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Chapter Text

To the surprise of both “Shiori Experience” and “Black Bus”, the latter was invited by none other than the famous “Tapiokaz” to be on tour with them, though they lost in the “Bridge To Legend” tournament against the band of teenagers that started off as a light music club in Mitsubishi High. Despite the twist of events, the formerly-known light music club greeted their rivals-in-music with open arms and hearts to the summer tour and were more than thrilled for the three bands to spend the whole summer performing together.

Crossing state borders bidaily or tridaily, the band trio blew the tickets off their offices, merchandise off their tables and the crowd off the ground, no matter when they were performing. The prize winners never witnessed such massive success ever before, let alone with a name as big as TPOKZ. It was more than an honor for both Shiori Experience and Black Bus to experience such a life-changing series of events, together and with one of Japan’s biggest names alive.

The four men in black held appreciation and respect in their hearts for the English teacher and younglings whom they once competed against and now are touring alongside. One of those men, however, had more than just that, towards only one of the members… Kuroi Bus had intense feelings for the leader of his rival pack, Miss Shiori Honda.

August 2nd, 10:25 PM, Fukuoka.

A challenge of emptying a big ramen bowl first is set between Hachioji “Prince” Shigeru, bassist of Shiori Experience, and Damp Matsumoto, drummer of Black Bus, to decide which band would play first in the next tour. Neither of them was ever ready to quit despite the sore lips, jaws and nearly bursting stomachs, as the mates of each side were cheering and hollering for their representative. Suddenly, but like always, a member of the Tapiokaz has to intrude in whatever happens between the two bands, whether it was for showoff or just to tease the smaller bands.

“Three more bowls, please! Oh, and one plate of rice.” Ryo raised his hand once the waitress walked by the table. This man somehow had sat next to the competing two the whole time, continuously ordering a dish after another with no stress. Such show-stopping scenery froze the two teams. The whole focus shifted to the bassist of TPOKZ and his fascinatingly bottomless pit of an appetite. The whole squad’s shock turned into intrigue, including who were competing as their unfinished noodle bowls slowly lost their heat. The tuxedo men and teenagers were all busy gazing upon the tall, muscular man and how he slurped each bowl in one go, perhaps for the two chubby challengers to copy his techniques, except for Kuroi. His eyes scan all around the dining room as the residents are starting to leave to either their hotel rooms, play games or just sit in the lobby for a drink with family or friends, old or newly made. His eyes looked further out the dining room’s door. Behind the people who were exiting, he extended his sight further, slightly tilting his head both sides, hoping to see her. Out of his expectations, Shiori passes by the dining room’s door to see whether her bandmates were still where she left them. Kuroi’s heart skipped a beat! A tiny gasp entered his mouth, he flinched once he saw the woman he was hoping to see from afar. As she saw her little companions all at one table with the Black Bus crew and Ryo, she smiled in relief, but before she stepped out, her eyes locked with Kuroi’s for a split second before he dropped them down out of embarrassment. Shortly after he did that, he sensed Shiori’s absence, and went to follow her discreetly. The curly haired tall man left the fuss, then the dining room entirely, following Shiori from afar so he could expect her whereabouts later and, hopefully, get to talk to her in private without anyone else’s disturbance.

“You’re gonna make the staff throw that away or what?” Ryo commented on the two bowls of now cold noodles of both Shigeru and Matsumoto, pointing at the deadpan supposed dorring dons.

“Oh! Right!” Prince and Matsumoto swiftly picked their chopsticks and both directed what remained of the thick noodles to their own mouth, just to be struck by the coldness that decreased the flavor and worsened the texture. Prince’s face shriveled up, while Damp’s froze with his tongue out, letting the noodles slip away from  the chopsticks back into the bowl.

“No, no! Don’t give up just yet!!” Daiba shouted with his hands on his head.

