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......
"What?"
"The wound on your lip has healed. That’s what I said."
"Ah, alright..."
"..."
"Mafu-"
This is fine. This is absolutely fine.
He’s just got his first kiss. It’s fine. They were just sitting on a bench in the park and talking about stuff, and then, without his permission, she touched his lip. It’s fine. After that, she got closer to him. It’s fine. She kissed him, on the lips. It’s fine. She then left him without an apology. It’s fine.
The boy stares at the statue in front of him, trying to process what has just happened few minutes ago. His cheeks are still red. He still feels the coldness of her lips on his. That moment... is haunting him. It's still here. And it’s fine.
For many seconds, Akito doesn’t blink. Not that it’s something he cares. He’s just staring there, at the statue in the form of a woman carrying a vase, and the longer he stares, the longer he feels like the woman’s expressionless face looks similar. Like the face of-
Akito blinks twice before sighing and placing his hands on his face. This is fine, he shouldn’t make such a big deal out of this. She kissed him, so what? It’s not the end of the world. Not at all! He knows she’s not that good at expressing her emotions, so the kiss might be just a mistake.
But he does like her.
Wait, what?
The boy thinks again. He likes her. As a friend, of course. And maybe as more than a friend, too. No, definitely as more than a friend. How? Just by getting to know her better. Since that incident from three weeks ago, when she took care of him, they have been meeting for almost every day. And the more they would hang out together, the more he would start to admire her, leading to liking her.
Starting a boyfriend-girlfriend kind of relationship together wouldn’t be bad, right? It will be fine. Oh, who the fuck is Akito kidding? That girl didn’t do that gesture out of love. And what if the others will find out? Ena and An will tease him for months, so will Mizuki and Tsukasa at school. As if he doesn't deal with this shit every day.
Maybe he can talk with her about this. It will be fine. So, Akito takes his phone out of his pocket and takes a deep breath. Yes, this is the right thing to do: to call her and ask her what happened and why did she kiss him. But he doesn’t do that. He’s too scared. Akito thinks if he should close his phone or not, but eventually he leaves it open. Because there’s someone, or something, who can help him.
So, he presses the Untitled saved in his music gallery, entering the Street SEKAI, to ask for help, but then, he notices something. A glowing sphere of light. A fragment. An entrance to a new fragment SEKAI. Should he enter the SEKAI? Of course, why not? After all, he will be fine.
His first fragment SEKAI was just a lifeless desert, in which nothing would grow. This one, this new fragment SEKAI, isn’t really as empty as the other one but not that suitable for his liking either. It’s just a hall. A poorly illuminated hall of a manor, with a lot of purple. The walls are purple, the floor is purple, the marble columns… well, the marble columns are white, but otherwise, the entire hall is colored in many shades of purple.
On the walls lots of dark ivy leaves grow, on a corner lies a piano and some bookshelves are filled with thick books and silver figurines. From the ceiling some porcelain marionettes in dresses are hanging. The curtains are hiding the dark night behind the large windows. In the middle of the hall there are multiple objects on a small table: used tissues, now red from blood, bandages, plastic glasses, carton boxes and something else. A heart shaped jewel. Probably amethyst, from its intense purple.
Akito raises his head and walks towards a picture on the wall in front of him which caught his eye. It’s a big portrait, with elegant silver frames, picturing a young lady on a grey background. As he gets closer, his eyes widen and realization hits him like tons of bricks. Those physical traits of hers are way too familiar. The dark purple hair tied in a ponytail, that school uniform she’s wearing, those beautiful, dark and cold eyes of hers staring into his soul...
That’s why the room is decorated this way. That’s why there are so many objects on the table. But it's fine. These are just objects. Objects used by her. By Mafuyu.
"She looks very pretty, doesn’t she?"
Startled by that sudden voice, the boy turns around at that person who just replied behind him, then his face relaxes. "Ah, it’s you Miku. You scared the hell out of me."
He can always recognize the cyan ponytails of the virtual singer. This Hatsune Miku looks similar to the one from the Street SEKAI, only wearing a long, white and light purple dress and a shy smile on her face.
"Seems like you created with your feelings another fragment SEKAI, Akito! I have to say, it’s pretty, just like that girl in the picture. Who is she?"
"Ah, she is just..." Akito wants to lie, to say that she’s just a friend but, ironically speaking, what’s the point to hide his feelings in a place created by them? "She’s just someone I like."
"Like, how? How do you like her?" Miku asks him.
"As more than a friend." He sighs, now daring to look at the virtual singer, whose smile turns bigger.
"Ah, now I understand. You like this girl, but you don’t know how to tell her what you feel because of fear, reason why this SEKAI is based of her." The Vocaloid states.
