Chapter 2: "Melting The Ice"

"Tsuchiura-kun! I'm fine, really... I'm just fine. It's just... it's just... I miss him so much! I miss Tsukimori-kun so much..." Her voice reduced to a whisper of his name, Hino bursts into full-fledged unmitigated tears now, letting the pent-up frustration and pain spill over.

For some reason, she always felt at ease with Tsuchiura Ryotaro. He was more like a big brother to her than any of the others. He was the sturdy friend, the reliable comrade who was always there to help her, to bail her out when the chips were down.

The shoulder she could easily cry on.

And so she does. Ryotaro's strong pair of arms wrap around the girl's trembling weak ones as Hino turns to lean on him instead of the
culprit tree. It was a pretty picture of compassion and friendship.

"...Ryo..."

Unless you're the jealous type of girlfriend that Sakimoto Mizue
never claimed to be. But she did claim to have been his girlfriend, once upon a time. Once upon the happiest time in her life, but that was soon followed by the saddest, when they parted ways.

That was the past, and she should just leave it there, deciding to be Ryo's best friend now. She had determined to be content to just be 'one of the guys,' his right-hand pal, encouraging him in both his
music studies and sports career. She thought him a brilliant pianist, an MVP in soccer, an all around great friend—not to mention the man she was still in love with.

'First love dies hard, if ever at all', she had heard someone once say.

But that was her secret. No one must know. Sakimoto never once confided it to anyone. For no confidante could ever be trusted with her most guarded secret: She's been madly in love with the boy next door for as long as she could remember.

All through her formative school years, despite her own romantic notions of poetry and literature, there was no one else, no matter how hard she tried. There could never be. So she had thrust herself into her own career passion, whilst Ryo now was persevering in pursuing his.

But perhaps, the music wasn't all he was pursuing. After all, Sakimoto was eyewitness to this tender embrace just as she was coming to meet Tsuchiura on their way home for a quick bite of dinner at the Hihara family restaurant.

She had an urge to turn and run, heart breaking at the sight. She had had suspicions in this direction, but she also knew she had no claim to Ryo's love anymore, and yet...

"Hello, hello. What's going on over there? Am I going to have to report a scandalous romance among rival music school students? What WILL Tsukimori-kun say?" Amou Nami's arms soon were wrapped around Sakimoto's surprised shoulders from behind. In a wink, Amou's trusty camera whips out. She was about to take an incriminating snapshot of the embracing pair when—

"Keiichi! Look out!" A voice cries out from the distance, smashing to smithereens any hope for Amou's newsflash scoop scene.

Unobserved as they approached by all spectators at the park entrance, a quiet trio is led by the boy angel Shimizu Keiichi who's grabbed by his two pretty feminine Seiso students guard on either side of him.

Fuyuumi Shoko and Megumi Shouji tug him away just in time, saving the blonde beauty from crashing into an unsuspecting lamppost.

Shimizu was so absorbed with his latest composition that he was blissfully unaware of trivial things like obstacles or traffic on the road. But the two timid girls were used to it by now. Shimizu was becoming more and more absent-minded as he was maturing as a composer. So they felt it was their duty, as fellow Concours participants, Seiso same grade level students, and caring friends to boot, to fearlessly touch the ethereal creature in ways neither delicate girl would ever handle a normal boy. But Shimizu Keiichi was far and above away from ever being called 'normal'.

"Good thing I've got your back, Keiichi! You'd be sure lost without me!" Etou Kiriya was the kind to take credit for everything.

But over the last two years, if one observed closely, the quick-witted youth who had a sharp tongue had been slowly growing a tender heart—albeit a small one. Etou often found himself inexplicably following this little group of friends around after his benefactor/uncle/director of the academy had advised that he become familiar with his fellow
ensemble members for "better orchestral cohesion."

"Whatever, old man," Etou had murmured under his breath then, having more than his share of teenage rebellion to appreciate his uncle's experienced jewels of wisdom.

But gradually, the confident youth had become a little more considerate under shy Fuyuumi Shoko's patient guide, a bit more inspired to love music for music's sake under Shimizu Keiichi's dedicated influence, and a tad more gentle when it came to speaking to delicate female hearts such as Shouji Megumi's. All three had quietly left their mark on the neglected boy's soul-especially Shouji.

Etou found himself unconsciously relying on the sweet voiced girl, for she was always at the ready to be his accompanist any hour of the day, he merely had to beckon with a new piece of music he wished to practice and she'd come running.

Shouji's piano prowess had expanded since the days of the Seiso concours. Hino Kahoko's inspiring determination, coupled with Tsukimori Len's truthful words had changed the jealous heart into a repentant one. Those days - those acts of betrayal and deceit—still haunted Shouji's mind from time to time. She had done it for jealousy and love of a boy who never would have even spoken to her, if not for the sake of Hino Kahoko. For months, a blue ice wall had stood between Shouji and any thought of forgiveness or friendship. And although Hino Kahoko's golden friendship had pierced through the cold eyes of defeat, Shouji's lost love remained in a tiny corner of her heart that she couldn't completely dissolve alone.

