Work Text:
“Have you ever found yourself pondering the meaning of life?” Harumichi sighs.
“What?” Yakumo responds. “Haru-oniichan, what are you talking about?”
”…It’s nothing.”
Harumichi grabs the novel again and starts leafing through the pages.
1984. He was intrigued by the book because it’s titled after the current year, and he can pass it off as studying more English, but…
It’s unrealistic, a lot of people would say. And yes, there are a lot of things that are unrealistic in the book.
But there’s something about it. Something that’s… strangely realistic.
Feelings are deeply controlled. Every person is broken until they’re the perfect citizen.
There’s something about it that might have stirred up a feeling, if he still had any.
The rebellion always fails. They can’t change a thing.
“Living or dying in the ministry, it’s all the same.” He mutters. “Either way, you’re nothing but a tool.”
“Haru-oniichan…” Yakumo whispers. “Maybe you should put the book down…”
“Why? All it says is what I’ve known for years. There’s no point in rebellion. There’s no difference in living or dying, you’ll always be trapped. A replaceable tool.”
There’s no point in any of it. There never was. He was going to be caught from the start.
The story is already written. And nothing about it can be changed.
~
While Narin’s busy stocking shelves, she’s stunned by a hand on her shoulder. She whirls around on her heel, and there’s a woman there.
“How disrespectful! I’ve been trying to get your attention for five minutes!”
Narin immediately puts down the items she was stocking and turns her attention to the customer.
“I’m sorry, Ma’am. What do you need help with?”
“That’s more like it. I need to find the eggs.”
“Oh, those are right over in the refrigerated aisle.” Narin says, pointing over to the aisle in question, but the woman groans.
“Aren’t you going to take me there?”
“Ah, I can’t, I apologize. I need to keep stocking these shelves.”
The woman turns her nose up, but she walks off to the refrigerated aisle. Whatever, she’s almost done with her shift anyway.
She finishes stocking shelves before changing back into her school uniform and throwing her bag over her shoulder.
Unfortunately for her, as she’s walking out of the break room, she’s stopped by that same woman.
“You, what are you doing?”
“Going home? My shift is over.”
“You’re going out in that?”
“My… school uniform?” Narin says, and she glances past the woman to notice a young girl and a guy about her age seemingly trying to sink into the floor.
“That’s a school uniform? What are young girls coming to these days?”
“Mother, please.” The boy says, and the girl’s pulling his arm and shaking her head.
“Harumichi, this doesn’t involve you.” The woman says, and Harumichi(?) just sighs and pulls back, flashing her an apologetic glance.
Eventually, the woman finally leaves, and Narin breathes out a relieved sigh.
At least, until the woman’s son and the young girl rush back in.
“I am… so sorry about my mother.” Harumichi(?) says.
“Auntie’s crazy, just ignore everything she says.” The little girl says.
“It’s alright.” Narin says. “You’re clearly nothing like her.”
He laughs.
“That might be the greatest compliment I’ve ever been given.”
After a little more chatting, Harumichi(?) and the young girl leave the store, and Narin can finally leave.
~
A few days after the encounter, Narin had all but forgotten it. She didn’t have work or school today, so she dressed in her favorite skirt and rushed to a nearby theater for a bit of extra practice. People rarely perform there, so Narin likes to practice there so the stage is used.
She absolutely adores singing. Ever since she was young, she’s always looked up to opera singers. Her sister was in love with the piano, but she was born to be a singer.
She’s so into it that she doesn’t even realize she has an audience until she’s done and she hears soft clapping.
“Brava, brava!”
She turns to the voice, and…
“Oh, it’s you.” Narin says. “The guy from the supermarket.”
“Yes. I was just passing through, and I heard your voice from outside. My god, it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard.”
Narin laughs gently.
“You’re a charmer, aren’t you? Your name is Harumichi, right? Your mother called you that.”
“Ah, yes. Harumichi Aoyagi.” He says, reaching a hand out to Narin.
