Okay, it's chapter 4 folks! Thanks for all your reviews, and I hope you keep them coming. I'd also like to point out that, in this chapter, we become familiar with Shuichi's vocal talent. And, yes, in this story Shuichi is a good writer when it comes to lyrics. I don't have much else to say, so I'll just get to the chapter this time.

Disclaimer: The song featured in this chapter is called "Hallelujah" by the fabulous Martin Sexton. I did not write the lyrics, he did, and bless him for it. If you ever get the chance, listen to this song.

-o-o-o-o-

On the outskirts of downtown Tokyo, on a nameless street, there is a bar called 'Center Stage' that few know about. It's small, and the paint on the door is scratched off and peeling, but to those who are familiar with it there is no other bar. As you enter it, you see a tiny stage with a microphone and a stool facing you from the opposite wall. Moving south from there, you see a few tables scattered around the room; usually all are occupied. Still going from there, you set eyes upon the bar, stools lined up parallel to its counter, which was glass with pictures underneath. Most of them were photographs of musicians who had played at the bar numerous times.

And it was at this bar that Ueseugi Eiri and Shindou Shuichi sat, waiting for the bartender to come over and take their orders. This would now be their fourth Friday spent at this inconspicuous place; it had become routine for them. And, admittedly, Eiri felt a lot more relaxed now that he had given himself a bit of a break.

After he had seen a talkative customer off, Seiichi (the bartender) walked over to Shuichi and Eiri. "What can I get you guys?"

"Sake." Both said in unison, laughing slightly at their predictability.

"Alright then, but you," Seiichi said, pointing his long finger covered in rings at Shuichi, "I need an ID."

Shuichi glared at him. "Seiichi, I've been coming here for 3 years, how long will it take you to figure out that I'm twenty-five? Twenty-five; five years past the legal drinking age." He snarled. The bartender just laughed and patted Shuichi's head, ruffling his black hair. Shuichi sighed, quite used to this belittlement.

"I know. Don't worry; I just like to mess with your head. It's not your fault that you look like you're 19. " Seiichi laughed, leaving them to go retrieve the sake. Shuichi looked over at Eiri, who was laughing softly at Seiichi's display of superiority over his friend. Shuichi reached over and hit over the head with his hand, and the pathetic attempt only made Eiri laugh more.

"Here you go." Seiichi returned with two drinks in his hand, placing them in front of the two men. Shuichi, being a more stable drinker, took a sip, unlike Eiri who took a large gulp and set it roughly back on the counter. Shuichi, who had been observing Eiri's crude drinking habits, decided to comment.

"I don't suppose you're a happy drunk, are you?" He asked, smiling a derisive smirk. Eiri shot him a dirty look before taking another gulp. A chuckling Shuichi turned to Seiichi and asked, "Who's going to be playing tonight?"

Seiichi, who was drying off the mugs which had just been washed, said, "Oh, well, apparently the bloke who was supposed to be our act tonight got a nasty stomach flu, so we're going to have to stick to CDs." Shrugging his shoulders lightly and continued drying.

"Damn, that's a stroke of bad luck." Shuichi muttered, spinning back to face Eiri, who had long ago finished his glass and was intently listening to the conversation. Looking at the empty glass next to his, Shuichi shook his head and took another sip.

"Have you ever played here before?" Eiri asked. It had never occurred to him, but now that he thought about it, this was a music bar, and Shuichi played the guitar.

"Oh, yeah; Lots of times. In fact…" He said, lifting a long, elegant finger and pointing it at a photo under the glass bar top directly in front of Eiri, "my picture…is right here." It looked brand new because it had been preserved by glass, but it was easily to tell the picture was no recent; Shuichi's hair was quite a bit longer, he had a few piercings on his right ear that seemed to have disappeared, and his gangly limb was hanging over the rather large guitar.

"How old were you then?" Eiri asked, staring at the picture as he held up his glass to signal he wanted more.

"I was…twenty-two. That's around time I first found out about this place. They had this huge ceremony when they put my picture under there; apparently they do it every time they add someone's photo. Long story short, I became known to anyone who sits in seat four." He said, chuckling as he reminisced.

"Hmm…" he said, swirling the sake in his glass. Eiri stared at the spinning liquor, slightly hypnotized by the repetitive movement. Looking over, he saw Shuichi was staring off into space. Eiri wondered what his friend was thinking about, but thinking about how much it annoyed him when people asked him about his thoughts, he instead tried to reestablish their previous conversation. "So…are you going to be playing here again any time soon?"

