Chapter Nineteen
Kakyuu smiled softly at the pair as Seiya announced that they knew each other. It was as if she knew that this would have eventually happen if they had met under such that moment, Michiru knew that this must be the woman that Seiya had loved for years along with her older brother who had stole such a beautiful woman away. It was almost ironic that they would appear just as the raven haired manager was healing from such a blow.
"I apologizefor intruding on such a huge project so suddenly with my husband. I'm sure you're surprised, as are you Seiya-kun," she said acknowledging the pair in the room.
"There's no need to apologize for such things. If anything, I am the one who imposed on you both so suddenly," assured Haruka.
Michiru slowly took a seat across the table, Seiya mirroring the movement. Her fists were clenched and the musician could feel that her manager was extremely tense just from the aura she was emitting alone. It wasn't often that Seiya would be anxious, but this was certainly a weak spot of hers.
"I should apologize to Kisaki-san and Seiya-san for leaving them out of the loop as well. This was my idea after all," Haruka continued, "As we all know, the amount of tabloid headlines have been swamping your name Kisaki-san, and right before your debut. Please don't think I'm punishing you for what I'm about to explain to you all, but I need the public to take you seriously as the artist I know you can be."
"What do you have in mind?" Michiru asked. She wanted to hear Haruka out knowing that the woman had good intention.
"I want to treat your single release like a teaser. While most artistssend their audience a fifteen second clip;I want us to gift them with a full single. However, two weeks after in April, I want to release a full mini-album. Of course, this would be with the help of myself and both Kakyuu and Taiki as well," explained Haruka.
"That's insane. With all the promotional work lined up for the first single, how the hell is Michiru going to be able to compose music and record it? Are you crazy Tennou?!" Seiya exclaimed seeming flabbergasted at the suggestion. Seiya out of everyone, knew Michiru's schedule the best because she would be along side the woman the entire way, keeping track of everything.
"This is why I asked for both Taiki and Kakyuu's help. Please don't mind me using your first names, by the way, since you all go by the Kou surname, going by afirst name basis is easier. Please don't be offended by my familiarity with you all," Haruka mentioned.
"No offense taken," Taiki answered in between the heated discussion between Haruka and Michiru.
"I can compose my own music. I rather have control on what's put out," insisted Michiru.
"Please don't think that I don't have faith in you Kisaki-san, but for the sake of your health and upcoming schedule, you don't have a say or control over the matter at hand right now. I have picked some of the best composers I could think of, other than yourself. I'll also be helping produce this mini-album. If your first single does well with it's original composition-and the mini-album sells high, I will fully let you have control over what isreleased in the future," said Haruka.
Michiru looked down defeated. She knewthat this whole ordeal had been sprung on her and her manager. She didn't have much say considering how booked she was for the next couple of weeks.
"If you don't mind usassuring you, we'll promise that you are in good hands Kisaki-san. I know this most likely uncomfortable for you, considering how talented you are musically. I've attended a few of your last violin recitals and they were all stunning. My wife and I have always wanted to strive to surpass your level, and we intend to work very hard with you to ensure your debut for the next couple of weeks is a success," Taiki said.
"I'll hand it to them Michiru, we all studied music for so long back in the day… They do know what they're doing," commented Seiya.
"It's nice of you to say sister," Taiki replied fondly.
Seiya averted her gaze, "You know how I feel about you calling me sister…."
"I apologize," Taiki chuckled.
"As for imagery, I would like to suggest a light and dark concept. For the single we went with a dark Setsuna Meiou one piece. For the album, I would like to work with lighter and brighter designers. The theme being the music coming to light since the single is the dark teaser," Usagi began.
Haruka nodded in agreement, "Sounds like a simple concept but one that we can definitely add upon."
"I'll set the designs and make up I had in mind down here and come back for it later if my job is done here. I have the Amazoness Quartet waiting for me to go over their outfits for their activities today. They have a variety of shows and events to make appearances at if you have forgotten Tennou-san,' the blonde haired stylist commented.
"We'll make our final decisions and I'll mark them down at the end of our meeting for you to take note of," Haruka said.
"It was a pleasure meeting you Taiki-san, Kakyuu-san," Usagi said with a smile before ducking to make her entrance.