“Actually, shit’s got more interesting~ Kekekekeke!!” Kaneko chuckled with his spiky teeth all bared. He then smacked the table with both hands, “Same rules as before!! Go!!” The two picked the pace back up and forcefully rushed themselves at finishing the now not-so-appetizing-anymore bowl of ramen, which hardened the challenge for the two.

“Beat him down, Shigeru.” Shinobu hopped while keeping her toes on the floor.

On the other hand, it took Haitani a good while to realize that his fellow Kuroi wasn’t by his side anymore. He asked, above a whisper: “Wait, where’s Kuroi?”

Outside the hotel, far enough from residents and guests who were entering and exiting, seldom allowing the automatic wide glass sliding doors to close, even for a second, behind one of the curvy pillars that stood firm by both sides of the modern gates, laid Shiori on her back. All the while, Jimi was mocking the passengers and passing through them with his comically smooth moves, knowing he is now an afterlife being unseen by the naked unhaunted eye. The former English teacher took a deep breath and a gentle smile slowly grew on her lips, as she thought to herself: “Who would’ve thought a plain teacher like me would end up on tour with such big names?” She stood off the pillar and turned around to see Jimi and thank him internally, just to be caught off guard by Kuroi’s hollow stare.

“EEK!! Wha- Oh M-Mister Kuroi!?” Shiori clenched her white blouse, breathing heavily.

“I’m sorry.” Kuroi bowed in an apologetic manner.

“N-No it’s fine, haha~ I basked in my own thoughts a bit too deep.” The mistress took a deep breath, “So… Lovely night, eh? Sorry, I got overstimulated by this whole crowding. The kids aren’t concerned about my whereabouts, are they?”

“Not really.” The man in a tuxedo looked back at the hotel entrance. “Still busy with their dare.”

“Oh… yeah, that.” Shiori giggled nervously as she lazily pushed some of her hair to the back of her ear. The curly haired man looked at his own stimming hands and clenched them into fists to ease the nervousness and hide it, although it was too late for him, for she already saw his anxious gestures. “What’s the matter? You guys lost the bet?”

“N-No!!”  above a whisper, Kuroi debunked. “Actually… I’ve been meaning… t-to ask you…” He took his time to grasp a good amount of air into his lungs before asking his million-dollar question. “May we meet again later? I-If you’re not exhausted, that is.” He sealed his eyes shut as he lowered his head behind his own hands which he pressed together palm-to-palm.

“Oh!?” For Shiori, it was so unexpected of anyone – let alone Kuroi – to give such an invitation, it surprised her. “Oop- I mean, why, yes! I do wanna ask, though. Just… me and you?”
Kuroi couldn’t reply immediately, look her in the eye nor even let her see his facade growing red. “I-If you don’t mind, that is.”

“Oh, I don’t!! Not at all!” Shiori waved both hands close to her chest as she took one step back, looking down at the man who did a great job hiding his face from her at that moment. “I’m just… stunned that someone actually asked me out.” She turned her face as she laid her index on one corner of her lips, red growing brighter on her face as well.
The man couldn’t help but stand back up and look her in the eyes as his own sparked in utter joy. He quietly breathed faster out of excitement and happiness. “Thank you!” He bowed fast and fled back into the hotel.

“Wait! When and where-” Shiori stretched her arm and ran a few steps towards him, hoping to catch him but his steps were too long to follow. She stopped and saw him leaping between the people passing through the sliding doors. Even at a late time of the night, people were still as mobile and awake as they should be at daytime. Of course they were! It is summer, the season where it is preferred to spend the night than day for its more merciful weather, beside the fact that this is Fukuoka, a city as big and populous as Tokyo and Osaka. “Was he for real? Or was he pulling a dirty prank on me?” The front woman thought to herself, since her supposed date asked her out without even telling her about their date’s time and place.

“Fuck, man! That was close!!” Kaneko complained as he kicked the door open, hands in his trouser pockets “How the hell was it a draw? It’s bullshit!!”

“A rock-paper-scissors game can decide… But leave it for tomorrow.” Haitani pointed at Matsumoto, who was at the verge of throwing up; he filled his own stomach to the brim or a bit beyond, just to call it a draw with his little competent Prince. At that moment, it was hard for the biggest man to breathe, he felt like he could burst at any moment.