“Narin Minezawa.” Narin replies, taking his hand. “Second year student in Kosei High’s music program.”
“Ah, you’re a music student? That makes sense, your voice is so beautiful.”
Narin lets out another laugh.
“Beautiful, hm? Do you have any interest in music?”
“I never really thought much of it until I heard your voice. I just hear pop songs in stores and such.”
“You’ve never really listened to classical then, have you?”
“Never.” Harumichi says, and Narin reaches into her purse and pulls out a CD.
“Let me play this for you.” She says, walking over to the CD player and popping the disc in.
The piano resonates throughout the empty theater, and she turns back to Harumichi.
Narin walks over to the accompanist’s piano, sitting down on the bench and waving him over.
Harumichi seems to almost be in a daze as he joins her on the bench, listening to the miracle of classical.
When the song ends, Harumichi turns to her and…
“That was…”
“A spiritual experience, right?” Narin laughs. “Ever since I was young, I’ve wanted nothing more than to be an opera soprano. My sister was my accompanist, but she’s gone off to college already. So I’m kind of missing one at the moment.”
“An accompanist?” Harumichi asks, and Narin brushes her hand against the keys.
“The musician to accompany another musician or dancer. I’ve been trying to find another one, but clearly none of them are willing to put their lives on the line for it. They don’t see classical as the gift from god that it is.”
“If it’s a gift from god, then what are you, an angel?”
Narin giggles again.
“Well, you’re a smooth talker. Do you want to sing with me for a bit?”
“What? Me? I’m not much of a musician. I’ve never really sung before, my parents hate music.”
“Hate music? Why?”
“They think it’s just worthless noise and that entertainers are all too stupid to get ‘real jobs.’ Their words, not mine.”
Narin rolls her eyes.
“Your parents are crazy.”
“Oh, trust me, I’ve known that for a long time. Again, I’m so sorry about what my mother said to you.”
Narin just shrugs.
“I’m used to it. Don’t worry.”
“But you shouldn’t be. People really think they can just say anything just because you’re an employee.”
“They think that just because I’m pretty and I wear a lot of skirts that there’s no substance to me. But someday, I’m going to prove them all wrong. I’m going to become an internationally famous singer all on my own merits, and then I’ll blow them all away.”
And then Harumichi says something that completely blows Narin away.
“You said you needed an accompanist, right? What if I tried?”
“What? I thought you said you weren’t a musician?”
“I know, but what you said inspired something in me. You're so driven, so brilliant… I want to help you achieve your dream.”
Narin lets out an incredulous laugh.
“…You’re a strange one, you know that? You’re really just going to become a musician because you talked to me one time?”
Harumichi also laughs.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with me. But I feel like this is my destiny.”
“This isn’t something you should take lightly. I won’t accept a half-hearted accompanist.”
“Of course not, I wouldn’t dream of that!” Harumichi says. “If I’m going to be doing this, I’ll be doing it right.”
Narin sticks her hand out to Harumichi.
“Well then, let’s give this a shot. Come here again tomorrow, I’ll bring my sister’s old books.”
“Of course. Thank you for giving me this chance, Minezawa-san.”
“No need to be so formal. Narin’s fine.”
Harumichi gives her a smile, and he seems to be testing the name on his tongue.
“Narin, hm? Alright then, Narin.”
Suddenly, the door opens again, and Narin doesn’t know why she instinctively flinches back.
“Haru-oniichan!” A young girl’s voice yells, and Harumichi looks genuinely surprised.
“Yakumo? How did you find me?”
The girl, Yakumo, climbs onto the stage with them.
“Auntie’s going kind of crazy, she wants you home. Now.”
Harumichi’s eyes widen, and he immediately gets up and grabs his bag from the audience seats.
“I’m sorry to cut this short, Narin. I’ll meet you here tomorrow?” He says, and Narin nods and waves goodbye.