Seiya looked slightly dejected to know that Usagi was leaving the for the day, but knew it couldn't be helped. From Michiru's standpoint, maybe it was better for Usagi to leave the meeting considering Seiya's history with her brother and Kakyuu… It would be easier to have the other love interest outside of the room to ease Seiya's tensions a little and focus on the work at hand.
"If we can select some of the outfits along with the concept designs and proceed to head to the studio, I think we would be more productive there," Taiki said.
In the passing hour, the fiveof them selected a variety of outfits and accessories for photoshoots for the album cover and further promotional work. Michiru looked at various make up brands and sponsors, helping select ones with Haruka and Seiya's approval. She almost suspected that Usagi had left and gave them all something to work on to help ease the tension by using the designs as a distraction method to keep Seiya's mind occupied. It was if the twin-bunned girl knew everything but kept silent as to not escalate things further than they already were…
Michiru had clearly underestimated how perceptive and clever Usagi was…
Eventually, the five of them moved down the hallway and into the dimly lit studio.
"We had one composition for Michiru to try to sing today for practice. It's a recycled piece, but I think it's much too beautiful to do away with. It would be nice for a song like this to be given a proper voice," Kakyuu stated.
"You can read music vocally correct?" Haruka asked Michiru with a smirk.
The teal haired woman pouted, insulted by the assumption.
"I wouldn't have aimed to be a singer if I couldn't," she snapped.
She took the sheet music and lyrics from Kakyuu and Taiki's hands, somewhat stunned at how deep the lyrics were… Had they wrote this song? It sounded so tragic and sad for a couple to compose together…
"Tennou-san added her own arrangement already to the song earlier this morning when we demoed it, and there are bits with Taiki of course since it was meant to be a duet, but we'll just leave that as recorded bits for the time being as you acquaintyourself," Kakyuu explained.
Michiru nodded and went to the recording room, placing headphones on her head as her eyes scanned over the music in an attempt to figure out which notes and octaves she needed to sing along with the neighboring instrumental.
"Ready?" Haruka asked behind the microphone.
"As ready as I can be," answered Michiru.
The music began with piano and electronics and the musician took a deep breath and opened her mouth…
'The rain wells up at my ankles
The tears I held back well up in my eyes
I cry'
"Stop…..stop...please, just STOP!" Seiya's voice came out. Michiru's head snapped away from the sheet music and over to the window where the manager had shoved Haruka aside and grabbed the mic to cease Michiru's vocals.
The track's instrumentals were still playing in the background eerily. Haruka looked shocked and taken aback. Kakyuu looked rather hurt and Taiki? Taiki looked grim as if he knew something that hardly anyone in the room didn't.
Michiru stepped out of the recording booth concerned as Haruka began to open her mouth to put up a fuss.
"How could you?! Why would you ever think that would be okay to use?!" Seiya shrieked.
"Seiya-kun…I thought it was such a beautiful song..it would be a shame not to actually use it. Plus, what an honor it would be for something you wrote to be sang by Michiru Kisaki of all people. I thought since you worked so closely with her, that it wouldn't be an issue for you," explained Kakyuu.
"Don't be childish sister," Taiki scoffed.
"Childish?! That wasn't meant to be something you could just feel entitled to take! You have no idea what meaning is behind that song and how much it means to me. That was the last song I ever sang and composed! And here you've recycled it and made it into something that you think you understand when you don't!" Seiya snarled.
"You're meaning to say this was originally yourwork?" Haruka interrupted.
"As hard as it is for you to probably believe, at one point Tennou, I actually was talented. I lost inspiration but I sang, I wrote music-I did it all. That song is mine. Why Taiki thinks he's entitled to make it something of his own is beyond my comprehension," the raven haired manager explained.
"I have to take responsibility as well Seiya-kun… Remember a couple of weeks ago? When I sent you the clip of me singing it in the first place? Taiki and I both fell in love with the mood of the song and I was really set on using it for the Kisaki album," Kakyuu said.
Seiya's fists were clenched so tightly that it was a wonder that she wasn't bringing out blood with her nails.
"You have no idea… No idea what that song means to me. If you're so insistent on using it, you better let me modify it to my liking for Michiru and on my own terms. This isn't just something you can just throw electronics over and call it a day. And Michiru, if you're going to actually sing this one, you better be ready to belt the shit out of it-and be ready for multiple takes until I'm satisfied," she warned.
"You really think we have time for you to be petty right now Seiya-san? We have a deadline to make," Haruka protested.