“Where’s Kuroi, by the way?” Right when Haitani asked, a knock on the door was heard.

“Ugh…” The blonde man waddled his way to the door. He pulled one of his hands out of his pocket and opened it, “Speak of the devil.” The keyboarder’s question was answered with such an introduction rather than words.

“You don’t usually leave us behind. What’s that about, huh?” Kaneko wrinkled his nose. Kuroi passed by him with no words said, walking straight to the middle of the room. “Where’s Matsunmo?” He asked. A loud hurl, followed by a sound of running fluids echoed from the bathroom. “Sending his dinner to the sewers, it seems.” Haitani explained.

“What??” Akane gasped thrillingly. “That’s so beautiful~!” 

“Ooh~ Gettin’ love letters, ain'tcha?” Satsuki teased. Shiori was sitting on her own mattress between the two girls, while Shinobu sat next to Satsuki and Mitsuoka stood up in front of all of them.

“I can’t tell whether it’s genuine, though.” Shiori lowered her head, doubting things to come. “Yes, he asked me out, but he didn’t even bother telling me any further details and just… ran off!”

“Damn, that’s kind of a dick move.” The tomboy squinted and crossed her arms. “I mean… we could accompany you in this one, though.”

“No!! I don’t wanna endanger you, girls!”

“I’d say it's a scam.” Shinobu suggested. “He probably wants to sell your soul.”

“C’mon, silly! Quit foolin’ around.” Satsuki patted Shinobu’s head intensely. “Can’t you see she’s having a hard time?”

“Maybe he’s just terrible at it.” Mitsuoka intervened in the conversation. “Huh?” All the girls said in unison. “I don’t like to give anyone the benefit of the doubt, but I don’t like to assume either.”

“Can you, like… give it to us straight?” Confusion and slight annoyance appeared on Satsuki’s face.

“My best guess is that he lacks etiquette for it. We’ve seen how inept he could be-”

“I wouldn’t say that.” Shiori murmured.

“It’s true, though.” Satsuki commented. Shinobu and Akane showed their agreement by nodding.

“-Then again, there’s only one way to find out.” The stoic highschooler continued her statement. “It’s up to you to decide whether it’s worth the shot.”

“Is it… okay, though? I mean, he’s our rival.” The teacher, once again, went skeptical about it, but from a different angle.

“Our rival in what?” The aloof girl asked.

“Yeah! That’s just music-related!” Akane reminded Shiori. “I bet you can separate professional from personal, can’t you?” Satsuki smirked at her.

“Yes… Yes, of course!” Shiori stood up. Isuzu cheered for her quietly, clapping her hands.

“Yeah, but you ain’t goin out like… that, y’know?” Satsuki pointed at Shiori’s casual uniform.

“Then… What do you propose I do?”

“I need the van keys.” Kuroi whispered. He sat beside Matsumoto.

“What for?” The large man asked.

“I… wanna take someone on a date.”

“Where are you planning to take her out?” As usual, Kuroi lowered his head shyly. “No, I… I wanna date her there.”

Despite his matter being a secret, Matsu’ couldn’t help laughing at the top of his lungs.

“Yo what’s up?!” Kaneko heard the commotion, Haitani followed along.

“This idiot-” Matsu wheezed his lungs out, “wanna take some lady he met to our van… On a date!!” Hearing such a story sent the two to a side-splitting laughter. The cackling was so uncontrollable and each laugh intensified the other.

“Bro, she’d fuckin’ call the cops on you immediately!” Matsu cackled. “I never knew you had a kidnapping fetish!”

“Nah, hold on-” Kaneko ran towards Kuroi and squatted to face him, “See you in court, beyotch!”

“If you got no help for me to offer,” Kuroi pulled Kaneko by the neck tie, charging a fist at his face to impale it with. “then fucking scram!” The bassist prepared his fist as well, widening his smile and eyes further. Thankfully, Matsun blocked Kuroi’s fist and Haitani went behind Kaneko and held him Nelson style.

