When I fall in love
I take my time
There's no need to hurry when I'm making up my mind.
You can turn off the sun
But I'm still going to shine
And did I tell you why-?
~The Remedy (I Won't Worry) - Jason Mraz
"Rise Against."
"Thousand Foot Krutch."
"Hawthorne Heights."
"Superchick."
"Superchick?" Amu asked in surprise at Kukai's choice band. They had been like this for about twenty minutes now. Amu, Kukai, and Tadase were all laying down in a circle in Kukai's garage. Keeping themselves entertained while they waited for Ikuto and Nagihiko to finish tuning their guitars.
A little over a week ago, Amu entered Seiyo High, and became the singer of a local band, that just happened to contain four of the most wanted guys in school. At first, Amu hated being in their band, because she thought they were all a bunch of freaks. Now, well... she still thought they were freaks, but in a tolerable way. She felt more comfortable around them. Not like a buddy-buddy relationship or anything, but they haven't killed each other yet. She could hang out with them, and with their weird humor, they were the only people that could get her to laugh. That thought kind of scared her sometimes.
"Hey! It starts with an S! We've used all the others!" Kukai complained as Amu and Tadase started laughing at his expense. With the radio blaring in the background this is what they referred as bonding.
"What are you three doing?" Nagihiko asked entering the garage with his guitar and an amused expression spread across his face. Seeing the three getting along was a nice change of pace, considering they haven't gone a day within trying to murder each other. Now, they were just laying on the floor staring at the ceiling, there heads barely touching as they played their game.
"Playing the band game." Tadase answered Nagihiko lifting his head enough for him to see the enjoyment on Tadase's face.
"How do you play?"
"It's easy." Kukai replied, seemingly pleased that he was able to teach Nagihiko something, instead of the usual other way around. "Someone starts by saying the name of a band. Then, whatever letter that band's name ended with, the next person has to think of a band that begins with that letter."
"Korn." Amu said, continuing where they had left off.
"Nightlives." Tadase answered keeping the pace. He looked at Nagihiko, inviting him to join in.
"Stanfour?" Nagihiko answered more like a question than an answer. Amu gave him a thumbs up in approval, making him give her his sweet smile. He was just happy she seemed to be getting along with them.
"What?!" Kukai protested at Nagihiko's answer, "We haven't used that yet?! Unbelievable."
"You don't know who they are, do you?" Amu asked confident she was right.
"Not a clue." Kukai admitted in defeat. "Uh,... Rehab." He answered trying to move past his outburst.
"Biting the Bullet."
"Yeah! The girl's got spunk! That's what we're talking about!" Kukai gave Amu a high five for her answer with his usual enthusiasm.
"What's going on?" Ikuto asked entering the garage, guitar in one hand, amp in the other.
"We're just-"
If ToDAy wAs YouR LaST DAy aNd TOMoRrOW was tOO lATe
CoULd yOU sAy gooDbYE to yesTeRdAY?
WoULd yOU LiVE eAcH MoMEnt likE YouR LaST?
LeAVe oLd PictuReS in tHe PAst?
DOnaTE eVEry dIMe yOu Had?
"Ahh!" They all complained covering their ears. That voice was bloody murder. They stared at the radio, as this screeching sound came from it. Kukai was tempted to grab his baseball bat and beat the thing silent. Of course, Nagihiko was there to take it away thankfully.
"Wow. That sure was... something. It sounded a little too high for the song."
"Sounded more like nails scraping against a chalk board to me. Let me give you some advice, Momo from Tokyo, quit while you're young and save yourself the humiliation."
"Hey." Ikuto said catching the conversation while everyone else had covered their ears. "Turn that up."
"You want to turn that up?!" Kukai asked amazed and in disbelief that he would request to relive that torture again.
"Shh!" Ikuto commanded, turning the volume up himself, "Just shut up and listen."
"Ah yes, the polite radio host ladies and gentleman."
"I just tell it like it is."
"Well, if you're brave enough to get his criticism, then call us at 186-6091 and show us how you would sing Nickelback's latest hit song, 'If Today Was Your Last Day.'
"We're giving away a $100 gift certificate to the Tokyo shopping center located down town for the first singer to impress us."
"Now here's there song, and we'll be waiting for our next caller."
"A contest huh?" Ikuto muttered to himself, thinking about the reward.
"You know," Nagihiko commented, seemingly reading Ikuto's mind, "There is a music store there that sells different equipment."
"Yeah, we could get some new stands and a new mike or something." Tadase added, understanding where this conversation was going.
