Saturday, June 27, 2009

A young teenaged girl could be heard humming Schubert's Ave Maria rather happily as she stepped into the room in which she shared with her room mates. Watching the sunset with Tsukimori-kun was surprisingly peaceful. Kahoko thought as she smiled to herself. As soon as she closed the door behind her, Kahoko was greeted by a grinning reporter. “Kaho!” she called out rather slyly.

The happy and carefree smile slid off Kahoko's face as she knew that Nami was already up to something with that wide grin of hers. Kahoko backed away. “W-what is it, Amou-san?” she stammered.

Nami's grin widened as she took her arm and brought the nervous girl deeper into the room, where another girl was looking at the two rather curiously. “Guess who I saw standing beside you down at the beach?” Nami said in a sing-song-like tone.

Kahoko froze on the spot as a hint of a blush started to color her cheeks. “I-it's not what you think!” she blurted out.

Nami raised an eyebrow. “And what do you think that I thought, Kaho?” she said teasingly.

Kahoko couldn't get the words fully out of her mouth so instead, she decided to avoid her question. A violin case was suddenly shoved into Nami's face. “I-i was down there practicing my violin when he showed up coincidentally when the sun was about to set. It's nothing like you're thinking,” Kahoko explained as she placed her violin case down gently to the side.

Unconvinced, Nami wasn't satisfied. “Hmm, so that's all? So Tsukimori-kun doesn't have the hots for you?” she said as my face burned brightly.

“O-of course not! No way that'd happen!” Kahoko countered as her face was on fire. “Don't think such things, Amou-san!”

Nami sat herself onto the futon that laid on the ground. “That's too bad, Kaho. I think you'd make a wonderful couple, right Shouko?” she said as she looked to the younger girl who held a pillow on her lap.

Shouko nodded as she hugged her pillow while sitting on the bed. “Yes.. I think Kaho-senpai and Tsukimori-senpai look good together,”she said with a cute smile.

Kahoko looked at them as if they all grew two heads. “You can't be serious, I mean the only times we ever talk are when I'm being scolded for playing so horribly,” she argued.

“If you say so,”

Kahoko rolled her eyes as she ignored her and escaped into the bathroom. After putting up her hair so that it wouldn't get wet, Kahoko climbed into the near-full tub to relax. She titled her head back so that it rested against the wall as she thought over what Nami had said. Tsukimori-kun and I? N-no way! Kahoko thought as she scooped up a handful of water with her hands and watching it slip between her fingers.

As she thought back to the moment on the beach, her face became hot again as Kahoko remembered glancing at Len with the corner of her eye, seeing him basked in sunlight from the side, looking very much like a god. I didn't know what I was thinking at that time, but all I could recall was that I couldn't pull my eyes away from him. Kahoko sighed as she slid down a tad bit so that the warm water was now at mouth-level and blew bubbles.

“So Tsukimori doesn't have the hots for you?” Amou-san had said.

I've never gave a thought about it before, since I was always quite concentrated on my violin and trying to improve my skills so that it wouldn't be as far of a distance than I already was from Tsukimori-kun. But... hypothetically speaking, what would she do if he did like her? Kahoko paused with the bubble-blowing as her mind became puzzled over that matter. How would I react? W-would I turn him down? She asked herself as she brought her knees in closer.

Even if I was the last person on Earth, there would be no possible way for Tsukimori-kun to end up with someone like me, so I shouldn't be thinking too much about this matter just because Amou-san brought it up. As Kahoko got into her pajamas, the thought of why she thought about his side of the story more than hers never came to her.

In the early morning.. As the sun lit through the blinds upon three sleeping figures, the only one, who was facing the window was woken gently by the light coming through her eyelids. Kahoko sleepily opened one eye, then winced at the sudden light so she brought her arm to cover her eyes. Morning already.. Kahoko thought half-awake as she rubbed her eyes with her hands before sitting up. She glanced at the radio-clock which laid beside her, saying that it was 6 am and that she was woken an hour earlier than she originally planned.

Oh well... I had to get up at some point anyway, right? Kahoko thought to herself as she groggily made her way to the bathroom to wash her face. Upon her return, careful not to wake her companions, Kahoko quietly stepped onto the balcony and was greeted with a gust of wind blowing quite strongly. Night time and day time were very different; it seemed as though everyone was basked in light while the night time had an air of mysteriousness. It's quite peaceful.

As Kahoko listened carefully, she could make out a familar sound coming from the east side. Turning her head towards the beach, Kahoko could make out a figure standing on the grassy hill facing the beach. Is that Hihara-senpai? He's up already?

