That day, Chiaki didn't take his usual way to the music academy where he is serving as a piano professor. Two years after graduating, he decided to pursue further studies while serving as a professor in the academy.
It was probably the yellow-orange sunlight and the smell of fresh bread that made him turn left instead of right.
Nodame woke up earlier that day to go to work. She forgot to bring her materials the day before and just decided to go earlier to finish what she needed to do.
Without bathing, she put on her blue pinstripe frock with gray sleeves uniform and rushed out her apartment to her work.
"Choto matte kudasai" Nodame stretched her hand to stop the elevator from closing. She caught a glimpse of her haughty neighbor who just looked straight at her before the door completely closed and the arrows motioned down.
Chiaki had never seen this part of the way to the academy before. Not like this, he thought. It was always at night that he notices this part of the road and never bothered to know what lies ahead.
There were rows of flower shops, a bakery and a small coffee standing side by side. At the end of the road, occupying almost the entire corner of the block was a kindergarten. A big playground with colorful bars and slides and blossoming flowers welcome the small children in their ginghams and shorts. The kindergarten is big, he thought. He had always thought that it was all houses here, "I guess they turned this one to a school."
He lingered around the school to look at the red-cheeked children playing around the grounds, some clinging to their mothers. Chiaki laughed softly at the sight of the young ones who were about to begin their classes.
After a long day in the academy, Chiaki decided to pass by the kindergarten again to watch the young children. He couldn't tell why but he felt at home and at ease the whole day after watching the children.
"Ready... begin!" Nodame cheerily spoke to the children left in the kindergarten. She pressed on the keys to start playing her composition, The Fart Exercise. She started making this during her stay at the music academy and completed it upon her graduation. She has been using this exercise for the children to entertain them while they wait for their mothers. She started working at the kindergarten right after her graduation from the music academy a year ago.
The notes that filled the grounds were accompanied by the children's excited voices. Chiaki noticed the lightness of the music being played, "a bit sloppy but that person has skills," he thought. He walked inside the school grounds to see the children singing and who was the one playing the music.
Midway through the playground, the musical exercise had stopped but the sound lingered in Chiaki's ears. It was a happy music; good music, even. The music seemed familiar to him too, he thought. "I must have heard it before, maybe in Prague. But it's quite Japanese, maybe at the academy... but who would be allowed to play music like that in the academy?"
Chiaki continued to cross the grounds with the purpose of going to the music room to find the piano player. The afternoon sun with its soft orange color made his white shirt whiter than it was. He recalled the musical exercise in his head and tried his best to remember. He had a vague memory of a girl with short hair playing the same music in one of the piano rooms in the academy, with the same afternoon light shining on her and the majestic piano.
"Sensei, more music please!" one chubby girl tugged at the hem of Nodame's blue frock. "More music, more music!" "Sensei play us another one!" The children shouted in unison their requests for Nodame to play more music.
"Teacher, play us that dorobo music you're playing to us every afternoon!" again, the chubby girl insisted on her request.
"Hai, hai!" Nodame replied to the students and told everyone to sit down and behave during her performance of the dorobo music.
She lifted her fingers in the air and breathed in deeply before pressing on the keys to begin playing the first movement of Beethoven's Symphony No. 7
The high notes flowed through the halls as Chiaki was walking inside. He stopped for a while to close his eyes and listen to the music. "Beethoven's Symphony No. 7, sloppily played. That person is composing!" but deep inside, the skills that he commended earlier have been validated. It was like the notes have a life of their own.
He hastened his steps a bit to follow where the music was coming from. In the orange afternoon light, he saw the children seated around a young girl playing Beethoven. Her arms lightly sprang as her fingers played though the keys.
"Dorobo, dorobo, dorobooo!" the children accompanied Nodame as she sang along the movement. She had heard this music in the academy many times before, a student orchestra played it once and they would constantly practice near her piano room and she had memorized the music by heart. Every afternoon, she would recall the music she heard at the academy and she would play it. Sometimes, she would play along the orchestra while they were practicing.
Not to disturb the scene, Chiaki very lightly pushed aside the sliding door to enter the music room. It was spacious, with two pianos sitting side by side with the afternoon light filling the room and covering the two pianos in their orange glow. The children were sat on the colorful floor. I've seen her before, he thought - "Once, in the same sunlight. She was playing Chopin the academy". Chiaki wasn't sure and he didn't really care if he had seen her already or not. He was, even if he found it hard to believe, captivated by the music and the player. She seemed to have brought new life to the Beethoven composition.
