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The venue was bustling with guests. Jirou peeked from behind the curtain and her nerves only grew worse. She had performed many times before, but tonight was different. She had invited her closest friends to watch her perform because she was debuting a new song. It was a love song; a love song she wrote about Momo. Jirou had been crushing on Momo for quite some time, and the only way she knew how to portray her feelings was through song.
As she glimpsed around the venue, she spotted Kaminari, Mina, Kirishima and Momo near the back. Her heart began to pound because Momo looked ethereal under the lights of the venue. Her hair was down and she wore a yellow and white floral dress that hugged her figure perfectly. Jirou had been preparing for this performance for weeks, but fear began to cloud her mind. What if she forgot the words? What if she played the wrong chords? What if a meteor crashed into the venue before she could begin her song?
Jirou closed the curtain and quickly ran to her dressing room to check her appearance once more. She was sporting a dark purple shirt that fell off her right shoulder, ripped black jeans, and her Doc Martens. She loved her outfit earlier, but now, she wanted to rip it off and change. She heard the sound of someone tapping the mic and knew that it was time to go on.
“Hello everyone! Welcome to ‘The Apollo’! We’re so glad you could make it tonight. We have a very special performance for you all! I’m sure many of you have seen this performer before, but tonight, she will be debuting a new song! Everyone give it up for Kyoka Jiro!”
The audience began to clap and Jirou took a deep breath before making her way to the stage. She opened the curtain and waved to everyone in the audience. Quite a few people had come out to see her and that made Jirou excited and also terrified. The applause began to die down and Jirou took a seat on the stool that was set up for her. She spotted her 4 friends waving to her and Momo was smiling brightly. Jirou’s heart skipped a few beats.
“Thank you for coming out tonight! I’m so glad you could all make it. Tonight, I’ll be debuting my new song. It’s quite different from anything I’ve put out before, so I hope you guys will bear with me.”
The audience chuckled while she adjusted the guitar strap around her shoulder.
“This song is pretty personal to me. I feel like it can speak for itself, so without further ado, here it is. It’s called ‘She’”.
Jirou took one more deep breath before she began strumming the guitar. The first few chords came out right and Jirou was relieved that her prediction of forgetting the chords wasn't coming true.
Am I allowed to look at her like that
Could it be wrong when she's just so nice to look at
And she smells like lemongrass and sleep
She tastes like apple juice and peach
Oh, you would find her in a polaroid picture
And she means everything to me
Jirou took a quick look up and the audience was entranced. She was glad they were enjoying the more soothing sounds of her acoustic guitar rather than her usual electric guitar. She mainly played rock music, so this was very much out of her comfort zone. Momo was someone worth stepping out of her comfort zone for.
I'd never tell
No I'd never say a word
And oh it aches
But it feels oddly good to hurt
Jirou realized that she liked Momo a few months ago. The two of them went to the park one afternoon together. Momo spotted a water fountain in the center of the park and walked over to it.
“I want to make a wish!”
She pulled out her wallet and grabbed a penny.
“What are you going to wish for, Momo?”
Momo looked to Jirou and giggled.
“It won’t come true if I tell you!”
“Okay okay, keep your secrets then.”
Momo turned towards the fountain and she closed her eyes, shifting into deep concentration. Jirou stared at Momo and couldn’t stop from admiring her beauty. When she was just standing there, Momo looked like an angel. Her skin was pristine and she glowed under the beaming sun. Jirou knew she liked her more than a friend. There was no heterosexual explanation for the way she stared at Momo whenever she was doing a mundane task such as prepping food for dinner in the dormitory. At that moment, Jirou wanted to reach over and kiss Momo like there wasn’t anyone else watching.
And I'll be okay
Admiring from afar
Cause even when she's next to me
We could not be more far apart
Cause she tastes like birthday cake, and story time, and fall
But to her I taste of nothing at all
Jirou hoped this song would reach Momo’s heart and Momo would finally know how Jirou felt about her without Jirou having to say the words herself.
She tastes like apple juice and peach
You would find her in a polaroid picture
And she means everything to me
Yes she means everything to me
The last few chords drifted throughout the room and everyone fell silent before breaking out into applause. Jirou looked up and the audience was giving her a standing ovation. She heard whooping coming from the back of the venue that sounded like a mix of Kaminari and Kirishima. Jirou stood up and took a quick bow.
Jirou went on to finish the rest of her set. She wanted to stay in her imaginary world for a bit longer, but she knew as soon as she was done that she would have to face Momo.
Jirou went to her fitting room to change into a comfier outfit before going out the venue floor where most of the crowd had already left. She made her way to the back of the venue where her four classmates were waiting for her. Kaminari and Mina came running at her and enveloped her in a hug.
“Jirou! You were amazing!”
Jirou looked up and Momo was smiling widely at her. Jirou broke out of the grip Kaminari and Mina had on her and went to hug Momo. Mina mentioned how Jirou’s new song brought her to tears. Jirou was filled with joy that everyone liked it so much.
Kaminari, Mina and Kirishima headed to the bar to grab some water, leaving Momo and Jirou alone. The two girls stood near an old jukebox that had been part of the music venue since it opened.
“Did you like the new song, Momo?”
“Yes! I thought it was wonderful! I’m sure whoever you wrote that song for will love it!”
Jirou’s expression fell. It felt like the world around her was slowly crumbling.
Before Jirou could tell Momo the truth, Mina came over with drinks for the two girls.
“Let’s do a toast!”
Jirou grabbed the drink from Mina and the boys came over to meet them. They all raised their glasses in the air.
“To Jirou: For putting on an incredible performance and making us believe love is out there!”
The five of them clinked their glasses together.
Jirou did her best to keep a smile on her face, but it was proving to be difficult. “But to her I taste of nothing at all” echoed in Jirou’s head over and over again. She didn’t know how to process this sudden heartache. She would be okay eventually, but for now, Jirou wished to disappear from the world for a while.