"I need your help, Miku." The boy takes a seat on a chair in front of the table and then looks back at her. "I don’t know how exactly to share my feelings properly. I don’t want to tell her directly; it would sound stupid. But I really want to tell her as honest as it can sound. If she accepts them, then great! But first, I really want her to understand my feelings. What should I do?"
Miku places her hand under her chin and thinks for a little moment, before she exclaim. "Wait, I know!" And she walks towards the piano and grabs few music sheets above it, then waves the papers. "You can write a song, of course! There are many people who use songs to confess to their loved ones. I don’t see why you can’t do it, too."
"Are you sure? And where can I sing this song to her? I don’t even know when will we meet again."
The Vocaloid approaches and takes a seat next to the boy, with a confused look. "Don’t you usually sing on Vivid Street? I think that’s the perfect spot, and your partners can also help."
"That’s the thing. I don’t want anyone to find out. Not even them. They will start teasing me. Especially An."
"At some point, the truth will come out, Akito. You shouldn’t be afraid of their reaction, either good or bad. I’m sure they will support you and help you. As for the girl, you can just ask a friend of hers to bring her in the place where you will sing. Trust me, you can do it. It will be fine."
Akito takes the music sheets the virtual singer just gave him. Miku is right. The boy realizes that. He can write songs. He can create songs. He can sing. He can explain how he feels through songs. He can do it. It will be fine.
"Thank you, Miku. I really needed a good advice." Akito smiles and turns back at her, only to see her gone. She disappeared. And because this place is a fragment SEKAI, it will disappear soon. And with that, he just waits here, to be gone, while thinking for the best song for his feelings. This is fine.
"I’m home~!"
Akito doesn’t lift his head when Ena enters the kitchen and opens the fridge to take out some cup ramen. He’s too focused with creating the song. It’s been a week since he started working on it, but right now, no idea is good. They either sound too sweet, either too cringy.
"Aren’t you going to ask me where have I been?" His sister asks him with that annoying voice of hers as she puts some water to boil in a kettle.
"I’m busy. Go away." He responds harshly. “And you went shopping. I can see your bag left at the entrance.”
"You really don't care?"
"Nope."
"Ugh, you always have to ruin the fun!"
"Leave me alone, I said I’m busy."
"But I haven’t even told you everything that happened today!" Ena pouts, then she places her hands on her hips and grimaces. Akito still doesn’t look at her, until she starts talking again. "Are you sure you don’t want to find out how was my day with Mafuyu?"
Fuck.
Akito tries his best not to react, by trying to make himself look indiferent, but this is too shocking. Does Ena know about the situation? Yes, based on how she talks, his sister clearly knows. She found out.
"No, thank you, Ena, I’m not interested."
"You know, I heard a nice gossip from Mafuyu today, and I think it also involves you a little..."
And that’s the moment when Akito’s last drain of patience and calm is gone, so he snaps. "For fuck’s sake I know what happened, she kissed me! The girl I really like fucking kissed me, and I am really glad, but also stressed she did that because I didn’t have the chance to tell her how I feel, so I’m trying to do this now! Do you have any fucking idea how stressing this shit is?"
As the boy slams his face into the table, his older sister stares at the teenager in shock. "Jeez, no need to be that aggressive. I just wanted to tease you a little. Wait, what’s this?" And she picks up some of the papers with prototype lyrics for Akito’s song.
"They’re not good. I’m still trying to make up with-"
"Wow! Are you kidding me? These are so good!"
Akito can’t believe his ears. "You’re joking, right?"
"Not at all, these lyrics are actually genius. Like, look at these two: In order to love you, please make me understand you." Ena reads from the paper, then adds. "For a song about Mafuyu, this sounds incredible. It has a lot of potential."
Ena complimenting him is an incredibly rare situation. It barely happens, and when it happens, he always thinks it’s a joke. But this time, Akito thinks she’s being serious. He doesn’t want to know why; it’s not necessary. But her giving him a little support makes him feel better.
"Ena, can you help me with something?" he then suddenly asks her, and his sister raises her head from the papers.
"What is it? Are you asking me to help you meet my friend again?"
"Kinda. You don’t really have to do this if you don't want to, but listen. My next performance with the squad happens to be on a stage on the Vivid Street next week, and I want you to bring her there. That's all. Please, Ena. I really want her to know what I feel for her."
The girl doesn’t answer at first. She just drops the papers on the table, then with the kettle she slowly pours the freshly boiled water in the cup ramen.
"When exactly is the performance?"
"Next Friday. The hour isn’t settled yet."