"Plus, need I mention the awesome food court?" Kukai threw in with the thoughts of the different restaurants with a sudden craving for pizza. Even, he knew what was going on.
As if on cue, they all stared at Amu, who already knew what they were planning. "No way."
"Come on!" Kukai complained falling to his knees as if to beg, "You can get the first slice of pizza."
"We're not buying pizza!" Tadase told him in a stern tone, that he only used when talking to either Ikuto or now, Kukai.
"What? Why not?!"
"We're not wasting our money on something that stupid!"
"Oh sure, we can buy an expensive mike, but we're too cheap for pizza!"
"It doesn't matter!" Amu yelled at the two, who really cares about a pizza crisis? "I'm not doing it anyway!"
"Why are you always so stubborn?" Ikuto asked with a sigh, he knew she wasn't going to cooperate that easily.
"Why are you always so persistent?!" Amu asked with bitterness in her voice, the kind of voice that made Kukai remember how scary she could be. He swiftly hid behind Tadase, who at the moment was wondering whether Kukai's weird theory on all girls having an evil side was true or not. Nagihiko just shook his head at the two hopeless guys, who still knew very little about female behavior.
"It's one of my many lovable qualities."
"Oh, you have lovable qualities? I had no idea."
"Harsh." Ikuto commented putting a fist to his chest as if her insult had offended him. "Come on."
"I don't think so." Amu said folding her arms across her chest and turning around, to make the statement that the conversation had ended. It might have too..., with someone other than Ikuto.
"Come on Amu." Ikuto whispered with a seductive voice in her ear, making her blush and flinch in surprise, "Resistance is futile."
Quickly, she put her hand over his face and pushed him away, "Personal space please." she asked using her usual character, with a hint of anger and annoyance to help persuade him.
"Touchy." Ikuto commented with a smirk to her trying to use her attitude with a blush spread across her face.
"No, learning." Amu corrected him, happy with herself for causing that smirk to true into a confused arched eyebrow look, "Blow on me once, shame on you. Blow on me twice, shame on me."
"Ahh, is that so?" Ikuto asked, his smirk returning. This girl was kind of interesting to him.
While they were having their conversation, they were oblivious to the three confused looking boys behind them.
"Did we miss something?" Kukai asked, trying to think of what that statement was suppose to mean. And so far, nothing teen rated had come to his mind.
"Just, keep your mind out of the gutter." Nagihiko requested, kind of embarrassed that he couldn't think of a rational explanation for blowing on her. Nothing sounded right about that statement.
"You know I can get you to sing." Ikuto said with enough confidence to make Amu twitch in anger.
"Oh really?!"
"Yes, really. So are you going to come quietly, or do we have to do it the hard way?"
"Why don't you-" she stopped in mid insult, thinking about the hard way option. He had told her something similar to that back when he was trying to get her to join his band. That was right before she learned about his family's company, the place her father worked. She sighed in defeat. She felt like Ikuto's personal puppet with invisible strings. "Fine."
"I got the number." Tadase said pulling out his phone and dialing it before throwing it to Amu.
"Alright, I'm doing it, but don't get your hopes up guys, there's no guarantee I'll be the one-"
"Hey, you're our next victim."
There went her last hope of escaping.
"What's your name?"
"Uhh, Amu from Tokyo."
"Well, Amu from Tokyo, do you consider your self a good singer?"
"I guess."
"She's lacking confidence. This is going to be a long song."
Amu felt the sudden urge to punch the dude on the other line. Stupid sarcasm.
"Alright kid, let's see what you got."
Amu took a deep breath, and somewhat determined now to prove that guy wrong, maybe that was his plan for the show all along:
If today was your last day and tomorrow was too late
Could you say goodbye to yesterday?
Would you live each moment like your last?
Leave old pictures in the past?
Donate every dime you had?
-
And would you call those friends you never see?
Reminisce old memories?
Would you forgive your enemies?
And would you find the one you're dreaming of?
Swear up and down to God above
That you'd finally fall in love if today was your last day?
It was silent on the other line for a minute before they spoke:
"Wow. That left me..., well speechless. You got one heck of a voice kid."
"...Not bad."
"Oh, now he has nothing to say."
"Uh-huh, well, Amu from Tokyo, you got to get more confidence. You got the voice of an angel, so start acting like you do."
"Uh, Okay." Amu answered, feeling weird about their responses. She looked at the band for an answer, but they just shrugged.
"Well, that impressed me, what about you Toshiro?"