“Huh? Who’s— Oh! Supermarket girl!” Yakumo says. “Your name’s Narin?”
“That would be me. Narin Minezawa.”
“I’m Yakumo Tenma!” The little girl says. “Haru-oniichan’s my babysitter, but he’s kinda like my big brother too!”
“Yakumo, hm? I’ll remember that.” Narin says. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Harumichi.”
Harumichi gives her a subtle wave, before grabbing Yakumo’s hand and walking out the door.
And Narin looks over at her cd player.
They might say that this must be fate. Twice, she’s run into that boy. Two completely random incidents.
Maybe fate really does exist.
And she picks up her notebook and starts writing notes about the performance and the day.
And I met a guy today. He told me that he wanted to be my accompanist. We’ll see how this goes.
~
The rebellion is pointless. He knows this.
But this is… exhilarating. Harumichi’s never snuck out before.
But everyone is out, Yakumo is excited to come along, and…
And the door is right there.
His heart is pounding out of his chest the moment he throws it open and runs outside, and Yakumo laughs her heart out as she bolts alongside him.
Something about her… it makes him want to rebel.
Is this what a musician is like? Why all those creative pursuits were banned in the novel? Because they might result in feeling?
He throws the door open to the theater, and Narin is already sitting at the piano.
“Oh, you’re here.” She says, elegantly shutting a deep purple notebook.
How does she make everything she does seem… angelic? Like she’s not even mortal?
He needs to quiet down his thoughts. He just needs to join her at the piano.
He starts to walk over, but he doesn’t sit down.
The instrument is… intimidating, now that he sees it up close.
The ivory keys are delicate, and the wood is curved in such a way that every stroke feels deliberate.
This isn’t an instrument that someone can take lightly.
Is… someone like him even allowed to touch an instrument like this?
But Yakumo bolts past him and rushes over to the piano with zero hesitation.
“Whoa! This is so cool!” She gasps, and Narin laughs into her hand.
“It is, isn’t it? Harumichi, come on. Sit over here.”
“Yeah! Sit with us!” Yakumo responds, waving him over, and he can’t figure out what to say.
So he doesn’t say anything, just sits with them.
“Let’s go, Nari-chan! Show us something!” Yakumo starts, and Narin laughs gently.
“‘Nari-chan’?”
Yakumo tilts her head.
“You don’t like it?”
Narin smiles at her before patting her on the head.
“No, no! I love it! I’ve always wanted a little sister, you know?”
Yakumo giggles, and Narin’s hands return to the keys.
“Let’s see… we’ll start here to judge how much you know. A simple scale.”
She sings a soft melody that goes up and down, before playing each note that she sings on the keys.
It’s… gorgeous. Her voice is like an angel.
“Whoa! Nari-chan, you’re so cool! Can I try?” Yakumo asks, and Narin nods, so Yakumo tries to use her little fingers to do the scale, but she’s slightly off on the rhythm and the notes.
“Well, that’s good for a first try.” Narin says, cracking her notebook open again and scribbling something down. “See, you have to learn where everything is on the piano to—”
But before she can finish, Harumichi reaches over to Narin’s side of the piano and tries to play the same scale.
And Narin’s eyes widen as he hits each note.
“Was I terribly off?” He asks once he’s finished.
“No, no!” Narin chimes in. “Absolutely not! That was actually perfect!”
“Perfect? You must be exaggerating.”
“Why would I exaggerate? It’s like… you’ve memorized the sounds and keys already. I didn’t think anyone could do that so easily.”
“It must have been beginner’s luck.”
Narin raises an eyebrow slightly.
“Alright then. Let’s try something else. See if you can do this.”
Her fingers roll off the keys so easily, like she’s practiced for years.
The rhythm seems pretty simple, at least, but Harumichi’s fingers don’t move like hers. The timing is all off.
“My god. You understand it.” Narin says. “I’ve never seen someone understand how to play so quickly! Here, let me—!”
