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Umiri let out a sigh of relief as the final note of the song rang out.
Another sold-out show was coming up fast, and the members of Ave Mujica were in the midst of another gruelling practice session. Umiri felt her phone vibrating in her pocket and pulled the device out, checking the alarm she had set earlier.
“Time for a break. Fifteen minutes. That means fifteen minutes, Nyamu-chan. Not twenty, not thirty.”
Nyamu rolled her eyes as she clambered out from behind her drum kit. “Yeah, I know, I know. A girl loses track of time once, and all of a sudden it’s the end of the world.”
“It was not once. I can’t even count how many times it’s been now.”
Nyamu waved a hand dismissively, already buried in her phone as she exited the studio. Umiri was prepared to fire off another remark about the drummer’s lackadaisical attitude, but was stopped by a look from Sakiko.
“Leave it be, Yahata-san. We’ll just start without her if she decides to dawdle for too long.”
Well, that was good enough for Umiri. She honestly wasn’t in the mood to get into another argument with Nyamu anyway. The girl was an undeniably skilled drummer, but her demeanor often rubbed Umiri the wrong way. She gave a soft huff of annoyance before making her way to one of the chairs set along the wall of the studio.
Satisfied that another potential argument had been diffused, Sakiko made her way out of the studio as well, with Uika close behind. Umiri happened to catch part of what Uika was saying before the door closed.
“It’s going well, right Saki-chan? Saki-chan, I was thinking…”
Umiri shook her head. She wasn’t quite sure what was going on with those two, but it was always “Saki-chan this” and “Saki-chan that” with Uika. She was now left alone in the studio with Ave Mujica’s stoic rhythm guitarist. Mutsumi had listened to the various conversations with the same ambivalence she always did, plucking a quiet tune on her guitar rather than joining in.
Now that they were alone, though, she looked up and around, almost as if to make sure the others had left. She set her guitar on its stand before quietly approaching Umiri. Their relationship was certainly no secret, but Mutsumi preferred to keep things as low-key as possible when the others were around.
Umiri looked up from her phone before tucking it away, reaching out to take Mutsumi’s hand in hers. Her thumb began rubbing familiar, soothing circles on the back of the smaller girl’s hand.
“Feeling good so far?”
Mutsumi nodded before responding in her usual quiet tone. “Yes. Your bass sounded good, very clear.”
Umiri always enjoyed compliments on her skill, but ones from Mutsumi sent a little extra surge of pleasure through her. “Thank you. I could tell your guitar was singing as well.”
Mutsumi was about to respond, but was interrupted by the unmistakable sound of Umiri’s stomach growling. Umiri felt her cheeks heat up with embarrassment.
“Ahem, sorry about that.”
The corners of Mutsumi’s mouth quirked up slightly, her version of a smile. As endearing as it was to see the normally calm and collected Umiri looking flustered, Mutsumi also felt a bit of concern. She was well aware that her girlfriend’s dietary habits were not the best.
“You should eat. There’s vending machines down the hall.”
Unsurprisingly, the bassist shook her head. “I’m fine. I don’t care much for the snacks in those machines anyways.”
Mutsumi highly doubted that Umiri had even looked at what they had to offer, but that was alright. She had come prepared. She went over to her guitar case, kneeling down and opening it. She quickly found what she was looking for and returned to Umiri.
Umiri watched this, wondering what it was that Mutsumi had retrieved. She soon had her answer when she was presented with a chocolate energy bar—her favorite brand, no less. She looked at the bar, then up at Mutsumi.
“What’s this?”
“Energy bar. Eat it.”, came the blunt response.
Umiri couldn’t help but chuckle softly at the straightforwardness. Mutsumi could really cut right to the point when she wanted to. She accepted the bar and began to unwrap it.
“Well yes, I see that. I meant, why do you happen to have one of my favourite kinds of snack stowed away in your guitar case?”
Mutsumi looked towards the floor, almost seeming a little embarrassed. She rubbed her arm for a moment, a self-soothing gesture Umiri had seen her do before when she was anxious.
“You don’t eat enough sometimes. I noticed you had a lot of these at your apartment, so I thought it might be a good idea to keep one around for an emergency.”
She glanced up Umiri, golden eyes searching her face for any sign that the observation may have been a bit too much.
“I apologize if I overstepped. I just…worry.”
Umiri paused mid-bite as she processed Mutsumi’s words. Not only had she taken note of Umiri’s preferred choice of snack, but she’d made the effort to stash one away in case the need ever arose. The thoughtfulness of the gesture made Umiri’s heart do a little flip.
She swallowed the piece she had bitten off and set the bar aside for a moment, rising to her feet and gently cupping Mutsumi’s face in her hands. It never ceased to amaze her how incredibly lucky she was to be able to call this girl her partner.
“You didn’t overstep. Thank you for looking out for me.”
A faint blush dusted Mutsumi’s cheeks, and then deepened when Umiri pressed a kiss to her forehead. The blush went into overdrive when their lips connected for the briefest of moments.
Umiri returned to her seat, with Mutsumi taking up the one next to her. Umiri took another bite of the energy bar; she really had been hungry. She offered it over to Mutsumi.
“Want a bite?”
Mutsumi wrinkled her nose. “Absolutely not, those things are an affront to taste buds.”
Umiri let out a faux gasp of offense. “I’ll have you know these are both effective and delicious.”
Mutsumi managed to avoid rolling her eyes but couldn’t contain the soft laugh that escaped her.
As Umiri chewed, she glanced sideways at her girlfriend - the same calm, quietly steadfast presence that grounded her more than she liked to admit. Maybe it was the energy bar, or maybe it was Mutsumi’s quiet care, but she felt lighter somehow.
When they finally picked up their instruments again, Umiri found her fingers moving with a little more ease, her bass line carrying just a touch more warmth.