"She'll do."
"Yes!" Kukai shouted getting high fives from everyone, Amu rolled her eyes with a smile on her face. Sure, it scared her half to death to sing on a radio station where there were hundreds of listeners, but at least no one knew it was Amu Hinamori.
"Thanks for the ride guys." Amu thanked them once the van had stopped in front of her apartment, "Right Ami?"
"Right!" she answered sitting between her and Kukai. Ami had been playing with his earrings for half the ride there, fascinated by them, since Amu didn't have pierced ears herself.
"No problem," Nagihiko answered smiling, Ami had been playing with his hair, the other half of the way.
"We'll see you tomorrow." Ikuto added before she pulled Ami out of the van.
"Oh great," she answered sarcastically, setting her on the ground. She started waving frantically, "Bye-bye, Onii-sama!" Amu dropped her head and sighed, she was never going to give that up, no matter how much she begged.
"Later." they all answered in unison, Kukai waving a little back at Ami, making her smile wider.
"You're killing me Ami." Amu commented to herself, watching Ami bolt to the door after the van had driven away. "What do you want for dinner?" She asked having to unlock the door for her. Ami stared back up at her as if to ask 'Are you in a good mood or not?'
"Very funny." Amu commented opening the door and letting them in, "I guess there's some left over oniguri we could scarf down."
Just as she was thinking of what to use as a side dish, she heard the phone ring beside her. "Hello?" she asked into the receiver, no one had ever called their home phone before. Since Rima, and everyone in the band had her cellphone number, they just used that to call her. This was obviously someone she didn't know, or a telemarketer, either way it wasn't good.
"Hello. Is this the Hinamori residence?" the voice on the other line asked. Amu could tell the voice belonged to a male, but that was all she could decipher.
"Y-yes."
"May I please speak with Amu Hinamori?" He wanted to speak to her?!
"S-speaking." she managed to get out, with an extra gulp of air.
"Oh, yes, Miss. Hinamori, I've been trying to reach you all evening."
"Really?" what was he some kind of stalker, she swore she'd kill Ikuto if this was some kind of twisted prank. "I'm sorry, I've been out. What is the urgency?"
"I heard you on the radio earlier this afternoon," Holy crap. How'd he find me? "And, I'd like to make you a proposition."
"Proposition? What kind of proposition?" she was questioning this mans identity. The way he spoke made her determine he was someone older, with a higher sort of education possibly.
"One I can guarantee you will catch your interest."
"Well," Amu didn't like the sound of where this conversation was heading, "What is it?"
"That's what I called about," he began to explain, Amu could hear some papers being shuffled in the background, "I'd would prefer to speak with you in person, and show you more of the specifics."
Amu was kind of sketchy on this guy's character. After those years of elementary school telling her not to go anywhere with strangers, she wasn't dumb enough to just go with this guy somewhere. Then again, this may be an offer that she really would interest her, and she was curious about it.
"Would the Tokyo Shopping Center be alright with you? My Uncle owns a restaurant near there and it would be public in case that would worry you." Was this guy some kind of mind reader?! Or had he done something like this before?
"I guess that would be alright." Amu answered after coming over the initial shock.
"Would you like to meet me in front of the shopping center at around 6:30 tomorrow night?"
"Sounds great. See you then." Amu answered hanging up the phone and slamming it down on the charger. She sighed in relief, when she just remembered a very important detail. Amu looked over at Ami watching TV on the couch, laughing at the 'Bala Balance!'. "I forgot about you."
Ami turned her head towards her sister and cocked her head with a cute little six year old confused expression. How could she have forgotten about her little sister of all people?! She tried to think over he options. She could call the guy back and ask to reschedule, but she didn't have his number so that was impossible. The only other option was getting a babysitter. She thought of Rima, then she remembered Rima mentioned something about going away for the weekend, before Kukai pulled her away with his Running Dash of course.
That only left one option. She sighed more of depression than relief. Facing Ami, she put on her most convincing smile, "Hey Ami, how would you like to spend time with Onii-sama tomorrow?" she asked, seeing Ami's smile. Then she hit her head with the palm of her hand, "Great, now she's got me calling him that too."
A/N:
Yes! I got this done before the librarian's have to kick me out! :P Well, the next chapter should be more... let's say entertaining. If anyone can guess who the caller was, they get a special rainbow cookie. XD Now I must bid you ado, as I go home to watch Twilight with my grandmother. And for all those who called my grandmother cool, they get one of her cookies, and those are the best! :P