Chapter 11

Haruka's POV

I knew it.

Of course I noticed it.

The way she was very careful not to mention him. How she'd make sure she didn't turn her head and ask 'what about' when we did mention him. It was so obvious. You could be blind and figure it out.

I'm pretty sure Kasumi noticed it too.

We were both very good at noticing these things. And as much as I wanted to. I didn't interfere. I'd never been very good at matchmaker anyways. Kasumi didn't like nosy people, so she never became one. Satoshi was oblivious to all that was going around him, so he wasn't really a problem, not that he'd want to help if he knew.

Jun on the other hand, would try very hard not to spread it around.

God knows what'd happen to him if he did.

Hikari was acting very weird these days because of Shinji. Not that she told anyone. She tries very hard not to do anything out of the ordinary.

She tries very hard.

Too hard, that I figured it out. Eventually.

"I feel sorry for him." Satoshi muttered during lunch.

"For who?" I asked, opening up my own lunch, which was, by the way, very organized. "Shinji of course." He answered after swallowing whatever he had been chewing, "He just sits there at lunch, surrounded by no one. Talking to no one." At this point, Satoshi turned his ear a bit toward Hikari as this was where she usually interrupted to say something extremely rude about him.

When Hikari went on eating, Satoshi continued with the topic. It was as though he wanted her to say something about him.

"Yup." He sighed, "The only company he has are probably those girls that like gossiping about him." I saw her hand tighten around her chopsticks. Did that boy know what was spewing from his mouth!

"You're an idiot." I heard Kasumi mutter at Satoshi as she pretended to examine her lunch. "What?" He asked, turning his head toward her, "Did you say something?"

"No." She answered, her eyes wide as though she didn't believe what she was hearing, "Nothing at all." "Hm." Satoshi grumbled, "It's too quiet around here. Usually, even Jun has something to say!"

But I knew exactly why Jun had been very careful not to talk today.

He knew perfectly well as all of us that his tongue was like slippery ice. Without even himself noticing it, anything could slip right off his tongue. So for the whole day, he had pretended he was examining something and staying quiet so he wouldn't stand out.

"Why won't anybody talk!?" Satoshi exclaimed in a exasperated voice, "This silence sounds very eerie." "Oh, I'll give you something everybody will talk about." Kasumi managed to say through gritted teeth, glaring at him so intensely I half expected him to burst into sudden combustion right there.

I rolled my eyes at their immaturity and continued eating as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

Each class went by ridiculously slow. I couldn't help but let a little sigh pass through my lips, which I rarely did. But no one seemed to notice.

I'd already read over what the teacher was teaching, so my eyes drifted on Hikari. I wondered if I was the only one that noticed her scribbling furiously on her notebook. Which she rarely ever did ever. A small smile graced my lips as I saw her determined expression. Of course it wasn't to concentrate on the notes.

Well, in a way, it was.

She was trying to keep her concentration off of a certain purple haired boy a couple seats behind us.

This was the only class they were together, and I could tell she was trying not to cherish the moment.

I leaned over and whispered, "Stop scribbling, and act bored, and maybe nobody will notice that you're acting strange."

She gave me a confused look.

"Wha-?"

The bell rang, cutting her off.

I stuffed everything in my bag quickly and hurried out the door. Not that I wasn't keen on boasting about how I noticed she had been acting strangely, but my next class was quite far.

"I feel like an old lady." Kasumi said, catching up to me, "My back is in so much pain."

"That's why you should keep your back straight. Like me!"

"Oh geez." Kasumi exclaimed, "You surprised me!" She snapped at Jun as he raced to be beside us. "Aw, your senses are just dull, and your mind isn't as sharp." He said as he gave her a cunning wink.

"You say that to my face you-" She threatened as she took a step forward. "I actually did." He said, cutting her off. "Smart- aleck." Kasumi muttered.

"Where are you heading off to?" I asked Jun. My pace was fast, but not as fast as his, so I had to run to keep up. "Calculus." He said, "I don't like math though."

Our paths separated at the stairway next to the music room.

Kasumi and I ran towards our next class (which was English), and we were almost there too, if I hadn't just noticed that my bag felt a bit lighter than usual.

I checked my bag, murmuring prayers that I didn't leave something behind in my other class. But sure enough, I had left my favorite red notebook. I had quite liked the doodles I had drawn on the cover too. I groaned and told Kasumi that I'd be back, and if I was late, then to explain to the teacher I was late. Hopefully, they'd let me off the hook. All the teachers adored me.

I ran back up the stairs, my mind intent on my notebook. Determined not to stop. But I forgot this determination as soon as heard the most beautiful sound coming out of one of the nearby classrooms.

I slowed down to a stop, turning my head left and right to find the sound.

I listened to each of the doors so I wouldn't disturb any of the classes going on. At last, I found the right door. And for once, I wasn't drowning in anxiety and suspense in front of the door.

