I hadn't planned on continuing but then the plot bunnies planned an attack on me and held me hostage until I brainstormed the rest of the story. So here it is, kiddies...

Since, unfortunately, I have no money to buy the tenth and eleventh mangas, I have no clue what's happening. So I'm making it up as I go so that'll make this fic…alternate universe…? Besides, I have no clue where I'm taking this story so that kinda puts me in a tight spot as well. Anyway, enjoy!


The offending spot remained on her neck; it seemed to Shinichi, to torture his life. Now that he had noticed it, the spot called out to him, tantalizing him to go toward that piece of flesh and…

And what?

The last part had him completely confounded. What was he to do with that piece of skin? It was everywhere. When she walked, ate, slept, ate, talked, ate—he couldn't get rid of it and he was sure Nodame had begun to notice. She looked at him weirdly the other day and had tiptoed to take his temperature, insisting that he was studying too hard for his own good. Her eyes had that worried glint whenever Shinichi felt bad in any way. He brushed it away as nothing but it had him worried as well. Nodame was the total opposite of him in almost every way. While he was meticulously clean, she was the biggest pig he had ever met in his life. He loved to study, especially scores. Though he was very interested in piano as well as the violin, there was something about an orchestra and the way it came together to form a sound that a single instrument could never obtain. He got so engrossed in the different sounds, the way each harmony blend into the next, the brass section's high, perfected sounds, the woodwinds softer accompaniment… he couldn't think of anything else and worked his hardest to have the result be absolute perfection. Nodame, meanwhile, ran away from anything of the sort, preferring to wing it at the moment. Serious, solemn, and hardworking, Shinichi couldn't find any of those traits in her. But at the same time, the exact opposite traits Nodame contained were the ones he couldn't imagine living without.

Not that he'd ever let her know that.

So what place did the spot take? What did that spot represent? Did it really matter? He decided it did not. He made it a point to spend less time thinking about it and more time focusing on his goal which was arriving closer than expected. He hadn't conducted a single piece since arriving in France but he had impressed quite a few teachers with his skills and previous work, thanks to those who had seen him and helped him out.

A new teacher spoke of his interest in him a few weeks ago and just two days ago, Shinichi had gotten word that this new teacher wanted to meet him in a few days. He was truly excited about that. This new teacher had a great reputation as a conductor and had many pupils study under him. Shinichi hoped he would grow even more under his guidance.

As Shinichi woke up to go to school that day, he spent the morning on making a good breakfast for both him and Nodame. They had a major exam that day and had to be well prepared for it. While Shinichi had studied the entire week before, Nodame had promised she would cram the day before but in reality, she had lied through her teeth. Instead, she had gone to a small get-together with a couple of her new French friends. Shinichi was still surprised how fast she had learned the language and had gotten quite a shock when he found out how. It seemed that Puri Gorota was quite popular in France as well and all the episodes, movies, and songs had been translated into the French language. His eye had twitched repeatedly after hearing her sing the opening song of Puri Gorota in impeccable French a few weeks ago. Still living next to him, sometimes it felt as if they hadn't moved at all from Japan. She still leeched off him, still astounded him with her strange thoughts and actions and he still got irritated at her weird sounds. The newest one seemed to be one she was very fond of lately, yelling 'sacre bleu!' all over the place. However, Shinichi had immediately denied her invitation to accompany her and though she begged and pleaded most of his study time away, she had hung her head and resigned to go by herself.

"What if something happens to me?" she insisted as she was pushed very rudely out the door. Her hands locked down on the doorsill and wouldn't pry for anything. The very foundation of the building seemed to shake as she struggled against him.

"What if some man—" she struggled against Shinichi's pushing, "some handsome, rich man wants to come and whisk Nodame away?"

