You sat in the subway tunnels watching the people that got up early in the morning to get a head start on the day. You smiled at each one of them knowing that their lives were probably filled with more joy than you could possibly imagine. For the past six years of your life you had been living on the streets with nothing but your bass guitar and a single change of clothes.
Every day you would come into this subway tunnel and play whenever it started to get busy. The money you got from playing would go to food, laundry, and whatever tune-ups you needed to do for your bass. You don't remember how long you've been doing this but it was all you knew how to do now. So like always you waited for the time to come when the subway was at its busiest from people who were going to lunch and to work from lunch.
You started to set up next to a support column that had an outlet and plugged in your amp and microphone to the wall. You then pulled out a black four string Ibanez bass and began tuned it before plugging it into the amp. By this time there were a few people who had surrounded where you were setting up. Most of them you recognized as people who had seen you before and had come to watch again.
You couldn't help but feel a smile when you saw a crowd of people waiting for you to start playing. The feeling that you had at that moment wasn't one you would trade for anything. Not wanting to waste any more time for yourself or the people there you turned on the amp, cranked the volume all the way up, and began to play.
As the first notes came out of your bass you could feel it echo throughout the subway and travel through your body. It was a feeling that was really indescribable and was the reason that you picked up the bass to begin with. It wasn't the most popular instrument but it made you feel the music deeper in more ways than one. For a few seconds you stayed quiet and let the bass take the highlight. Then it was your time to sing.
It's bugging me Yeah I'm endlessly 'Cause I want it now Yeah it's holding me To be endlessly 'Cause I want it now And I want you now
Grating me
And twisting me around
Caving in
And turning inside out
I want it now
Give me your heart and your soul
And I'm breaking out
I'm breaking out
Last chance to lose control
Morphing me
And forcing me to strive
Caving in
And dreaming I'm alive
I want it now
Give me your heart and your soul
I'm not breaking down
I'm breaking out
Lace chance to lose control
I want you now
I feel my heart implode
And I'm breaking out
Escaping now
Feeling my faith erode
The final notes faded out and the crowd in front of you cheered as those who had to leave dropped some money into the bass case in front of you before setting off. The rest stayed behind in hopes that they'd be able to hear more. So for the next hour or so you played the songs that you had planned to play that day. After the people gathering around had left and you had taken your money and packed up you noticed something that stuck out from the corner of your eye.
Turning your head to look you saw a girl at the other end of the subway hallway. She had gotten your attention because of her hair. She had blue hair tied up into loose, long twin tails. Once you saw her you couldn't help but realize that she was REALLY FREAKING CUTE AND LOOKING STRAIGHT AT YOU. With cheeks now flushed red you quickly turned away and started to walk away in the opposite direction from her. Girls were never your strong suit and to be honest they kind of intimidated you.
As you walked away you took a quick glance behind you to see if the girl had left. She hadn't. Instead she was running straight after you waving her hand in the air as if she was hailing a taxi. Panicking you began to sprint away from her as if she was an ex-girlfriend who was holding a really big knife. You probably would've gotten away from her had you not been holding around twenty pounds of music equipment that you couldn't drop or you wouldn't be eating for a while.
Eventually you reached the stairs out of the subway. However, not having nearly enough energy to even try to run up them, you gave up and set your equipment down as you slumped against the wall. A few seconds later the girl showed up breathing so heavily that you thought she was going to have a heart attack.
"Why...did you...run away?" She asked you between breaths. as she slumped against the wall next to you.
"I'm...not really sure." You said back, also a bit out of breath. "I just...panicked."
"That's...stupid."
You both looked at each other and started bursting out laughing. The whole situation was so ridiculous that you were sure that anyone who saw what happened knew what the hell was going on. You laughed so hard with her that you forgot that you were bad with girls. Somehow she just made you feel relaxed and even happy. Feelings you hadn't had in a long time.
Once you had both managed to regain your breaths and had stopped laughing she stood up and offered you her hand.
"My name's Hatsune Miku," she told you, "I heard you playing and I just wanted to talk to you for a bit."
"(f/n) (l/n)," you told her as you grabbed her hand, "wish you had said something before you just started chasing after me."
"Yeah me too."
Grabbing your stuff you followed her above ground to a restaurant not far from where the stairs you collapsed next to were. Setting your stuff behind the counter so that the staff could look after it you sat down at a table with her.