Narin starts excitedly explaining the note, with an accompanying hit on the keyboard, and…
And somehow, all this makes more sense to Harumichi than anything ever has. Narin’s passion is addictive.
Yakumo’s excitedly chattering along, and…
There’s a strange warmth spreading through his chest. Like nothing he’s felt before.
Is this what all those books and movies talk about? That feeling of being alive?
Harumichi doesn’t notice the hours passing until Narin looks up at the clock, and she laughs gently.
“It’s already nine! Time really flies when you’re having fun.”
“Nine?!” Yakumo squeaks, and Harumichi freezes.
It’s past dinner. God, it’s past dinner.
”Are you alright?” Narin asks, and Yakumo grabs Harumichi’s arm and tries to drag him up.
“We’re fine, but we need to get home! Now!”
”She’s right.” Harumichi says, finally finding his voice. ”I’m sorry, but we’ll have to return another day.”
Narin tilts her head.
”Your mother?” She asks, and Harumichi sighs.
“If I’m lucky. If not…”
“You should go.” Narin says. “We’ll talk again later. Come by whenever you can.”
They rush out the door and back home, and…
And the lights are out. No one’s waiting up.
“Thank god.” Harumichi sighs, leaning against the wall, and Yakumo adjusts her glasses.
“Looks like they barely noticed.”
“Why would they? Must have been a good day for them. A celebration of some sort. It doesn’t matter now. Let me take you home.”
“I can go myself!” Yakumo squeaks, and Harumichi almost wants to laugh.
That’s strange. When was the last time he felt the urge to laugh?
“Nice try. Let’s go.”
The rebellion is pointless. You’ll be caught eventually. It’ll all be over.
But… even so, he can’t stop now. He can’t stop himself from craving the warm feelings.
It’s pointless. It won’t last forever.
But he’ll make it last as long as he can.
~
“I’m here, Narin.” Harumichi says, knocking on the doorframe, and Narin smiles.
“Perfect. I think you’re getting a lot better, you know that? What would you think about doing an actual performance?”
“What?” Harumichi says. “I’ve barely started. There’s no way I could keep up with you.”
Narin laughs.
“I don’t think you give yourself enough credit. It’s only been a month and you’re already at a pretty high level. Why not try to see how you do in front of a crowd?”
A crowd…
He feels like he’s going to be sick.
If he performs in front of a crowd, it might somehow get back to his parents.
The rebellion ends. The thought police come for him.
And he needs this to last longer. So much longer.
He doesn’t know how it happened. How he suddenly needs her like he needs air.
He can’t let it end yet. He just can’t.
“I’m not ready yet. When I’ve improved more.” He tries again, and Narin jokingly rolls her eyes, but she drops the subject.
“Alright then. Let’s get back to Mozart. You’re already pretty close to mastering a piece, so let’s get it done today.”
“Yes, let’s.” Harumichi responds. “I know we can do this.”
And Narin beams at him again, her hair flowing behind her.
She’s…
She’s like the sun. She can get anyone to revolve around her.
And melting Harumichi’s frozen heart. Allowing him to finally understand why people love life so much.
~
It’s been a few months since Harumichi started sneaking around and performing with Narin, and Narin couldn’t ask for a better accompanist.
She’s so surprised. He’d never even touched a piano before, and now he’s… incredible. He has some real talent.
He doesn’t speak much, but that’s alright. Narin can tell from his playing that he’s the furthest thing from a bad person.
The piano sounds like Narin has never heard under his fingers, and he’s quickly reaching a level that Narin won’t be able to help him anymore. Textbooks can only take you so far.
But surprisingly, she thinks he’ll be alright.
In fact, he’s going to be better than alright.
The only bad thing about him is that he’s impossible to contact outside of practices. He shows up pretty consistently, but Narin knows barely anything about him. Sure, she asked if she could walk home with him once, but he asked her to stop like a block away.
She knows that his parents are crazy, but that crazy?
