Love, Eroge, Music & Other Craziness

by Geek Girl Naruru

Namikaze Naruto is a normal fifteen-year-old high school student. He has a distant relationship with his sister Naruko, who always treats him rudely. One Day in Spring, he encounters a foreign girl playing a piano on one of his travels to a junkyard and helps her in many ways as he discover that her name is Weiss Schnee.

54. Love & Xmas -Part 1-

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This winter is the very first time in my life when I wrecked my brain over what present I should get for a girl.

It was morning in the practice room of the Folks Music Club. Due to the drum set and the amplifiers, there was barely any space left in the room even though only Chiaki and I were in it. The air outside was chilling to the bones, but it was really warm inside of here.

The other two girls should be here soon, right? I thought to myself as I stared at the bundled short hair swaying between the cymbals. There was no way I could ask Weiss, whom I will be giving the present to, for ideas. Also, I had no intention of consulting Senpai since it would definitely pique her interest. However, when I had finally decided to discuss it with Chiaki, she asked me this question instead, "Haa? Present?" She then threw a punch in my direction.

"What was that for…" I rubbed my head gingerly as I picked up the fallen bass.

"What's the present for? Come on, say it again." Asked Chiaki as she puffed at her fist.

Who would have the guts to answer you? However, I was forced to answer in stutters as Chiaki's gaze was becoming sharper and sharper.

"Well, as I was saying, Weiss's birthday's coming soon…"

Another blow. Just as I had expected.

"Unbelievable! You shouldn't be approaching me for that if there's even an ounce of sensitivity in you!"

"Eh? But… I mean, I do know Chiaki's preferences are vastly different from Weiss's, but I have no idea who else I can approach."

"That's not what I meant!"

The third blow. I was getting dizzy already. Chiaki gave a "hmmph" and began to tune the snare drum. I gave a sigh and plugged my bass into the amplifiers. What was going on here? Did I say something to piss her off?

"Geez! Naruto, stop thinking of all those pointless stuff and begin our practice! Time is precious, you know?"

"I get it…" Guess I'll leave the issue about the present for later. It was rare for Chiaki to come to school together with me early.

I placed the strap on my shoulder and gripped tightly the neck of the bass. The remnants of the heat from back then still lingered on the strings. I could even feel the sweat that flowed out from my fingertips before being absorbed by my palms.

It has been a month since the storm-like school festival. We were in the winter season now, so that made it hard for us to wake up early, but that did not stop me from doing the morning practice. That was because I realized how poor my physical endurance was during the live performance.

I barely made it past the two-hour long non-stop performances that was held for two consecutive days. I had already braced myself for it, but I guess that strange incident made my emotions run high all the time, and my body moved against my own will as though it was under the influence of some strange drug. However, after we were finished with the encore on the second day and my brain was drained of the drug, the student council president Haruno Senpai came barging onto the backstage and said to Senpai.

"Kyouko, there's a whole lot of people outside who wanted to watch your performance but couldn't get in. Can you guys hold another performance during the kouyasai?"

Senpai agreed to it readily. Can you try imagining just how tragic that was when the wax of the candle was all burned up, and all that remained was the candle wick flickering faintly?

"Right, Naruto's back looked really pitiful during the kouyasai."

Seems like Chiaki remembered as well. And as she tuned the bass drum, she continued, "But Senpai was really happy though. She said you sounded like Springsteen."

"Though I changed into Shinichi Mori later on…"

"All the more reason for you to practice!"

Looks like Chiaki was still angry about the issue of the present.

She stepped repeatedly on the pedals of the bass drum, and the bass notes gradually gained rhythm and transformed into a solid sixteen beat tempo as it interwove together with the beats of the floor tom. The door was still opened for air ventilation, you know… oh well, she was restraining herself on the volume anyway.

I sighed to myself silently—it was incredibly difficult to drum continuously while keeping the volume down. She was getting more and more impressive. I had the feeling that I was left behind.

"Naruto's singing sounded a little forced. Perhaps it's because you're playing the bass at the same time. It used to be much more straight-forward."

"That's some memory of yours…" She even remembered how I used to sing?

"How long do you think I've taken music lessons together with you?"

"You're right."

Chiaki and I have been classmates for the past eleven years. Quite unbelievable, come to think of it.

"That's why you have to practice more to get your fingers accustomed to it. Your singing should become more natural once that happens."

I see. Come to think of it, she was actually drumming and chatting at the same time. Was that also because her hands were used to it after repeated practicing?

"Mmm, where should I begin our practice? Which phrase?"

"How should I know? Don't depend on me for things like that!"

She was right. I regretted it the moment I asked her that question.

Chiaki puffed up her cheeks, and all these while her limbs did not stop their tasks of sketching out the tempo.

"Even if it's me, there's no way I'll know every single thing about Naruto."

"Then how much do you know?"

I almost fell forward at the sudden voice from behind my back.

When I turned around, my nose almost came into contact with the snow colored hair—a pair of ice-blue eyes appeared right before me. I froze on the spot as I stared intently at Weiss's face. Her nose and cheeks were slightly red, probably because she was walking to school in the cold winter air of the morning.

When did she reach here? I never noticed her presence because of the continuous beats from the drums. Chiaki did not see her as well as her sight was blocked by my body—she stopped her hands with a surprised expression.

"Geez, give us a greeting if you're here already! Morning, Weiss!" exclaimed Chiaki as she lifted the drum sticks into the air.

"… Morning," Weiss shifted her gaze away from me in embarrassment.

It was the same for me as well—my heart was pounding just from a brief exchange of sight. That was because—it has only been a week since our live performance at the school festival.

"It's not a good habit to eavesdrop," came the voice of Chiaki.

"I was not!" Weiss shook her head hard, her hair dancing about in the air. "… It was by accident!"

"H-How much of our conversation did you hear?" I was panicking. Did she hear about the present as well?

Weiss frowned.

"… Is there something you want to hide from me?"

"Eh? Ah, no, well…"

"I heard you and Chiaki talking about how you two have been attending music lessons together for years."

Thank goodness. So she heard our conversation only from then onwards.

"Why are you heaving a sigh of relief?"

Weiss's question caused my mind to go into panic mode once more. Why was she angry as well?

"Um, what?"

"You're always like this, Naruto. Your thoughts will be reflected clearly on your face," came Chiaki's voice from behind me.

"I-Is that true?"

"You never noticed?"

Weiss dealt me a heavy blow when she said that. Chiaki gave a shrug.

"How can he possibly notice it? He's so dense, he would not even realize it if he is stung by a bee."

"That much I know!"

"Even the amoebas possess more nerves than he does."

"That I know too!" What the hell did I do!?

"Earlier on, he even asked me about Weiss's pre—"

"—Whoaaa!" I stepped over the drums and clamped my hands on Chiaki's mouth. Please don't say that out loud!

"Uhhuuhhh!"

"What? Is there something that I must not know?"

When I turned around, Weiss was putting on an expression as if she was interrogating me. Being forced into a corner with nowhere to run, the only thing I could do was to flap my arms about like a dying moth as I tried to come up with something that could satisfy her.

"Morning, my fellow comrades!"

Came a booming voice, and a tall silhouette appeared in the opened door. Kagurazaka Senpai strode leisurely into the practice room as her braided black hair fluttered in the air. She then closed the heavy door. I was saved. She might not know what was happening around here, but I was in a really bad situation.

"Hmm? Young man's about to kiss Comrade Aihara, so Comrade Schnee's trying to stop him?"

"No way!"

"Not at all!"

"Kyouko!"

Senpai removed her guitar case from her shoulder and placed it onto the floor. She then opened the door with a smile.

"In order not to interrupt you three, I'll leave the camcorder running and stay outside for about five minutes. Please continue."

"Hold on, hold on! What the hell are you here for? Let's begin our morning practice! You know, the morning practice!?"

I tried my hardest to make her stay.

"You need to practice kissing in the morning? I never expect you to be such an innocent guy. I see, I am willing to help you out."

"Why is Senpai thinking in that direction!? We are a band, are we not!?"

Senpai turned around, closed the door and lifted her index finger.

"We are no ordinary band, yeah? We are the black birds feketerigó, burning through the night with the flames of love, and ours wings will declare to the world the advent of dawn."

"Okay…" And so?

"If we ever get popular one day, and should someone request us to take part in a movie shoot, wouldn't it be problematic if we can't get the kissing scene right?"

"Why are you worrying about such pointless things?"

"On the side note, Comrade Schnee's pretty impressive when it comes to kissing," Senpai licked her lips.

"Kyouko~!" Weiss shrieked and slammed her fists hard onto the cymbals by her side.

I was surprised by that. W-When did that happen!? Ah, no wait, could she be talking about what happened on the third day of our training camp?

"Geez! Music's our main focus!"

Chiaki poked Senpai with the tip of the drum stick.

"We should direct our attention to holding more live performances in order to get ourselves famous!"

"The reason why I love Comrade Aihara so much is because you'll always say the right things at the most crucial moment!"

"That trick of yours will only work twice a month at most!"

"How about if I throw in a hug and a kiss?"

"Hmm… make it three times then."

What was with that conversation? Senpai walked past me with a smile and opened up the guitar case. The Les Paul was giving off a black luster.

"I am happy to see that everyone's flame is still burning. I thought young man was already burned to a crisp, and it would take you a while before you recover. Looks like you've steeled your heart already."

Senpai flashed a smile as she tightened the strings in a sultry manner.

"You will show me an unknown world in our next performance, and the many ones after that. Right?"

"We've already decided on our next performance?" Asked Weiss as she swung her head around quickly.

That was way beyond what I had expected. It looked like she was getting more and more into the live performances.

"No, not yet. I want to hold one more performance before the end of the year, but I wish to aim further. I have no intention of staying on the same spot."

"An even bigger stage?" asked Chiaki.

"That's right. At a place where we will receive no support from our audience."

Kagurazaka Senpai was someone who would not remain on the same spot forever. She was always aiming further and further. How far has she set her sights on? And can I really keep up to her pace?

"No worries." Smiled Senpai as she took a brief glimpse at the small country which we are in. "Even if we are stuck, we should be able to move forward as long as our hearts continue to beat in rhythm. Just like what young man did for Comrade Schnee back then."

The sound of a clatter came from behind me. I turned around and saw Weiss picking up the fallen chairs and amplifiers. She stole a glance at me, but her face turned even redder instead, so she moved her gaze away instead. I quickly turned my head towards my bass's amplifiers.

I played quite a few notes wrongly during that morning practice, and it was all because I noticed Weiss staring at me hesitantly through the corner of my eyes. Needless to say, my singing did not sound natural at all.

I could not shake off Weiss's gaze away from my mind even during class. Ever since that incident—the distance between us has shrunk. I had no idea how much it was. But I was scared—scared that it was all just my wishful thinking.

After the ending of the kouyasai, Weiss collapsed from exhaustion while she was packing things up, so I carried her to the infirmary. As there was no one around in the infirmary, I was left with no choice but to look after her (though all I did was to sit on the chair next to the bed). That hour was a great opportunity for me, but I screwed it up by chatting with her on music only.

What the hell was I doing?

"That's right. What the hell were you doing, Naruto?"

"You should have made a move on her back then! We thought you two would return hand in hand. What a huge disappointment that was."

Sasuke, Isshiki, and all of my male classmates surrounded me and blasted me with their insults. That happened in the changing room after the we were done with physical education, the fourth lesson of the day.

"Sorry…" No wait, why was I apologizing?

"But you should have done something there, right?"

"It's impossible for nothing to happen, right?"

"Umm… ah, right. Weiss hates Italian operas, just like I do."

"Who the hell is asking you that Naruto? Just be a useless guy for the rest of your life!"

"Dammit, is that thing between your legs a dud?"

Why was I scolded by everyone I met today? I really felt like crying.

"Nothing else? Like a date or something?"

"Well…"

My classmates were closing in on me like a pack of hungry wolves ready to pounce on a sheep. I finally revealed to them my intention of celebrating Weiss's birthday with her. In an instant, the eyes of everyone flared up like the pumpkins of Halloween. Whoa!

"What are you getting her, Naruto?"

Why must I answer that question?

"I-I-It should be a ring first, right?"

"That's way too fast, calm down! He should gift her a choker as his first present."

"You should be the one who's calming down!"

"How many months of salary do you have to burn to buy a choker?"

"Not for the Princess, silly. It's for Naruto!"

"That's a good one!"

"No, well… sorry to interrupt while you guys are having such a passionate discussion on the matter… but I have not made up my mind yet."

