; most of the time all I have to do is get everyone to bow and be seated. Whenever something big comes up, Kokichi is the one to take charge of it. I guess that ultimate supreme leader talent has some merit to it after all. I wonder if the class realizes it. Probably not. After all, they didn’t choose him; the school chose him so he could have extra practice. I feel kinda guilty about that actually. I should do something for him later.
Maybe I should have lunch with him some time. I always eat lunch here, so I don’t see how everyone else eats, but I bet Kokichi sits alone too. After all, not a lot of people in this class like him much so having someone to hang out with would probably be nice for him.
With that I’m finished with my lunch. I put everything away in my bag and head back to class with a smile on my face.