Unfortunately, she can’t practice much since exams are coming up, so she’s stuck studying and hasn’t even talked to him in over a week.
She’s finally ready to leave, though.
She grabs her bag, readjusts her skirt, and starts to make her way outside.
She’s walking for only a few minutes when she starts to feel really… strange.
Really strange.
There’s someone behind her. She knows it.
Damn it! She needs to get out of here, somehow.
She starts to rush ahead, but the gaze gets more intense.
But she does recognize this street. Harumichi’s house is closer at the moment.
So she takes a breath and walks towards the door that she’s pretty sure belongs to him, and luckily when she knocks, the door pops open to a familiar face.
“Narin?” Harumichi asks, and Narin shakes her head.
“No time. I’m being followed, please, let me in.”
Harumichi’s eyes widen and he steps aside, and Narin notices that the lights are out.
“Why’s it so dark in here?” She asks, and Harumichi motions for her to lower her voice.
“My parents are asleep. I don’t want to wake them.”
“Just how crazy are your parents?” She asks, and Harumichi shakes his head.
“You don’t want to know. Just… pray they don’t—”
Suddenly, the lights come up and Harumichi freezes up.
“What the hell is the harlot from the supermarket doing here?” Harumichi’s mother says, and Narin spins on her heel and flashes the biggest smile she can.
“Hi again. I’m Narin Minezawa. I hope you don’t mind.”
A man appears behind her, and then two boys that look a little older than Harumichi come out of their rooms.
The boys look at her suspiciously and then look back at Harumichi, before they share a glance and roll their eyes.
“You brought a girl home?” The one that looks to be the eldest says.
“Quiet. I didn’t bring her home.” Harumichi snaps. “She was being followed, she needed a place to get away.”
“Well, what does she expect, being dressed like that?”
“Still my school uniform.” Narin says, crossing her arms.
“Mother, please. ” Harumichi pleads. “She’s a… friend.”
“A friend. Sure.” One of the boys says.
Crap. Harumichi’s mother seems like she’s getting angrier at the idea of them being together.
Okay. Time to try some damage control.
“I’ve been teaching him how to play piano. We’re planning to start performing together.” Narin says, and Harumichi completely freezes up.
“Damn it, Narin.” He whispers.
“Piano?! You’ve been playing the piano with her?! What kind of worthless hobby is that?!”
“It looks good on college applications.” Harumichi mumbles, but it seems like he’s given up.
“College applications?! If you need the piano for your applications, your grades must be down the drain! You’re never going to get into law school or medical school!”
Narin puts her hands on her hips.
“Have you ever thought about asking your son what he wants to do?!” She snaps.
And everyone freezes at that.
“…That’s it. Get out.” Harumichi’s mother starts.
“Mother—!” Harumichi tries.
“You heard me! She’s out of here! And trust me, if I hear of you seeing that singing harlot again—!”
“Stop calling her that! She’s a—”
“You really are in love with her.” One of Harumichi’s brothers laughs. “God, you’re pathetic. A girl like that? You’ve gotta at least make some money before you can have a trophy wife.”
The next thing Narin knows, Harumichi’s mother has her by her ribbon and practically drags her outside.
“Narin, I’m sor—!” Harumichi tries, but the door is slammed in Narin’s face before she can hear anything else.
Damn it all.
At least the gaze on her seems to have disappeared, and she can bolt through the streets back to her house.
But then, once exams are over, she returns to the theater and it’s empty.
And it stays empty.
Day after day.
Until Narin slowly starts to lose hope that she’ll ever see her dear accompanist again.
~
He knew it wouldn’t last. He knew that this beautiful rebellion would vanish.
So why does it still hurt so much now that it’s finally over?
He’s practically locked in his room, only allowed out to eat and go to school, and he feels like he might simply waste away.
His only company is Yakumo occasionally staying over because her parents need someone to watch her, but even she doesn’t know what to say.