"Just die already, you indecisive bastard!"

"It better end up in a tragedy!"

I shrunk my body and leaned myself in closely against the lockers. I want to hide somewhere. Please do not talk about this matter anymore. I had no idea why they were lashing out on me—for some reason unknown to me, everyone has assumed that Weiss and I were in that sort of relationship already. When did I ever say that?

"It's less than two weeks before her birthday, isn't that so? You better make up your mind quickly, Naruto."

"Mmm… wait, why do you guys know about her birthday?"

"Are you an idiot!? It's obvious we'll do some checking up on the birthday of a girl who is in the limelight!"

"The high-school's a long period of time. You never know what will happen."

"Though it has all happened to Naruto."

"Damn it, I'm pissed. You should just die, Naruto."

It was not my fault!

"You can't even decide on a gift even with all the girls surrounding you."

"I tried discussing it with Chiaki, but she rejected me."

I could sense the fury in everyone.

"You tried discussing with Aihara!?"

"About Princess' present!?"

"Are you for real!?"

I shivered and nodded. In the next moment, I was beaten onto the floor by everyone.

(◕ω◕✿)

Human beings are creatures who will reflect on what they've done wrong—so on that very night, I spent my time in my room thinking about the reason behind Chiaki and the guys' anger.

We've been hanging around with each other for over eleven years already, but I did not really know her very well. And that was even more true ever since we joined the band. I mean, we do know each other quite well if we were talking about the typical things. Take for example our birthdays.

Hmm. Birthday. Was that it? It was highly possible that she was angry because of that. Right, I'll get a present that is suitable for her then. Will that be okay? I wonder how late I am? I checked the calendar on the desk and counted.

… It was way too late. But I guess it was still better than nothing. Yup. My mind was circling around the same thought for heaven knows how long.

After making up my mind, I walked quietly downstairs. Coming from the living room was Bach's Christmas Oratorio with Dad listening to it in full blast. I sneaked carefully past the corridor and opened up the cabinet to draw out a record that was kept within it. I then wrapped it up with a blue wrapping paper from the department store.

Will she be happy with this? I thought to myself naively. Come to think of it, I was really hopeless back then.

The next day, I saw Chiaki on the platform while I was waiting for the very first train, so I ran over to hand her the present. Chiaki's eyes opened wide when she received the present from me, her gaze wandering to-and-fro me and the present for about four times. She then asked, "What's this?"

"Umm, I'm ten months early, but it's your birthday present."

"Hah?"

"This is the vinyl record of, the UK version. You've been wanting this for a very long time already, isn't that so?"

"Eh? W-W-Why? And typically speaking, shouldn't you say that it's two months late?"

Chiaki's face alternated between red and white; her eyes widened for a brief moment, and then she blinked them repeatedly for a while. What a busy person she was.

"Why? You've never given me any birthday present."

"Were you not angry yesterday because of this?"

Her beet red face froze for a moment. And the next moment— "You moron!" The scenery before my eyes flipped at the very same time I heard her furious roar. A violent impact greeted my back before I could even figure out what was going on. The unbelievably blue winter sky appeared before my eyes, though half of it was covered up by the shelter of the train station. Pain shot through my head, my back was arcing upwards from the spasm. Just as I realized that I was tossed over by Chiaki, she popped her head over me.

"U-Unbelievable! I never expected you to be as stupid as this!"

In response to Chiaki's stomping attacks, I shielded my head with my arms and rolled about on the floor.

"S-Sorry. Umm, I never expect you to be that angry."

It looked like I had made a critical mistake. It took me a great deal of effort to finally get up. Chiaki was hugging the record tightly before her chest, staring at me fiercely as her shoulders heaved up and down to her breaths. Thank the heavens that there was no one else on the platform in the wee hours, or else it would be bad should anyone witness the scene earlier on.

"Moreover, you should know that the gramophone in my house is broken."

Come to think of it, it was just as she had said. I had visited her house several times to play, but I forgot all about it already.

"I'm sorry, I'll take it back…"

"Idiot!" Chiaki slapped my hand away and hid the record behind her. "I'm keeping this since you're giving it to me!"

So do you want it or not? What on earth do you want? Just then, the first train arrived in the station, so I quickly stepped back behind the white line. The back of my head was assaulted by the blaring sirens.

"You should think about my feelings as well!" Yelled Chiaki with a voice comparable to the sound of the train, her face flushed red. The bunch of hair that she had tied up was flapping against her ears due to the wind. I did not step onto the train when the door opened as she was giving off an overbearing aura around her.

"Stupid Naruto, you should just die!" Chiaki's voice was cut off by the closing doors of the train. I could see the silhouette of her body through the windows, and it was getting further and further away from me. But I caught a glimpse of a glitter at the corner of her eyes. Was she crying?

I squatted on the platform and tried my hardest to recall her voice and expressions until the next train arrived. The frequency of the trains was very low. If I missed the first train, I would be twenty minutes late for school.

As the main gates were closed already, I entered the school through a side door instead. It would be awkward when I bump into Chiaki—just as I turned past a corner of the building while thinking of that, I heard a faint drumming sound.

It was the old, low-rise music block, huddled amid the shadows of the tall school buildings. There was a person squatting against the door of the room that was located furthest away between the buildings, her long silver hite hair almost brushing against the ground. It was Weiss. What was she doing there?

"… Morning." Weiss greeted me softly by lifting her eyes to look at me. She hugged the guitar in her bosom.

"Morning…" I stopped at about three steps away from Weiss.

Why was she waiting outside? Wasn't Chiaki in there? We turned our sight away right after we came into eye contact with each another. It has been the case ever since the school festival.

Was there something that you should be telling me?

Feels like Weiss was conveying that message to me from the corner of her eyes, but neither of us could touch upon that matter. It was the same for that morning as well. Instead, what I said to her was an ordinary question, "… Chiaki should be inside, so why are you here?"

Weiss stared at me intently and heaved a deliberate sigh. A stinging sense of guilt and sadness was jammed up in my throat. She lowered her head and allowed her words to fall between her knees.

"Chiaki's angry, so I am waiting for her to cool down."

"S-She's angry? Did she say anything to you?"

Weiss shook her head.

"It's obvious from the sounds. The strength in the upbeats had disappeared. It will turn into this sort of uninteresting tempo whenever Chiaki's angry or anxious."

I was speechless. Can she tell that much just from the sounds of the drums alone?

"You never noticed? You are really dense…"

Weiss was giving off a look of resignation in my direction. Okay, I am dense, but that is another thing altogether, okay?

"Something happened? You were acting strangely yesterday as well." Weiss stood up slowly and pulled her face towards mine.

"No, nothing. Umm…"

Chiaki's anger began when I wanted to discuss with her Weiss's birthday present, so it should be more or less related to Weiss as well, isn't it? But now's not the time for me to say it.

"Explain it to me properly."

"Umm, you see, uhh…"

"Why are you always like this?"

Weiss's voice and gaze stabbed their way deeply and painfully into my heart.

"If you do not say it properly… I… I am…" Weiss's furious voice was getting softer and softer, her gaze was sliding downwards along my body, "… still waiting for you."

Waiting for me? Waiting for what? No, of course she was waiting for my words. B-But I was not mentally prepared yet, and neither was I ready with the present, so now was not—"Forget it. I get it." Weiss lifted her lowered head all of the sudden. "I'll ask Chiaki."

"Y-You can't!"

I was surprised even by my own voice. Weiss was shocked as well. She pressed her back against the door.

"I mean, well, umm, I made Chiaki angry… probably. So I'll think of something and apologize to her."

That was right, it had to be me who spoke. It was the same for Weiss's present as well. All in all, asking for Chiaki's assistance was a mistake. It should be me to think about it and decide everything by myself.

And so, I pulled Weiss aside and grabbed onto the handle of the door.

"Naruto! You are so freaking late! I've said this before, it would be faster if you run to school should you miss the first train, didn't I!?" A furious roar came pouncing onto me the moment I opened the door.

Thank goodness, it was the usual Chiaki—I heaved a sigh of relief for some reason. That was really shameful of me.

(◕ω◕✿)

"And so, how are things going on between you and Weiss right now?"

Asto raised his voice in an attempt to make himself heard amid the noise of the crowded livehouse. It was pretty noisy here despite the fact that we were in the middle of a break—the heated discussions among the audience and the tuning of the stereo systems were all contributors to the noise.

"Lots of things happened during the live performance at the school festival, isn't that so?"

Sitting opposite of me was a young girl with pink hair and blue eyes… or not—he was actually a young male violinist. He stretched his body towards me and pulled his face closer to mine. A turtle-neck sweater paired with a matching red short-coat, plus a pair of denim shorts and over-knees socks. Mmm, that attire was perfectly fine for a guy… no wait, that wasn't it, right? I pressed my palm against my forehead and sighed.

I then asked, "Look, why are you here, Asto?"

There was a really interesting performance Sunday afternoon, so I came down to the livehouse Bright by myself. And then I bumped into this guy here.

"Shouldn't you be busy with the recordings and rehearsals? Your performance is coming up soon."

"Do you hate to see me?"

Quit holding onto my hands tightly and looking at me with those tearing eyes of yours when you're asking me that question, okay? It was really attention grabbing. Shit, this will invite misunderstandings.

"H-How can that be? I'm really glad to meet you."

Asto's face brightened up in an instant.

"Thank goodness, I really wanted to see Ruto again as well. Yang mailed me saying there would be Ruto's favorite live performance happening today, so there was a high chance of you showing up here."

Yang and Asto? Since when did they get on such good terms?

"I blame it all on Ruto. You refuse to call me because you and Weiss are doing very well together."

"N-No, e-eh?"

How much does he know?

"I've heard lots of stuff from Weiss, but I'm not telling you what I heard."

Oh right, this guy here will be doing his next album together with Weiss, so he might actually be spending more time with her than I was. Though it was unexpected of Weiss to say all those things to Asto.

"It's not like things are all smooth-sailing."

"But both of you confessed to each other already, did you not?"

"N-No?"

Both of us?

"You never asked Weiss about her feelings?"

"Y-Yeah…"

Asto was rendered speechless for a long while. But that was really the case.

I came into contact with Weiss's heart briefly during the school festival. I had a feeling she was staying by my side with the exact same reasons as I was, but that was all there was to it. We would be tongue-tied whenever we would see each other's face.

"Look, Ruto. I really hope you can understand how painful it is for me whenever I hear Weiss talking about you happily."

"H-Hmm?" Happily? That Weiss?

"I'll steal her away from you if you do not become decisive any time soon, you know?"

Asto rested his elbows on the table and pulled his face even closer towards mine. My head was in a fluster when he said that with that tiny mouth of his at such a close distance away from me, so I backed away subconsciously.

Even if you ask me to be decisive… (come to think of it, what was he referring to?) I have no idea what Weiss's answer would be, so I dared not pop the question. Asto slumped onto the table all of a sudden and began kicking his legs about. He seemed frustrated.

"… What's wrong with you?"

"I'm about to die, all thanks to Ruto's indecisiveness."

So you could kill someone with your indecisiveness—now that was something new. Just as I was thinking that, Asto sat up suddenly and pressed both of his hands on my shoulders.

"Actually, it's really simple. All you have to do is this."

W-What?

"I love you. I want Ruto's everything."

"Who the hell can say that!?"

Wait, did he just say Ruto? Was it just a mistake on my part?

"What are you two doing here?"

A voice came from behind us suddenly. I turned around and saw a stout silhouette with a yellow scarf on her neck and a beaten-up leather coat hanging from her shoulders. It was Yang.

"I never expect Asto-chan and Naruto to be here. You two get along really well."

What was even more surprising was the person who appeared behind Yang. It was a guy wearing a fierce expression, his long blonde hair covered up by a bandanna—the guitarist of Melancholy Wolf Deidara. Both of them were Kagurazaka Senpai's friends, and also regulars of Bright. So they actually knew each other too—what a small world this was.

"Yang!" Asto jumped off from his seat and hugged the female DJ.

"Thank you for the ticket!"

"No biggie, I ask for nothing in return. Well, aside from you spending a night with me."

"So you're here as well." Said Deidara as he sat down next to me and clamped the guitar that was originally on his back between his knees.

"Are you performing later, Deidara?" I asked him.

He was not here as audience, was he? I am really not good with dealing with him. You're asking me to watch the performance together with him? Please spare me from that.

"They asked me to support the six-o'clock performance."

I heaved a sigh of relief when I heard the answer from Deidara.

"Deidara knows Naruto too?" Yang sat next to Asto.