“We can’t afford another goddamn fight now, can we?!” Shouted Matsun. “You keep making me forget how troublesome you could be by your formality, Kuroi!” The drummer turned his head towards the slimmer man, pushing his fist down.

“And you, stop with this constant teasing! Now’s not even a good time.” The amber haired man stepped back further while holding onto the blonde one tightly, who was violently wobbling to make the former release him. A few minutes passed after the four paused in their last position until the anger of Kuroi and Kaneko had entirely faded away.

“Sorry, everyone.” Kuroi bowed down to his three companions.

“Dude, shut the fuck up!” Kaneko laughed, “I hate your fancy talk.”

“So what was it about this date?” Matsumoto asked. “Why did you wanna-”

“Who is she!?” Kaneko jumped from Matsun’s behind and leaned on his shoulder. “She got friends as hot as her? Hook us up!”

“No~” Though Kuroi knew that his bandmate had no idea, he was still repulsed from his question, knowing that his date’s friends are just teenagers. “It’s… someone you know-”

“Stop fucking teasing us and cut to the chase!!” Matsun covered his ear as the guitarist screamed next to it.

“It’s Shiori.” The curly haired man hid his face by lowering it.

“WHAT?!” The rest said in unison. “As in… The Shiori Experience’s… Shiori?!” Haitani added.

“Who else could it be, dumbass!?” Kaneko (being the profane-mouthed man he is) scoffed.

“Okay- Wake up call; You do NOT take people on a date to your crew’s old crusty gasoline-smelling van. You take her somewhere nice, even if it's just the hotel rooftop.” The drummer rested his hand on his slimmer mate’s shoulder. The latter blushed and swallowed his nervousness.

“Are you guys… okay with this?” Kuroi stuttered.

“We’re not your parents, dipshit!”

“Why do you need our approval?” Haitani wondered.

“Since she’s a member of our rival band.”

“High time we spoke about this,” Matsun patted Kuroi on the shoulder as he added: “As long as you keep your professional and personal lives separated, it shouldn’t be a problem. And I know you can do that since you’re only a screamer on stage.” A smile slowly bloomed on Kuroi’s lips until his teeth were bared, he chuckled afterwards with his pale cheeks developing a peachy color and his eyes sparkling like the stars that he was about to meet Shiori under. He swiftly ran off to the door and meet who could be the love of his future… with no plans told to her or even himself.

“Hold it!” Shouted Matsun. “Did you two schedule this date?” Once Kuroi remembered that he  almost repeated what he did with Shiori, his eyes widened as a wave of first-hand embarrassment struck him. “Oh, no~” he mumbled.

“I’ll go with him.” The keyboarder volunteered.

“Yo, Prince!” Satsuki knocked on the door of Shigeru and Daiba’s dorm, “Got any jewelry on you? We need to borrow some!”

“Why yes~! A minute in exchange, please~” Sang Shigeru before opening the door. “Sorry darling, but I only have this thin faux-gold necklace. I hope it hel-”

“Thanks…” The tomboy yanked the necklace off of his hand. “Don’t call me that again, by the way.” She gave her bandmate a stink eye. But before she re-entered the girls' dorm, she spotted the presence of Haitani.

“Hey.” He waved.

“Wassup… Need something?”

“Not me, I just came here to report.”

“Huh? Oh- It's from Kuroi, ain’t it?”

“Yes. Tell Shiori to prepare herself and meet him on the 5th floor’s fire escape stairs?”

“Huh~!?”

“Now, don’t judge him! he got some plans there.”

“Man, I dunno… Eh, what do I know? Hope it’s worth it.”

“Thanks.” He bowed and left the floor hallway. Satsuki then walked back into the dorm and  put the necklace she borrowed on Shiori. “There ya go, Miss Shiori.”

