Chapter Text
Toya Aoyagi was a useless child. No matter how many hours he spent toiling away practicing the piano at his father’s demand, he could never seem to play the notes right. Even though his father and his brothers were blessed with such unbelievable talent as to play and learn astonishingly beautiful melodies with ease, he was not blessed with even a drop of such talent. All he could do was awkwardly hammer away at the keys, uncoordinated fingers struggling to keep up with what his father described as the simplest of songs.
And yet, Toya was not a quitter. He would play until his fingers ached, until he was so tired and frustrated that hot tears would stream down his face, and yet he still would not give up. This was necessary to become like his father, he told himself. He had to do it. And so, it didn’t matter that his father forced him, because these were the necessary steps to become like him anyway. If his father would not around to force him to try again and again until he was a blubbering mess who barely tell the keys apart through his tears, then the lazy, worthless Toya would never accomplish anything at all. It was necessary. It was better this way.
Such was the basis of Toya Aoyagi’s dreary world.
But then, there was light. Frustrated with his son’s constant disappointments, Harumichi Aoyagi decided to temporarily outsource his music education. Perhaps someone who taught music instead of performing it for a living could get the basics through Toya’s thick skull. And so, Toya was invited into the house of Mrs. Tenma, a prolific piano teacher in the neighborhood. Sat in front of an unfamiliar piano in an unfamiliar room, he began his lessons anew, feeling simultaneously invigorated at the change of pace and mortified that he had disappointed his father so severely. Both feelings spurred him to do his very best at his first song, in order to take advantage of the opportunity and prove himself worthy once again!
Oh no. That was supposed to be a C, not an E...as soon as he hit a wrong note, he winced in despair. Even though he had been made to practice so many times, he still couldn’t leave a good first impression on his new teacher…
He hurriedly flipped the sheet music in front of him back to the other side and tried again. This time, surely…
He hit the C, but completely shut down as soon as he did. What was supposed to come after that part again? He nervously glanced over the sheet music, trying to memorize the following measures as fast as possible...and messing up who knew how many notes in the process! His tempo has been completely ruined, and it sounded so disharmonious and awful...he would definitely have to start from scratch again...already feeling grief bubble up inside him, he finished playing and immediately reached for the keys to start over once again...but Mrs. Tenma stopped him, laying a hand on top of his gently.
“My, that was very good, Toya!” she smiled, for some odd reason deciding to praise him when he had just failed so spectacularly.
“But…” he muttered, “I didn’t remember the rest of the song and got lots of notes wrong...I need to retry it and get it right this time…”
“Oh, but that means you aren’t confident with it yet, right? Here, let’s learn those together! Watch me first, and then we can try it together, okay?” Mrs. Tenma’s hands shooed his off the keys, and proceeded to play the rest of the song slowly, demonstrating for Toya how the song should be played.
Toya quickly realized that learning music with Mrs. Tenma was...very different from learning with his father. Unlike the gloomy cold greyness that painted his lessons at home, Mrs. Tenma shone with a faint warm light. She was kind, gentle, and patient. When he failed to get a song right too many times, instead of playing it over and over until he got it right, she encouraged him to take a break. The woman wouldn’t let him even attempt to play if he showed signs of his fingers getting sore. Thanks to her gentle teaching style, Toya was finally starting to improve! He felt more confident as he played, his fingers finally cooperating as began to play more and more complex pieces.
Mrs. Tenma seemed very impressed as well, praising him at every opportunity. One day, after a very successful lesson, she reflected on just how far he’d come. “You’re doing amazing, Toya,” she told him, “you’ve gotten so much better in only a few weeks! Why, at this rate, you’ll be ready to start learning with your father again any day now! Isn’t that exciting?”
As soon as she said that, Toya’s chest tightened. Back with his father, any day now...that was a good thing, wasn’t it? He would finally be up to his father’s standards, able to learn piano not like a hobbyist or a novice, but as a true classical professional. Only then could he be able to reach his father’s level, and that was of course what he wanted, right? So why was he filled with so much dread to return to his father’s strict teaching style, the very style that would allow him to match the astounding musicians in his family and catch up to his brothers?