She’s only a child. She doesn’t know about adult things, but she’s remarkably intelligent.
Those sunset eyes of hers always know what Harumichi’s thinking, and she can tell that this is killing him.
“You should go see Nari-chan.” She whispers, but Harumichi shakes his head.
“It’s over, Yakumo. I knew from the start, this was never going to work. I just… wanted to escape. I wanted to feel something. But it’s over now.”
Yakumo’s eyes narrow, and she smacks him with her little hands.
“Ow! What was that for?!” Harumichi snaps back.
“Haru-oniichan, you’re an idiot!” She says, crossing her arms. “It’s not over until you give up!”
“But, how—” He starts, but Yakumo cuts him off.
“Do you want to play the piano with Nari-chan?!”
“Of course I do!”
“Then just do it! Screw your parents! You don’t like them anyway! I know you don’t want to do what they tell you, so why are you acting like this?!”
She crosses her arms, and Harumichi sighs.
“Real life isn’t like a movie, where you can convince your militaristic father that he’s wrong and melt his heart with the power of music.” He whispers, and Yakumo groans.
“Stop being an idiot, Haru-oniichan! Sure, life isn’t like a movie, but life isn’t supposed to be terrible either! Maybe you need to take control of your life and do what you want with it!”
Harumichi freezes.
And then he starts to recall the moment he saw Narin for the first time.
She was… perfect.
And when he heard her voice, when she sang, it was like an angel had descended.
He couldn’t help but approach her. He had to know who the world’s most gorgeous voice belonged to.
His heart still races at the thought of hearing her voice again.
Her voice…
God, her voice.
There isn’t a single voice on the planet like hers. With such passion and emotion in every note.
He’d give anything to hear it again. To hear her again.
To have the privilege of playing alongside her, helping her voice to take flight.
And Yakumo smiles.
“See? You do want to be with her.”
“…Yes. I do.” He whispers. “I… want to be with her.”
And next thing he knows, he’s bolting out the door as fast as he can and letting his feet take him to the theater again.
“Narin!” He yells, and Narin looks up from her notebook.
And god, her smile.
Her smile makes it seem as if everything in the world is right again.
“You actually came back.” She whispers, almost as if she can’t believe it.
“I did.” Harumichi responds, practically leaping onto the stage and grabbing Narin’s hands. “And I want to perform with you. In front of an audience. I’m done being scared. This… this is what I’m meant to do with my life. And I’m going to do it.”
And Narin beams so brightly that she could put the sun to shame.
“Then, let’s get back to work. I’m not going to let you perform while this out of practice.” She teases.
~
An coughs as she walks through the dilapidated theater.
“God, this place is so dusty… you really think it could make a good place to perform?” She asks.
“I mean, the acoustics are good.” Arata responds. “It just needs a little cleaning.”
“More than a little.” Akemi adds. “Though I think we can definitely do it.”
“An old theater, though?” Akito adds. “Does Tsukasa-senpai really want to perform here? He could get better stages anywhere with how famous his group is getting.”
“I don’t know… maybe it’s something about us, but I sense something about this theater.” Toya says. “Like… it’s calling to me. And we do owe Kamishiro-senpai a huge favor for fixing WEEKEND GARAGE’s speakers.”
“Yeah, so stop complaining and start cleaning.” Tatsuya adds.
They all work together to start cleaning up the theater, and eventually Kohane comes across something.
“Huh… what’s this?” She whispers, and Toya walks over to her.
“Did you find something?” He asks, and Kohane hands him a notebook with a deep purple cover.
“Yeah, this.” She says. “It must have been left behind by someone.”
Toya quickly cracks it open, and he notices the handwriting seems… familiar, somehow.
They’re notes on performances, on how someone’s voice was changing and how their accompanist was growing exponentially. A performer on this stage?
As Toya reads a bit further in, he notices that the notebook seems to be pushed open slightly to a certain page, and he skips ahead.