"I told you already, didn't I? I performed with Kyouko's band." Deidara's temper was short, as usual.

"Who's she? Is she replacing you as the bassist?"

Asto tilted his head in response when Deidara pointed at him. Deidara would ask me to quit the role as feketerigó's bassist whenever we would meet.

"That girl looks to be a better player than you are, and she's much more striking visually."

"Do I look like a bassist?" Asto's eyes were glittering.

"It's obvious from your fingers. You should be playing the guitar or the bass, yeah?"

Impressive. He knew just by looking at the fingers. But he did not realize Asto's actual gender, right? Idiot. I retorted in my mind as a tiny sense of superiority crept in me.

"Me taking over Ruto's position? What a good idea. I've never thought of that."

"No no no, what are you talking about?" You'll be busy with your work, won't you?

"If you quit and get her into the band, I'll introduce you guys to a producer," said Deidara.

Hey, Asto, why are you putting on such a gleeful expression?

"U-Umm, Deidara, you've got it all wrong. This person here's a violinist, an old friend of Weiss's."

"I know how to play the guitar too! I can practice on the bass too if I want to."

Don't you interrupt, Asto! Things will just get even more confusing!

"And since I'm the one who taught Weiss the guitar, our timbres should match each other really well."

Deidara frowned. "You? Taught that girl?"

Asto nodded lightly as he cowered in his seat in fear. What was wrong, Deidara? That look of yours is really scary.

"Who did you learn the guitar from?"

"No one… umm, I memorized it by watching the videos of Jeff Beck and stuff."

"It's best for you and that girl to re-learn the correct fingering techniques." Said Deidara as he pressed his fingertip against Asto's nose.

Asto was rendered speechless from his shock. Yang and I interrupted Deidara at the same time.

"H-Hey, Deidara, what's wrong?"

"Is there anything wrong with Weiss's fingering techniques?"

"I should have said this before," Deidara shot a fierce glance at me, "There will be no future to her style of playing. She's placing too much stress on her wrist."

Now that he has mentioned it, Deidara did say something along that line after the end of the live concert.

"What d-do you mean by placing too much stress?" I pushed my elbows against the table and stretched my body over the table subconsciously.

Weiss might be able to move her right hand already, but I was still worried.

"She's using her wrists forcibly to strum the strings at high speeds to compensate for the lack of strength in her fingers. It's surprising she managed to play through the whole performance like that."

"Eh? Ah, no, but, her fingers are movable already."

Oh? Deidara lifted his eyebrow.

"Then it's none of my business… it pisses me off whenever I see that silly fingering technique of hers. You should put some effort in learning before you teach others, yeah?" His fierce gaze was shifted from my body to Asto.

Asto flinched and grabbed onto my arm in fear.

"Why don't you teach Asto-chan then?" Joked Yang.

"Do I look like I have the time to do that!?"

"Asto's not in any band, right? How about performing together with me next time? Deidara and my friend's band will perform together for our next live performance, so are you interested in joining us on stage? You can get Deidara to teach you at the studio."

"Hey, Yang, don't go about deciding things on your own for the sake of your desires!"

"But this person here's really talented in guitar. Deidara, you can teach him the correct guitar techniques, while I'll be in charge of teaching him the techniques in bed."

"Oi! Yang!" I gave Yang hard kick beneath the table.

"When's the next performance?" Hey, Asto! You don't have to be that enthusiastic about it!

"Twenty-fourth next week. The event is named Snow Crash. And since that's Christmas eve, we'll be holding it in a spacious place that can accommodate five-thousand people."

"Christmas huh…" Asto knitted his eyebrows. "I will probably be attending a party somewhere, but I'll skip that since I'm not interested."

"The event will start at noon. We'll be left alone at night. You know, making use of the opportunity to get all intimate and stuff."

"Mmm, I see. But I don't think I'll have the time to make it down to the studio. Sorry."

"But of course! Don't take her words for real, man!" Deidara snapped.

"What a pity. I've found a song which will make even Asto-chan burn. It's a Christmas song by a French composer. Umm, forgot his name. Ho-Hon—"

"—Honegger?"

Said Asto and I at the same time. We turned our heads to look at each other.

"Yeah, him."

A Christmas song. Then it was most likely Une Cantate de Noël, the last work of his. It was a very dramatic cantata, but barely known in Japan. I'm surprised he found that.

Asto's legs were swinging about beneath the table. "Wow! I wanna listen!"

Honegger should be a well-known composer outside of Japan because of his music appearing in many movies. It looks like Yang was hooked on classical music ever since I asked her to help me with the editing of the piano concerto and the violin concerto. Playing Honegger's piece on Christmas at a live house—now she got me interested as well.

"So you knew about Honegger as well, Ruto? That's impressive. I was really sad since I never have heard Weiss mentioned him. I thought he was not well known in Japan."

"It can't be helped. Weiss's interest lie in the works from East Germany."

But it was true that Honegger was not too well known in Japan.

"Isn't that nice? I never thought I'll get to listen to Honegger's works live here. I am really interested in listening to how the arrangements will be."

"It shouldn't be a problem for you if you attend the concert as an audience, yeah? I'll give you a ticket."

"Mmm, I'll try to free up my schedule…"

Asto's really lucky, I thought to myself in envy. A music concert on Christmas eve. Isn't that just perfect? No wait. Wouldn't that be too straightforward? I think my intentions would be clear for all to see. No wait, isn't that okay? I mean, that was what I have intended to do all this while, isn't it? What was there to be afraid of at a time like this?

Filtering out the noise from the livehouse, I sank deep into thought. I regained my senses only when I was slapped by someone on the cheeks.

"Ruto? What's wrong?"

Unknown to me, Asto was next to me, his palms and that cute face of his appearing right before my eyes. I almost fell backwards and slipped off my chair. Eh? Strange? Where was Deidara?

"Deidara's about to hit the stage, so he went in," Yang put on an exasperated expression, "It's about time for me to move the instruments as well, so you two enjoy yourselves."

"Ah, h-hold on a second, Yang."

I leapt off my chair and dashed towards the female DJ. The baseball cap turned around.

"About the Christmas concert. Do you guys sell advance tickets? I'd like to buy two."

Yang tilted her head. "We do. Are you coming along with Asto? I'll be charging you for the tickets."

"N-Nah, that's not it."

I could feel the Asto's gaze on my face just as I was about to blurt out my intentions, and that caused me to fluster.

"I'll pay for two tickets. Not with Asto, but with someone else."

"Ahh, I see. Another girl? Naruto's a real flirt."

"I think so too. Naruto should practice some abstinence."

"Asto, you'll not find any happiness if you're together with a guy as useless as him. You should get someone better."

"But you know, encounters are just like traffic accidents. Can't be helped, I have no one but myself to blame for bumping into a dummy like Ruto."

All I wanted to do is to buy two tickets, so why were they speaking about me like this? I felt like crying.

"Who will you invite? Weiss?"

Asto pulled his face next to mine and whispered into my ears. I could not bring myself to look at him straight in the eyes, so I directed my gaze towards the stage and nodded.

I'll give her Honegger's record as her birthday present—I should be able to find one in Mom's collection. And with that, I'll have an excuse to ask her out on Christmas eve. Though I was not sure if she'll agree to it.

Just then, Asto stomped hard on my foot.

"What the hell are you doing!?"

"There is no need for you to make the huge revelation right to my face, do you? You should consider my feelings as well!"

"You are the one who wants me to decide as quickly as I can—Oww, it hurts!"

He actually drilled his heel hard onto my foot!

"I did say it, yeah!" Asto was throwing a tantrum like a child, "I never expect you to get a pair of tickets for a concert on Christmas eve! That's so unlike Ruto!"

"Well sorry for that! Then again, I'm not sure if she would be willing to attend it together with me…"

"How could she possibly decline you!?"

"I-Is that so?"

"The live concert will end at five, so you'll be going on a date after that? Are you planning to head down to Disneyland? God damn it, who's the girl? Can't be Kyouko, right?" asked Yang.

"If it's me, I won't be interested in Disneyland. I'll head straight to the hotel instead," said Kagurazaka Senpai.

Wait a second. Ehhhhhhhhhh!?

A tall silhouette appeared behind Yang's body suddenly. She was wearing a miniskirt despite it being the middle of December (although it was a cashmere one), that revealed the curves of her legs generously. Her belly button could be seen faintly between the knitted jacket and the miniskirt. Kagurazaka Senpai did not braid her hair today. Instead, she allowed them to flow naturally behind her back—that made her look even more mature than usual.

"Senpai? Why are you here?"

"Why? I'm here to attend the concert since Deidara and Yang will be performing. What a coincidence. I would have invited you along should I know you'll be attending as well. Then again…"

Kagurazaka Senpai moved in towards me and hooked my arm with a sensual smile on her face. I could not run away despite the shock I was experiencing.

"This coincidence further confirms the invisible bonds we have between us. I'm really happy."

"Eh? H-Haa, no, wait."

Senpai hugged me tightly by my arm

"Hey Kyouko, did you know Naruto said not too long ago that he'll be spending Christmas eve with another girl—"

"Oh right. I hope you can be clear about this," Senpai placed her hands on my shoulders and turned me towards her.

"Umm, well."

Why does she want to know? Senpai burned my eyes with that passionate gaze from her slightly teary eyes. I had no option but to turn my head to seek assistance.

"… Ruto's a real flirt." Muttered Asto as he hid closely behind me.

What the hell!? Why are you saying that as well? Just then, the force that was applied on my shoulders by Senpai's hand disappeared all of a sudden. Senpai snapped her head, her eyes opened wide as her gaze travelled past my shoulders to the area behind me. It seemed like Senpai had just noticed Asto's presence, in no small reason due to the noise of the livehouse as well as Asto's small stature.

"Astolfo Icecolle?"

The name flowed out from Senpai's lips. I was totally suppressed by her aura, so I turned my body aside. After exchanging sights with Senpai, Asto nodded his head in confusion.

One step, two. Senpai moved in towards Asto. I thought she would grab him by his hands, but I never expect her to cup Asto's tiny face with her hands. Hey! I retorted in my mind, but I could not say anything. That was because both of them were enveloped in some sort of weird, strange-colored atmosphere. The noise around us seemed to die down in an instant.

"Mmm. Just one year ago, I thought I would never be attracted to another guy for the rest of my life. I never thought that my second will appear that simply before me."

For some reason, Senpai directed her sight briefly towards me when she said that, but she turned back to Asto quickly.

"And I never expect my third to come so soon."

"Huh?" Asto blinked his large, shiny eyes repeatedly. "I don't quite understand what you mean."

"Meaning to say, this is my declaration of love."

I subconsciously tugged Senpai by the back of her collar. "What do you think you're doing to someone whom you're seeing for the very first time?"

"What's the meaning of that?"

"Umm, but I have two people in my heart already," said Asto.

"That's okay. I had three, though it has just increased to four." Said Senpai gently as she combed her fingers through Asto's silky pink hair.

"Wouldn't it make you look dishonest if the numbers are to keep increasing?"

"I'm not adding them just on a whim. I'll be dishonest to myself should I not admit that I am attracted to you. And a person like that would never be honest to others as well."

What, you guys are actually striking off a conversation just like that? That was unbelievable. Me alone was no longer enough to play the Tsukkomi, so I turned my head around to seek help from Yang, but the female DJ had somehow disappeared. I looked around in a fluster, and when I located her on the stage, she was waving her hands and saying, "Do your best!".

Yang you bastard! She sneaked away and left me alone by myself!

"I think it's better if you direct half of the enthusiasm you have right now to Ruto."

Asto flashed a mischievous smile in the arms of Senpai.

"You're right, I do agree. Young man… ah—"

"—What?"

"I'll be offering half of my enthusiasm to you."

Why could I do nothing else but to allow my jaws to drop agape? I could not say anything despite that thought of mine. It has almost been one year since I met Senpai, and I've learned quite a number of things as well. In response, I grabbed Asto by his shoulders and pulled him away from Senpai.

"Are you jealous, Ruto?"

"Don't you start talking rubbish as well!"

"We should be the ones who are jealous, isn't that so?" Senpai pulled herself behind Asto and whispered.

"That's right. So that means we are enemies."

How did both of them manage to converse normally? I really don't get it. You two might as well go on and on forever.

Just as Asto was turning around to look eye-to-eye with Senpai once more, the spotlights of the livehouse were suddenly extinguished. All that was left were the bluish white spots from the disco ball dancing across the audience.