"Then I feel very sorry for that man," Shinichi responded and gave a hard tug to her waist, finally releasing the crab like hold on his door. Despite her whining, she had been thrown out of his apartment rather harshly. Sighing, Shinichi didn't feel the slightest remorse at not accompanying her. She had promised when they first arrived in France to put music as their first priority and everything else would come after. Shinichi kept that part of the deal fine but she seemed to have trouble doing so. She had not touched the piano until they entered school and had gotten yelled at for playing so sloppily the first few times. She had taken it in stride, pushing it aside as if it was no big concern but Shinichi had taken care of that. He had bribed her with delicious food and once she had fallen for the bait, he had given her the scolding of a lifetime and made her play her designated piano piece for five hours straight. Though she had cried her heart out in the midst of calling him the music Hitler of the century, she had gotten better grades because of it.

After long hours of studying he had fallen asleep very late and had not heard her get in. The nights in Paris were still quite cold though the days were beautiful nowadays. Today was just as gorgeous as the last ones; sunny and mild. Nodame was usually up by now, awoken by the smell of breakfast but he guessed she had slept in because of last night. So with a sigh, he took off his apron, turned off the stove, and made his way to her apartment. He knocked once on the door but heard no response. He rapped the door one more time, louder this time but still heard nothing. Growling in frustration, he yelled,

"Nodame, we're going to be late! We have exams on top of that, baka!"

And yet, not even a sound. Hesitating slightly, he entered her room with caution. He was not surprised to find her door unlocked. It was the subject of many fights between them. She just wasn't concerned about safety, no matter how much he reprimanded her. He peeked into her room and found the familiar mess that went along with Noda Megumi. Toys were strewn everywhere, the piano was littered with her comic books, and stale food stood rotting in the small kitchen. But Nodame was nowhere to be found.

Piles of clothes stood in the middle of the room and he had to push his way through to get to Nodame's room.

"Where are you…" he wondered under his breath and the small idea that maybe she had never gotten home sneaked into his head. Was that possible? With Nodame, definitely. Spotting her bedroom, he made his way through the pile of garbage and tried to wake her up the usual way; yelling at the top of his lungs. But no respond came, not even the usual lazy moans she gave at being woken up in such a way. So carefully, as to not see anything he didn't want to, he stuck his head into her room though she rarely slept in her room. Still, the sight that caught his eyes had him extremely surprised. Her room was untouched completely. The bed looked as if it had never been slept on, her dresser was gathering dust, and the closet looked glued shut. He looked around the room and felt the small trickles of panic in his spine. He bolted towards the door, real alarm setting in over the fact that she had not come home last night and without being cautious, he tripped over the pile of clothes. He started to curse but was startled to hear a small, weak 'muckya' coming from it. The pile shuddered and trembled before becoming still again. Shinichi narrowed his eyes at it and bent down to poke it. Again, it shuddered and stopped. From the very edge of the pile, he spotted a wisp of auburn hair and gave an irritated growl.

"Nodame!"

"Loud…" she moaned, "Too loud…hyan…."

"This girl—" he started dispassionately and began to excavate her from the clothes. Slowly, the auburn hair began to show, a big mess that looked something like a bird's nest. Then her face came into view which startled him a bit. He had seen that color of red on her cheeks before. It tinted the otherwise lily white complexion she had with a harsher tone of usual pink.

"You're sick," he stated with disbelief and she shuddered to show that he was right.

"I wanted to party in 'eroticallaly' for Shinichi," she sniffed sadly, "But my plan backfired."

"Who taught you that word?" Shinichi growled with a raised eyebrow but the mumbled response didn't quite reach his ears.

Shaking his head, he threw off the clothes from on top of her and searched around for something to cover her up. She wore a dress he recognized instantly as one he had chosen for her when they had gone shopping a few days ago. Again, she had insisted to have an outing with him, complaining that their married life could be in jeopardy if they didn't spend time with each other. Two things about that comment had made him angry. One, they were certainly not even close to marriage nor would they be for--oh let's see-- few millennia and two—but well, her second comment had been true. With school and work and all the activities that came with being a pianist and a conductor, they had made little time for each other. Not that Nodame ever complained about it. If there was one thing she understood most about Shinichi, it was the fact that his desire to become the greatest conductor he could be was his number one priority. Nodame didn't even dream of standing in the way of that.