"So," you began once you had ordered your drinks, "what did you want to talk about."
"I want you to join my band." She told you immediately.
You were a bit taken back by what she had just said. Of all things that was not what you expected to come out of her mouth. Actually you didn't know what you expected her to say.
"The way you played that music back there was amazing. It was as if you put everything you were into that performance. Honestly it was amazing."
She gazed at you with the eyes of someone who had found love at first sight, or someone who had found a very fun toy to play with. Either way you wanted no part of it. You had gone this long without anybody in your life and you could do just fine without them.
"Thanks but no thanks." You told her as you put down enough money for the drink and walked away, grabbing your stuff on the way out.
A couple hours later the sun had started to set and you were laying under the bridge that you had claimed as our home. It wasn't the most comfortable place to be but it kept the rain away, mostly, and you had enough space to put you stuff down. Plus it was right next to the river that the bridge went over and ad soft grass to lay on. Good enough right?
Who were you kidding. Your life was absolutely miserable. You began to laugh as bitter tears streamed down your face. For six years you had lived here. Constantly in fear of being robbed, raped, killed, you name it. Nothing had happened yet but that was more due to the fact that you kept your head low except for when you played than anything else. So wrapped up in your self pity that you didn't notice someone walking over to your curled up sobbing body.
"Is this where you live (f/n)?"
Your head snapped up and you say Miku kneeling in front of you. A concerned look displayed on her face. You turned your head away from embarrassment. You had rejected her offer and now here you were in this pitiful state.
"Go away Miku. I told you I'm not joining. Go find another bassist." You didn't even know why you were saying no anymore. You didn't know why you said it in the first place. It wasn't as if anything worse would happen if you decided to join.
"(f/n)," she said with a soft, almost angelic voice, "why are you alone?"
Finally hearing the question you've been waiting for anyone to ask you told her everything. You told her how almost six years ago on your tenth birthday your parents dropped the bomb on you that you were moving away. You weren't able to say goodbye to any of your friends or even celebrate your birthday. Instead you were dragged away from what had been your home for ten years and pushed somewhere new. Yet you never actually got there.
At a random gas station when you went inside to use the restroom your parents took of without you. All they left behind was a bass guitar you didn't know how to play and a change of clothes that were too big for you at the time. With no phone you couldn't call them so instead you tried to get the police's help. But they offered none to you. They simply turned a blind eye since you were seen as too much trouble.
So the only option left was to use the address that you remembered from when they told you to try and get home on your own. You hoped that when you got there it would all be just a big misunderstanding. That hope kept you going. Until you reached the address inly to find that it was the wrong house. They had intentionally given you the wrong address.
With all options exhausted you walked until you reached a bridge that you could sleep under. No one took you in or even asked you if you were okay. It was as if you were invisible to the world. For six years you desperately learned the bass as a means to fill your stomach and keep yourself alive. The whole time not knowing what you were actually living for. Suicide was always a thought in your mind. But you never actually carried it out. Instead you lived on hating your parents and telling yourself that you would never get involved with anyone ever again.
That was why you had rejected her offer, you remembered, you didn't want anything else to do with her or whoever else was in her band. Yet here she was. Still in your life and on top of that seeming to care about you. Maybe it was time to put your faith into someone again. But you still weren't sure.
It didn't seem like she was going to give you a choice though. Once you had finished your story she sat next to you on the grass and stared across the river with you.
"I'm not going to abandon you (f/n). I promise you that much at least."
You didn't say anything to her. The tears streaming down your face spoke for you. Not knowing what to do or say you just laid back and stared at the bottom of the bridge. You didn't see Miku's smile and you didn't see her lean towards your face. You only felt a kiss on your cheek and her warm body lay down next to you as she snuggled against you.
"Tomorrow's my birthday." you told her. If anyone should know it should be her you thought. "I'm turning sixteen."
"Then tomorrow I'll tell you happy birthday first thing in the morning."
And with that she fell asleep. Honestly, she trusted you way too much. turning your head towards her you kissed her forehead before whispering to her.
"Goodnight."
And as you fell asleep you had a thought you hadn't had in six years of being alone. You couldn't wait to wake up the next morning. That alone put a smile on your face.