Disclaimer: I do not own Nodame Cantabile or any other series mentioned.
Point in Time: Pre-Paris, Shortly after Nodame leaves for home.
Chapter 4: In Which Mine Understands
Mine couldn't quite understand why Chiaki's mood had gone from joyful to sour in the span of a few days. Being his (self-declared) best friend, Mine couldn't help but be worried for him. Surely changing emotions too many times in a day could be bad for the body? What would the RS Orchestra do if Chiaki fainted due to emotional exhaustion?
Of course, he knew that Chiaki had to be somewhat affected by Nodame's recent absence. She had, after all, left for home without telling anyone and hadn't contacted any of them since. Chiaki had been her friend for nearly two years at this point, and Mine knew that despite Chiaki's attitude sometimes that the two of them were close friends, so of course he'd be worried. But his attitude had went from worried to something Mine wasn't quite sure he could name.
If he could name it, he'd say it seemed like Chiaki was sulking. But why in the world would Chiaki have any reason to sulk? It didn't add up.
Mine did his best to help, he'd call Chiaki and demand they go out. To eat, for a walk, it didn't matter, he just needed to go out. He'd offer free food and eventually Chiaki would give in. But for the most part, even when he gave in Chiaki wasn't his usual self. He hardly spoke when everyone was together, seemed to be lost in his own little world. Mine would bring up almost any topic and Chiaki would either ignore it or shrug it off. Be it the opera, or music, anything he could normally rant about for hours.
The only topic which did gain his attention was when Nodame was brought up. He'd go from silent to infuriated in minutes, cursing her, calling her stupid and reckless and foolish. He'd rant for a while about the spontaneous, strange, missing girl and then he'd end up even quieter than he had been before the conversation started.
It was then that Mine decided to take matters into his own hands. He took a trip over to Chiaki's apartment, take out in hand, and didn't stop knocking until Chiaki finally opened the door. He was fully confident he'd drag Chiaki out of his slump, willing or not, and he would do it that night. He was so confident in himself that when he walked into the apartment he didn't immediately notice the state of the room, or Chiaki himself, but when he did all he could think was 'Wow, what a mess'.
The room wasn't anywhere near as bad as Nodame's was on a daily basis, but it was certainly out of the ordinary for Chiaki. However the normally pristine man seemed almost at home within the disorder, his unshaven face and wrinkled clothes matching completely with the room. Mine realized then that despite the embarrassment that Chiaki normally held for anything out of order, there were no apologies forthcoming for the current state of his room.
It was only then, among the trash, that Mine had an epiphany. There was only one reason why Chiaki could live this way without being bothered, only one reason which explained why Chiaki had been so out of it. Whether he realized it or not, Chiaki had developed feelings for Nodame, and they were making themselves known in her absence.
Mine could bet that the man didn't understand it himself. He probably blamed it on their close friendship, or the music, or something else which he was known to do. But now it was so obvious to Mine he wondered how he had missed it. He also knew that it was pointless to point out his new discovery, because Chiaki would probably deny it the minute the words came out, but now Mine knew.
So, with this new knowledge and finesse that he didn't know he had, Mine subtly hinted that maybe Chiaki should go find Nodame, for her sake (knowing full well that despite everything, that Nodame could take care of herself when it came down to it).
The next day, Chiaki was gone, and Mine couldn't say he was surprised.
He patted himself on the back for the push he had given the composer, and called up Masumi for lunch. The two had just started eating when he couldn't help it, he just had to bring up the subject and his accomplishment. But when he did, Masumi just gave him a look that screamed 'you're an idiot', and opened his mouth to speak.
"Wow, you really are slow. Everyone knows by this point, he makes it so obvious." The words were full of disappointment, but Mine could see the resignation on his face. Masumi shrugged and rolled his eyes.
"Nodame doesn't deserve him, but I won't go against Chiaki-senpai's wishes."
Mine couldn't help but wonder if he really was the last one to know, and wondered if that meant that Nodame already knew of his feelings for her. Was that why she was never-ending in her pursuit? He pushed that thought away, Nodame wasn't any brighter than he was, there was no way.
A/N: Feel free to review if you wish, I hope you're enjoying my take on how some of these events went, what else could have happened in the blank spots that the mangaka left for us.