"She'll be ready by the deadline. It's Michiru. She will be more than ready. Focus on the other songs in the meantime. Let me take care of this one since it's mine. I at least have that right. And don't you dare think about using Taiki as the duet. There won't be any duet for this revised rendition. Only Michiru. It's my song, and it will be the last thing I ever work on. The only reason I'm eveninsisting that I take charge of this is because you all brought it back from the dead," said Seiya, "Now if you'll excuse me. I need to get some air. I've had enough shocks for this morning… I'll be back shortly."
Kakyuu sighed in defeat and Taiki placed his index and middle fingers on his temples massaging them.
"We'll take a lunch break," Haruka murmured before slumping on the now, turned off keyboard.
Kakyuu and Taiki nodded in agreement.
"If that's the case, my husband and I will fetch something to eat. We'll regroup around noon yes?" Kakyuu suggested.
"Sounds good. I'll see you then," Haruka replied.
The couple exited quickly as if to get out of the room's thick tension leaving only Michiru and Haruka left in the studio room.
Michiru was at a loss at what to do. She could have slowly inched away from the room un-noticed by the producer possibly, but she had no idea where Seiya was. She would have felt like an aimless idiot walking around the Tennou Building without any clue as to what to do.
"Let me take you out for lunch please? It's been a long morning… Take pity on me for once, grace me with good company?" Haruka pleaded.
Michiru looked at her suspiciously, "You won't do anything sneaky this time?"
"I promise… I just want to eat at this rate. I'm exhausted and my stomach won't shut up," assured Haruka.
"Fine…Let me text Seiya to let her know that we are coming back to this at noon," Michiru answered before taking out her phone to inform Seiya that she could take a longer emotional breath of fresh air. That she would be fine on her own.
"Shall we go? I want to have enough time to beat traffic and take my time eating," Haruka said before lifting herself up off of the keyboard and chair she had been hunched over in. She straightened up her outfit and hat before walking towards the door waiting for Michiru to gather her things and accompany her.
The pair walked down the hallway quickly but discreetly, merely nodding to people they passed down the pathway to the elevator.
"It didn't occur to you that the song writers you hired had the same last name as my manager?" Michiru asked as they slid into the elevator.
"Honestly, I thought it was a coincidence. I didn't think of it having any connection to your manager. Matter of fact, I had no idea she was musically involved in things at one point," mused Haruka.
"I suppose you got the shock of your life then," the aqua haired musician muttered.
"Which is why I can't wait to leave this building and have a delicious lunch with an incredibly pretty girl as my company," Haruka said.
Michiru rolled her eyes, "Flattery will get you nowhere Haruka Tennou."
The blonde smiled, "It was worth a try."
They exited the elevator and strode down to the parking garage.
"Should we take my car? Since yours is totaled and all….?" Michiru suggested.
Haruka chuckled as if bemused by the suggestion.
"I can't stand anyone else driving unless it's completely necessary. I have another car for us to take. I'll drive. I did ask you out you out, after all," she said.
Michiru flushed at the implication of this lunch outing possibly being seen as a date. This was merely a lunch break between co-workers. Her boss even. Nothing more. Haruka didn't need to make it more than what it was. Haruka lead them to a small older looking white convertible sports car that had the hard top up.
"I kept my first car from back in my high school days. This was the Miata I used to drive," Haruka explained.
Michiru suddenly remembered it well. Not that students were evenallowed to drive to school at Infinity Gakuen. However, a lot of people knew that Haruka Tennou had a rebellious side and would do so anyway in spite of the rules. She remembered the squeals and screams of girls who flew past her in groups as she sat in the courtyard area with her sketchpad. She would watch from a far as girls fawned over the white sports car rolling up to the gates. The girls from the back would all be on their tiptoes trying to get a glimpse of the blonde as they attempted to greet her for the morning. The teachers would either scold her or shake their head in disbelief at Haruka's eccentricity-but couldn't exactly argue since she was one of their prodigy pupils. They couldn't argue about the car when she had outstanding grades and an immense list of extra curricular activities. Haruka's excuse was always that she needed the car to manage her time because she was always so busy. But everyone secretly knew it was because she was trying to make her way up and in the professional race circuit.
Almost every girl on campus longed to be the girl that got the privilege of being the girl took claim of that passenger seat. Once Michiru had gotten praised by the teenaged Haruka as Michiru Kisaki, (unbeknownst to the blonde's knowledge) even the artist desired to be the girl that sat in the passenger seat of the sleek white sports car while riding along the roads near the ocean.
