Disclaimer:I have to say, I wish La Corda d'Oro or any of its characters is mine, but nope! It isn't.
One serving of hot-off-the-grill verbal abuse coming up
Chapter Eleven
"God! We're not getting any farther in this Hino. It's a slur, Hino! A freaking slur! It should be played in one bow. Why do you keep on playing it separately?" Etou shouted out of impatience, the tips of his fingers on his temples.
"So-sorry."
"We're through. I can't take this anymore. I can't take YOU anymore!" He hastily gathered his things and quickly stepped out of the room without another glance at the redhead.
Was she that horrible? He was right, it was a slur. But, was there really a need to shout? For a while, she stood in the exact spot where he had left her. Her frame was trembling and her hands were losing its ability to hold the violin and bow securely. Afraid that she might totally lose her grip, she walked to the piano and let her instrument rest beside her bag.
She took out the precious music box from her bag and set it on the top of the grand piano. She had been taking it with her lately. The music emanating from it seemed to calm her whenever she was at pressure.
She carefully put up the lid and opened the mini compartment. Len's violin started to sing for her and gradually, the anxiety that gripped the violinist faded away.
She listened to it intently and as another round of the music was to begin, she got into position and played with it. She closed her eyes and let the sounds fly with her emotions. Let them fly to where he is. Tell him. Tell him she misses him.
When the last notes of Ave Maria from Hino's violin died down, books thudded on the floor. He was listening. Maybe he did not intend to but he heard it. She looked at him with obvious alarm.
"I forgot my jacket," he told her defensively although there was a tint of shame in his voice. He picked up his things tersely, crossed the room in a hasty manner, retrieved the jacket from the chair, and left almost half-running.
His heart was throbbing crazily. His hands were shaking uncontrollably. He had never felt like this before, not with the music from her. They were sad yet hopeful tones. The violin was crying, crying not screeching. He longed for this kind of music. It may be gloomy but it carried intense feelings that even he was having a hard time achieving.
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Etou was a no-show on Thursday and Friday. She might have really pushed him to the edge with her lousy music. Only one session and he already gave up.
That weekend, she decided to make a trip to the park to practice. The temperature was getting lower and lower and the trees were almost bald causing a mountain of leaves to cover the grounds.
She found a quiet spot near the railings overlooking the ruffled surface of the wide blue sea. She took a deep breath, savoring the cool air. Then she got ready to play. Ave Maria was the first piece that came to her mind.
"Ave Maria? Again?"
She stopped in the middle of the song and turned to look at the person behind her. "E-Etou-kun…"
"Is that the only piece Mister Frosty taught you?"
"It's… It's something special to me."
"Special as in like the only piece you know?" He articulated every word with insult.
"No! It's the first song I played with Len-kun," she said, clearly offended.
"Tch, Tsukimori. That jerk perfectionist."
"Would you please stop calling him that? If you only get to know him better, you'll know is a good person."
"Really, huh? He must be 'cause everybody likes him." Sarcasm was obvious in his tone.
"Stop it!"
"What? You think adoring him can make you any better? You think you can ever be like him? Okay, it may be given that he is great in playing the violin, but why does everyone have to treat him like a god?"
Hino was hurt. Now, she felt so small, insignificant. He did not need to tell her iteratively that she was not and could never be as good as him. Little drops of sorrow flowed in her cheeks. She bowed her head to hide her face.
Etou was alarmed hearing her sob. He did not intend to go as far as making her cry. "So-sorry." He timidly uttered each syllable. After a few moments of watching her, he hesitantly took steps away. It might be pride that pushed him to leave her.
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"Hino, are you going to practice today?"
"Hai. We don't have assignments for tomorrow so I have free time."
"Can… can I accompany you?" Tsuchiura was standing beside Hino on the corridor during lunch break. He never had a chance to be alone with Hino since that day of the championship.
"Sure! That would be great."
"See you later at the practice rooms, then."
"Was that a practice I heard about?" Kaji came out of their classroom and approached the two.
"Yes. Tsuchiura-kun has offered to play music with me."
"I wanna join, too! I'll be coming after the cleaning duties, 'kay?"
"O-okay."
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Andante Cantabile's lasting gentle melody ended as the two musicians reached the double bar lines in the music sheet.
"That's great Hino. You've improved from the last time we played duet together," Tsuchiura praised the violinist.
"Really?"
"Yup! I have to say, we sound good together…," he rubbed the back of his neck, "I mean, violin sounds great together with the piano."
"I just realized…" Hino was looking down on the floor.
"Hm?"
"I just realized that I'm like my violin. To fully appreciate the beauty of its sound, you need a tune that goes with it, an accompaniment. It's very dependent of other instruments so that it can show its value."
"Hino, what do you mean?"
"I can't stand on my own. I have been very dependent of others. I know no one can live without the others but I'm becoming a parasite."