The music ended and the children clapped and cheered Nodame, amazed by her fleeting fingers and also delighted with the music they just heard. "Sensei, again!" "Again, sensei, again!", the children requested. They wanted to hear the music again so they can sing along to the "dorobo, dorobo, dorobo".
"Hai, hai! I will play another music. This one is also beautiful, I've heard it so many times in my life I have memorized it." she looked at her students. I wish there are two of us playing this music, it would have sounded better, she thought while glancing at the piano beside hers.
As Nodame was about to begin playing, one restless child who was looking for her grandmother looked at the door of the music room and spotted Chiaki standing quietly at the corner.
"Ah! Dorobo! Sensei, sensei! Dorobo!" the young boy alerted the entire class.
Nodame quickly turned to see if danger was indeed in the room. She turned around and saw a young man standing at the corner. He was tall, with hair falling short on his shoulders. He was wearing a white shirt, which the sunlight only made whiter, and he was wearing black pants. He had been standing at the corner of the room by the door quietly since she began playing Beethoven but she, neither have the children, noticed.
"No, no. I'm not a bad person. I came here to listen to your music," Chiaki addressed the children. He smiled at them and the children, somehow, trusted his disarming smile. Nodame stared at the Chiaki and she felt like a dream came to life. With the same afternoon sun she can always see when she closes her eyes.
"You, how did you get in here?" she asked, standing to proceed to where he was.
"I heard you playing Beethoven, I just came in to see who was playing." he answered.
"I was. It's not perfect but I play it by ear. I've heard it in the academy quite a few times before and I have memorized it."
Chiaki was surprised to know that this girl played Beethoven by ear, differently but it sounded perfect, still. He then remembered sometimes during practice that a piano would accompany the students' orchestra practice. He would watch the orchestra practicing, regretfully, always thinking that he could've been the one conducting the student orchestra. Somewhere far, a piano accompaniment would join the orchestra practice.
"Did you go to Momogaoka?" he asked her.
"Yes, I did. Were you a..." professor, she thought, judging from the way he dressed and the air he carried on, "... student?"
"Yes, I graduate two years ago. I was a piano student, I finished two years ago. You're a piano student, too, I assume?"
"Ah, hai hai." Nodame answered, pursing her lips. She somehow found it funny that such a handsome man went to Momogaoka, was in the same department as her but have never even caught sight of him. "Ah, senpai! I'm Noda Megumi. I was year lower than you." she smiled as she finished her sentence. Just by looking at him, Nodame felt her chest tightening and heart racing.
"I'm Chiaki, Chiaki Shinichi," he stalled before asking her, "you... you can play by ear?" he asked, fascinated by the way she pursed her lips. Including, also, the way she can move a person just by playing a simple musical exercise and a memorized Beethoven.
"I have been told that I have very good ears. Ah! Sit, sit with us. I will play music that I've heard in Momogaoka. I could hear it being played at the hall before. It was for two pianos but never mind that. It's just for the children." Nodame took Chiaki's hand and led him to sit with the children.
Chiaki chose to sit on the piano beside Nodame and waited for her to begin.
She looked at Chiaki and sighed, "I've always wished to play this music with someone." she smiled briefly and began playing Mozart's Sonata for Two Pianos.
Chiaki's heart almost stopped when she began playing. He realized how many times he had heard her play in the academy but never found out who she was; her musical exercise, her piano accompaniment to the student orchestra and to his Mozart exercise. He learned to play the piece for the two pianos for his class but would always let another student, or sometimes his teacher, to play with him. He could hear the sonata resonating from down the hall before and often wondered who was being taught the same piece. It was her, all these times, the music he was hearing at Momogaoka was hers. He felt his heart beat loudly, like something right finally happened.
Chiaki didn't have to stop Nodame's playing, he joined her as if on cue. Nodame looked at Chiaki with confusion at first but she realized that it was his music that she was playing along to all those times at the academy.
Their music blended harmoniously, like they have practiced together before. Nodame knew it was fate, that they've been in the same school and have been hearing the same music, at times even unknowingly accompanying the other. Chiaki knew that at some point, they're bound to do something great together - a concerto, perhaps.
As they finished their music, Chiaki and Nodame looked at each other and they knew that they were made for each other. Musically, yes. But perhaps they could be more than that, but they already knew that they would be great together.
Chiaki smiled at Nodame and she, she can see pink all over the room surrounded by the children's cheers at the amazing Mozart they played together.