Work Text:
Kanade’s eyes adjusted to the slowly shifting light as the sun set outside her window. It was always dim in the room due to curtains covering the glass, but a few rays of light usually managed to sneak past them. That changed at night when the lamp posts lacked the raw ferocity of the sun.
The only source of light in the evening emanated directly from Kanade’s computer monitors, washing over her pale face as she worked on her next song. The steady click of her mouse filled the room, accompanied by a more frantic rhythm from the keyboard. Her synthesizer, silent without her headphones on, sat next to her on the table.
Kanade couldn’t see the moon or stars, nor did she want to. Even passing cars were out of sight and hearing range as they drove by her apartment building. She could’ve turned the light on, the switch was only a few steps away on the other side of the room, but she didn’t.
How many nights had Kanade spent just like this? She asked herself the question as she saved her file, making sure that she wouldn’t lose the most recent edits. How many nights had she, as the world grew lethargic outside her door, worked alone at her computer, tapping away at a fresh attempt to save others. She knew it was too many to count.
Ever since her father was hospitalized, so many years ago, this had been her routine. There wasn’t a soul in the house besides her, no one to force her to eat more meals or pressure her to sleep as the night eased back towards the day.
Sure, some nights Mochizuki-san came to clean the apartment and cook for her. That was only once a week, and even when it happened she always left after dinner. When Kanade went to visit her father, she was always home before sundown.
Most nights were like this. With each passing evening she wrote music to save others, searching and searching on her own for the right tune. Each night turned into day, passing before her eyes in uninterrupted silence, in continued darkness until the inevitable sunrise.
It had been quiet that day too, when Kanade first exchanged messages with someone who went by ‘Yuki’ online. Her routine had changed since then, if only slightly.
A loud beep, low in tone but strong in its presence, tore through the silence. What would’ve once been an irritating interruption now brought a half smile to Kanade’s lips and a trill of warmth to her chest. A small red icon appeared on her Nightcord application, counting up to two as another beep sounded.
With a single click, the Nightcord interface popped up onto the screen. Kanade was already in the right server, the only one she was really active in. The side bar showed all four members online, with small green dots indicating their presence.
Two incoming messages adorned the bottom of the box, both sent by Ena. The first read, “K, have you had a chance to try that new instant ramen brand? I like the shoyu flavor best!” It was followed by a second message consisting of a cat emoji with large hearts for eyes. The group had talked about getting some a few days back; Ena must’ve really liked it if she was bringing it up again.
Kanade typed her response swiftly, keyboard clacking against her fingers, before hitting send. She said, “I bought a few to try, but haven’t had a chance yet.” She remembered the carefully stacked mountain of noodles in the cupboard and the fact that she hadn’t eaten anything yet tonight. “Maybe in a bit if I get hungry.”
In an instant two of the others were already replying. Their usernames were visible along the bottom as they typed along with three moving dots. There as a rising feeling that came with watching those dots, a part of waiting for her friends to respond. The anticipation welled up within Kanade in those moments, along with the thrum of her heart under her skin that pulled her to watch and wait. It held her in place like the melody of a song would, on that single Nightcord window.
“It’s bad for your stomach to eat too late.” Mafuyu’s reply was dry and flat, as was typical for her.
Mizuki’s came half a second later. “Which is the worst new flavor Enanan???”
“Of course you would ask that…” Ena snapped back with an angry faced emoji on the end, one she had drawn herself, and Kanade imagined the way she’d roll her eyes. The thought brought a chuckle to her lips.
However, that didn’t stop Kanade from intervening. “Now now, no need to fight.” She had developed some pretty good emoji skills, at least she thought she had, and added one with a big smile and sweat drop after her message.
The conversation continued from there, flowing smoothly from the topic of instant ramen to clothes, and then to music. Kanade mostly read the chat, contributing occasionally with a comment.
She resumed working on her song as they messaged, alternating between the two programs. Later, at the usual time, she joined the voice chat. Only a few words were exchanged before the group muted themselves, resuming their individual tasks.
While they were muted like this it was quiet once again, with only Kanade’s song in progress playing from her headset. The room was dark and silent around her, with the stars still hidden away, but it was different than before.
Even though she worked alone, and was the only person in her apartment, Kanade could feel the others’ presence. Through their messages, their words, and their music, they were there.
In the darkness, she could almost envision them beside her. She could picture Mafuyu writing her lyrics, Mizuki watching back a clip for the fifth time, and Ena drawing with large strokes of her pencil. They were doing those things right now, working as a group on the other end of the Nightcord call. They might have been apart, scattered around Tokyo, but they were also together.
Sometime during the evening, a comfortable warmth had settled in her chest, nestling itself somewhere near her heart. It lifted her up as she worked on the song, intertwining it with the notes, and as she continued to reply to the others.
Kanade had spent many nights like this too, and she cherished every single one of them.
The whole group worked for a couple more hours, before some started to sign off. Mafuyu was first, since she had a committee to attend before school. Ena followed shortly after, complaining of yawning too much. Both of their icons flipped to grey circles as they hung up.
“K, don’t forget to get some rest tonight.” Was Mizuki’s final message later, before they logged off as well.
“See you tomorrow.” Kanade replied, watching as the last icon changed to offline.
She glanced at the clock, which showed a time of 3:30 in the morning.
After saving her file once again, her mouse hovered over the power button. She was kind of hungry now, she thought. Maybe it was a good time for that instant ramen. She could feel her eyes drooping too; eating would give her enough energy to work through the night.
Kanade hesitated as she remembered the chat from earlier, the words exchanged over many hours, and instead clicked to turn the machine off. The monitors faded as they shut down, leaving only the light of Kanade’s phone to guide her way. It was enough to reach her bed.
Tomorrow another day would come, followed by another night like this one. Kanade would sit alone in her apartment and log in to Nightcord once again, together with her friends.