Hitting the Right Keys
Summary:
Well, turns out Melody was a bit more than just a name… (One-shot from Monsuno: The 6th Member; Chase x OC)
Okay, you've probably figured out that I'm being lazy and stupid and why the heck am I writing a one shot for the story I'm supposed to be updating?!
…
… I said nothing.
Oh, and by the way, I don't intend to make this a scene in the actual story. This is just a random idea that popped into my head… I'm planning to make them fall in love gradually.
The woman at the front desk of the 'All's Well Hotel' was calmly sweeping a rag over her work station, cleaning the dirt and grime from the day. A clock poised on the wall beside her chimed, signaling eleven o'clock at night. A.k.a. the end of her shift.
She gathered her suitcase and coat from under the counter, making a mental note to tell the janitor to sweep the floor…
All at once, six teens, all covered in dirt from who-knows-where, burst in through the entrance, startling the woman so much she fell over with a surprised 'Yeep!'
"God…" The boy with glasses gasped. "Never… wanna run… again…"
"Uh, excuse me, miss?" The boy in black hair looked over the counter, putting a hand behind his hand sheepishly. "Do you have any rooms we could crash in for the night?"
She blinked, looking from the teens to the dirt they had brought into the previously cleaner lobby. The janitor would have a lot of work tonight…
(~_-*-_~)
After everything was more or less calm (and Team Coretech had apologized at least a hundred times from messing up the entrance), Jinja had produced her credit card and bought the only room in the hotel that had six beds. She would've gotten a room for each of them, but apparently Bren had blown off most of her card to buy candy. (Which she hit him for.)
Nervous that the reckless kids would destroy the building even further, the woman at the front desk decided to personally escort them to their room.
"Thank you for choosing All's Well for your traveling needs." She said as they passed through the halls. "If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask…"
Melody rolled her eyes. Really, who would have a question about a stupid hotel?
That was when a slightly ajar door leading to a room on her left caught her eye, and she paused and stared. And she had, whaddaya know, a question.
"Um, what's this room for?" Melody questioned, ignoring the blush crawling up her face as she gestured towards the room.
The woman turned around and peered into the doorway she was referring to. Offering blue haired girl a small smile, she closed the door and said, "That's music studio, for special guests and authorized personnel only, I'm afraid."
Melody blinked, a look of disappointment crossing her face for a split second before she nodded. "Oh. I see…"
Chase raised an eyebrow. He knew that look.
"Music?" Dax waved a hand dismissively. "Who cares? You're going insane, Bluebell(1)."
She glared at him. "I thought I told you not to call me that."
"And since when do I ever listen?" He smirked.
The lady stood there awkwardly, looking towards Jinja, Bren, and Beyal for any support. Jinja idly inspected her nails, Bren shrugged, and Beyal, much to her relief, suggested, "I believe we are all in need of rest after our journey. Please, let us go to our room."
"Meh." Melody sighed, walking ahead. "Okay. I don't want to waste my time with this pea brain anyway."
Dax crossed his arms, probably too exhausted to make a snarky comeback anyway.
They soon reached their destination and the woman returning to the lobby, leaving the six on their own.
"I hate STORM I hate STORM I hate STORM I hate STORM." Bren muttered to himself, burying his head in a pillow. "They think they're so great because they have high tech weapons pointed at us… I mean, who cares about technology anyway…?"
"I think you might've hit your head, glasses." Dax said, lounging on his own bed on the other side of the room. "Because last time I checked, you did."
"Shut up, Dax." Bren countered, throwing a pillow at him. The lowlander easily caught it.
Melody yawned. "Well, we're alive, aren't we? I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. I'm going to sleep."
'Okay, something is definitely abnormal.' Chase thought as he watched her jump onto her bed. 'Melody is almost never tired. If anything, she's the lightest sleeper I've ever met.'
"Chase, stop daydreaming." Jinja walked up and punched him in the arm.
"Ouch…" He rubbed the offended limb on blew some hair out of his face. "You don't need to be so cranky, Jin…"
"She is merely suggesting you get some rest, Chase." Beyal pointed out. The team leader sighed.
"Okay, okay, I hear you. Good night." Various mutters of 'Good night' and 'Whatever' rose from the others as Chase shook off his jacket and let sleep consume him.
(~_-*-_~)
Melody shifted in bed, cringing as it creaked softly in protest. When she got no response, however, she swung her feet onto the floor and lifted herself up.
"ZZZ-Zzzz-ZZzzz-hngGGggh-Ppbhww- zZZzzzZZ . . ." A loud sound made her freeze, thinking of excuses on why she was up.
The noise came again and she relaxed a bit, realizing it was Dax's snoring. She snickered a bit. 'That'll be good blackmail for later…'
Melody hurriedly left the room, not noticing how the snoring had covered up the sound of Chase rising to follow her.
'It was a left at this hallway… right?' She mentally scolded herself for not being alert enough to memorize the path earlier. Scowling, she drifted down the passage, finally reaching what she assumed was the door she'd been wandering around searching for.
Melody drew in a breath and twisted the knob, quietly cheering to herself as she took in the sight of the switches and buttons before her.
'How long has it been since I've done this?' She wondered, easing herself into the chair and fastening a pair of headphones onto her head. 'Six years? Seven? I wouldn't be surprised if I forgot what all these things do…'
With a newfound challenge, Melody grinned, shaking her hands to rid of the stiffness and poising them over the keyboard. 'Just go with it, Melody. Just go with the flow.'