He didn’t know.
He didn’t know, but it hurt. His days quickly grew darker. Soon, very soon now, he would be expected once again to toil away for hours on end if he couldn’t learn something fast enough...just like before…
Toya dragged his feet as he entered the Tenma house. 2 weeks, his father had said. Only 2 weeks until he was back under his tutelage. He should be happy. Now he can finally get started on real classical lessons. And yet, the fear of future failure and its consequences hung heavier around his small neck with every passing day. As he trudged his way to the Tenmas’ piano, he hardly noticed the boy already sat at it, playing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star with deep concentration. And so, when he did make it to the bench and instinctively sat down, he flinched when he saw the boy beside him.
“Oh...um...I’m sorry...I...I thought Mrs. Tenma would be here already…” he muttered, his head down in shame.
“Hahaha! It’s no problem at all!” The boy laughed and gently tapped his shoulder. “You were so enticed by my playing that you couldn’t help but come listen, right!? I have a new fan already! I’m becoming a star even faster than I thought!”
This boy...Tsukasa Tenma...only one year his senior, and yet so full of energy and life (and well, volume) that Toya could hardly keep up any time they played together after his lessons. He always said he wanted to be a star, and unlike Toya, it seemed he didn’t have any reservations about what he’d need to do to reach that goal. Even with his little sister being as sickly as she was, his resolve never wavered. Compared to him, Toya was...pitiful, wasn’t he?
In the end, a weak “Um…” was the only response Toya could muster.
“Haha, it’s okay, though, really! Mom had some errands to do in town, so she’s going to be a little late...” Tsukasa turned to the boy next to him and smiled. “Hey, Toya, how about we play something together until Mom gets ready? I’m sure I could learn a lot from someone as talented as you!”
Toya blinked. “...talented?” Someone like him was the exact opposite of talented. He had no innate skill, low motivation, and even now didn’t want to accept the responsibilities needed to become a classical musician. Compared to his father, his brothers, even Tsukasa...he was nothing…
His shoulders slumped as he looked to the floor. “I’m...not talented at all…”
“Huh?” Tsukasa watched the younger boy nervously. “Do you really feel that way?”
Toya simply shuddered, warm tears beginning to form at the edges of his eyes.
“Hey, Toya!” Tsukasa exclaimed, suddenly perked up. “Check out my fainting goat impression!”
“Wh-what?” Toya looked up, only to see the older boy go rigid and collapse to the floor with a thud. “Huh? A-Are you okay!?” He quickly dropped to his knees at Tsukasa’s side.
As soon as he did, however, the boy hopped to his feet with a flourish. “Never fear! A future star knows how to handle such stunts with ease! Look, look, I’ve been learning how to do a handstand, too!” Eagerly, Tsukasa tried to get into position, but just as he did, he quickly wobbled and toppled over. “W-Well, a future star also never lets a failure bother him! This too is a learning experience!” he declared, his face turning red in embarrassment. “Toya! What other...um, easier tricks do you want to see!? I’ve been learning a bunch to entertain Saki!”
“Oh...um...h-how about you decide…? I’m sure a future star would know which tricks are the most interesting better than I would…” Toya sheepishly replied. Honestly, Tsukasa was a bit of a clown, wasn’t he? And yet, watching him strike his silly poses like this...it almost seemed like the weight of his father’s expectations was melting away...and, although he hadn’t noticed at the time, he would one day be certain his lips had curled into a smile.
After all, Tsukasa was nothing like Toya. He was strong, determined, and unbelievably talented. Everything Toya only wished he could be. And yet, he didn’t feel a single pinch of jealousy. All he felt was...awe. Tsukasa wasn’t wrong in the slightest. He really was a shining star, and the brightest, warmest light in the young Toya’s sad life.
Yes, Tsukasa Tenma was the Sun. And Toya Aoyagi, the palest of moons, could only reflect a sliver of his light.