That would have to take something new and warm and exciting to do the job.

Something like a Violin Romance of her own.

She could never stop the red-hot blush that crept up the back of her neck, threatening to overtake her cheeks, whenever Etou-kun was near. Somehow this up and coming wine-red colt had raced to the gate of her heart alongside the elite ice blue stallion in ways Shouji didn't think possible. Was this the love her eager heart had longed for? All she knew was that she would do anything to please Etou Kiriya. Her piano skills had been improving by leaps and bounds whenever she played for the slick, stylish, and hot! tempered teen.

Was this new and exciting feeling real love?

Stealing a long glance at the smirking boy as he walks beside Shimizu with his arms tossed carelessly above his head, Shouji recalls the first moment she had first met Etou Kiriya.

It was whilst she was in attendance of the annual Seiso Cultural Festival that Megumi's fellow pianist, Yunoki Miyabi, insisted the shy girl should join in the activities too. But Shouji was far too quiet and much too inhibited to wish to participate in many of the fun festival's boisterous activities like her classmates were planning.

But when Fuyuumi-senpai had contracted a nasty cold and could not perform the role of Alice in Wonderland for Shimizu Keiichi's adorable floppy-eared White Rabbit to help serve tea beside, their new enthusiastic kouhai Yunoki Miyabi offered to pitch in.

Shimizu had already made arrangements for the local Catholic church to receive for the charity collection box the earned proceeds of their Festival's quaintly makeshift tearoom that the angel bunny volunteered his slothenly services for. Miyabi-chan was game for the exciting idea, she not minding filling in for Fuyuumi-senpai one bit! It was fun to be dolled up in the poofy petticoated blue and white apron frock of 'Alice in Wonderland' for any reason. And generously donating time and shared profit made the outing all the more enjoyable!

But mousy Shouji Megumi couldn't find a plausible way to refuse the charitable dress-up cosplay competition after bright, bold and brazen Miyabi had entered both their names as competitors for her new Seiso friend and soon began digging through the Cultural Festival's leftover theatre stock for their fancy dress.

Shouji had unknowingly chosen to wear the Lucrezia Borgia
Renaissance full length brocade dark blue gown before realizing the on-the-rack infamous daughter of a notorious Italian Pope costume possessed a companion male counterpart. By the time Miyabi had gotten Megumi's nervous form primped and dressed for the
competition and she was red-faced on display before the judges, timid Shouji knew it was a mistake to agree, even if it was for charity's sake.

That is until, upon a dare, her cosplay partner of erstwhile lover Cesare Borgia himself, to much uproar strode out across the stage in all his deep maroon and gold striped wine caped glory, a glow of dazzling sparkles in his masterfully resplendent wake.

And totally stole her breath away with just once glance of attention, for Megumi had only glimpsed in Seiso's hallways and music auditoriums the much discussed transfer student from America, who just happened to be not only the hottest, coolest, instant star of the Seiso Music Academy due mostly to his stellar super talented violin performance- but he was also Director Kira's closest direct living relation.

Not to mention drop dead gorgeous, too.

"Hey~y! Lucrezia Borgia, I presume! I always wanted to say that." Etou had smirked at his own witticism then.

"Wait! Are you that girl who plays piano accompaniment so well that Kahoko was telling me about? Maybe we can get together sometime during the week? I could use a good pianist like you're said to be to back me up in practice sessions. So how about it, Megumi?"

Oh!

Her breath catching, Shouji nearly swoons again now as she practically did then, her convoluted heart muscle skipping a few beats too many whenever in Etou Kiriya's presence, all the time since their first encounter.

'How about it—Megumi?!' Etou-kun says my name! No one else ever cared enough to say my name... He probably never even knew my name...

In the flash of a memory of that regrettable day, she recalls a certain man's icy glare upon her, as dispassionate and cold as a cool blue Russian arctic wind, now in stark contrast to the wine red vibrancy of a hot sunset melting over the ice capped ocean waves, whenever this new violinist played upon the strings of Shouji's penitent heart...

"Whoa-oh, Megumi! Don't take a page from Keiichi's playbook! We wanna get to Kazuki-san's family res in one piece." In reality, Etou was steadying a dizzily asthmatic Megumi with one wiry hand and leading traffic ignorant Shimizu by the other on his arm, Fuyuumi shockingly the quick teen's only stable ally, bringing up the rear of their little Seiso party.

Shouji smiles, feeling yet another tiny ice crystal, that had been embedded into her wounded heart for these two plus years, begin to melt in the heat of Etou's hand's warm palm on her arm as they walk along, side by side...