It almost sent chills up Michiru's spine that she was face to face with this car again...close and in person. She would finally be that girl sitting in the passenger seat.
'However, not as Haruka's girlfriend,'Michiru reminded herself to bring her thoughts back to reality.
"Don't show off this time, especially since my life is in your hands," Michiru said as she shook off the wave of nostalgia.
Haruka smirked as she unlocked the passenger door opening it for the girl before her, "I wouldn't dream of it with you."
Michiru ducked down into the car and had the shut her in as she reached for her seatbelt. Haruka unlocked the driver's door and got in-starting the engine of the car which roared to life in response.
"Actually, I might be lying a little… I can't resist but have a little bit of fun..."
Michiru sulked, "Stay within the speed limit or so god help me."
The blonde laughed before quickly backing out of of the parking space which in turn, had Michiru lurching forward by the force of the reverse speed-she grabbed at the door handle for support as her heart shot up a beat.
"Don't worry. Trust me, once we get on the road, you won't feel a thing," Haruka assured.
The car in turn lurched forwards and the sound of the car echoed throughout the parking structure. The squeal of tires were the only thing that alerted Michiru that the car was actually at a rather high speed to be in the parking garage as it hit the turns to arrive at the lower level.
"Let's get some air shall we?" Haruka suggested. They were stopped at the last level of the structure and inwaiting for traffic to clear. She manually unlatched the top of the car, suddenly making it a convertible.
"Won't we make a scene?" Michiru asked.
"Let people think what they will. You've already confirmed we're not dating. We're only going out to lunch-and somewhere private that they can't get into if they happen to follow us. However, I'm pretty sure I'll lose them once they hit the expressway. I'm fast," assured Haruka.
Michiru tensed up at the thought of riding the convertible with the top down...on the expressway...going fast. Wouldn't it be too crazy?
"Hold onto your bag and this for me will you?" Haruka asked before taking off her wide brimmed hat and handing it to Michiru. She ruffled her hair out in an attempt to messily style it out of it's flat hat-head state; making sure not to hit her stitches in the process.
Michiru clutched onto the hat and her purse out of precaution-just incase things really did fly away.
The car finally exited the parking garage and entered the main road-the sound of it alerting everyone in it's path to make way for it as it passed. Michiru noticed the numbers on the speedometer rise higher and higher as they hit the straightaway.
They were finally exiting the Tennou Entertainment premises when Michiru swore she found Seiya hiding outside the side of the building. She was leaning against the wall with a cigarette in between her fingers…. She must have gotten into such a distressed state that she needed one of her very rare cigarette breaks. Michiru felt bad suddenly for leaving her to go to lunch with Haruka… However, she hoped that the pair had passed by quickly enough that Seiya didn't noticed that it was Haruka that Michiru was having lunch with…
Unbeknownst to Michiru, Seiya did notice the white sports car quickly fly by. The top being down revealed Michiru's long aqua locks flying behind her and Haruka's own in the driver's seat. The car wasn't auspicious enough to not be seen...or heard.
Seiya felt a smile curl around the cigarette that was around her lips…She took it out of her mouth, a puff of smoke billow out…
"That Michiru…. Always getting herself into trouble..." she murmured to herself.
As much as Michiru tried to deny herself of Haruka Tennou; as much as both women continued to hurt each other in their own game of cat and mouse- they could never learn to stay the hell away from one each other. It was like some intense magnetic attraction towards one another. It was maybe even considered fate that they would eventually fall in love with each other based ontheir history. Haruka always narrowly missing Michiru and Michiru narrowly missing Haruka by being secretive. The artist's fears are what were always holding her back… The fear of disappointing others and herself... Much like the company Michiru kept around her, she too was an overachiever-even when it came to herself. She denied herself of things over not being made to perfection, and when someone pointed out all of her flaws? She gripped the criticism tightly and never would quite let go…
Personally? Seiya didn't like Haruka at all. She was brash and a show off. She played with people's hearts without considering the consequences. The blonde was constantly pushing the limits, not only in her romantic life but also in her professional life… Just what was she thinking setting a mini-album to be released right after a single? If they had been given more preparation and forewarning it wouldn't have been such a mess….. And then there was Haruka's cluelessness. It wasn't exactly her fault that she had hired her brother and his wife as extra help… If anything they needed it and it was a good call on the producer's part. But it didn't stand well with Seiya at all. She hadn't found closure within herself when it came to her brother just up and marrying the girl she had loved… Attending the wedding had been difficult enough.. Afterwards, Seiya had made it a deal to avoid being around the newly wed couple in person as much as possible. But what really shook Seiya's nerves was the fact that they had recycled a song that had actually been hers..