“Woah~ she’s more gorgeous now!! Though it’s just a barely noticeable chain that we added!” Isuzu was stunned by the new outfit the girls figured out for Shiori; a black thin knee-length turtleneck sweater with her usual black stockings and white sneakers, and a handcrafted shoulderless white sweatshirt –that used to be a normal sweatshirt of Shinobu’s, but was given for Shiori and got transformed to what it is now with the help of Satsuki’s brawn; In short, she stretched the sweater’s neck until it became wide enough to slide down on shoulders.

“Heh! Just a ditsy bit of wardrobe change and she’d be killing it!” She turned her attention back to the teacher, “Oh yeah. Remember when you said that Kuroi gave you no info about your date?”

Chapter Text

“He took her where?” Matsumoto asked, all staggered.

“Oh, that’ll be an irrecoverable fumble.” Kaneko sighed with a chuckle.

Hoping that Haitani had covered for his mistake and sent the word to the woman he promised to meet, Kuroi waited in the 5th floor landing of the fire escape stairs. The tall man leaned on the cold metallic balustrade. The first few minutes felt long, and his mind started humming with doubts and bad scenarios that gave an illusive answer to his wondering about Shiori’s lateness. Kuroi realized the teases of his own mind and tried silencing them by distraction. He started tapping the tip of his shoe to a made-up beat and hummed a made-up melody.

“Sorry, I’m late.” A familiar voice called out of the blue from behind as the glassed door creaked open and a jolt zipped past the Black Bus member’s nerves, driving him to impulsively turn around, just to see the woman he was waiting for, almost unable to recognize her for how she faced him with an unexpectedly new look. Kuroi’s heart skipped a beat as he turned red. The more he looked at Shiori and how her appearance shifted – compared to a few hours prior – the guiltier he felt for not doing the same. “H- I’m the one who should apologize!” he stammered as he bowed to her.

“Oh, it’s okay… It happens to the best of us.” Shiori nervously excused his fault. “Thankfully, you and I have great friends who cover up for our mistakes, right?” Her smile and gentle words quickened his heartbeats further which pumped more blood into his face and turned it redder.

Kuroi found no words to respond with, hence a long, awkward moment of silence filled their space. Shiori walked in and stood by his side, arms crossed on the balustrade.

“Funny how we started playing against each other, and ended up playing together.” Kuroi broke the silence he caused. Shiori responded with a giggle. “It’s all thanks to your charm, we got along better than we ever expected.” He added.

“Thank you.” A tiny happy huff left Shiori’s nose. “Your energetic performance has boosted us too.”

“Not as much as your ‘Jack-” For a split second, as he was slowly turning his head towards Shiori, Kuroi had a feeling that he opened up a bit too much, therefore he silenced himself.

“Are… you okay?” Shiori asked out of concern.

“I shouldn’t…” He murmured to himself, then sighed after another awkward silence, “It made me feel… nostalgic.”

“Oh? How so? Did it sound… familiar?” Shiori wondered.

“No- it was something I’ve never heard before… The vibes within, they- It reminded me of the very first days of Black Bus… Even before we gave it that name.”

“Oh… I’m flattered.” Shiori’s cheeks flushed a light pastel shade of red. “You guys have been amazing too… Your loud voice was just mesmerizing and left our jaws dropped. Especially when we first heard it in the livehouse.” The woman chuckled. “Heck! Our first time witnessing your performance made us rethink our own decisions. No joke!”

Those were not just compliments to the man. Hearing someone admit to being influenced by his band’s decade-long-built craft lifted his spirit up in an unexpected way and time, so high that he found no words to speak for his appreciation with above the heights of Shiori’s honest-to-life cherishing, but he couldn’t think of a better way to express his gratitude than a mere, shy “Thanks” that he whispered with a slowly glowing crimson across his face.

Soon after, and once again, the two gave the ambience beneath them the permission to speak as they found nothing else to say for a long good while.

“So… Let’s say~ You do achieve your dream and become a big name in Japan.” The teacher stared into the starless night sky. “As big as TPOKZ… Then… What’s next?”