"That's not true Hino." He rose from his seat and walked to her. "You helped me, at least. If it weren't for you, I might still be somewhere, hiding from something I can't get over with."
"…"
"Hey." He put his hands on her shoulder. "If you're worrying that people might get tired of helping you, I'm not gonna be one of them. The piano stays to accompany the violin forever."
"Thank you, Tsuchiura-kun. You really are a good friend." She did not know where that sudden thought came from but with his words, she felt better.
Friend? That's, well… That's good enough.
"Ahem."
"Etou-kun?"
"I believe we have tutor session today?" Etou conceitedly announced from the open door.
"You're that braggart punk who pulled Hino the last time!" Tsuchiura stepped in front of Hino.
"Whoa, watch your words, man."
"Etou? Etou Kiriya? What are you doing here?" Kaji emerged from the main corridor. His hands were in his pocket and he was in the middle of taking a step. There was a shocked expression on his face.
"Kaji-kun," Hino called to him.
"Kaji? Hm, you're that loser who quit the violin classes!"
"I said what are you doing here?"
"I'm teaching this stupid girl how to play the violin." He pointed at Hino.
"How dare you call her stupid?" Tsuchiura balled his hands into fists.
"And who's this guy? His patience is as short as his legs are long…" Etou looked at Tsuchiura with appraising eyes.
"Please stop fighting. Getting in trouble wouldn't do you any good." Hino stepped forward to place herself between Tsuchiura and Etou.
"No Hino, he's verbally abusing you. I can't let it slide that easily. Someone needs to teach him manners," Tsuchiura said.
"Enough Tsuchiura. Hino is right. We wouldn't want to be in trouble just because of this guy." Kaji raised his hand towards Tsuchiura, signaling him to stop.
"You never changed Kaji. You're still the lame loser I know."
He continued walking towards the three. "And you're still the arrogant brat I knew… no, you got worst."
"Wait. Wait. Kaji-kun knows Etou-kun?" Hino asked.
"He used to be in my violin class, but he quit."
"I didn't quit. I simply find it no longer interesting," he corrected Etou.
"Kaji, you play the violin?" Tsuchiura turned to him.
"Yeah, dumb tree. Weren't you listening or your brain cells withered and fell off like the leaves in autumn?" Etou answered Tsuchiura's question for him.
"Why, you…"
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Last night's confrontation could have lasted light years more but Etou was quick to pull Hino inside the practice room and locked it. The two gen ed students had thought better than being rampant and waited for them to come out. They sat their butts out in the hall, ready as ever if Hino needed help.
There was a little improvement on how Etou treated Hino. When he wanted to comment about Hino's playing, he would often take a deep breath before starting his critique. It also seemed that he had been watching his words. His terms were a bit tamer than what he used to use. Perhaps the changes were brought about by Hino's tears the last time he shouted at her.
"I didn't know Kaji-kun plays the violin." Hino told the blonde during their lunch break.
"I used to attend lesson but my heart is not really in it so I stopped."
"But viola and violin are almost identical right? You love playing the viola."
"Viola is viola, Hino. Let's say I don't really like competition. Why are we even talking about it, anyway?"
"Sorry, Kaji-kun. And about last night, I hope you're not mad or anything."
"Heh, you don't need to apologize for what that brat did. You always say sorry even you're not at fault."
"Sorry… oops!"
"Haha, see I told you. It's fine Hino."
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Hino placed her phone and the open music box on top of her school bag, which was resting on the piano. She was intently listening to it when Etou arrived.
"Ave Maria, again. Aren't you tired of that music?"
"I told you it's special."
"Yeah, yeah. 'Cos it's Tsukimori's. It's such a simple piece. Let me show real music."
He bent down to get Hino's violin from the case and went into position. He closed his eyes and started to pull the bow over the strings.
His notes drifted with such elegance. Individually, they were accurate and free flowing but as Hino perceive the whole song, the notes sound bland and stiff. Hino is Hino, though. She always saw the good in everything.
"Wow, Etou-kun is a great violinist. I believe that was Vitali's Chaconne?"
"Right. How'd you know?"
"Len-kun chose the piece for the second selections. Although he wasn't able to perform during the program, I heard him play it afterwards. He's amazing just like you! You must be in the same level he is in."
Comparison – the word he despised the most. He had been living his whole life in comparison. From the smallest things, he was always compared to someone.
"Let's get going then." He tried to articulate each word as composed as he could.
Hino played her piece over and over again, as Etou was not satisfied. Finally, he got tired of listening to the same piece for several times in a row so he took in his hands the stack of Hino's music sheets and browsed them. "Here. Play this instead." He handed her the sheet of Eine Klein Nachtmusik.
"Oh, this. You know I haven't played this in a while. I remember Len-kun, Shimizu-kun, and Ousaki-sempai played it with me when we were asked to teach the kids. Len-kun even guided me when I fell out of count." She babbled dreamily about the long-gone experience.