"Then we'll be there." Ena answers as she grabs a pair of chopsticks from a drawer, then sits in front of him and starts eating. That was everything Akito wanted to hear. He whispers a small “Thank you” before continuing to write the lyrics for the song. Until now, the plan is fine. And it will continue to be fine.
"So? What do you think, guys?"
Toya and the rest of the group are analyzing the lyrics Akito wrote. He had spent the entire weekend writing them and thinking how will the song sound and now, at Weekend Garage, he just needs the other’s opinions, after he explained the whole situation he’s going through. An is the first one who shares her point of view.
"Well, this shows how lovesick Akito can be."
"Shut up!" He yells at her.
"What An-chan mean to say..." Kohane intervenes, "is that the song really shows strong feelings of love and affection."
"And how your feelings are really genuine." Toya adds.
"I still believe it’s a little too lovey-dovey for someone like Akito." An teases her partner again and sticks her tongue out, much to the boy’s annoyance.
"Shiraishi, please don’t do this. Everyone can suddenly like someone and show it in different ways." The blue haired boy tells her, crossing his arms.
An pouts a little, but eventually listens to him. "Fine... sorry Akito. Your song is actually good; I like it. But it’s so different from what we usually sing. I mean, sure, we have sung love covers before, but not one composed by us. And are you sure that you at least will able to transmit these emotions?"
"I don’t know, but it’s worth trying." Akito answers with a serious look, then takes the sheets with the song on it. "And that’s why I need your help, too. We need different vocals, an instrumental and maybe we can also add a choreography. We can sing this one right at the beginning. I just need to know if you agree. Please. It would mean a lot to me."
The other members exchange looks, then gaze back at their partner. An and Toya nod in agreement, and Kohane smiles. "You can count on us, Shinonome-kun! Everything will be fine."
Yes, it will be fine. Akito smiles, too. "Thanks. Now let’s get down to business. We have a lot to do."
It will be fine. They have practiced the entire week, after school. On Vivid Street, in Weekend Garage, or in the Street SEKAI, for hours. They eventually gave up on the dance, but focused more on the instrumental and the voices. Akito barely ate anything during those times, but he never really felt hungry. He just practiced, sometimes alone, in his room, even in the days when he would feel like shit. His sleep hours shortened. And every time he practiced at night, he could sometimes hear his sister chatting with her friends as usual. And Mafuyu is one of them. The girl he likes is Ena’s friend. And he composed a song for her.
And now, it is the perfect time to show what he did for her. The perfect time to confess his feelings to her. Through a song created by him, with the help of his group. Soon, they will get on the stage and sing. And Mafuyu and Ena will watch them. Or, are supposed to watch them.
"Lots of people have gathered by now." Kohane states, taking a peek at the people waiting in front of the stage.
"Are they out there in the crowd?"
"I don’t know. I can’t see Ena-san and Asahina-san anywhere. But I’m sure they will appear soon."
"Ah… And An and Toya? Where are they?"
"Aoyagi-kun told me he had to go to the bathroom first, and An-chan is adjusting her accessories."
Akito glances from the backstage. Kohane said she couldn’t see them, and neither can he. Where are they? Then, he gets a message on his phone, from Ena.
We missed the first bus, so we might be late.
I’m really sorry :(
Shit. This is fine. It will be fine. There are five minutes left until Vivid Bad Squad’s performance will start. There is still plenty of time. They will arrive. And she will listen to him. She will know how he feels.
Toya and An have finally come now. They’re all gathered in the backstage, waiting to appear on stage, and saying their encouraging cheers, as always. This time, most of these cheers are addressed to Akito.
"Good luck, Akito."
"I know you can do it, Shinonome-kun!"
"Go get the girl, man!"
Akito smiles. He can’t hate them. How could he? They helped him a lot the entire week. And Kohane with her sweetness, An with her teasing yet amusing and cheerful manner of talking, Toya with his calmness, they are making him feel calmer; that he can do it. He knows that he can do it. Thanks to them.
The boy takes a deep breath. As for her... it’s fine. She will see him. For sure.
"Let’s do this, team."
The squad is welcomed with lots of cheers from the audience, as An says her introduction of the team. Meanwhile, Akito still tries to see if the girls have arrived. Nothing. Did he do all, for nothing? He doesn't know. But it’s fine. He can imagine she’s here.
The song begins, and they start singing, too. Just how they practiced. And the crowd loves it. It goes wild from the moment Kohane starts with the first verse, then Toya with the second, and so on. The public seems to love the chorus, too. Akito is glad that the song sounds good, just as he wanted. But something still doesn’t seem right. Until now. Until he finally sees her.
Mafuyu and Ena finally arrive, making their way through the crowd, until they stop at a good distance from the stage, so they can see properly. Thank God.