Before I knew it, my feet were already soaked by the deep and heavy discord played by the synthesized strings, and the water levels were rising higher and higher. My arms, my chest, my neck; my whole body was engulfed by the strings amid the dark livehouse. The stage lasers were flashing on the stage. As the crowd went wild, the guitarist and the vocalist's silhouette were imprinted against the darkness like the shadows of the thunderclouds. But despite the cheers and the crazy drumming, I could hear clearly the words Asto said to Senpai.

"My enemy, may I know your name?"

As well as Senpai's reply.

"Kyouko Kagurazaka. The revolutionary of love."

(◕ω◕✿)

Before returning home, I showed up briefly at the celebration party and casually asked Yang the price of the tickets to the Christmas concert. Four thousand yen each. That was expensive—about the cost of a professional concert.

Yang explained, "Can't be helped, the venue is large. It's a really stylish event, and I've even offered you an eighty-percent discount already."

And Asto, who was next to me, was surprised at how cheap the tickets were. I guess the price of the tickets to a concert of a famous classical musician would be on a totally different league.

Kagurazaka Senpai, who was having a drinking game with Deidara, ran up to me all of a sudden and asked, "What's with all the talk about Christmas and whatever?"

I ended the conversation quickly in response to that. Asto seemed to be pretty interested in all the liquor, so I pulled him out of the bar and set foot on our way home.

"Well then, I'll not pray for your success, but I'll still be supporting you anyway. Do your best." Said Asto as he went into the car which came to pick him up.

"What you you mean by that?"

"What I mean is, I'll pray for you to be rejected harshly by Weiss when you ask her out. You'll then run to me in tears, and I will do my best to console you."

As I pondered for an answer with my jaws wide open, the door was shut tight and the car drove away.

When I reached home, I went straight to the garage. Coughing from the all the dust, I tried my hardest to locate the records I wanted . The records of Arthur Honegger's symphony Pacific 231 as well as the ensemble Une Cantate de Noël.

Okay. Now I'm done with the first present. Back in my room, I pondered Asto's words several times as I flipped through the cashbook. There was the possibility of Weiss rejecting my invitation, but Asto did say "How could she possibly decline you!?".

So should I believe him? I'll never know if I do not properly confirm it with Weiss.

However, there were plenty of things for me to do before that. Because of the unreasonable amount of cash that I spent on my date with Naruko, my monthly pocket money was all spent. Now, there was a live concert to attend this month. On top of that, the household finances was running very tight as well.

As I left my room and headed down the stairs, I was greeted by the theme of Rodolfo from La bohème. It was the scene where the broke poet was forced to burn his manuscripts for warmth as he was too poor to afford coal.

I heaved a sigh in front of the door of our living room. Whenever the royalties came in late, Mom would always put the music on full blast .

"Eight thousand~~~!?" That was my Mom, lying down on the sofa in an uncouth manner.

She cocked her eyebrows and said unhappily, "Look, you've got quite the guts to ask for that despite knowing the financial situation of our house. Both of our pocket moneys were reduced by substantial amounts due to our daily expenses, isn't that so? Eight thousand yen is a huge sum of money! Huge!"

"I know, but…" My voice became tinier and tinier. For these past months, Mom has not taken up any jobs due to her lack of motivation.

"Do you know how hard it is to earn eight thousand yen? And you do know how petty the people in my circle is, don't you? Money just disappears in a flash! Just a day ago, the cabaret club I went to was charging eight thousand… Wait wait wait don't flash the knife Naruto! I'm lying I'm lying! I went to no cabaret!"

"You'll be revealed sooner or later anyway, so why are you wasting all the cash in secret?"

"Mommy was thinking: Naruto will not notice it if I top up the cash with what I won from gambling."

"Gambling!? You just said gambling!? Despite the amount you squandered the last time you tried it again!?"

"Whoaaa! No wait! Umm, you heard it wrong—I was talking about the Electricity cash!"

"Enough with those lame lies! I'll told Dad that you wasting money in gambling again"

"W-Wait Naruto-chan! It's mommy's fault! I'll give you the eight thousand yen, s-so please don't tell your dad, Okay."

Nope, it was not my intention to threaten you. But thank goodness—though everything may be for naught, depending on Weiss's answer.

"But Weiss should be under strict curfews, right? Jacques's a worry-wart after all."

"Eh? W-What are you talking about?" I was flustered by Mom's words.

"And isn't eight thousand yen a little too expensive? I do know of cheaper hotels, you know?"

"What the hell are you talking about!?"

It was only until Monday noon that I was able to mention the Christmas event to Weiss.

I actually had planned to touch on it casually during our morning practices. However, I had only received a verbal promise from the editorial side. In order to prevent the embarrassing situation where I had no cash to purchase the tickets after Weiss's agreement, I actually sneaked out of school during lunch break to check the bank account. It was only after I ensured that the royalties were in did I return to school.

"Naruto, where did you go to? The side dishes are finished already!" Chiaki was pointing at me with her chopsticks while her other hand was holding onto a lunch box.

After passing her my bento, she opened the lid immediately and peered at its contents.

"Look look! These may look like fried chicken, but they are actually cabbage! Isn't that impressive?"

Chiaki showcased my bento to Weiss and the other girls who were at the table besides me. No, this was nothing to be proud of, so please don't go around showcasing it.

"Naruto has always been good at doing things like this— like turning tofu into mock burger patties. I've always wanted to eat this again." Said Chiaki as she narrowed her eyes into slits.

As for Weiss, her gaze was going to-and-fro the bento and my face. Nibutani and the rest of the girls came over, and what followed was a series of exclamations like:

"Is this really cabbage?"

"Let's just do a Namikaze Restaurant for next year's school festival," Class-rep Shinka Nibutani's suggestion sent the girls into a frenzy.

"Naruto, can you make chocolate parfait with tofu?"

"How about cakes with cabbage?"

You better pray that I can.

Just then, Weiss mumbled, "… Chiaki has been eating Ruto's dishes all this while?"

"Mmm, Naruto's family always invite me for parties and stuff. Like during Christmas, for example. Each year, Minato Oji-san would always show off the antique guns that he collecting. I couldn't understand a single bit of what he said, but I do know Naruto's cooking is delicious."

Weiss scowled and moved her gaze from Chiaki to me. Umm, what was wrong?

"Do you two celebrate Christmas every year?"

My heart pumped wildly from Weiss's sudden question. I never expected her to touch on the subject of Christmas.

"Yeah, but last year Naruto refused Mom invitation because he went on a date with his sister at Christmas eve."

"I-Is that true Ruto!?"

"N-No! Chiaki, how many time I told you already! At that time I didn't came to your house because I was helping my sister for her novel!"

Suddenly there murderous auras around me, I could tell that the guys in our class was listening to our conversation intently beyond the wall of girls that was surrounding us.

"He actually spends Christmas together with Chiaki every year"

"He went on a date with his model sister at Christmas eve?"

"Go die, Naruto."

"Stuff yourself with cabbage cake."

The combined attack of the words of resentments and Weiss's gaze was more than I could handle. I came up with a random reply and escaped away from the classroom.

I plugged the bass to the amplifiers when I reached the practice room. I waited for my heartbeats to return to their usual pace before sitting down on the round chair with a sigh.

Oi, why are you running away? I thought to myself. Didn't the conversation go unexpectedly towards the topic on Christmas? You should have gone with the flow and asked Weiss! Check if she was free this year! How was she planning to spend her Christmas? Wasn't that easy enough?

Of course not. The whole class was watching us. I would definitely stir up something huge should I pop the question before everyone. But then again, could I really find the opportunity to do just that? I am really useless. If I was able to ask Weiss out, we will be together alone.

On our way home from the livehouse, we will be strolling together on streets beneath the night sky, surrounded by the Christmas jingles. Wham!, Yamashita Tatsuro, or the B'z… wait a second, why were they all songs about unrequited love? I shook my head hard in an attempt to shake the melodies away from my mind. That was really inauspicious.

I gripped the neck of the bass as I tried thinking about typical Christmas songs. Perhaps that will grant me courage to ask Weiss out.

Fumbling the strings with my fingers, a slow melody began to flow. What was surprising was the fact that I managed to remember the complete Latin lyrics of Ave Maria, composed by Gounod. The accompaniment to Ave Maria was written to be superimposed over Book I of Bach's The Well-Tempered Clavier. That was the first piece Weiss played for me, back on a certain day. She played it at the junkyard located at the end of the world, so that I could locate this bass.

When did I fall in love with Weiss? I recalled every day that I spent together with her while humming to the tune of the hymn. The spring when we met; the Autum when we brushed by each other; the winter when we were separated.

We were always linked by music.

Perhaps it should not be so. I had no intention of blaming the god of music, but the current me do not even know what Weiss has in mind. Songs were always the media used to convey my feelings that I could not put into words.

The door behind me creaked open suddenly, causing me to swallow the melody back into my throat in surprise. My fingers remained frozen on the strings. I turned around, and in the opening of the door was a pair of ice-blue eyes and hair colored snow.

"Ah. S-Sorry." Why was I apologizing?

"It's okay to come in."

We are to gather at the practice room after we were done with our lunch during the break. I couldn't possibly hog the room by myself just because I was dwelling on some negative thoughts. Weiss slid timidly into the room. She then closed the door after a quick peek outside the room.

"Ah—"

"Umm—"

Our voice overlapped each other's. We exchanged looks, but we turned our gazes to the floor immediately after that. Neither of us said anything.

After a brief silence, I worked up the courage to lift my head as I prepared myself to speak, but Weiss did the exact same thing as well, so we turned our gaze away once again.

What the hell were we doing?

Weiss took a seat on the round chair. Since I did not lift my head, the only thing I could see was her feet. An awkward silence permeated the cold and dense air of the practice room. Crap, I have to say something. I mean, it was the rare opportunity that both of us were together alone. And yet I could not come up with anything.

Just as we were about to be worn down by time like two wax statues, a blurry sound came suddenly from the direction of the sun. It was a duet between a horn and a trombone—it probably came from the band practice; the melody played was the all too familiar tune, Joy to the World. They were repeating the same phrase again and again, but the speed was getting faster and faster… wait a second?

Hey! Why is the tune changing to the main theme of Lupin III? I nearly fell off my feet. At the same time, Weiss stood up angrily and was about to turn around. We crossed sight. This time around, we couldn't help but to let out laughs. Weiss swayed her long sliver-white hair and returned back to her seat.

"It looks like it's a standing tradition for the band to come up with some sort of prank during their yearly performance."

"I did something like that before."

That was surprising. I never thought Weiss as someone that fools around. That was quite unimaginable.

"During my performance of Book 2 of The Well-Tempered Clavier, I slipped Santa Claus is Coming to Town into its fugue. Back then, I was thinking to myself: Why was I forced to hold a Christmas concert? But I was even more depressed when no one noticed my prank."

"Ah…" I was speechless.

Weiss 's expression darkened as she lifted her legs onto the chair and hugged her knees. I see. So she had to work on Christmas Eve as well. But what about last year? She should have dropped the piano then already.

"Last year, I spent the whole day together with Klein in my house."

Klein… oh, that was Mr. Sieben. He was the butler of the Schnee household.

"What about your father? He's probably not in Japan at that time, isn't it?"

"Papa was performing Beethoven's Ninth."

I see. So the reason Jacques came back only at the end of the year was because he forced the performance of Beethoven's Ninth into his schedule huh? Umm, well then… I took a deep breath.

"… What… about this year then?"

Weiss's hair shook for a moment. I could almost feel her flinching despite our distance.

I said it. I actually asked. When I regained my senses, my gaze had landed on the floor once more. I have to look at her in the face. Weiss and I looked into each other's eyes. The blue eyes of hers were filled with unease.

"Umm, well, d-do you have… any… plans for this… Christmas?"

I was struck by a sudden pang of nervousness. As I tried to squeeze the words out of me, my eyes landed on the area near Weiss's lips.

Weiss shook her head slowly. "I think… it will probably be the same as last year."

An inconceivable and warm sensation came flowing upwards from my stomach into area beneath my lungs. It was thumping wildly. Now was not the time for me to be happy just yet. The crucial thing was what happens next. Come on, say it out.

"Well, then… together…" I was so nervous, I had even forgotten how to speak.

"Together?" Weiss tilted her head in response to that word.

Just then, the door to the practice room flung open suddenly. The main theme of Lupin III came rushing into the room, and Weiss's hair soared to the gush of air. Next to the surprised Weiss was a long, slender silhouette. I swallowed the words that were in my mouth.