At last, he found an oversized sweater and made her wear it. He quickly recognized it as one of his own and was about to demand an explanation but she looked so wretched that he didn't in the end. Still, he made it a point to start locking his dresser from now on. Instead, he covered her with it; the sweater fitting her like an oversized circus tent.

"What are you going to do about your exam?" he scolded her as she shivered miserably.

"If I don't take it, they'll hold me back—" she breathed out sharply, twitching her nose repeatedly in the way a rabbit would do it. Shinichi looked at her strangely, trying to figure out the weird nose trick but before he could figure out what was happening, she had drawn in a big breath and sneezed in front of him.

"—So I have to take it today," she finished in a stuffy voice as Shinichi cursed loudly and wiped away the spray of infectious bacteria.

"You don't think ahead much, do you?" he asked rhetorically but to his amusement, she nodded in agreement. Sighing, he helped her get up which was not an easy feat with all the garbage laying around.

"Where have you been sleeping all this time?" he asked her through the effort of having to hold her up. It didn't help that she was trying to get him to carry her bridal style all the way to the door. A good slap to the forehead took care of that idea.

"Mostly on your couch but also around here," she continued after a sniffle, "the bed's too far away…"

"Lazy bum," he muttered but he was sure she heard him. The day was warm but Nodame was caught between intense heat and the icy feeling in her body. Shinichi wondered if she could actually take an exam in this condition. He didn't want her to be held back a year; not just because it was an obviously bad thing but because she had been trying her best at everything to do with piano. Now that he knew the reason why, he didn't want her to be disappointed.

"Ahh…" she breathed suddenly, "How are things going with the conducting class?"

"Mmm," he hummed positively, "My sensei has gotten me a position to study under a really amazing conductor by the name of Lebrecht Dionysus."

"What a weird name…"

He agreed but as far as he had heard, he was supposed to be an incredible conductor. Half carrying Nodame towards his apartment, he heard the uncertain sounds that came from the woman when she was unsure of what to ask.

"Out with it," he barked. Moaning slightly, she looked at him with bright, clear eyes as she asked,

"Why don't you go find your beloved sensei and study under him?"

"Viera-sensei?" he echoed and looked away from her. He opened the door with his back and entered his room. He placed her carefully on the couch and started to serve her meal, all the while thinking about what she asked him.

"I want to be at my best when I meet him," Shinichi answered confidently, "I want to make him proud."

"Ahh—" she sighed, "So does that mean you'll be even busier now?" she asked timidly, her eyes dropping to the floor.

"Mmm," he agreed after a minute, looking down on her crestfallen face. Her usual pink face was bright red and the sweaty beads dropping down unto her slender neck. Hoping to not meet that cursed spot, his eyes quickly averted to the placed it on the table. He took a spoonful and hand it to her, grimacing as she opened her mouth, closed her eyes, and said 'aaaang…'

"Don't joke around," Shinichi growled through clenched teeth and was met by a saddened pout from the younger girl. He sighed tetchily, wondering why in the world would he actually feel the need to please her and stuck the spoon into her mouth roughly. Still, as she munched on her meal, a smile emerged on her lips. Shinichi rolled his eyes and he found out he didn't need more of an answer than that.

A moment of silence stretched out between them but the silence was broken as Nodame began to hum the song she was supposed to play for her exam. Shinichi instantly recognized it as one of the hardest pieces he had heard so far.

"Is that Beethoven's Piano Sonata no. 29?"

She nodded miserably and Shinichi couldn't blame her for being so upset. It would be extremely difficult for her to play such a piece in good health but to play it when she looked like a dying fish would be hell.

"I'm going to die!" she exclaimed desolately, throwing her hands in the air and smacking Shinichi on the forehead by mistake.

"Relax," he said sternly, "what time is it at? I'll come support you."

"Second class," she answered stuffily, her nose running. She pretended to lean against Shinichi's shoulder and managed to wipe away some of the snot before he found her out and had her flying across the room. Only her 'Sacre Bleu!' was heard.


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