And there’s… a Polaroid inside it.
It’s faded from the years, but…
“Oh my god.” He whispers. “Oh my god!”
“Toya?!” Akito snaps. “What’s wrong?!”
Everyone’s staring at him, but Toya can’t help but continue to stare at the Polaroid in his hands.
It can’t be. It can’t be.
But when he flips the photo over, there’s that same neat handwriting that Toya’s known all his life.
Me, Onee-chan, Harumichi, and Yakumo after our first performance. I’m so happy that Onee-chan could make it. Yakumo was just there for moral support, but I couldn’t imagine performing without her there.
“This is it…” He sighs. “This is the theater where my father heard my mother sing for the first time and fell in love with her.”
“What?” An says. “Your parents fell in love here?”
And as Toya looks around, he sees everything in a new light.
“Yes, exactly.” He starts, before pointing around the room. “That’s the piano where Father and Auntie learned how to play. And right over there is where Mother used to take notes on their performances. And right here, in the front row, right in the middle is where my mother’s sister sat during Mother and Father’s first performance. Auntie was right next to her.” Toya takes a breath and steps under the spotlight. “And center stage, right under the spotlight… Mother sang The Queen Of The Night. I owe my life to this theater. This must be why Tsukasa-senpai and I feel a connection to it.”
Everyone looks stunned, but Toya can’t help but feel… ecstatic. He’s heard the story more times than he can count, but to actually see the theater…
“…So, I owe this theater for the best partner ever, huh?” Akito asks, before grabbing a broom and starting to sweep even more aggressively. “What are all of you waiting for? Let’s get this place cleaned up!”
Everyone starts practically dancing around the stage as they clean, and Toya can’t help but smile as he picks up a feather duster.
By the time they’re done, the place is spotless. The piano is the only thing that doesn’t look perfect. It hasn’t been tuned in years and the wood is cracked in places, it needs professional repair. Tsukasa-senpai’s already getting the person who’s supposed to do it.
…Looking around at the theater from the stage, Toya wonders how his parents felt. Their first performance, in the theater that brought them together.
As he stands under the spotlight, he imagines how it must have been to be his mother.
“…Do you think they ever thought that someday I’d be here?” Toya whispers. “That I’d be standing right where Mother stood? That Auntie’s son would be performing here, playing the piano that she learned how to play on?”
Akito sighs and gently hugs him from behind.
“Dunno. But here you are.”
He takes a breath, and he tries to recall what Mother said about this moment.
And he gently starts singing the song that he’s heard his mother repeat his whole life.
It’s obviously tougher for him, he hasn’t done classical singing in years, but he tries to sing The Queen Of The Night a few octaves down.
And it’s almost like he can hear his father playing, and he can feel his mother’s spirit flowing through him.
The moment she’d been building up to her entire life. How she’d trained her voice for years for this exact moment.
And he can see his beloved aunties, sitting right in the front row.
And when he’s done, he hears rapturous applause.
…Wait, he’s not imagining that.
“Bravo, bravo! Brilliant!” Tsukasa-senpai cheers, and he walks in with the rest of his troupe and a piano repairman behind him. “You all did so well! Thank you so much for your help! And Toya, thank you for gracing us with such a beautiful performance!”
“It was no problem, Senpai.” Toya responds. “But, you’re never going to believe what Kohane found here.”
“Huh? What did you find?” Tsukasa-senpai responds, and Toya opens up the notebook to the Polaroid again.
Tsukasa-senpai’s eyes widen with recognition, and when Toya flips it over, it only confirms everything.
“My god. You can’t be serious… this is the theater?”
“Yes, it is.” Toya responds. “I couldn’t believe it myself at first.”
“What theater?” Kusanagi asks, and Tsukasa-senpai turns to her with a vibrant smile.
“This is the theater where Toya’s parents met! Toya’s mother taught my mother the basics of how to play the piano here! Oh my god, I’m going to get to play the piano that my mother learned how to play on!”