Scene change.. “Hey, that sounded really good just now! I'll play it from the top again,” said an energetic male as he brought his trumpet up against his lips for an encore when he noticed a shadow standing behind him.

Turning around, his eyes blinked in surprise as he saw a familar face. “K-kaho-chan?” he questioned.

Kahoko smiled. “Good morning, Hihara-senpai. Working hard so early already?” she asked as she moved forward to stand closer to her upperclassman.

Kazuki returned her smile. “Nah, I like to get up early, since sleeping is so boring. Playing the trumpet is really refreshing in the morning,” he said as he looked down at his instrument with a loving gaze.

“Is that so? I should try that sometime,” Kahoko replied as she looked out to the beach.

Kazuki smile froze as he appeared to have just suddenly realized something. “Oh no! I better head back to wake the other guys up before we're late for our job today!” he cried out. “Sorry Kaho-chan! Gotta run!”

Kahoko waved awkwardly at her senpai who took off into the distance, running up the path back to the hotel. Well, I guess some things never change..

It was quite a busy morning as many customers took their turns coming to the cafe. “Sorry Kaho-chan, but can you get table seven please?” Kazuki called out apologetically as he headed towards the kitchen with a handful of dishes.

“Sure! No problem!”

It had been like that all morning, the students of Seiso Academy had no time to rest with going back and forth. Finally Kahoko glanced at the clock after it had been several hours. She smiled as it was now her break and talk about time. She headed back to the kitchen with some dishes and placed them beside Shouko, who was washing the dishes. “Okay, I'm on my break now,” Kahoko announced to the staff that was in the kitchen.

Ryotaro noddedas he was preparing an egg omelet. “Sure, come back soon so I can take my turn,” he said good humorly.

Kahoko escaped through the back door of the café and down the path that led into the small forest that was behind the café. She stretched her arms as she felt a tinge of soreness go through them. Jeez...working is quite a bit of work.. It's been just more than a day and yet I feel that it's been a week that passed. Kahoko thought as she turned her head side to side to loosen up the muscles in her neck.

As she wandered further away from the café and closer to the back of the resort, Kahoko suddenly stopped as she heard a faint, yet melodic sound go through the air. Kahoko blinked. A violin? She wondered as she aprroached the direction of the sound. Kahoko closed her eyes as she continued down the path as though she was captured in the sound. The melody was smooth, yet warm, as though one was trapped in a sweet dream. The playing of the piece was completely flawless, as the players fingers moved skillfully up and down the fingerboard. Emotions of the playet were clearly heard as Kahoko walked on.

It's very well played... I can clearly hear the tone of each note perfectly. As though Tsukimori-kun himself was playing...Kahoko thought as the blue-haired boy appeared in her mind with his familiar way of playing. However, it can't be him.. not only is he still at the café, but also, his way of music isn't like this. As Kahoko unconsciously came up the patio near the resort, the playing suddenly stopped. Kahoko's eyes widened as she realized that the player had stopped playing.

What was even more surprising was the violinist. Kahoko swallowed nervously as she looked at the violinist who looked at her curiously. It was that girl that Kahoko had seen the other day, who had been looking for Len. Miyaji lowered her violin. “Excuse me, but can I help you?” she asked as Kahoko's face reddened in embarassment.

Kahoko waved her hands frantically. “N-no! I-i was just... wandering around when I heard a violin and came towards the sound,” she explained. “You play beautifully,”

Miyaji looked a little surprised that a stranger whom she had never spoken to had complimented her on her playing. She smiled nevertheless. “Thank you very much,” she said.

Kahoko blinked as she looked at Miyaji top to bottom. She was dressed rather neatly in a casual summer dress. Her voice was plesant to hear, gentle, polite yet melodic at the same time. Wow, she's the perfect example of the daughter of a rich man. Kahoko thought. That violin seems to be rather expensive. “Sorry for intruding, but may I ask you something?” Miyaji asked, breaking Kahoko's train of thought.

“Um, sure,” Kahoko replied uncertainly, surprised that the girl would start a conversation with her.

Miyaji looked a little hesitant, but seeing that she was the one who started this conversation, she continued. “Are you a friend of Len's? The other day at the café.. I thought there was someone there who ressembled you,” she said.

Taken off guard, Kahoko found that she was unable to reply for a fraction of a second. Sure she heard this girl call Len by his first name before, but up close, Kahoko felt rather anxious, though she didn't know why. Did Len think of her as a friend? ...or did he think she was merely an acquaintance? Kahoko swallowed. “Well, T-tsukimori-kun's a friend of mine, I guess you can say that.. though I'm not sure whether he considers me a friend. But yes, I work at the café at the moment,” she answered.