While Haruka had an excuse for not knowing better-Taiki and Kakyuu didn't. Now, here was Seiya being forcefully pushed back into the music world where she didn't want to be. She had made an oathnever to compose anything or use her voice ever again. Now here she was going back on that over being thrown off and attempting to preserve something that was made out of sentimentalism.
That was the thing about Seiya… She was a sentimentalist. She treasured the many big and small things in her life. Things that others often took for granted. She didn't have an easy childhood. Her mother and father just up and left-apparently they were half insane and drugged up. They just decided to one day leave their kids in the apartment they rented and never return.
Seiya remembered it well. If it weren't for Taiki being older and much more level headed…..and eventually Kakyuu stepping into Seiya's life… Who knows what would have happened to them. Small ten year old Seiya was naive and slowly turned into a jaded woman due to the abandonment. From a young age, the raven haired child knew her parents were no good. They were always lazing about-strewn out on the floor or bringing random strangers over...which on many occasions right to make a pass at her and her brother. Seiya could recall on many nights holding her older brother's hand as they slipped passed the narrow entry way quietly and down the apartment complex's hallway to get away for the night. Taiki around that time, felt an obligation to protect her...because she was younger. There was a point in Seiya's life that she had really looked up to her older brother Taiki.. Because he was calm and collected-and much older. He was the one who somehow got the power back on in the apartment after it had been off for weeks. He was the one who dealt with the landlady who owned the complex and insisted that their parents were away overseas in their home country of Japan, taking care of a family emergency. They had cleaned up the trashed living quarters for the very last time once their parents left… And if it weren't for the siblings constantly struggling to survive with what little resources they had, they could have finally called themselves a normal family.
And then Seiya realized what a fucking pain in the ass Taiki was. If they had lived with normal parents, Taiki would have been the perfect child. While Seiya had looked up to Taiki in her earlier years. There came a point where Taki and her were attending the same high school in America, and it dawned on her how immaculate and perfect Taiki Kou was. He was the vice president of the music club at their high school and also happened to be on the student council. All the teacher's loved him and Seiya could never quite measure up..
Why? Because she was a tomboy. She grew up idolizing her brother so much that the idea of wearing dresses and being a soft spoken girl never dawned on her mind. Looking back, she could have almost cried in joy over the fact that she went to high school in the United States, because she damn well knew she would have been stuck in a skirt if they had been over in Japan. However, because of the fact that Seiya wasn't a typical teenage girl like the other girls her age-she wasn't popular. She was socially awkward despite being brash and loud. Unlike her brother, Seiya went down the path of being a delinquent. She couldn't have given any fucks about what people thought about her at that point. She'd never live up to what her brother had already set as a bar of perfection. She got sick of being in Taiki's shadow by her sophomore year.
Classes got more mundane and waking up early became a chore. Gay bars and fake IDs were at her disposal. Her nights were filled with nicotine and alcohol at one point—even women, who weren't half made Seiya feel alive-she was around like minded people that didn't judge her like others would. There were no disapproving remarks or disgusted stares over how disheveled she looked. At the clubs, she could be whoever the fuck she wanted to be. She'd stay out at those places all night and come stumbling into the small apartment with Taiki lecturing her about how he tried to find her all night and the whole, "do you know what time it is?" type of lectures. Seiya grew numb to those and noted to become more sly about sneaking out before her brother could stop her.
Nobody was fond of her elsewhere. She was picked on by students and teachers alike. Teachers gave her shit for being truant. Other kids would call her "dirty" and the word "dyke" would fly around a lot too. And then came the day that Seiya took it too far… Right during Taiki's Senior year and the middle of her Sophomore year..
It had been the first time Seiya had ever witnessed an adult call her a 'pussy eater' or something of that sort and continue call her all sorts of names. For someone to push their religion on her and try to tell her what she was... It was one thing for the raven haired girl to endure it from ignorant fucks her age. It was another thing however, to tolerate it from someone who should have been old enough to know better.