Shuichi was off in his own world when he snapped his head at Eiri's statement. "O-oh…Sorry, Ueseugi-san, I was—"

"How long are you going to continue with this 'Ueseugi-san' business? Honestly, you make me feel old. I'm only two years your senior." Shuichi continued to stare at him, a bit bewildered at this sudden statement. Sighing, Eiri tried again, "Look…it's Eiri, okay?"

Shuichi stared at him for a while before he started smiling. He turned to his glass and took a sip before turning back around and saying, "Okay Eiri, but if we're getting on a first name basis, then I would prefer 'Shuichi' over 'Hey, you!' So, what do you think? Can we compromise?"

"Fine……Shuichi."

-o-o-o-o-

Brrriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinng.

'Ugh, finally; the lunch bell.'

"Umm…Ueseugi-sensei, I…well, it's been a while since I gave you that book that I wrote, and I know that you're very busy, but I thought that maybe…well, I mean…did you get a chance to look at it yet? Of course, there's no problem if you didn't, but—"

"Hanako-san," Eiri stopped the stammering statement dancing on the tip of this girl's tongue, "I finished your book……a week ago. I found it quite good, too; I don't recall ever reading a murder mystery/romance. I liked it." He said, staring at a clearly shocked Ruri. As the words slowly came to her ears, she began to smile. It was a bright smile, one that looked as though nothing could darken its radiance.

"Really?" She asked timidly. Of course, the ever-present blush was spread across her face like butter with a sheepish grin to complement it. As he nodded, Ruri did not try to hide her happiness and showed her pearly-white teeth in a full-blown beam. Eiri was happy that he could be the cause of such a sunny expression.

"Thank you, Ueseugi-san! I worked really hard on it. I actually had intended on a happy ending, but this one turned out so much better." She said, thinking back on her writing.

"Yes, the ending was quite unexpected. I didn't even cross my mind that Miss Yamazaki would turn out to be the murderer. Good job, Hanako-san." He said, smiled back at her. He opened the top drawer of his desk and pulled out said book, handing to its rightful owner, "Now, it's a beautiful Monday, so why don't you run along and go eat lunch with your friends?" Ruri looked at it with a sense of pride before nodding and running off, waving as she did.

-o-o-o-o-

Walking out to his car, Ueseugi Eiri sighed. He clicked the 'unlock' button. It had been another long day, and he had quite a few papers to grade, so he wanted to get home early and finish so he could have a good night's rest. 'A good night's rest…what a concept.'

"Hey, Eiri, wait! Eiri!" A familiar voice sounded. The blonde novelist recognized it as no other then his new friend Shuichi, the guitar teacher at Tokyo Arts. Said person ran up beside him, panting a bit. "Hey... I looked for you in your room, but you weren't there."

"Yeah, I wanted to go home early and get the grading done so I could get some sleep tonight." He stated simply. For some reason or another, Shuichi shot him a mischievous grin. Eiri feared what it could mean, and when he found out, he was most definitely not happy.

"Don't bet on it! You are coming to my show tonight!" He exclaimed, pointing a slender finger in Eiri's face, which he promptly swatted away.

"What?"

"Do you remember when you asked me if I was going to be playing at 'Center Stage' anytime soon? Well, Seiichi phoned me during lunch and asked me to play tonight. Apparently they rescheduled that guy's show to Monday night, but he's still sick, so they want me to fill in."

"I see. Well, have a good time. I need sleep." Eiri said, turning back to his car. Just as he grabbed the handle, he felt a petite hand rest on his shoulder.

"Hey, please come? You've been a great friend and I'd really like you to be there. It's at 7 o'clock at 'Center Stage.' I will understand if you don't show but…think about it, okay?" The hand left his shoulder and he heard light footsteps walking away from him.

'Dammit.'

-o-o-o-o-

So, 3 ½ hours later, Eiri sat at the counter of 'Center Stage,' wondering why he was there in the first place. Predictably, his palm was wrapped around a glass of sake. Seiichi quietly shook his head at this before walking over to chair eight to take the man's drink order.

Eiri had been there for twenty minutes, and just when he was about to get up and leave, the lights –which were already dim—began to darken. A spotlight upon the stage shone luminously through the blackness, and Eiri could see Shuichi's slim frame walk under it. He dressed in nothing fancy –a t-shirt and jeans—with a guitar strapped around his shoulders a thin silver chain hanging around his neck. He sat down on the rackety looking stool, and applause broke out in the bar. Several people could be heard yelling 'Go Shuichi!' Obviously, he was a regular.