Miyaji seemed to think this over for a second before asking, “May I ask... if you are Hino Kahoko-san?”

Kahoko blinked. She had never spoken to this girl before, so how did she know of her name? This girl was full of surprises. “Y-yes, I am... but how did you know?” she asked.

Miyaji smiled lightly at Kahoko's curiosity. “I've often heard about you from Len,” Miyaji replied to Kahoko's surprise.

From Tsukimori-kun? “I'm glad that Len has friends now, he's been lonely ever since we were children, though he never once spoken about his situation,” Miyaji said sadly. “Being the way he is, people tend to stay away from him. He doesn't tell people what he is thinking, so it usually turns out that they misunderstand his intentions, thinking that he is blunt and unapprochable,”

Kahoko thought back to the first few encounters she had had with the violinist, meeting with him in the practice room, where he had commented how her playing of the violin was not stage-worthy. Her first thought had been that he was cold and uncaring, paying attention to no one but himself. But even though that aspect of his never really changed, he had become kinder and gentler in his actions and his speech.

“But.. I think that the passion he has for the violin is something that not everyone has,” Kahoko spoke as she remembered the scene where Len performed on that stage alone without an audience at the end of the second selection.

He was playing as though he was in another world, the sound of his bow crossing his strings echoed off the walls and her heart. It was impossible to stand on the same level as he was, especially with the fact that she had been playing the violin due to its magic and not by just effort. Kahoko had wanted to be someone that Len could acknowledge.

Miyaji nodded her head in agreement. “I see that it wasn't just I who was influenced by Len,” she said.

Kahoko snapped out of her thoughts as she blinked in surprise. “What do you mean?” she asked.

A smile came upon Miyaji's face as she brought up her hand that held the violin. The fond smile on her face glowed as she thought back to the past. “This violin and I have been partners for many years now, ever since I was a young girl. My father and Tsukimori-san have been friends ever since I could remember. You see, Tsukimori-san was a very talented violinist. At his gatherings, he often played for his audience while being accompanied by Hamai Misa-san. I remember the first time that I heard him play, I was entranced,”

“The sound of each note was so crystal clear; the high notes as well. I was amazed that such a sound could be produced from the violin. It sparked my interest in music. Not too long after, Len's parents invited me to a children's concert that was held by many talented children and Len himself included. The songs played by each person was unique in it's own way, but it was Len's performance that took my notice. Like his father, Len was very talented. Despite being so young, he outshone the other contestants who were older than he was,”

“It was his first performance, as I was told by his parents, but he easily won first place. With his performance in my head, I was eager to learn as well. I was taught my one of the teachers that my father found for me. It was very difficult in the beginning and I had wanted to give up on several occasions, but as I recalled Len's sound, I persevered. And so, under his influence, I'm the person I am today,” Miyaji replied.

Kahoko remained silent as she took on what Miyaji had told her. Though Len was free to inspire anyone (intentionally or unintentionally), Kahoko couldn't help but feel the sense of discomfort she had felt moments before, though this time, it began to grow heavier. “I-i see... A-anyway, I should be going back,” Kahoko said quickly as she gave the girl a quick smile.

Miyaji nodded. “That's fine. It was nice talking to you, Hino-san,” she said warmly.

Kahoko gave her a nod. “Same to you,” she replied before taking off back on the path she came.

As soon as she was out of Miyaji's view, Kahoko slowed her pace down to a walk as she trudged her way back to the café. Visions of the blue haired violinist appeared in her mind as she recalled Miyaji's words. 'With his performance in my head, I was earger to learn as well,' Kahoko couldn't help but feel a little envious of the girl, since she had attended one of Len's first performances. Thinking back to the videos that she had seen with Kazuki and the others back at Minami Instruments, a miniature Len was recorded performing.

Though Len had claimed that back then, the level of his playing wasn't very high, his talent was real. At such a young age, he was already such a good player. And Miyaji knew the Len from that time as well. Reaching the back entrance of the café, Kahoko shook her head to clear out her thoughts as she returned into the back of the kitchen. “I'm back,” she called out as several heads turned towards her.

“Yo! Talk about time.. I had been wondering whether I would have to come after you,” Ryotaro teased with a playful grin.

Kahoko gave him a small smile. “Sorry about that, Tsuchiura-kun. You can go now,” she said.

“Will do,”

Looking around the kitchen, Kahoko spotted that the workers had changed again. Now the ones that were in the back were Shimizu, Kazuki and Aoi. “Kaji-kun,” Kahoko called out. “Where should I be?”