Now that she’s present, Akito feels even more motivated to continue singing the song he made for her with even more passion. So, he does. He sings with as much emotion as he can. And as he sings, his heart does, too. His voice becomes more powerful. He starts sweating from all the effort he makes. He feels his soul burning with all of his feelings. But he is just confessing. Through melody, he confesses to her. He tells her how much he likes her.
And Mafuyu? She seems to understand. She doesn’t look at anyone else but him. She knows that this song is about her. About them. And she seems to like it. She doesn’t have that usual stoic expression. Her face is lighter. And she smiles. It’s not that one smile she uses usually, when she is around strangers or people who aren’t that close to her. For the first time, he can see her smile this way. That smile is sincere. It’s small, but so beautiful. She is so beautiful. Oh, how much he would like to be with her.
For the rest of the song, it’s just the boy and her. Just Akito and Mafuyu. The music and his partners’ voices fall in the background, as well as the crowd, only the two remaining. Looking at her, Akito feels like he’s in the recent fragment SEKAI, in the hall with a lot of purple, looking straight into Mafuyu’s portrait. But this time, she is shown in the portrait with that cute, small smile of hers.
He finally accomplishes his wish. He finally told her how he feels. This is fine. No, this is more than fine.
"You were great, Akito." Toya smiles, as he wipes the sweat on his forehead away. just like his partner, he is exhausted.
"Ay, don’t act so modest. You were great, too!"
The performance ended with a massive success. The others songs were also enjoyable, but none made the crowd get as excited as in the first song. It was amazing. Toya, Kohane and An are proud of this. Akito, too. Sitting on a chair in the backstage as he drinks some water, he thinks of how much he would like to-
"Akito! Someone wants to see you!" An announces him.
The boy gets up, but then he sees Ena smirking behind An. Oh. Now he knows who and why. He walks past the girls, trying to ignore their childish giggles, and stops when he sees Mafuyu in front of him. Then, a long silence occurs. Until the girl starts to talk.
"Hi."
"Uh hi."
"Your performance was nice. And I’m sorry we arrived later."
"No, it’s fine, I’m glad you eventually came."
Akito makes an awkward smile, then looks with more attention to the girl. She let her hair fall down, and that long dress is new. Right now, she doesn’t smile. But that smile she made when he sang...
"You’re pretty."
That’s not something he intended to say, but it still came out of his mouth, and now the boy starts to slowly blush. Well, that’s embarrassing…
"Thanks. And so are you- I mean, uh..."
Ah, at least he isn’t the only one who says something rather shameful now. The girl doesn’t blush as hard as him and she still doesn't break the eye contact, but her cheeks turn into a soft pink.
"The songs were pretty. Just like the voices. You know, when I first listened to you singing, it was months ago, at the Shibuya Festa. That time, I thought your voice was too loud, and it hurt my ears. Not and this time. I liked the way you all sang. And the songs were pretty nice. Especially the first one."
"You really liked it?" Akito goes on with her opinion.
"Mhm.I felt something when I first listened to it. The music itself was nice, but I liked the lyrics more. I tried to be as careful with them as I can and somehow, I felt like it was written for me. Tell me, Akito, was this song really about me?"
Silence for few seconds. "It is."
"I see then." Mafuyu looks down. "I’m glad. Because, you know, I really did enjoy listening to it and finding its meaning. I like the song. I like you."
She still doesn’t look at him, but this time, she shyly smiles. The same beautiful smile as before.
"I like you too, Mafuyu."
At last! They finally properly confessed their feelings to each other, and problem is solved. This moment would really have been nicer if Akito didn’t hear An and Ena giggling and imitating kissing sounds behind him. How frustrating.
"Uh, listen, the sunset is really beautiful in the park. Would you like to go and see it there? We can also buy some drinks, only if you want."
The girl finally dares to look at him. "Sure. I’m not thirsty at the moment, but I don’t mind."
Akito smiles, and then he waves goodbye at his partners before leaving the stage with his... new girlfriend? Can he now call her his girlfriend? Like, they have told each other their feelings, and had their first kiss, too, but is it fine? Maybe it is fine.
As they are leaving, Mafuyu suddenly stops to ask the boy a question.
"Ah, by the way, how have you and your group decided to name the new song?"
"I haven’t really decided. But I thought, maybe It’s fine."
"How come? Is it because of how many times you used it throughout the song?"
They start walking again, and Akito can’t keep his eyes off her. This moment is fine. Yes, you guessed it right. This is fine. "You can say that, but I was thinking of this title because of how many times I’ve told myself that if I show you how I feel, it will be fine."
"Then, I’m sure it indeed is fine."
"Yes. It is fine."