“... What’s next?”

“Yes- I mean, what’s your next plan after you succeed?”

“I dunno… Every day that passes, I live it like I’ll die the next.” Kuroi turned to Shiori. “If I recall correctly, you said the same, no?”

“Yes.” The teacher affirmed with a shaky tone. His statement reminded her that they have the same belief for different reasons. He believes to die at 27 just to persuade himself into reaching success faster, while she, despite it being her passion, does so because it is indeed her inevitable fate. “But you gotta aim for the moon, y’know? Even if you do know you’ll die someday specific-” She lifted her head up.

“Hm?” The man in black turned his sight back to her.

“Because after all, nobody really knows when exactly any of us dies, right? So… Dream on like you live forever but work on your dream like it’s your last day.”

That speech about not wasting chances no matter how short life seems reminded Kuroi of why he brought Shiori there with him in the first place. “Which is why I called you here!” He turned towards her, with his full body this time. Notwithstanding the fact that Kuroi can be either extremely shy or an intimidating approacher, Shiori was daunted by his sudden vibe switch. “Miss Shiori, I…”

Since he is now his own ghost, and though he is able to pass through objects, Jimi walked behind some random attendee who entered the hotel. “ Yawn~ Where on earth’s that woman?” The old legend complained, as he scanned around the less crowded yet lively lobby. He looked at one of the clocks that were hanging on the wall behind the reception countertop. The hour and minute hands were on top of one another, both pointing at 12; It is already a new day. “... Bet she’d already hit the hay.” Jimi thought to himself.

The 60’s rockstar couldn’t help but notice people keeping their eyes on or bending their backs down for this hand-sized flat television-looking device that he kept hearing them call a *“s’mapho”. Suddenly, That caught his ears was his own name being exchanged between two men along with Shiori’s, among many words that he couldn’t understand since they were spoken in a language that is foreign to him. Then what caught his eyes was this digital article that can scroll up and down with the slide of a finger in it… Slowly, Shiori is no longer mentioned, it is all about Jimi now. The manghost walked towards them and squatted low enough to look directly into the phone screen and to conclude what this Japanese duo was exactly talking about.

The two men did not speak in English, but the Wiki webpage they were reading from was in said language, then again the owner of the phone out of the two needed to switch between two tabs of his browser; one of the wiki and the other of the translator, which bothered the peeping Jimi for he couldn’t focus on what was written in such a tiny screen with a tinier font, worse yet, constantly flipping to this “other uninteresting TV channel” back and forth.

Alleged progeny

“Huh?” The slightly bigger, bold heading attracted the man whom the webpage is dedicated to.

Drug use and violence

“Viole- what!?” Despite only reading the headings and not even catching a glimpse of any of the sections yet, Jimi could not believe what he just saw written about him… He must be mistaken- Perhaps the paragraphs hold different context, maybe they were just allegations. Sure, he does remember that he smoked, drank and took LSD from time to time, but to the point of hurting others?

Unfortunately for him, the headings' meaning and the context of their paragraphs do accord. What devastated the legend even further was what he was able to fully read from the whole Wiki page:

Hendrix friend, Herbie Worthington, explains: "You wouldn't expect somebody with that kind of love to be that violent ... He just couldn't drink ... he simply turned into a bastard."

“Somebody with that kind of love” “a bastard.” two expressions that no one would expect to be referring to the same person, especially someone like Jimi Hendrix. Naturally, he has no memory of doing any malice for he only committed them under the strong effect of substances. That was not everything, as he read the sentence that followed up:

A girlfriend of Hendrix's, Carmen Borrero, required stitches after he hit her above her eye with a vodka bottle during a drunken, jealous rage.