Aoi paused with the arrangement of the dishes as he looked around for a moment. “Well, Fuyuumi-san and Tsuchiura-san both left for their break, so only Yunoki-san and Tsukimori-san are out in the front. It seems rather busy out there, so I think it would be best if you worked with them,” he said with a smile.

“Alright then,”

It was indeed rather busy outside. I could see that Azuma and Len were busy taking orders. It looked really tiring as I watched them move swiftly from one table to another. Seeing that there was a table that was still waiting for their orders to be taken, I quickly rushed over. It was a young couple, not too much older than than were. They were casually dressed. The guy had simple hair that wasn't too long and had bangs in the front just above his eyes. The girl who accompanied him also had short hair, just at the level of her earlobes, though in her case, it was a little curly. The girl had an innocent, pure air around her while the guy had a really cool atmosphere around him, as though he stood out. As the girl laughed with a hand covering her mouth, her boyfriend smiled at her lovingly in return. They made a really good couple.

Realizing that someone was studying them, the girl took notice of Kahoko and greeted her with a smile, making Kahoko realize that she was supposed to be taking the orders. “Hi, could we please have this blueberry smoothie with an order of spaghetti?” she said.

Kahoko nodded as she jotted the orders down in her notepad. “And Shi-chan here will have just have some cappuchino,” the girl added as her boyfriend scowled at the name.

“Alright. Your orders will be here shortly,” Kahoko said as she nodded to the customers and turned to leave.

As she left, she heard the guy speak in a tone of complaint, “Aww, why do you have to call me 'Shi-chan' in public? I always get those weird looks,” he said.

“What's there to be embarrassed of? I think it is cute,” the girl replied.

As Kahoko turned the corner, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the guy looking slightly embarrassed, but quickly forgave his girlfriend. Kahoko sighed as she brought her order to the desk and handed it to the kitchen. That couple looks a lot like Tsukimori-kun and Miyaji-san... they also look really good together as well. She thought with an uneasy feeling in her heart. Tsukimori-kun and Miyaji-san are both really wealthy and that they both play the violin in levels that one like me could only dream of. She seems to care quite a bit for Tsukimori-kun, but I wonder what he thinks of her as. Only as a childhood friend or perhaps something more...? Kahoko sighed again as she noticed a vacant table out of the corner of her eye.

Reaching for an abandoned wash cloth, Kahoko's delicate fingers brushed against someone else's, which surprised her. Looking at the other person, Kahoko's eyes quickly scanned the face to reveal the face of her fellow concours member, Len. “A-ah, sorry,” Kahoko said quickly as she grabbed a different cloth and continued her work.

Her face was flustered, it was evident, but as she left the scene, she could feel Len's surprised look follow her. W-why is my face so red? It was just a mere accident.. could have happened with anyone! Kahoko told herself as she cleaned the table. Maybe because it was Tsukimori-kun, who I had been thinking of just moments ago, who would look good with someone like Miyaji-san. Kahoko suddenly paused as she thought about the words the had just crossed her mind. He would look good with someone like her...

As the day came to an end, the cafe manager rounded up all the employees after the cafe had closed and after they all changed back to their normal attire. “Thank you all for your hard work! We had another busy day, but thanks to you guys, it was very successful,” he said. “Now, please go back to your resort and rest up,”

As Kahoko nodded, her eyes met Len's gaze as he stood opposite to her. He was clearly giving her a questioning look but Kahoko adverted her eyes. It was time to leave. “Y-you did well today, Kaho-sempai,” said Shouko as the members of the concours took their leave.

Kahoko nodded towards her junior. “Yeah, you too. It's really exhausting,” she said.

As they returned to their resort, Kahoko came down from their room to buy something to drink. Standing in front of the machine, Kahoko pondered on which drink she wanted to buy. Pocari Sweat? Or perhaps... C.C. Lemon? Pocari Sweat tastes better when fatigued, but the sweetness of C.C. Lemon has a lot of vitamins... “Would you mind making your decision?” a familiar cold voice asked.

Kahoko's eyes widened as she knew who was the owner of that voice. Forgetting that she was ever thirsty, Kahoko spun around. “Ah T-tsukimori-kun... sorry about that. I-i changed my mind,” she said quickly as she stepped out of his way to make her way back to the elevator.

But as she was about to move, a strong hand grabbed onto her wrist, preventing her from advancing any further. Surprised, Kahoko spun around to see Len holding onto her tightly. “T-tsukimori-kun? Could you let go?” she asked as Len's eyes narrowed.

“May I ask the reason for why you are avoiding me,”

Labels: la corda d'oro, summer romance