“W-Whoa! That’s super-duper-doki-doki-wonderhoy!” Emu laughs.
“That’s truly amazing, Tsukasa-kun. And to think, we owe this theater for Aoyagi-kun’s existence and Tsukasa-kun’s love of the piano.”
Toya laughs gently and pulls the notebook to his chest.
“…I think I’m going to go home and give this to Mother.”
“That sounds like a great idea, my love! I only wish I could come with you, but I need to stay and deal with the piano.”
“It’s alright. I’ll tell them it’s from both of us.”
And Toya practically flies out of the theater. He desperately wants to show this to his mother, to explain the connection that he and Tsukasa-senpai felt.
~
“Toya, you’re back early.” Harumichi says, and Toya looks breathlessly excited.
“Where’s Mother? I have something I need to show you both.”
“She’s in the kitchen with Yakumo, why?”
Toya’s eyes light up even more.
“Auntie’s here as well? Perfect. She’d like to see this too.”
Toya practically bolts into the kitchen, and he quickly returns with Narin and Yakumo.
“Toya, calm down! What’s got you so excited?” Yakumo laughs, sitting next to Harumichi on the couch.
“I’m sorry, I’m just… so thrilled about this. So, you know how Tsukasa-senpai’s been going on and on about this old theater that seems like the perfect place for a performance and that he feels like he should perform on that stage?”
“He hasn’t stopped talking about it for the past week.” Narin laughs.
“Of course, just making sure. You see, I… you know what, this will explain everything.”
Toya reaches into his bag and pulls out a notebook, handing it to Narin.
The moment Narin’s hands touch the cover, something seems to click in her head.
“Oh my god. This can’t be…” She says, flipping it open. “It is! My god, I lost this years ago! How did you find it?!”
“My friends and I were helping clean the old theater for Tsukasa-senpai, and Kohane found this in there.”
“Huh? Nari-chan, what’s up?” Yakumo says, trying to get a good look at the book, and Narin squeezes her way between them.
“This is the notebook I used to write in when I was a teenager! Remember, I would write my performance notes in it?”
Harumichi and Yakumo share a shocked glance, and they look down at the pages.
“Oh my god, now I remember! Toya, you found this? In an… old… theater?”
Toya nods excitedly.
“Yes. I believe it is the same theater that you both met Mother in.”
Narin covers her mouth before flipping to the center of the book and pulling a Polaroid out.
“It has to be. I must have left it there by accident. Look, both of you, it’s the Polaroid that we took with Onee-chan’s camera after our first performance!”
“Hah, Harumichi’s not an old man yet!” Yakumo teases.
“It’s your fault that I’ve gone gray at 53, you know.” Harumichi teases back, and Yakumo bursts out laughing.
They all fall into a comfortable silence after a bit, and Toya sits next to Harumichi.
“Tsukasa-senpai’s so excited to perform there. They’re going to restore the old piano. He… he wants to play on the same piano that Auntie learned on.”
Yakumo’s smile turns genuine, and she wipes her eyes.
“I’m so happy about that.”
Harumichi can’t help but feel a pang of jealousy. Tsukasa wants to play on the same piano that Yakumo learned on, but Toya still refuses to play.
But then Toya speaks up again.
“You know, I stood on stage. Right under the spotlight, just like Mother. And I tried to sing The Queen Of The Night. I was obviously nowhere near as good as Mother, but… but it felt like her spirit was flowing through me. I could hear Father’s playing, and I could see Auntie—both of them— in the front row. It was… amazing.”
Narin starts to tear up, and Harumichi gently puts a hand on Toya’s head.
“I’m… I’m so glad you got to experience what it’s like to truly perform like that.” Harumichi says, and Toya laughs into his hand.
“I guess… now I understand why you love performing classical music so much.”
“Does that mean—” Harumichi starts, but Toya cuts him off.
“No, I’m not going to start playing the piano again.”