I opened the door a crack, because I knew if I opened the door fully, the music would stop.

I couldn't put the feeling in the music into words. I couldn't say anything. I'd always thought music appreciation was lame. Ever since I'd tried it with CD's. But this. This was way different. CD's were mixed, they weren't the original. Technology put feeling into the song. CD music was fake. The real thing though.

Wow.

It seemed that the music would go on for eternity. Never ending. Living forever, continually wounding itself around my ears. It was a mystery. It sounded so close, but so far away.

I breathed in deeply. As though if I did, the musical notes would be sucked inside my brain and be permanently implanted there.

Somewhere in the distance, the bell rang that signaled class to start. But as I heard it, it was distant. No meaning. Compared to what I was hearing.

"You might as well just come in. I can see you. Haruka." A ridiculously familiar voice called in.

I was broken from my trance, and without even thinking, I opened the door and asked, "What?" As though I hadn't heard him right.

I usually would've screamed, "You!" and pointed a finger at him as though he had done something very wrong. But instead, I blurted out, "That was beautiful!"

"Wasn't it?" Shuu asked as he flicked his unusually green hair. Somehow, his reaction hadn't really surprised me.

Shuu was sitting on the bench of a beautiful white grand piano.

"What's the piece called?" I asked him. This question made a small flicker of surprise flit across his face. But he regained his cocky expression almost immediately after. "Fantasie Impromptu by Chopin."

"Could you play it again?" I asked him, almost timidly. His face was set in a bemused expression as he asked, "Why?" "It's beautiful, as I said before." I said, sounding extremely lame in my opinion, "And I want to see your fingers. If you actually played it."

"Of course I played it." He said with a expression that screamed 'duh', "Are you questioning my talent?" "Can I see?" I asked.

He smirked.

"Sure." He answered with a shrug, "Why not?"

He started the piece all over again and I walked slowly up to him. I peeked as his fingers, amazed as I saw them flying across the keys, barely pressing them. They moved even more gracefully then the player.

But what surprised me most, was the emotion that was leaking out his body. Like a container over- filled with water. It was not of boasting, or showing off. It was a very calm and gentle feeling. His emotions changed with the music, and that seemed to be the very thing I admired about him, I found out at that moment.

His emotions changed once more as the music changed mood once again.

I officially loved Chopin.

He had created the most beautiful piece I have ever heard. I would forever lay off those punk- rock music with too much screaming. The strange thing was, I hadn't even noticed it had a ton of screaming in it until now.

"Do you want to hear another one?" He asked, sounding almost eager. I nodded my head, equally as eager.

And he burst into another piece.

It was completely different from Fantasie Impromptu. Very jumpy, very exciting, and sounding very happy. Not at all calm like the last piece.

And without even knowing, a smile had been plastered onto my face, my foot tapping along with the very difficult rhythm. I lost him as soon as the piece turned itself around and quieted down.

No sooner had it became calm, it was happy and jumpy again.

A very confusing piece, I confirmed, confusing, yet strangely happy.

His hands still moved gracefully, even though it sounded like they were pounding on the keys. His finger pressed the keys lightly, yet hard enough to project the right amount of sound and moved onto the next notes. His expression seemed so confident, if he made any mistakes, I didn't notice.

His eyes never left his fingers, but it felt as though he was closing his eyes and just playing whatever he thought felt right.

"What was that one called?" I asked, almost whispering, as he ended the piece.

"Polonaise in A flat 'Heroique' Op. 53 by Chopin." He answered, louder than my voice level though.

"Is he your favorite composer?" I asked him, "Chopin." "His music just seems to fit me." He said, "I mean, I like Bach and Beethoven and Clementi too of course." "Who?" I asked. "Other composers." He answered.

I reached out slowly and pressed the highest key on the piano.

"That's a C." He said. "It's a very beautiful note." I said without thinking, but I didn't feel embarrassed for saying it. "I personally like the F." He said, pressing another, different key. I nodded, almost approvingly. "That's a very beautiful note too." I agreed.

"Then you'll probably like the notes D, E, G, A, and B too." He said with a smile.

That's right.

A smile. Not a smirk. A smile. With a bit of teeth showing and everything.

Not knowing what to do, I smiled back.

"I want to learn." I said, brushing the keys with the tips of my fingers delicately, as though it'd break if I dared to touch too hard. I heard him chuckle. "Too late, don't you think?" He asked, "I mean, I started when I was four." "Then, I just want to learn one song." I said, "The first one you played, Fantasie Impromptu."

His emerald eyes widened.

"Do you know how hard that piece is for a beginner?" He asked, "I don't even know if you have talent. I have perfect pitch, so, I was able to play it in my second year of piano, but, you?"

"Please?" I asked, begging with my eyes, sliding beside him on the bench. I felt him scoot away a bit, but I didn't mind.