"Kyouko…?"

There was a tremble in Weiss's murmurs. It was actually due to this interruption that I realized I could even feel the thumping of my heart through my ears.

"Nice timing. So you two were here as well."

With her hand resting against the door, Senpai flashed a clear smile.

"Geez, Senpai! That's just too pushy of you!"

A voice came from the back of Senpai—Chiaki popped her head out. Her eyes came into brief contact with mine, before alternating between Weiss and I. Her cheeks were all puffed up. What was going on around here?

"The next live performance has been decided." Said Senpai as she grabbed Chiaki by her hands and walked into the room.

"Eh…" Why the sudden decision… actually, that was just the way she was.

Weiss was actually retreating towards the wall due to her shock. Senpai fished out a piece of photocopy paper from her chest and spread it out on the amplifiers.

"Or more specifically, we're not guaranteed a spot on the stage. It's going to be a huge event with the participation of professional bands, so whether we can get on stage will depend on the audition results. Just the thing for our next performance, yeah?"

"Eh, ah, yeah…"

I shifted my gaze onto the piece of paper and froze on the spot. The event was named Snow Crash. I think I heard it somewhere before—yeah, Yang did mention it at the livehouse back then…

"… A-And it will be held on?"

I already knew the answer—it was even written clearly on the piece of paper. But I still could not help but to ask that incredibly stupid question. Kagurazaka Senpai flashed what was probably the brightest smile I had ever seen from her yet, and replied.

"24th December. Christmas Eve."

(◕ω◕✿)

That was the fifth time I saw that car. After a turn, I was standing at a position where I could see the garage of my house. One look and I knew immediately what was going on here—because that was the fifth time already. The sun was already setting due to shorter days of the winter. The black engine hood of the foreign car gave off a faint shimmer due to the rays from the porch lights. I could also hear the rumbling sounds of an orchestra.

There was no point in running away (since this was my house). I sighed and opened the door at the porch.

"That's why I'm asking you to try it once! It will definitely be interesting! Since you're planning to play this piece faithfully, you should be faithful in areas like this as well, shouldn't you?"

"Don't be silly! The replacement melody is written precisely because the soloist could not hit the high notes during the very first performance!"

"But it's printed on the published scores too! Come on, try it! You never know, it may just fit!"

"Do you want me to wreck the performance or something? And you're asking me to find a second baritone just for this part? What rubbish!"

"Or how about you sing it?"

"Enough of your jokes!"

Mom and Jacques, separated by a table with a few pieces of papers on it, were engaged in a heated argument when I entered the living room.

The booming melody of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 was playing in the background, but the two adults were arguing with voices that were comparable to the tune of the orchestra. On one side was a famous conductor in his crisp suit; on the other, the paperback mercenary, though her sloppy sportswear. If one saw the scene in which they were pointing at each other's nose and arguing at the top of their lungs, I doubt there would anyone who would deny the fact that they used to be classmates.

I originally planned to sneak past the kitchen unnoticed, but was called out by them.

"So you're back, Naruto. Listen to me, Jac is just atrocious!"

"Oh right, help me drill some sense into her. Kushina's actually coming up with all these crazy suggestions for the arrangement."

Wait, why are you two throwing the problems on me? I'm both physically and mentally drained already. Senpai came up with the sudden decision to participate in the live performance yesterday. And thanks to the auditions, our practices were really solid. Moreover, I could not invite Weiss out during Christmas eve. While I was engrossed in my own thoughts, Mom grabbed me by my shoulders and made me sit down before the table. Before me was the conductor score for Symphony No. 9.

"Umm… so what's going on here?"

"Jac's intention is to reproduce Beethoven's original intentions faithfully during his performance of Beethoven's Ninth at the end of the year. Therefore, he's removing the revisions made by Wagner and Weingartner!"

"Oh…" Just let him be.

"This is just unbelievable! He's even intending to reproduce the trumpet parts that were gnawed away by the worms in the final movement! Muhuhuhu, now I'm burning with anticipation. I'll definitely come up with a great article to blast his performance."

As there were various problems with Beethoven's handwritten scores, his future musicians added in all sorts of arrangements to Beethoven's Ninth. That is to say, the Beethoven's Ninth that we were used to (regardless of whether it was good or bad), was different from what Beethoven had originally envisioned. So Jacques wanted to return it to what was before?

"There were actually supposed to be two melodies to the baritone's recitativo. And so I asked him to change it to a duet as it was supposed to be in the scores. But Jac rejected my proposition."

"But of course. It's not supposed to be a duet."

"Who cares, just try it! Listen to this, Naruto. Jacques, you sing the second part." Mom stopped the CD and played the tape instead.

What came out was the voice of Jacques as he gave the orchestra his instructions. The tape was probably recorded during a practice. The last movement of Beethoven's Ninth began shortly after. The dissonance between the strings and the band clashed against each other, and reached a climax after the collapse. The two adults beside me began singing, "O Freunde!"—my head hurts from their duet. What the hell were they doing? Look at their ages…

"This will definitely become a joke." Jacques snapped, stopped singing and switched off the tape recorder.

"Why? Our voices were really consistent, no? Oh I know, I'll go on stage as the second baritone. I'll charge you cheaper for the performance fees—I mean, I used to be in the choir as well. What do you think about my singing, Naruto?"

"I want to go my room…" I was at my limits. I did not come to this world so that I could do a comedy act together with these two idiots!

"Ah, ahem." Jacques cleared his throat behind me. I had a bad feeling about this. "Actually, I came here because I had something to ask you."

I placed my hand on the door knob as I tried my hardest to hold back the feeling of resignation that was spreading throughout my body. I see, I guessed just as much. It has always been like this.

After placing my bass behind the sofa, I took a seat once more.

"Umm. What do you wish to know?" But I knew it would be something related to Weiss even before his answer.

Jacques crossed his fingers and rested his chin on it. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "My Beethoven's Ninth concert will last only until the 23rd. I'll be taking a rest after that."

"Ok."

"And so, well…" Surprisingly, Jacques shifted his gaze away. There was a long pause before he continued, "I do wish to celebrate Christmas with my family once in a while."

I knew that I was sweating behind my back, and I had a really good idea why Jacques showed up at my house. I really felt like running away.

"Little did I expect her to reject me after I said that to her yesterday. It seems like Weiss will be busy on the 24th."

Stop looking at me with your eyes lifted upwards. It was really disgusting, you know?

"And then… mmm… I asked her what she will be doing, but she refused to give me an answer."

"I know the answer. Isn't there a love hotel located behind the shopping mall that's in front of the bus station? That must be it. It's the only hotel in the vicinity that cost eight thousand yen a night."

"Just shut up, Mom…" I had no strength left in me to come up with any retorts.

"Did you just say a love hotel!?" Jacques sprung up in anger, but I was drained of my strength to calm him down.

The eight thousand yen was useless anyway. I recalled what happened during the lunch break that day. Kagurazaka Senpai came barging into the room suddenly when Weiss and I were the only people inside. She then announced the schedule for the live performance.

The first person to snap back to reality was Weiss.

"… An audition?"

"Yeah. This is an actual commercial activity, and I managed to squeeze ourselves in at the very last moment. I had sent in the tapes already. Our audition will be held in the beginning of the next month. A live performance."

Senpai was pacing in circles around the room; Chiaki, who was behind Senpai, was crossing her arms with an expression of resignation; Weiss was leaning against the sound system; as for me, I had to put my arm against the amplifiers to steady myself. It was not the first time I experienced this firsthand, but Senpai was really acted swiftly. She should have only heard about the Christmas event Snow Crash at the same time as I did, which was last Saturday, from Yang.

"I've already confirmed the fact that my fellow comrades will be free on Christmas eve. I believe everyone will fight alongside with me this time as well, yes?"

Senpai scanned our faces once more as she popped the question with a bright smile on her face. Weiss glanced at me hesitantly for some reason. Our Christmas Eve was shattered just like that, floating between us. What should I do?

Weiss moved her gaze away all of a sudden.

"Have you decided on the piece which we will be performing during the audition?"

I could feel the lifeline snapping apart when I heard Weiss 's question. Our date on Christmas eve—no, even though it was not a definite thing, but…

"… Are you okay with this?" Asked Chiaki as she popped her head from behind Senpai's shoulder.

I had no idea if she was directing that question to me or Weiss; I did not know what she was trying to confirm. But Weiss nodded her head slightly in response. She then made her way to the guitar's amplifiers and picked up the photocopied brochure of the event.

"A disco event? That means we'll have to perform songs of that genre as well?"

"Well, the event will be held at a club, so disco is the type of music that is more popular among our target audience, especially when you bring their age into consideration. However, it will be boring if disco's all we do. I do have a few propositions in mind."

Senpai pulled out a few MDs from the guitar case and stacked them onto the guitar amplifiers. She then fished out a few stacks of scores as well.

"The audition will be twenty minutes long. I plan to spend half the time on passacaglia to surprise the hell out of our judges."

"I do agree that we should make full use of whatever methods that are available to us. I've no problem with performing that for twenty minutes non-stop if that's what you want," Chiaki joined in the conversation from the side next to the amplifiers.

"We have the advantage of two vocals, so I am planning to show them our prowess in the later half of the audition."

"I wish to use the synthesizers if possible. The performance was nowhere near perfect during the school festival."

"I do agree with that, but I think we'll be facing quite a few problems visually. I'll have to come up with something."

"Right, if we synchronize with the guitar—"

The only thing I could do was to stare at the three girls exchanging their views seriously while I remained rooted on the floor. It was only until Senpai pinched me on my cheeks that body unfroze itself.

"… Naruto? Hello, Naruto?"

I finally regained my senses when my face was slapped repeatedly.

Mom face was right before mine, so I retreated on reflex, and that caused me to nearly fall backwards. Jacques stared at me with irritation from the sofa. Shit, how long did I blanked out?

"Why are you spacing out? You should at least wait till next week before you dream about that passionate night on Christmas eve."

"T-That's not it!"

I realized Jacques was glaring at me with a really scary expression on his face. I swallowed my words immediately.

"Umm, well, in any case, it's nothing like what you're imagining."

"What do you mean by that? Are you planning to spend the night outside together with Weiss again?"

"That's right, Naruto. It will only cost you four thousand eight hundred yen if you're resting at the hotel. There is no need to spend the night there."

"Mom!"

"Shut your trap Kushina!"

"The love hotel's a really messy place during Christmas eve, you know? I'm offering you advise because I am worried about you as your parent."

I don't need those sort of concerns from my parent!

"I-In any case!" I hit Mom with cushion and turned towards Jacques.

I raised my voice, "It's not just Weiss and I. We'll be holding a live performance on the 24th."

"A live performance…?"

The colors of Jacques's face changed at least seven times—there were times when it was fuming red, others when it was ghastly white. He then heaved a huge sigh and slumped his body deep into the sofa.

"The band again huh… but we did talk about her resuming the concerts next year."

There was an obvious displeasure in his voice.

"She is practicing on the piano as well, isn't she?"

"Of course. But to be perfectly honest, I am still against Weiss playing in the band."

"Why… is that so?"

"According to Klein, the amount of time Weiss spent practicing her piano was way more than what she used to do two years ago. But despite that, she's practicing on the guitar as well. You do know just how straining that is, don't you?"

I clenched my fists unconsciously. She actually increased the time spent on practice? Going by the average time a professional spent on the piano each day, she would be practicing on the piano for at least six hours a day when she reaches home each day. And considering the fact that our band practice ends at six in the evening, that means she'll be practicing till midnight at the very least. And she was actually practicing much more than that? When does she sleep?

"Weiss is doing all this on her own will, and that includes the band as well. But you do know she has the bad habit of forcing herself without giving any consideration to her body."

I could only nod my head in response to that.

"And so, how should I put it? That girl is continuing on with the band because she wants to be with you, isn't it? If you tell her that it is no longer necessary—"

"Please, enough of this joke of yours."

My voice sounded like it was pressing against a blunt blade or something; Jacques was forced to swallow his words. I do know it was selfish of me to say that, but those were my true feelings.

"Weiss… she… she did not join the band for reasons like that. It's because she's the guitarist of feketerigó. It's because she enjoys creating music together with Senpai, Chiaki, and… me. That's the reason why she's staying in the band."

My words were actually stabbing deeper into my heart than the words of Jacques ever did. Jacques lowered his eyes and sighed.

"… Is that so? I am sorry."

I shook my head. The things Jacques said were right. I really feel like kicking myself to death. That was really embarrassing of me. Weiss chose the band instead of me. But I do know very well just how abnormal that thought of mine was.