“Wait, hold on- Oh, right…” Mr. Hendrix realized that his calls for the two men to stop scrolling would never be heard. “ Shit!” He hissed. Those new pieces of information hit him like a truck, it was so uncalled for that he had to pause for a minute to process what he merely read on that tiny screen. “Ain’t no way that’s true…” He thought to himself as he walked outdoors, walking through the doors of glass that did not even open. He tried to remember anything closer to what he just read about himself, none could do. Then it came to his mind; his four-eyed-freak of a friend might help him find that thing again and read it right so that every question that popped into his head would be answered. Even if she doesn’t have that device herself, surely –at least– one of her little buddies does, but now it’s impossible, the Shiori Experience band members must be asleep. He looked up at the floors to remind himself the next morning and to go all the way up to have his “beauty sleep” too. As he was walking around the building, he noticed a well-dressed man and woman up the fire escape stairs, they seemed to be separating for the moment, they seemed… familiar. He squinted towards them to see whether he was mistaken, until the mistress turned around and leaned on the rail, a frown started to appear on her face and her eyes seemed to well up. He recognized that hairdo and those glasses… It was her!

Although he was able to just appear in front of her in no time, Jimi decided to run upstairs to her. Once he reached the floor that she was in, but before he walked out to the balcony, he was passed though by Kuroi, who was humming a song he couldn’t recognize while walking down the rooms’ hallway. The ghost turned back to him for a while, wondering what he was doing with Shiori, then walked out to her. He could see and hear her clearly now, and she was indeed crying.

“Just when I was gonna ask you about what was said about my grave mistakes… You’re out there redoing them?” Said Jimi, standing behind his contractor right in front of the balcony door.

“Eh?! Uncle?!!” Shiori spun quickly when she heard his voice, not thinking of wiping her tears for she did not understand what he was referring to.

“Lemme guess…” Jimi took a hit from his cigarette, “You let yet another man break your heart.” he pushed the nicotine smoke out of his nostrils.

“No, that’s not-”

“Aren’t you supposed to sleep? Instead of getting enough energy for tomorrow’s performance, you’re out here wasting your precious time on some other kid!” He grunted out a sigh. “He only got singing skills… He can also play guitar and dumb little chicks like you.”

“Wh-What?” Shiori was too stunned to speak. Her fear of having the audacity topped her need to elaborate what actually went on with her and Kuroi.

“First that squid guy, and now him!!” He pointed back with his thumb. “Y’wanna score that bad, child?”

“Wha- No!!” Shiori crossed her forearms and shook her head in panic and embarrassment.

Jimi sighed, “I tell ya this…” Once again, he took a drag of his cigar. “Don’t distract yourself from your own blues with this datin’ and lovin’ bull… Especially if it’s another musician.”

“Why would- Did you… have a bad experience too?” Shiori’s voice lowered.

The musician from an older generation refused to answer.

“Whatcha mean ‘Why’ and- ‘did you have a bad experience’? You’re the one with tears and boogers slipping down your face.” Jimi pointed at her, his nose scrunched out.

“I promise, these tears have a different story-”

“He turned you down himself this time?” He scoffed: “Yeah, I can see why-”

“No. That wasn’t-”

“ You turned him down?” Jimi’s eyes widened, “Damn, I mean… That’s hella harsh but ya had to do it for the blues, eh?” He smiled and finger-gunned her just to realize that she did not approve of his reply.

“Uncle… Do you remember if you ever had a partner?” Shiori lowered her head, the shivers down her throat can be heard through her voice. “Asking for advice.”

“Yeah… I had many of ‘em, actually…” Jimi looked up at the moonlit sky. “It’s why I don’t want you to be in anyone’s heart or the other way round.”

“Why? I mean- do we share the same reasoning?”

“Huh?” Confusion appeared on Mr. Hendrix’s face.

“Well… I’m afraid I would either break my own heart again by letting the chance slip through my fingers like the last time… or break someone else’s by leaving them once we are established… Since, you know… I might actually die soon.”

“... Pfft! Who would wanna fall for you?” Jimi laughed jokingly.

“Would you be surprised if I said a name?” Shiori smiled with a mix of pride and hesitation. “And the fact that I wasn't the one who planned to be here?”