And then it happened… Unbeknownst to Taiki who would never ever believe no matter how insistent Seiya had been. It still angered her to this day that Taiki never believed her… That he thought that Seiya was just picking a fight without reason…
That teacher kissed her hard in that empty teacher's lounge… He kept insisting that he would turn her straight. To "just let him to this". That he would "cure her of her sickness."He tried to sneak his hands down Seiya's jeans and that's when Seiya tolerated no more. She beat the living shit out of that guy… She hardly remembered anything but seeing red.
Seiya did recall people screaming and many othersincluding her own brother, pulling her off the teacher who was cowering in fear and was covered in blood as she had threw him out into the hallway by sheer force. She had punched him so hard that some of his teeth flew out of his foul mouth. Seiya had placed a hospital beating on that guy….
From then on out, everyone was afraid of her. She was expelled from school for fighting and Taiki stopped trying to force her to go to school even to another one. He was livid at her. Both of their reputations were tarnished by Seiya's patience snapping. The night after she had beat the teacher up, she remembered Taiki slamming her into the wall of the living room and hissing at her, "Keep it up, you dumb bitch. Keep doing the shit that you're doing, and you'll end upjust like them. Good for nothing and trashed just like the fucking vermin that made you. Do you have any fucking idea how hard I've had to work to keep you safe?! To keep a roof over our head and the electricity on-to have food in our stomachs? And then you have the nerve topiss all over my hard work!"
Seiya smirked cackling as her brother's death grip on her shoulders stayed firm. She wasn't afraid of him. Not at this point.
"In case you've forgotten, you were born from the same spunk and vag as I was brother. You can act like you're better than all of that all you want-with that pompous all-knowingattitude of yours. But don't forget where we came from. I just happen to live in my truth. I'm not you. I don't try to live a lie like you do."
It was a wonder that Taiki hadn't abandoned her once he had gotten accepted at a prestigious music school in Japan. He instead, took her with him. It was ironic that they were going to live in the country that their party-obsessed parents flew away from. It hadn't been easy. Taiki was well prepared for the trip over. His Japanese was perfect because he had studied the language up to an advanced placement level in high school, knowing his intention was to go to a music academy for college. However, Seiya found herself struggling with her elementary level Japanese. She had spoke English most of her life except for the small amount of time that her parents had been around. They also spoke English, but in their household, spoke Japanese. However, they had always spoke to little Seiya with baby-talk. So here Seiya was, stuck talking how she had spoke to her parents at seven or eight years old. Her vocabulary was limited and Seiya found herself giggled at for some of the slang that would come out of her mouth.
Seiya recalled her first couple years in Japan hanging around gyaru and the like that would spend their days in Shibuya. They were accepting of her and liked to hang around and party. They would always bounce up and down squealing, "Kawaiiiii~" every time Seiya accidentally said something with a child-like dialect. Eventually over time, Seiya learnedhow to proficiently speak on a casual level. It was something Taiki had trouble with because he had formally learned Japanese in America. However, Seiya was constantly talking to people and was keen on keeping up with the ever-changing Japanese slang that would pop up in conversations. She felt like she had a one up on her brother. Her social life was a lot more active than his own. Seiya often found herself clubbing or at karaoke bars. Ni-chome wasn't half bad either. However, there were a lot more male dominated bars than ones with females that suited her type or were for her liking.
Seiya had stumbled in one night during dinner time and found the most beautiful woman she had ever seen in the living room. She had almost forgot that Taiki was in the room at all… Her mouth fell open and she had barely heard Taiki say in an attempt to introduce them, "Seiya, this is my classmate Kakyuu, she's also the president of the music club. Kakyuu, this is my sister Seiya..."
Her presence changed everything. Where Taiki had given up on Seiya, Kakyuu hadn't. She had a way with words and convincing people of things. She came over for dinner often and even came over with cakes and other treats specifically for Seiya.
"Mou….Seiya-kun, it's a shame you're not enrolled in high school here. You would probably be as good as your brother is at singing if you placed your heart into it. You just got back from a karaoke parlor didn't you? You seem to go there quite often… You could study music and become an idol one day!"Kakyuu encouraged.
"Ah…. I kind of gave up on the ideal of school. My Japanese is no good here for academics and I'm horrible with mornings and uniforms,"was Seiya's shy excuse at the given compliment.