"Could you play, now?" He uttered bossily.
"Hai. Sorry about that."
After more critiques, Etou finally dismissed her. She went to the corner of the room to put the violin back to its case when a soft laugh escaped her lips.
"What?"
"If you were Len-kun, you could have shouted 'I told you Hino, pull the bow steadily' many times tonight."
"I'm not him, okay?"
"But I just thought that – "
She was cut off when Etou's fist made contact with the solid wall behind her, missing her face by only a few inches. The impact was so strong that blood started to gush from his knuckle on the surface of the wall. His eyes were blazing in anger. "Stop it! I don't want to be compared to that person. I'm so tired of it." He shouted at her forcefully. He could no longer contain the fury building inside him.
A wave of fear washed through her entire body and before her knees fail her, she decided to create great distance between them. She passed by the unmoving Etou, her violin case in hand, and pulled her bag from the piano's surface not minding the things that rested on top of it. She tried to run as fast as her knees allowed her.
The faux-leather covered case fell on the floor with a loud thud together with the shiny, pink foldable phone.
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"Hino, I tried calling you last night but your phone was off." Takato stood in front of her.
"I… I lost my phone."
"What?" Her best friends shouted in unison.
"It fell off."
"That's too bad."
"Ah, Kaji-kun, can I ask something? If you don't mind…" She turned to Kaji.
"I don't. Fire away."
"It's about Etou-kun. Does he know Len-kun?"
"Oh, that. Etou does not know him personally. The three of us were under Saotome-sensei's tutelage although Tsukimori is on a different class. That's all I know. Why'd you ask?"
"Ah, no reason in particular."
"Hino, if you have problems with him, don't hesitate to tell me. I know him, he is very temperamental. He likes trouble and all."
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At Friday dismissal, Hino was called to report on the Gen Ed faculty room. She took a deep breath before sliding the faculty door open. She slowly peeked to find their homeroom teacher.
"Hino Kahoko," he waved at her from his desk and motioned her to come closer, "sit down."
Hino went over to her sensei's desk and took a seat on one of the chairs that faced the middle aged teacher.
"You wrote in your career assessment form that you're interested to pursue music in college?" the class adviser inquired.
"Ha-hai, Sensei."
"Well, you are going to have problems if you stay in this class. The curricula of the two departments are highly diverse and you need certain units to be able to go into a music school that are offered only in the music department. I suggest that you transfer to the music department this semester in preparation for your senior year."
"I should transfer classes?"
"Yes. And you don't have to worry about it. I can make a recommendation letter."
"I have to tell my mum first, sensei."
"Okay. I'll come by your home tomorrow afternoon to explain things. Please tell you parents."
"Hai."
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"Class, this is Hino Kahoko from class 2-2 in the gen ed department. She will now be transferring to your class as a music student." The adviser of class 2-D presented Hino to the class.
"I'm Hino Kahoko. Nice to meet you all." She bowed.
"She's the concours' girl, right? The one who played barefooted?" a girl with waist-length, curly blonde hair audibly whispered once their adviser was out.
"Yes, that's her. What a shame she's in our class," her friend agreed.
"Be careful, that girl has one hell of an attitude. She barked at me for saying something that doesn't even concern her." He was the same guy from two Mondays ago, the one with the cropped brown hair.
Almost everyone in class was having their little discussion about the new comer. How she had lowered the standards for the concours, how she disgraced Seiso Academy, and the likes.
Hino tried not to make sense of what she was hearing and was at least feeling a bit lucky that the available desk was at the farthest end of the room. She seated herself uncomfortably. She could feel pairs of eyes pierce through her. To avoid them, she slouched further down her chair so that her chest was almost the same level with the desk and dared not to look forward.
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"Wow, Kaho-chan, that uniform really fits you! You look good." Hihara could not contain his thoughts during lunch.
"Thank you Hihara-senpai."
"Ah, it's so sad! I shouldn't have chosen Medicine as my career path! Now I'm going to have more science subjects plus no Hino beside me," Kaji regretted, pulling his hair with both hands.
"Kaho-chan, how was it in the music class?" Kobayashi asked.
"It's alright. My new classmates are really… nice." She tried to say as normally as her tongue allowed her.
"That transfer was so sudden though. Kaho-chan must really like music," Takato said.
"A-huh. How about Amou-kun, what career are you pursuing in college?"
"Ho-ho, Journalism, of course! I would like to have my own regular column in the national paper."
"Hihara-senpai is graduating soon. Where are you going for college?"
"Hmm… I haven't decided yet. I'm kind of waiting for something," he answered uncomfortably while putting and pulling his fore fingers to and from each other.
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Thank you for reading. Tell me what you think. Domo!
[bows and fades to black]