“Wait… You’re telling me he asked you out? Shoot, I thought he simply respected your skills.”

Shiori giggled: “That's exactly what he told me–”

“… I believed that I simply respected your skills, all this time. But you keep giving me reason after reason… to…” Slowly, Kuroi lost grasp of his own words, slurring them as he started shaking lightly. Shiori felt his uncontrollable shakiness in the hands she wrapped with hers. He forced what was left of his thoughts.

 “... To love you!” Kuroi’s whole face turned red in no time.

That last phrase opened two boxes within Shiori’s mind; One of a bitter memory that she buried deep in her mind. A memory of the night when she endured one humiliation after another… the love that Miss Subaru stole from her, the embarrassing flop at the livehouse and the coldness  of Mr. Hendrix on top of it all. The other was of the near future that awaits her; Will she enter his life just to leave a tiny while later? He does believe that legends die at 27 but just for a mere motivation. Shiori, on the other hand, believes in it because it is a genuine threat to her lifespan.

Completely forgetting the present, the English teacher was basking in what was over and what did not even start yet.

The compulsive thoughts streamed tears out of her eyes that slowly ran down her cheeks, dripping on Kuroi’s hands as she lowered her head, barely putting any effort into hiding her sad facade. The man heard the stuttered sobs from the teacher and his eyes widened out of the fear that he offended her by his clumsiness, by his audacity to ask for love after no good time or place settlement for this date, and no good new attire from him.

“I don’t wanna fall in love anymore.” Shiori swallowed a lump that tightened her throat, only allowing her to speak in short phrases. “It’s too reckless… it hurt me before.”

“I understand.” Kuroi released her hands, took one step back from her then bowed. “I deeply apologi-”

“I once ignored my own heart’s worth… And I broke it… And I’m afraid I’d hurt you too just cause I'm hurt mysel-” Shiori stopped, realizing that she might have overshared something Kuroi wouldn’t grasp. “Oh, sorry. I just…” She tugged a giggle. “It was just beyond surprising that… someone would find likings in… someone who’s as… plain as I am.”

“And it was beyond surprising to me too,” Kuroi stood back up, with a sad light frown growing on his face from the Shiori’s self-discriminating words. “that I found someone… who’s my equal and inspiration at the same time.” Trying to cheer her up, he smiled with his eyes on his own feet. “But I will gladly step back into being someone you just know of, if that's what you need-”

“No, wait!” said Shiori below a shout. “I don't wanna fall in love, because…” She rubbed her eyes dry, sniffed then let out a quick sigh and smiled:

 “I’d rather land slowly, this time.” 

The man in black lifted his head up with his eyes widened again and his jaw lowered slightly as the rest of his body froze in its latest position. Not a single word was found to be said.

“Thank you for loving me… But it’s not right for us to have it unequally-requited. So please, give me time to know you better… to love you back.” Shiori’s newly-dried gaze met with Kuroi’s. He nodded, pressing his lips onto one another as if he was holding back a few words, then released one of her hands to raise the other towards his mouth and planted a gentle kiss on its back before swallowing another lump of timidity for the last time that night.

“Thank you.” He bowed, releasing her hand. “Good night.” he whispered as he went back in with a soft smile that grew once he turned back.

“That's why I teared up a while ago… I lied to him.” Tears flooded again from Shiori’s eyes, “I said I didn't love him just yet when I already did… But I don't wanna hurt both of us either.”

“If he really loves you, he won't mind spending that little while with you… You said you didn’t want to let the chance slip through your hands, but that’s exactly what you did…” Jimi walked towards his contractor and sat on the metallic railing beside her. “Then again, you did tell him that you wanted to 'land slowly' or some bluff, right?”

“Y-Yes…” Shiori hesitantly answered.

“Then the chance ain't really gone, you just put him on hold… which, I admit, is kinda smart… All I’m saying is… You gotta live the best of both worlds. And I know you already got the right mindset for it.” Jimi smiled, as he pointed at her.

“What mindset?”

“That blind ambition of yours.”

The End