"We could send you to an international school. You wouldn't have to wear a skirt-they could be open minded about their uniform policy. You could learn Japanese as well as your other courses and enroll with me and Taiki-kun in two years! It would be great! And then when you're in college you can dress as stylishly as you want!"insisted Kakyuu. It was like she had the plan all plotted out..
"I'll think about it."
Seiya did end up thinking about and thinking about it lead her to eventually enrolling back into school. Nobody questioned her. If anything the amount of foreigners at the new high school made her less of a misfit than it had at her previous high school in the States. Nobody really asked about each other's pasts or personal history at that school. People transferred in and out all the time-it was easy to just study and survive to pass. What really motivated Seiya however, was hearing Kakyuu sing for the first time.
She had insisted that Seiya visit the music academy where Taiki and her studied together. The teenaged girl begrudgingly went, merely because it meant more time around Kakyuu… Hearing her voice was like hearing an angel sing. She had this beautiful airy soprano tone that could leave anyone in awe that she could soundly reach such an octave without even a squeak or crack in her voice. Taiki's piano accompaniment along side Kakyuu sounded perfect...like he had honed it to suit her.
"Seiya-kun….allow me to be your vocal coach? Let me make you into something amazing. It would be my greatest honor to work with you,"Kakyuu pleaded by the end of the day.
"More like...it would be an honor for you to teach me… I have a lot of work to do; to catch up to you and my brother. But I will work and study hard so I can eventually one day...make that dream of yours come true,"Seiya said.
That day, Seiya deleted all the numbers in her phone from the girls she'd meet on the street to club and karaoke with. She stopped hitting the clubs. Even the very few in Ni-chome. Her focus became on studying, music, and Kakyuu.. Taiki almost couldn't believe that Seiya had turned into a changed woman… However, Seiya still disliked her brother and saw her as a rival that she suddenly needed to surpass. She was sick of living in his shadow, and wouldn't no longer. Her best revenge would be beating him at his own passion.. She also direly wanted to win Kakyuu's praise and affection.
Eventually she started teaching Seiya on weekends-how to read music vocally and instrumentally. And the rest of it was history… Seiya had worked hard enough to graduate high school and was going straight into auditioning to become an idol. College wasn't even on the list. She had gotten scouted by Black Moon Entertainment. However, it didn't work out…. Everything fell apart. As soon as Seiya found herself going somewhere….Taiki yet again managed to jumble things up. As always.
And this is where Seiya had landed in the present… She took another puff from the cigarette smirking. Old habits still died hard… She had quit smoking once she started to sing knowing it would ruin her throat and vocal chords. But occasionally, when she was stressed out, she would fall back into her old vice. The nicotine was always welcoming for some reason… It made her feel like she was sixteen again… It wasn't like she was singing anymore anyway. The raven haired manager could ruin whatever she wanted to now…
"Seiya?" a voice asked.
Seiya flinched as a voice broke her musings that she had gotten caught up in. Big baby blue eyes peered back at her… Since when had the bunny snuck up so quietly upon her?
"Tsukidango…"
"S-Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you… It's just...you looked so lost in thought and sad looking that I thought it would be best to check on you," Usagi said.
"I'm sorry to worry you. Go figure… You'd see me at my worst," murmured Seiya indicating to the cigarette she was still trying to finish.
"I don't think it's your worst… If anything it's fitting for someone like you," commented Usagi with a smile.
"Someone like me hm? What type of person do you consider me to be, Usadango?" Seiya asked.
"Someone who works very hard and is incredibly kind. You're generous with your empathy and very true to your feelings and yourself. You don't hold back..."
"You've been paying attention," teased Seiya.
The bun haired girl beside her flushed pink as if embarrassed at the perception.
"I could say the same for you," Usagi shot back.
Seiya chuckled, "You're too cute not to pay attention to..."
"What were you thinking of?" asked Usagi.
Seiya smiled through the billowing smoke that escaped her mouth, "How Michiru is always going to go back to that girl-no matter how many times she gets burned. She's always getting herself into some type of trouble when it comes to Haruka Tennou…. However, they're in love. They'll never see eye to eye to admit it. But they are. That's why I can't interfere anymore."
"They're only going to lunch. She can't do much," insisted Usagi.
"Who said that Tennou had to touch her to woo her? If Haruka really does like her...she'll have her ways of making Michiru's heart race whether our mermaid wants it to or not," Seiya explained.