"It's my favorite song in the world!" I exclaimed. "Since when?" He asked, as though he was challenging me. "Since now! Please!" I clasped my hands together and squeezed my eyes shut.

"Well, you've got to relax your whole arm first." He said, amusement in his voice. And with that, he took my right arm and shook it until I couldn't feel it anymore.

No matter how unpleasant it felt, I kept the complaint to myself.

"Fantasie Impromptu has four sharps." He said, placing my finger on a few of black keys and a few white keys, leaving my hand in a rather uncomfortable position, "since it's in C sharp minor."

"Four sharps." I repeated, "C sharp minor."

"You don't have to implant it in your brain." He said, "Just let your fingers lead you. Remember the position that your hand is in." "Okay." I said. "With your fingers." He finished.

What?

I had no idea what he was talking about, but he was leading my fingers at the moment, and I didn't want to waste time making him explain everything to me. Truth was. I had no idea what sharps were either. Or which key was C. I had to admit it. I was completely hopeless. But I could learn as he taught me. That was my way of excelling at things.

"Close your eyes." He ordered. I gave him a surprised look. "Why?" I asked. "Just do it." He said, rolling his eyes. In the end, I did as I was told, and it didn't hurt my pride one bit.

He pressed my fingers on my left hand in a pattern that I recognized as the introduction. He repeated over and over again. Probably to get me to remember it. And at that moment, I got what he meant about memorizing with my fingers.

The pressure was gently lifted off my fingers and it suddenly felt like one of the mountaintops in Russia. "Now you try." He said.

I furrowed my eyebrows as I struggled to remember what the pattern was.

A chord. Another chord. But my fingers accidentally forgot the distance and pressed the wrong notes. My hand recoiled at the sound, yet something pressed it back down. "Try again." he said in a reassuring voice.

A chord. Another chord. Glide, and press.

I felt his fingers press on top of mine and jumped a bit. This closing eyes thing really wasn't working out for me.

He showed me the next pattern. Well, pressed it for me repeatedly, which helped me just as much.

"It's better if you just memorize the whole piece with your fingers." He explained, "Because that way, you can actually feel the music. Though there's more of a chance that you'd mess up if you closed your eyes, so don't do that."

"So does that mean I can open my eyes?" I asked hopefully. "'Course not." He said, I could hear the smile in his voice as I scowled furiously at his answer, "Trust me, the way I'm teaching you is way better than how my teacher taught me. In the end, I just quiet all the lessons and taught myself."

"Then shouldn't I just learn this piece all by myself?" I asked him, opening my eyes anyways (What would he do about it?). "You're the one who was just begging me for me to teach you how to play this piece." He said.

I scowled and was about to say something back when the bell rang.

"What? What was that?" I asked. "The bell." Shuu answered, "You know, the one to go home." I jumped up.

"I missed a whole period!?" I screamed.

"Calm down." He said, standing up to place a hand on my shoulder, "It's good to ditch class sometimes."

But I wasn't listening to him. I was packing up my stuff.

"Sorry Shuu," I said, "I guess you can't teach me after all. I can't afford to miss one class everyday or stay here a few extra hours or something. Bye!"

"Hey!" He called. I turned around so fast I became dizzy.

"You're not really going to leave without this, would you?" He asked, waving a familiar red notebook in the air. "Oh!" I gasped, "Throw it, will you!?"

It left his hands and landed on my outstretched arms. Either I was really good at catching, or he was good at throwing, but I didn't have time to ponder about this, I had to get going. My mom was expecting me home tonight.

"Thank you!" I called as I raced out the room.

And as much of a hurry I was in.

I couldn't help but slow down and turn around with a soft smile as I heard the beginning notes of Fantasie Impromptu.

AN. How long has it been? Over three months right? I'm so sorry!!!!!!!!!!!! School started! Of course you all know that! And for the first few weeks, I was pretty bad at Algebra, it's a 98 now, so I'm fine. I feel very insecure telling everyone my age, but, I just turned 13. Yeah. That means, I'm in seventh grade. OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(Cue dramatic music) Yeah. I'm sorry if this chapter was really lame. My writing skills are somewhat to be desired. Yeah. The past few months, I've been climbing over something called a Writer's Block (Cue dramatic music). Yes. Every author gets it at some point (I hope). And then, sometimes, I didn't feel like writing, and I owe this really stupid video for my friend because she drew me a picture of Annabeth from the Percy Jackson and the Olympian series (All those who have not read must!!!!!!!!!!!!) Anyways, I've been having a hard time. Yeah, okay, I'm obsessed with my piano. So what? I have this weird thing where I can memorize anything with my fingers, and I just had to boast about it (I'm being really pig- headed). Yeah. I'll try to update soon.

-Er than I did this chapter. Happy reading!

-Kahmelion