"I'll leave Weiss in your hands. Please inform me should anything happens." Jacques said with a calm voice all of the sudden. He then stood up. "Sorry for interrupting."

Mom waved her hand while she remained lying on the sofa; as for me, I did not stand up. The only sounds I heard was the opening and closing of the door, as well as the exhaust of the foreign car disappearing to the distance at night.

Just what exactly did that man come here for? Did he really make the trip down just to discuss that matter?

"Jac has taken quite a liking to you, Naruto. That's the reason why he comes over frequently."

"Eh? Ehh? Ehhhhhhhhhh?" Jacques? I don't quite remember doing anything that put me in his good book.

"Moreover, I'm the only friend he has in Japan. It must be really lonely for him."

"Now that's quite the lonely life he has…"

Mom is his only friend? He might actually be better off without any.

"… Well then, when will Weiss-chan come over to greet her new Mother-in-law?"

"You've been rattling non-stop! Damn it!"

"Because you had called Weiss directly by her name several times already, but Jacques was totally fine with that. Since her father has accepted you already, it will be just a matter of time."

"Eh? N-No way!"

But then again, t-that might actually be true! Whoa! What should I do? Was Jacques pissed off from that…?

"Hurry up get yourself engaged with her."

"S-Shut up Mom!"

I never expected Mom to play pretend with the music of Beethoven in the background as she imagined the engagement scene. My headache was kicking in again, so I ran to my room with my head in my arms.

(◕ω◕✿)

"Stop!" Yelled Chiaki from behind the drums as she lifted her hands that gripped firmly the drum sticks.

I stopped my hands from strumming the strings and wiped the sweat off of my forehead.

Senpai and Weiss pressed the neck of their guitars with their right hand to end the lingering sounds. The rock tempo that filled the Folk Music Club practice room just a second ago had turned into a painful sound of killjoy in my ears.

The three girls looked at me at the same time. Unable to withstand the inquiring gaze of Weiss, the teasing look of Senpai as well as the emotional gaze of Chiaki, I was forced to rest my eyes on the bass in my hands.

"You tell him, Comrade Aihara. I guess we're all thinking the same thing, but you're the only one whom young man will listen to right now."

Chiaki nodded and pointed her drum stick in my direction.

"Quit sticking to me all the time!"

I almost dropped the bass from my hands from the shock. I was surprised by the meaning behind her words—though in a musical sense, of course.

"I deliberately played the tempo slowly to portray the lazy mood! It will not do if you play similarly to me and overemphasize the laziness! The bass and the drums operate on a different timing, so you'll have to be livelier than that!"

"…"

Chiaki's words hit me really hard, because I knew very well that she was right.

"It looks like you lack practice, young man. You thought I did not notice you fumbling your way through the fill-ins during the unisons?"

The sinister grin on Senpai's face made her look like she was teasing a cat—I shrunk my body in response.

"Are you trying to screw things up so that we fail the audition?"

"N-No way!"

I swung my hands hard in denial. However, Senpai's smile did not disappear.

"Here, Comrade Schnee tease him a little too."

"E-Eh?"

Weiss's hair flinched because of the sudden words of Senpai. However, her ice-blue eyes were still fixed intently on my face. Just as I was about to turn my body away, Weiss spoke.

"… Coward. Why didn't you express yourself clearly?"

That was the line which surprised me the most—to the point where I flicked off the power of the bass' amplifiers. Umm, she was referring to how my bass sounded, right? Senpai gave a loud laugh.

"Let's take a rest! Young man will need some time to reflect on things as well."

"For how long? It's already five, so there's not much time left." Weiss's fingers, which were placed on the strings of the guitar, moved uneasily.

"Till the sleeping young man wakes up?"

"It will take until next year for that! There's only two days left till the audition! When exactly is it anyway?" asked Chiaki.

"It's not confirmed yet. There are quite a number of bands that have registered for the event. I think they should be contacting us soon."

"Will we be performing the actual songs during the audition?" interrupted Weiss. "We'll have to decide on the order of the songs. There are quite a few songs that I want to play."

"Hey, how about we put in some Christmas carols at the end of our performance which the audience can sing along to? I mean, it's Christmas eve."

"I think we should just aim to clear the audition with songs we're familiar with for now. That's an option for us as well—"

I listened to their conversation from a distance away. I then pulled the wire away from the amplifier and plugged it into a mini amplifier instead.

"… I'll practice by myself for a while."

Weiss was surprised by that—she was about to remove the guitar strap from her shoulders. I turned around and opened the door. What greeted me was the rays from the setting sun in the icy winter.

(◕ω◕✿)

The rooftop that I would typically go to was located right above our practice room, so I made my way to the rooftop located on the other side of the school. The sun was already deep below the horizon. As the school was slowly enshrouded in darkness, I could see the small silhouettes of the baseball team tidying up the court. On the sides of stairs to the protruding roof was a ladder, which led to a large water tower on top.

I heaved the bass on my back and climbed my way up. When I sat down and viewed the scenery before me, I could see the lights scattered across the streets on the opposite side of our school. It looked much more like the starry skies than the real thing above my head.

I placed the mini amplifier besides me, rested my bass on my leg and began to fiddle with the strings. I played the same phrase over and over again slowly at half the original tempo. However, I could not immerse myself in the music. It was as if the strings managed to read my thoughts—it felt like they were rejecting my fingers.

Senpai's words rang in my ears.

"Are you trying to screw things up so that we fail the audition?"

That was never my intention.

However, I would be lying if I say that idea never crossed my mind after Senpai told us about the audition.

Why must it be on the twenty-fourth? It would have been great if it was held on another day. What baffled me even more was Weiss—she seemed to be incredibly pumped about it. I do know I was wrong for taking that to heart, but even so…

It would not do if things went on like this. I would be dragging the girls down yet again—I was plagued by this feeling ever since our live performance in the school festival. I did improve compared to last year, but the three girls—especially Chiaki—were climbing upwards at an even faster pace. For the current me who could only strum to the best of my ability but was unaware of the things are going on around me, I will definitely be left far behind by them. I should just forget the thing about Weiss. It wasn't like I actually asked her out on Christmas Eve anyway.

My thoughts were pulled to the scene where Weiss and I were alone in the room, the moment just before Senpai came barging in. It would have been great if I could have at least popped the question.

My fingers had stopped when I regained my senses. I let out a wry laugh. Was I not here to do some practice alone? Why was I allowing my thoughts to run astray?

"—Ruto?"

I was shocked by the voice from the darkness—I forgot the fact that I was sitting on the ledge of the tower and almost attempted to stand up due to the surprise. That was dangerous.

Looking downwards, I crossed sights with Weiss, who was popping her head out through the door leading to the roof. For a second, I wanted to find a place where I could hide. However, the small space on the tower was barely enough for someone to sit by himself.

"U-Umm…"

I took a deliberate grip at the bass to put on the act that I was practicing hard, and at the same time I tried to come up with something to say. Weiss turned her head around and caught sight of the ladder.

"W-Wait."

Weiss ignored my nervousness and gripped onto the ladder. But for some reason, she was only using her left hand. She pressed her chest against the vertical pillar and climbed up clumsily. I leaned my body outwards quickly and stretched my hand to pull Weiss up.

Weiss stood on the cramped space next to the water tower, panting and heaving as she gripped on my hand tightly. Her face was ghastly white.

"A-Are you alright?"

"… I'm okay, just a little scared."

Then why come up? And also—My gaze landed on Weiss's right hand, which she was using to grab onto the edges of my coat.

"Your right hand… it can't be… that you can't move it again?"

"Eh? Ah, n-no."

Weiss shook her head. Her silver-white hair came into contact with my chest.

"T-This is just a habit from the past… when I realized it, I was already doing things with only my left hand."

Don't push yourself. I stared hard at the fingers of Weiss's right hand, which was buried before my chest. When she realized what was happening, a blushing Weiss retracted her arm quickly. However, we were still forced to sit side by side with our arms coming contact into each other due to the small amount of space around the water tower.

And with that, the two of us looked downwards at the school surrounded by the walls amid the darkness. At the same time, we were counting the each other's thumping heartbeats. Despite my desire to convert my breaths into speech, my voice was jammed up in my throat because of the nervousness due to the sleeves of the winter uniform that stuck tightly against my skin.

Again. It was always the same. But with Weiss sitting next to me, my mind was in a blank state because of the warmth of her body. The frustration which was tormenting me earlier had disappeared as well. Why was this happening?

Come to think about it, Weiss and I did come into contact countless number of times ever since we knew each other. However, the painful, conscious throbbing I was experiencing right now was because of my realization of my feelings.

Painful. Yes, it was painful.

"U-Umm."

Finally, Weiss spoke once more. Her voice was no longer trembling.

"M-Mmm."

"Are you not angry?"

I couldn't help but to look in Weiss's direction. Half of her face was hidden by the shadow.

"Why… but I am not angry…"

I was not angry. Just losing myself.

"But, it seems like… you dislike the practices."

"I don't dislike them!"

I almost fall off because I suddenly turned my body.

"Whoa!""

I gripped hard onto the leg of the water tower, while Weiss grabbed me by my shoulder. I managed to maintain my balance. When I recovered from my shock, I turned my head to look at Weiss's face. Despite the fact that Weiss's face was burning red, she did not let her hands go.

"I knew from the sounds. Ruto's bass was trying to run away from my Stratocaster."

I was stunned. I never thought music would express my feelings that simply; furthermore, they may not always be on my side. I gripped hard at the neck of my bass placed on my thigh. Just a thought—should there be a day when I master the instrument and play it on an entirely different level, would I be able to play the bass calmly despite the hesitation and confusion I was experiencing in my heart?

"Did you have something planned for Christmas? Back then, you—" She popped the question.

I took a deep breath and nodded to prepare myself mentally. I then turned towards the blue eyes which were reflecting the starry skies.

"I was thinking about what birthday present I should give."

The blue, icy walls in Weiss's eyes were melting away silently.

"You know Arthur Honegger? He's a French composer. I originally wanted to give you the Une Cantate de Noël record composed by him. I have a friend who will be performing that piece on stage during Christmas. It's a great song, so…"

My parched throat was about to tear apart.

"I originally… wanted to… attend the live concert… together… with you. But… well… Senpai said we are to take part in the audition… for that live performance."

I could feel my face getting hotter and hotter while I said that. I was afraid that I'll shift my gaze back to my knees, so I stiffened my neck muscles and continued.

"I originally wanted… the two of us… to spend Christmas together. But…"

"Why?"

Weiss raised her voice all of the sudden. I moved my head backwards in surprise.

"Why did you not tell me?"

The light in her eyes were shimmering on the surface of the waters.

"N-No, but, Senpai has already fixated on the live performance!"

"That has nothing to do with it! You should tell me all the same!"

"Sorry…" Though I had no idea why she was that angry. "Umm, well, if we did not pass through the audition stage, we could…"

"You idiot!"

Weiss gave a forceful tug at my tie. It hurts.

"We have to pass it! I'll never forgive anyone who dares to screw it up deliberately! Not even you, Ruto!"

"No, sorry. Don't you worry, I'll never do that."

"We will be able to perform together live as long as we pass the auditions, no?"

I was stunned for awhile from her words. I will be able to attend the live Christmas performance together with Weiss, even though that means we'll be taking part in it as performers. Indeed. Moreover, I'll be able to save on the concert tickets. But still…

"I want to perform live."

Murmured Weiss as she pressed her palms against my chest while she stared at my bass that blended into the night sky.

"I wish to stand on the same stage together with Ruto… and Chiaki, and Kyouko. Forever and ever."

"… Do you enjoy performing live that much?"

Weiss's words flowed out from within her. I was suppressed by those feelings of hers which felt like they were searing my skin. I accidentally asked that silly question impulsively.

Weiss nodded her head slowly.

"It's saddening each time I get on stage."

"Eh…?"

"Because it will be all over soon."

Weiss's words froze into frost and scattered in the sky.

"It will have to end some day, and that is saddening—if only this could go on forever."

Weiss placed her ten fingers onto my arm, dancing to an uneasy tempo on the imaginary keyboard. I knew what the piece was despite not being able to hear any sound. The music came through the contact of Weiss's fingers as they tapped on my skin. Erik Satie. Le Tango Perpétual.

"Back when piano was my everything, I never thought I would be experiencing feelings like this."

I nodded my head silently. It's the same for me as well. Back when all I did was to listen to the music of others, I never knew such passion or pulsation exists.