Usagi nodded silently in agreement and there was a ringing silence between them for awhile before Seiya finished her cigarette and snuffed it out on the ground with her foot.
"But really….what are you thinking about?" the blonde haired woman asked again.
Seiya sighed bemusedly. There was a twinkle in her eye as she turned to face Usagi, "You're really good…You know that?"
The pink returned to Usagi's face and Seiya couldn't help but find it adorable. She pulled the smaller girl close and kissed her chastely on the forehead.
"Thank you for worrying about me…. But I will be fine. My brother and his wife just threw me off. That's all. I'm being forced to take charge of things that I told myself that I wouldn't be a part of any longer..."
"Oh? Your relationship is that strained….?" Usagi asked.
"Yeah… My brother and I haven't gotten along in awhile. Kakyuu doesn't have much to do with it but I still try to avoid her a bit. We have a bit of a past you see… I wasn't exactly ready to face it. Especially not here unexpectedly. At one point in time….I lived a completely different life. One that wasn't one of a manager. That woman changed me for the better but also ruined me," explained Seiya.
Usagi suddenly looked dejected-like she was putting the pieces together to assume what Seiya's past was. She was trying to hold back a little bit of her jealousy even though she hadn't quite gotten over her very fresh break-up or this whole new-found thing with Seiya…
"Hey…Don't look so sad.. It was a long time ago. I'm healing. That era is done. She's married to my brother anyhow. Don't take it as rejection.. I….I still like you a lot… Perhaps you don't know enough about me though, for you to actually know or be capable of liking me back.. All you know about me is my profession after all..."
"What do I need to know?" Usagi asked, "I think you're great. Even though I don't know much about you-you always have treated me kindly… You treat everyone kindly for the most part."
"But there's more to me than that. If you're interested, maybe I can explain?" Seiya asked.
Usagi nodded, "Yes please..."
"This is going to be a long ass story, so get ready Usadango. Let's go find something to eat so I'm not hearing your stomach growl while I'm trying to talk to you," Seiya suggested teasingly.
"It would NOT growl! But yeah..let's go," Usagi protested gently while agreeing.
Usagi was in for the longest explanation ever. Seiya was almost nervous to tell her everything but knew she needed to… She wondered what Usagi would think of her after everything… Especially after beating up a teacher and almost being an idol…. Would Usagi still see her as the same person…?
(A/N: AHHHHH! I'm so SORRY guys! I actually wanted to make this chapter longer, but I felt like I needed to update. So the Michiru/Haruka lunch will come in the next chapter. So first off some explanations. First one being about me updating. Actually all of July and August, I had went from the beginning of the fic and revised and edited ALL OF IT. Every single bit as been revised and re-edited I HIGHLY SUGGEST-that you all go back and re-read the story stat to finish. There's added information and things that weren't there before. The story flows so much better now because of all the hard work I spent editing. I added all the revision dates at the bottom so I could keep track of what chapters still needed to be worked on and to also show you guys, I was still working on my fic even though it wasn't a new chapter technically. There's still new info and scenes in the fic now though! Try to spot them out! Also we are at the 370 page (with arial font and double spacing) mark for this fic! Can you believe it?! This is novel length and one of my longest/most time consuming works ever-and we're not even finished yet!
Because of that, I was absolutely exhausted from working on editing this fic start to finish. I actually needed a small break from looking at this story because I was so overwhelmed from the amount of time I spent. Right after all of that though, school started and so I've been working on things for the new semester. THEN SacAnime happened and I attended that for any of you Californians that are lurking on this story. There I hung out, vlogged, blogged-oh and did I mention my friends did Sailor Uranus and Neptune cosplays and my friend and I took pics of them? ;) I've still been dedicated to my OTP even outside of the fic. I've also been working on my fashion blog where I try to write up a post monthly. Sometimes it requires taking pictures or documenting things so that's also where a lot of my time goes. I don't know if you've noticed, but I write a lot!So I've just been everywhere but the story for awhile. This chapter is also SUPER saturated with information so I really didn't want to rush it and wanted to place so much love and care in thing chapter. Seiya is one of the few characters that we know very little about so I thought with Taiki and Kakyuu entering the story now, it would be best to give background. I hope you enjoyed. Hopefully if my semester doesn't get too crazy, I'll be able to write more and more frequently. The more things get explained, the easier things get to write so… We are getting there! Thank you for being patient with me guys! Until next chapter!)