When the audience quieted down, he began strumming his guitar softly. Within a couple second, he began humming into the microphone, a soft melody that was new to everyone's ears. Leaning up a bit closer, Shuichi sang:

Does Satan wear a suit and tie or does he work at the Dairy Queen?

Does he listen to rock n roll? Does he feed the mean?

Singing Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah, Hallelujah.

And what about Jesus, didn't he do it too?

Hang out with the prostitutes and

Have a drink or two.

Power of example, my mama said it and I heard;

She said 'one ounce of action…beats a ton of words.'

Shuichi's powerful yet soft voice floated through the microphone, filling the ears of each listener. Eiri was stunned. His forgotten sake stood lone on the counter and every fiber of his being was focused on his friend performing on the small stage. The guitar strings melodiously complemented Shuichi's beautiful voice.

Singing Hallelujah…

And mama said there would be angels.

Hallelujah…

And mama said there would be sun.

Is the devil in Elvis to go where no white man went?

Or hiding in Hugh Hefner's body, or maybe even Larry Flynt.

Say, hows about the president shielding all them stones?

Man, if I could find a shield like that, I'd walk 'round naked in my glass home.

Sippin' Hallelujah…

My angel's gone to Vegas.

Hallelujah…

Holding aces in her hand.

Hallelujah…

As she's singing rock of ages

Hallelujah…

On the table at the Sands.

Oooooooooooooooooohhhhhhh

Shuichi continued on in this repetitive melody, still strumming the guitar leisurely as though he was drunk. The tune created a sleepy silence throughout the bar, and it amazed Eiri one person could change the mood of a whole room.

Does Satan wear a suit and tie or does he work at the Dairy Queen?

Does he listen to rock n roll? Does he feed the mean?

Streak in all of us, all us saints here on earth;

Hypnotized and over-advertised 'til we're numb at birth.

Singing Hallelujah…

My old angel's turning pages.

Hallelujah…

She doesn't seem to understand

Hallelujah…

That that devil's hot on her trail.

Hallelujah…

On the road to Broken Promise Land.

Hallelujahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…

On the T.V. and the radio…

On the money public waves…

Good and evil look the same to you…

Elvis lives and Jesus saves…

I saw…Oooohhh….Oooooo…

Hallelujahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…

The clapping started softly by one man in the front. Then, slowly, people woke from their sleepy state and began furiously clapping their hands together. Eiri, who was shocked at Shuichi's brilliance, gradually came back to his senses, and without knowing it began clapping along with the crowd. At this point, Shuichi stood up, bowing to where his raven hair fell in his face.

"He never fails to amaze me…" Came the soft whisper as the spotlight turned off and room became brighter once again. Eiri turned around to see Seiichi. His dark eyes were transfixed on Shuichi, glassy with memories. A faint smile lingered on his face and his shook his head, returning to drying the washed mugs.

"Hey, Eiri!" A voice sounded. Eiri turned around once again to see Shuichi, hopping up onto stool next to his blonde friend. "So you showed up; I'm glad. How'd you like it?"

"It was good." Eiri said, turning back to his sake. He lifted the glass to his lips, the salt tingling them, but before he could feel the burning sensation in his throat, he was interrupted.

"Good?" Shuichi asked, grinning a bit. He knew Eiri thought more of it then that, and he was not about to let him get away with saying his performance was 'good.'

Sighing, Eiri turned and looked at him; Shuichi really did have the face of one who was determined to succeed. "Fine; it was great. Are you happy?" He asked.

"Very." A smile of triumph crossed his lips.

"Ugh...I'm so tired. I don't even know why I'm here." Eiri groaned, laying his head on the counter.

"I do." Shuichi said impishly. Eiri looked up at him, "I used your guilty conscience against you. It's quite simple really, and it worked."

Eiri glared at him and dropped his head again on the counter. 'How's it that he always makes a fool out of me? This is humiliating.'

"Oh…" Shuichi said, looking at his watch, "It's almost 8:00."

"Alright genius, then I'm off. I need sleep to deal with those kids. " Eiri said, rising from his seat and dropping his due amount on the counter. Shuichi got up as well.

"I'll walk you home."

-o-o-o-o-

Okay, this chapter turned out differently then originally planned, so I hope it's not too bad. I'm already working on my idea for chapter 5, and hopefully it will be up soon. Until then!