"I want to continue playing. I want to allow Kyouko to sing, I wish to move forward together with Chiaki… and I want to listen to the sound of your heartbeats."

"… Mmm."

Thinking back on how I was all emotional earlier on, it was really embarrassing. My thoughts were silly compared to Weiss's clear feelings for the band. But then, Weiss kept quiet and turned her head away.

"… And so, I'm sorry."

"… For?"

"Christmas. W-We're unable… t-to spend Christmas together… by ourselves."

"Eh? Ah, no," I was in a fluster. Did she see through my intentions? "It's okay, I don't mind."

"You don't? Why?"

"I haven't bought the tickets anyway… it hurts it hurts! Weiss! Let go of me!"

For some reason, Weiss sunk her fingernails that were originally on my arms deep into my skin. Why was she pissed off at what I said? I don't get it. Would it be better if I minded?

"I am not talking about the tickets! Don't you feel it's a shame?"

"No, of course I do. But it can't be helped, right?"

"Even if there is nothing you can do…" Weiss slapped me repeatedly on my arms. It was dangerous! We'll fall off! "It's all your fault! It would have been okay if you told me about your plans for Christmas earlier!"

"… Sorry."

Weiss was right. It was my fault for not voicing my plans, which made Senpai think we were all free for the live concert… eh? Something hit me. I asked Yang about the price of the Christmas concert tickets back then—did Senpai know about that? It seemed like she was interested in what was happening, but who filled her in? No wait, she wouldn't have planned the live performance if she knew about it. It was probably just me thinking too deeply into it.

The more important thing was: I'll have to come up with another present. I could still give her the Honegger record, but I did blurt it out already. I hope the present could be a surprise, if possible. It would be really boring if I gave her what I originally had in mind.

Moreover, if we are attending as performers, we may have to prepare ourselves at the backstage, and we might miss the performance from Yang's band. If so, it will be meaningless to gift Weiss Une Cantate de Noël. I somehow feel we'll be able to get through the auditions, despite the lack of evidence that we will—Weiss wants to pass, and it's the same for me as well. Also, Weiss's guitar techniques were getting better each passing day. Was it because she had finally found an outlet to her thirst for passion? Weiss's desire. The never-ending stage.

"Ah…"

That came to me all of the sudden, followed up shortly by the dumb things I had done. I hugged my head and lowered it in dismay.

"Ahhhhhhhh…"

"… W-What's wrong? Sorry, does it hurt?"

Weiss stopped herself from slapping my arm and inquired worryingly.

"Eh? Ah, no, not that."

I let go of my hands, but my head was still burrowed between my knees.

"I just thought of what I should give you…"

It was quite a smart idea—to me anyway. Weiss should be happy with it as well. But I gave that to Chiaki already. It was The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. And it must be the British version of the vinyl record. Though I've no idea if I can locate another one.

"… Sorry, it's nothing. I'll definitely find a way to get it before the birthday."

"Birthday… mine?"

"M-Mmm."

She won't be troubled by that, right? I'll do nothing more than to pass it to her secretly in school.

"It falls on a Sunday."

"Eh? A-Ahhhh!" I never noticed that.

That was the worst possible timing. I burrowed my head between my knees once more. But then, Weiss said something totally unexpected.

"Would you like to come to my house?"

Eh? I wondered if my ears heard right. When I lifted my head, I could see Weiss's face flushed red. It was obvious from her trembling lips that she was trying her best not to shift her eyes away.

"Would you like to come to my house on my birthday? If… Ruto's… n-not busy with anything. If you want to."

"Eh? Ah, u-um, yeah. I'll go. Really? Can I?"

I still find it unbelievable. Visiting Weiss's house? Then again, wouldn't Jacques be around? Will that be okay?

"Papa will be doing a rehearsal, so he will not be around."

And that was when Weiss finally succumb to embarrassment and turned her gaze towards the darkness of the night. However, I could still see her burning cheeks despite the darkness.

"There's something… I want to give to you too. Something that cannot be carried around."

Something she wanted to give me? And something that cannot be carried around?

My face felt like it was floating about like a crimson balloon. I coulrdn't really recall what we said after that. It was only when I checked my phone that I realized I had even typed in the time of the visit into that day's schedule.

"How did Weiss always manage to find Naruto?"

We bumped into Chiaki just as we were walking down the stairs to make our way back to the practice room. It looked like she split up with Weiss to search for me.

"Because I heard the sounds of the bass." Weiss explained softly.

Now that she said it, she does have a pair of really sharp ears. It was no wonder she can find me despite me hiding at places where I will not normally go. Chiaki sulked, moved her sight from Weiss to me and slammed her fist into my stomach. Ouch.

"Whatever, let's go back pronto. We've not much time left! Senpai's still waiting."

Chiaki pulled me by my hand, while Weiss was pushing me from behind. I was forced to run along the corridor while hugging to the bass in my arms.

(◕ω◕✿)

For Weiss's present, I ended up asking Mom for her assistance.

"Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band? Don't we have one in the storeroom? You're in charge of rock, so search through it properly."

It was after dinner. Mom was lying down on the sofa like a Mafia boss, swirling the whiskey glass around as she chewed on dried shredded squid.

"Ah— mmm. Actually, I gave that to Chiaki."

I lifted my eyes to check the expression on Mom's face as I tried my best to put on an apologetic face.

"Then head to the record store or something. You should be able to find one there."

"Umm, it has to be the vinyl record. The reason's complicated, I can't explain it. Also, I can't use the America or Japanese version. It has to be the original from Britain."

I lifted my eyes to sneak another peek at Mom's face.

"So I thought I would not be able to get it even if I tried finding one at a second hand store. But if it's Mom—you should be able to do something, right?"

"Look, that thing may cost you up to ten thousand yen, you know?"

"I do. Please, the only thing I can depend on now is the power of the paperback mercenary!"

"Oh, so Naruto finally realizes the great things about being the paperback mercenary? So you know you should be respecting me? Great, I'll teach you some exercises that will get you on your way to become an paperback mercenary right now!"

"Nope, I'll pass on that."

"Let's touch a little more on that. There are two major moves. Stretch out your arms wide—"

"There's no need for you to demonstrate it to me!"

I slammed the switch to cut off the Turkish March.

"Are you sure it's okay for you to talk to me like that? I may decide not help you with the record, you know?"

"Ughhh…"

It sucked to owe a favor to the worst possible person.

"Whatever. So long as you genuflect before the powers of my personal antenna."

With that said, Mom actually managed to get her hands on Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band the very next day. I got it way before Weiss's birthday. No need to worry at all.

The next day, I hid myself in my room after dinner. I might be acting with undue haste, but I wrapped the record carefully with wrapping paper and even bound it with a ribbon. I laid on my bed and buried my face in the pillow in embarrassment when I imagined the scene where I handed Weiss the present. Crap. Could I remain composed? And I had to visit Weiss's house too.

"You want me to mimic Weiss-chan for your imaginary practice? I'm great at mimicking people's voices."

"Get the hell out!"

Asked Mom, who popped her head through the door and into the room. I tossed the pillow at her to chase her away.

Kagurazaka Senpai did not show up at the morning practice the following day. That was the first time she missed a practice since the school festival. The remaining three of us had no option but to practice by ourselves until the lessons start, but she did not appear even after the preparatory bell rang.

"Audition's coming up soon. Perhaps she's busy running about in preparation for that," suggested Chiaki.

I see. Senpai may be planning something yet again.

"We'll not be able to decide on the guitar's arrangements for the strings' part without Senpai…"

"But Weiss's guitar solo made me shiver. Play like you did earlier for our actual performance too." Said Chiaki as she turned her head around just as Weiss was packing her Stratocaster into her guitar case. Weiss widened her eyes.

"… That was because Kyouko was not around, so I played the vocalist's part in her stead…" Murmured Weiss shyly.

I felt the same way as Chiaki did as well. We had already decided on the last piece for our performance—John Lennon's Happy Xmas(War is over). Since Senpai was absent, Weiss played the melody of the lead vocal instead. It was a vivid and commanding solo. A performance that Chiaki and I will never forget.

"It will definitely be cool if you join in suddenly with your solo during the first chorus! All we need is Weiss's guitar and the synthesizer."

"But I only have two hands."

"Ah, you're right."

I gave Chiaki's suggestion a thought as well.

Just as its name suggested, Happy Xmas(war is over) was sung by John Lennon, a melody that celebrated Christmas; on the other hand, the children were singing War is Over, a melody which yearns for peace. It was a song with two melodies sung together at the same time.

Weiss reproduced John Lennon's part with a solo, as though she was tossing the song into the air. It would be marvelous if we could combine that with the prayers of the audience, War is Over. All that would be left was the organs from the synthesizers.

The idea was gradually taking shape in my head as I tidied up the instruments.

I could almost hear the melody of the Christmas song from behind the closely shut door when we left the room. Chiaki locked the door up and looked into the sky as she rested her hand on the handle.

"… If only we could be together forever."

Weiss and I turned around when we heard Chiaki's words.

A faint smile appeared on Chiaki's face—one that would disappear in the blink of an eye. She continued, "It will be great if we could clear the audition in a spectacular fashion and spend Christmas together."

Weiss looked at me hesitantly. She broke eye contact with me when our eyes met and turned her gaze towards Chiaki.

"… Let's do our best," Weiss nodded with a soft murmur.

"Mmm… at the very least, the four of us can be together." Chiaki's smile was way lonelier than the skies of the early winter, but I could not say anything at all.

"It was time for our lessons," Said Chiaki softly before breaking into a run.

The fourth lesson, physical education, ended. The guys were done changing and was on our way back from the sports complex to our classroom. Just then, a bicycle burst through the school gates at an incredible speed, catching the attention of many. Those braids were dancing in the air like the tail feathers of a bird. She disappeared between the buildings.

"… That's atrociously late."

"And she's wearing casual. With a mini-skirt to boot, even though it is winter."

"The sight of her back and her long slender legs as she stood on the bicycle was just amazing."

Kagurazaka Senpai just reached the school…? What on earth was she doing? I rushed back to my classroom, placed the bento on Chiaki's desk and dashed to the practice room. The lunch bell rang when I reached the lawn at the back.

I froze on the spot when I opened the door to the practice room.

"Oh hi, young man. You're here early."

"Whoaaaaa!"

I crossed sight with Senpai, who was putting her arm through the sleeves of her blouse, and retracted myself backwards. Not only could I see her bra clearly, her skirt was unbuttoned as well.

"S- Sorry!" I yelled and turned away.

"I can't close the door if you don't step in, you know?"

"Quit your nonsense and get dressed right now!" I roared angrily with my back against her.

The giggles of Senpai were disrupted by the closing of the door. I took huge gulps of air as I rested my hands on my knees.

"You can come in now, young man."

Those words came from the opening of ajared door. I walked in gullibly; what greeted my eyes were the creamy shoulders and smooth bare back of Senpai.

"—W-Why did you strip?"

I rushed out of the room in shock.

"I want to change into my victory underwear, so I thought I would get young man to help me with the hooks."

"Hook it yourself!"

"What a pity. I am done changing. Don't you worry, you can step in now."

Really? I mean, really? I opened the door a millimeter to check through the tiny opening. Senpai had even put on the uniform's coat, so I walked into the room.

"I was thinking it would not be a bad idea to seduce you openly once in a while, but it ended up as a failure, I guess."

What? I have no idea what you're talking about. In order to shake the image of Senpai's smooth skin away from my mind, I tried my hardest to turn my gaze away and focused my attention on setting up my bass. I did see her swimwear before, but it felt like a totally different matter altogether.

"I have been wondering for a while. Don't you have any sexual desire, young man?"

"W-What do y-y-you mean by that?"

"I am pretty confident about my back. Didn't you see it five times already? Aren't you the least bit excited?"

"I've seen it only twice!" What on earth is this person blabbering about?

"So you remember the actual amount. That makes me really happy."

Senpai flashed the beastly smile of hers, something that I had not seen in quite a while. I was forced to retreat to a corner. Senpai pressed her hands on both sides of my head to keep me from moving about.

"… S-Senpai? You're acting strangely today. Anything wrong?"

"Mmm, something made me really sad. I actually went over to the organisers of the live Christmas performance just now."

"Oh."

"They've decided on the date of our auditions. It will be on Saturday."

Saturday—I searched through my memory and heaved a sigh of relief. It was the day before Weiss's birthday.

"I hoped they would change the time. I even went down personally to negotiate, but it was all for naught."

"Umm… Saturday's no good?"

"Rather than that, it's more like it has to be on Sunday."