(~_-*-_~)
Chase grumbled incoherently, not wanting to be out of bed. But chasing down Melody and foiling whatever crazy plot she'd formed was more important than catching some Z's. Because if you left a certain blue haired girl unattended, she could do things.
Insane things.
So here he was, trying to follow Melody in the hotel's seemingly never ending hallways and doors. The girl was so quiet it should've been illegal!
A soft string of notes reached the leader's ears, making him perk up. 'Wait, is that…? No, that's completely impossible! I never thought of Melody is the musical type. But then again, her name is Melody…'
'I remember tears streaming down your face when I said I'd never let you go.
When all those shadows almost killed your light.'
Chase stopped short and blinked. He started picking up his pace, rounding a corner and heading towards the sound.
'I remember you said don't leave me here alone.
But all that's dead and gone and past, tonight.
Just close your eyes,
The sun is going down.
You'll be alright.
No one can hurt you now.
Come morning light,
You and I'll be safe and sound.'
'I almost don't believe it.' Chase thought, before some inner voice in his head started ranting to him.
'Well, your first clue was the room she asked about, your second was the music, your third was the open door, and your fourth was the fact that Melody's sitting right there, operating that… whatever it is! How much more proof do you need, wise guy?!'
'Don't you dare look out your window, darling everything's on fire.
The war outside our door keeps raging on.
Hold on to this lullaby,
Even when music's gone.'
Forgetting precautions, Chase worked up the nerve to enter the room and pull the door shut behind him. He still couldn't get over the fact that Melody, of all people, was singing. She might be strange, hard to get along with, sarcastic, and downright scary, but she was not musical.
But he didn't let that stop him from listening.
'Just close your eyes,
The sun is going down.
You'll be alright.
No one can hurt you now.
Come morning light,
You and I'll be safe and sound.'
His own thoughts fell silent to his ears as he walked forward a little, the echo from his boots hitting the ground drowned out by the tune.
'Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh,
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh.
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh,
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh.'
Hands on the keyboard slowed, notes becoming a more forlorn melody.
'Just close your eyes…
You'll be alright…
Come morning light…
You and I'll be safe and sound…
Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh, Oooh…' (2)
Melody's eyes drifted closed and she fell back in her chair, Chase jolting at the sudden movement.
"Uh, Melody…?" The calm atmosphere shifted as said girl sprang up and looked behind her with a panicked expression.
When she saw it was Chase, her face reddened further and she started babbling some incomprehensible nonsense about… looking for a bathroom?
"Well, you see, I got… lost…" She blushed. "And… I just thought I'd try this… I mean, I have absolutely NO idea what I'm doing whatsoever…"
"Do you take me for an idiot?" Chase asked, annoyed.
"No! Of course not!" Melody said hurriedly, shaking her head in protest. "Well, uh…" She sighed in defeat. "Okay. How much did you hear."
It sounded like more of a statement than a question, but Chase ignored it. "It depends. How about… all of it?"
"Yeah… er…" She looked down. "It was just… I used to do this a lot when I was a kid." She waved a hand dismissively. "When I saw this room, I just got… nostalgic. It's ridiculous, I know, and it was a stupid decision to come here…"
"…"
"And I'm not even that good… I just played some random song and it turned out awful…"
"…"
"I have to stop letting my emotions get the better of me."
"…"
"…Chase?" She sucked in a breath. While she was lecturing herself, Chase had taken the liberty of crossing the distance between them. And now they stood mere inches apart.
"Chase Suno, are you in there-" He leaned down and captured her mouth in a passionate kiss. Melody's eyes went wide before she hesitantly let them flutter shut and kissed him back.
Chase pulled back suddenly, both of them red in the face. "Ah, well…" He muttered, running a hand through his hair nervously. "Maybe you shouldn't be down on yourself. I thought that was a… great song…"
"I don't care about the song anymore." Melody said. "What seems more intriguing is the fact that you just kissed me…"
"Yeah." Chase laughed nervously. "I guess I did do that…"
"Don't say it so innocently." She scowled. Face turning softer, she asked, "…Was that just a kiss? Or was that… not just a kiss?"
"Well…" He avoided her eyes. "I guess I… love you…?"
"You're an idiot." She said bluntly, before pulling him towards her and kissing him quickly.
"If you're gonna tell someone you love them, at least say it like you mean it." She said, blushing all the while.
Chase blinked. "Okay… I love you." He confirmed.
"That's better." Melody smiled. "Can we get out of here before we get caught? Because I don't want to deal with someone yelling in my face right now."
"Okay." He chuckled. "But on one condition. You sleep with me tonight."
She raised an eyebrow. "And you want to deal with the others, namely Jinja and Dax, teasing us about it tomorrow morning?" Chase laughed.
"Sure. Now let's go." He grabbed her hand and led her out, muttering, "You know, when you sing, you sound like an angel."
She punched his shoulder. "Whatever. And… I love you too."
(1) For those who don't know, Melody's entire outfit consists of almost only blue (and white). Plus, she has long blue pigtails. Thus, Dax likes to call her Bluebell.
(2) Song: Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift. I just love this song! I think she wrote it for the Hunger Games BSO (or so the internet says).