"Eh?" Why?

"Comrade Schnee's birthday will fall on the next day, isn't it?"

I was shocked. I could not comprehend the meaning behind Senpai's words, so I remained stunned between Senpai's arms for a while.

"So I want our audition to crash with her birthday."

"… W-Why?"

"You're asking me why?"

Suddenly, Senpai pulled her face towards mine. The tip of our noses were almost in contact with each other.

"What else but to prevent you two from celebrating her birthday by yourselves?"

"What…"

"I managed to hinder you two on Christmas Eve, but it looks like I've lost this time."

Christmas Eve? Did she just say Christmas Eve? So that meant our participation in the live performance was—I see, so Senpai did know of my plans to invite Weiss to that performance. But why? What was going on here?

"You really have no idea, do you? You're so amazingly dense, it's actually quite touching to watch."

Smiled Senpai as she finally released me. My face was burning as though it was placed in a furnace.

"Alright. The reason is actually really simple, but I guess I'll start from the beginning so that I can express my feelings to your heart."

Senpai leaned against the wall and took out her Les Paul from its case. As for me, I rested my back against the wall and slid down onto the floor.

"I told you the reason I was born in this world. Do you still remember?" I nodded.

What was going on here? I could feel an unfathomable and scary attraction coming out from the revolutionary of love before me. The jet black guitar slung on her shoulder was like a deadly weapon which could gorge the heart out from a person without a single bit of harm being done to his body.

"I've no idea what you're thinking, but I do want to start a revolution in this world. Ever since the formation of capitalistic economy, there are countless number of losers who died while on their quest to become the final revolutionary. With that said…"

Senpai sat on the desk and blinked.

"Why do you think those revolutionaries failed one after another?"

I cocked my head about two millimeters left and right.

"The reason is simple. They've all got the order wrong. You can't declare yourself as a revolutionary right from the start. The reason is because a fighter will die when his fame reaches the summit. It will be pointless if he turns to ashes after he was done spreading his words to the world. However—"

Senpai plugged the wire into the amplifiers. There was a pa sound when she turned on the power—just like the sound of a thick vein bursting apart.

"But John Lennon's different; he's the most successful revolutionary in history. He first became a musician, so he already had the attention of the world before his fight. Even if the world forgets the name of Mikhail Bakunin or Leon Trotsky, John's name will remain in everyone's heart. Why is that so? Fundamentally speaking, you cannot convey your feelings into the heart of others with just words alone. There are only two ways to really convey the words deep into their souls: bleeding, or spreading it via a song."

Senpai flicked on the switch of her Les Paul. A noise permeated through the practice room. It felt like I was in someone's heart right now.

"If they choose to spread their words by slicing away their life, then the revolutionaries will die before the wake of dawn. I can't do something as stupid as that. What's the point of sacrificing your life in exchange for two, three quotes recorded in a huge tome of famous quotes? You have to sing if you really wish to change the world. Singing will bring me to the top, and I shall then say my words. I'll change this world like how I'd sculpture a wax figure with the warmth of my skin."

I could barely understand what Senpai was saying. But I understood something.

Senpai was bleeding right now.

It wasn't her words; the pain oozing out all over were hitting me in my heart. Why was this so? Why did she put on such a sorrowful expression?

"But I guess I'll probably die before I could achieve my dreams, just like how John Lennon was killed by four bullets. A king is helpless when it comes to evils and deaths even if he is at the top of the world… Or rather, it's precisely because he is at the top of the world. However, I have an advantage which John doesn't have. What do you think that is?"

That was not really a question. It was just time for her to take a breather as she bewitched me with her eyes and a lick of her lips.

"It's my gender. I am a woman in love, get it? I can have a baby; I can ensure that the new life will not be harmed by bullets and give in my all to raise him. I will not allow my revolution to end in that manner. Even if my life comes to an end, my child can continue the march into the dawn of the new world."

Senpai rested her hand on the strings and looked up into the ceiling before giving out a sigh. The heavy atmosphere froze up the air of the practice room. Senpai's fingers began to move all of the sudden. It was La Marseillaise. A song on the French revolution bathed in fresh blood.

"… Well, that's the prologue."

"That's the prologue!? It's too damn long!"

The retort was the first thing I said when I could finally take a breath. Senpai gave a loud laugh.

"Now then, with the speech done and over with, it's about time I answer your doubt."

"By my doubt, you're referring to…"

I had forgotten about it after listening to her long speech weakly.

"The reason I hindered you from celebrating Christmas Eve together with Weiss."

Ahh, yeah, that was right. I was dizzy from how the conversation topic was moved back onto me all of a sudden. However, I did my hardest to remain standing on my feet by propping myself up against the wall.

"Then again, it would be great if you can understand everything without me going on further."

"Nope, I don't get it at all."

"All that means I'll need a child who can inherit my ambitions. If so, he will require a father as well."

"Huh?"

"Do I really have to say things like 'Please be my husband' or 'I'll love to have your genes' to get you to understand me?"

I was speechless. I slumped onto the floor. As for Senpai, she took her Les Paul off her shoulder and closed in on me with a bewitching smile on her face—

"Eh? Ah, no, e-ehhhhhh?"

"Do you still think I'm kidding here, young man?"

But, because you…!

Senpai knelt down before me and brought her face close to mine. She whispered into my ears.

"All these while, I should have expressed my love for you several times already."

It felt like my innards were doused by freezing alcohol. I browsed through my memories and recalled the words Senpai said to me before. But, why? That was—

"You know, young man. This is the first time I tasted such a comprehensive defeat ever since I was born. The man I love was stolen away by the girl I love, and the girl I love was about to be eaten up by the man I love. You don't have to say anything, young man. I might just cover your lips up should I hear your voice right now."

At a distance where a change in the angle of our faces would result in them coming into contact, Senpai's lips were adorned with these words.

"I long knew for whom the narrow space in your heart is reserved for. But even so, I had no option but to make my last stand. I'd rather not be born than to give up my love."

"…"

"Therefore, I tried my hardest to prevent you and Comrade Schnee from having some alone time together. I ended up succeeding in one and failing in another. Simple isn't it? So now you understand how hard I tried to stop you two from getting together?"

Senpai flashed another calm smile. I should be the person who tried hard to stop her. She was serious. She was definitely not lying here. Her feelings for me were real.

"With this, the friendship and trust that we once had between us—our normal friendship will burn and disappear into nothingness. It's a shame, but it can't be helped."

Disappear into and I could no longer be together like we did in the past again, as if nothing had happened. Was that… really it?

"That's right, this is what a confession of love means. What a scary thing it is. The rational fantasy people have on others will all be taken away gently by love. The only thing that is left between us are blades. Hey, young man. Have you ever wondered why I have never once addressed you as my comrade despite pulling you forcibly into my revolutionary army?"

I held my breath. You're asking me that at a time like this?

"There will come a day when you'll turn into my dear enemy. I knew that the first time I saw you."

The first time we met. That was when Kagurazaka Senpai was sitting on the roof of this practice room. Looking at me, captivating me. And I had already captivated Senpai's heart way, way before that.

"There is no need for you to reply to my feelings, young man. I do not wish to know."

"Why…"

"You're asking me why? I am but a woman in love when you strip the armor off my body. I do not wish to hear an answer that will sadden me. I am currently holding back to the desire to hug on you tightly and cry my heart out."

I saw no lies from her eyes that were staring intently at me.

"… B-But, why… me?"

Senpai pressed her finger gently against my lips to whisk away the rest of my words.

"Ninety percent of the world's happiness and misfortune would disappear if we could freely choose who we are in love with. And there will be no one who will be in a relationship. Isn't that so? Comrade Aihara."

I could hear the scrapping sound against the wall. As I turned my head around, Senpai stood up in a flash, opened the door and stretched her hand outwards.

"There is no need for you to run. Come on in." Said Senpai with an amused expression as she dragged a certain someone into the room with her hand.

It was Chiaki. Her face turned even redder when she crossed sights with me.

Did she hear our conversation? The memory of me entering the room and closing the door… it was all hazy. No, but… I could not say anything. I crouched against the wall and saw Senpai hugging Chiaki as she said something to her. Where was Weiss? She was not here, right? That was what I worried about—and it was the only thing I was clearly aware of amid the chaos in my head.

Weiss finally appeared halfway into our lunch break. Seemed like she took a trip to the infirmary first. She spoke very little—perhaps because she detected the tense, explosive atmosphere lingering about in the room.

My hand was totally unresponsive during our lunch break practice. Of course, there was no way I wouldn't know where I was facing and who I was exchanging gazes with. I was just praying hard for the bell to ring as I played several notes wrongly. Surprisingly though, it looked like everyone was about to hit their limits.

"Naruto, enough is enough!"

"You don't have to force yourself, young man—"

"Stop playing if you're not in the mood to do so, Ruto!"

After an avalanche of words was a moment of silence. I could not reply to anyone or look at them in their eyes. I placed my bass away.

When school ended, the only thing I said to Chiaki and Weiss was, "Sorry, I'm a little… I am not attending our practice today." With that, I heaved the bass onto my back and left. My head was about to burst.

(◕ω◕✿)

My family was not around when I reached home.

It felt much colder indoors than outside. I put on a duffel coat and spaced out for a bit while laying on the sofa in the living room.

My head had finally cooled itself down, so I recalled everything Senpai said to me earlier. I was calm enough to understand the bloodstained emotions hidden in the exaggerated speech by Kagurazaka Senpai.

When did it start?

When did Senpai start having feelings for me?

That was something that I could not question myself. Senpai has been saying this all these while, hasn't she? It was from the moment we met.

"Therefore, I had my eyes on you for a long time already, young man."

"—I want you."

"I guess I've finally found the Paul who belongs to me."

"It's actually very simple, young man. It's much simpler than what you're thinking."

Indeed. It was really simple. I just did not notice it.

However, I had no idea what I should do, even if I had realized it. Audition was just around the corner. No wait, Senpai said the live performance and audition were arranged so that she could prevent Weiss and I from spending time together alone. That was just her mixing up her personal gains into work. Then again, that was the sort of person she was.

I curled myself up on the sofa. My back hurt. I felt something snap, and that was when I realized that the bass was crushed beneath my body. My face turned pale as I quickly pulled the instrument out of its case. Shit, what the hell was I doing? Was it okay? I checked the four knobs, the bridge and the pickup, heaving a sigh of relief when I was sure that I did not break anything.

I hugged the bass before my chest, pulled my feet up onto the sofa and curled myself up again. I should not be frustrating myself by thinking all these things at a time like this. Why did she bombard me with that lengthy speech of hers when we were in such a busy period of time? What should I do if Weiss were to know about this? I was clueless about how well the two girls got along with each other.

Senpai teased Weiss all the time, and it looked like Weiss was not too against it either. However, the two girls would attack each other with a timbre that sounded like two cobras going for the each others' necks whenever they played together. You could call it the style of feketerigó, but the difference in the tones of the melody was incredibly obvious when the girls were playing. My bass was insufficient to carry the middle voice of the melody. I wished I could receive some assistance from the sounds of the synthesizer.

Hold on. Oi, now was not the time for me to be thinking about the band. That was just me running away from reality, wasn't it? I knocked my fist against the body of my bass. The thing that I should be worrying about at a time like this was—shouldn't I be worrying about the band at a time like this? Was I really okay?

I was disgusted by the various thoughts surfacing in my mind. The opposing guitar solos from Weiss and Senpai, along with the rhythmic phrases by Chiaki and me reverberating from afar—I was unable to stop them from awakening within my ears. I tried to construct the missing strings or organs from the song in my mind. Feketerigó lacks the fifth person, but the ideas were already there in my mind. It came to me when I was listening to Weiss's solo rendition of Happy Xmas.

The blueprint and program were gradually forming up in my head. How ironic this was. The music was blocked out of my ears when we were practicing in the room as I was overly conscious of Senpai's gazes and the things she said. But here I was, all alone by myself in the house planning to think about the stuff Senpai said with a cooled head—and yet the music kept surging their way into my brain.

Simply put, I was subconsciously trying to find a place to hide. The god of music will get angry if I kept running away from reality with music as an excuse. However, I had no option but to do so. It was the only place I could run to.

I stood up from the sofa. I went back to my room, opened the cupboard and took out an old synthesizer and a toolbox. Looks like I'll have to spend my night like this. But I guess working on machines would be a much more productive way of spending the night as compared to watching the clock tick while I hid myself distressingly in my bed. At the very least, it'll feel like I was moving forward.

.

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