Chapter 4: Judging
The judges scratched their heads and began conferring between themselves.
It appears that it's been a difficult contest. They had been working on the
judging five hours already.
Utena had fallen asleep in a chair, but woke up suddenly. "Hey, Touga."
"Hm?"
"I had the weirdest dream. I dreamed that there was someone writing a story
about us, and that we were actually just normal schoolkids and she made the
band up."
Somewhere in New Hampshire, a teenage girl sitting at her computer typing
sneezed explosively, then blinked in confusion, shrugged, and went back to
her writing.
A judge stood up, and everyone perked up to listen as he raised a
megaphone.
"The decisions have been very difficult tonight, and I'm not sure we
actually all agree on our decision, but the judging is." He paused.
Everyone fidgeted with antici.....pation.
"A tie."
Right when the judge said that, people started cheering. Utena hopped up
and started dancing around happily with Touga and Akio, who didn't seem to
mind. Over where the Black Roses were sitting, Mikage had picked Mamiya up
and was spinning around in circles. Just about everyone was extremely happy.
**********
Afterward, both bands sat in a café, eating ravenously. As it turned out,
not that anyone hadn't guessed, Miki and Kozue were siblings, and sat at one
table alone, talking. With a grin on her face, Shiori looked across her
table at Juri. "Every drop of rain that falls-"
"Don't. Sing. That. Song."
"The Sahara-" She was abruptly stopped when Juri clapped a hand over her
mouth.
"Don't sing it."
The other woman grinned impishly and tugged Juri's hand off her mouth. "If
you say so."
At another table, Utena, Mikage, Mamiya, and Akio were absorbed in a
conversation, though nobody was quite sure what it was about. For a few
minutes Wakaba tried to listen in, but got lost after three words. Their
discussion had something to do with philosophy, but that was all she could
figure out. Kanae and Tsuwabuki looked at her curiously, but she just
shrugged. "No idea."
Keiko, Nanami, Aiko, and Yuuko were seated at yet another table, having
some sort of argument. Touga looked on in amusement as he sipped his coffee
and ate a danish. Sitting by himself, Saionji ignored all Anthy's efforts to
start a conversation. He looked tired.
Later, the two groups parked their buses side by side in an empty lot, and
anyone watching noticed a stream of people going back and forth between the
two vehicles. But then the lights went out and everybody got some
well-deserved rest.
Except for Utena. She spent the rest of the night beating off Touga and
Akio with her baseball bat.
~~owari~~
The judges scratched their heads and began conferring between themselves.
It appears that it's been a difficult contest. They had been working on the
judging five hours already.
Utena had fallen asleep in a chair, but woke up suddenly. "Hey, Touga."
"Hm?"
"I had the weirdest dream. I dreamed that there was someone writing a story
about us, and that we were actually just normal schoolkids and she made the
band up."
Somewhere in New Hampshire, a teenage girl sitting at her computer typing
sneezed explosively, then blinked in confusion, shrugged, and went back to
her writing.
A judge stood up, and everyone perked up to listen as he raised a
megaphone.
"The decisions have been very difficult tonight, and I'm not sure we
actually all agree on our decision, but the judging is." He paused.
Everyone fidgeted with antici.....pation.
"A tie."
Right when the judge said that, people started cheering. Utena hopped up
and started dancing around happily with Touga and Akio, who didn't seem to
mind. Over where the Black Roses were sitting, Mikage had picked Mamiya up
and was spinning around in circles. Just about everyone was extremely happy.
**********
Afterward, both bands sat in a café, eating ravenously. As it turned out,
not that anyone hadn't guessed, Miki and Kozue were siblings, and sat at one
table alone, talking. With a grin on her face, Shiori looked across her
table at Juri. "Every drop of rain that falls-"
"Don't. Sing. That. Song."
"The Sahara-" She was abruptly stopped when Juri clapped a hand over her
mouth.
"Don't sing it."
The other woman grinned impishly and tugged Juri's hand off her mouth. "If
you say so."
At another table, Utena, Mikage, Mamiya, and Akio were absorbed in a
conversation, though nobody was quite sure what it was about. For a few
minutes Wakaba tried to listen in, but got lost after three words. Their
discussion had something to do with philosophy, but that was all she could
figure out. Kanae and Tsuwabuki looked at her curiously, but she just
shrugged. "No idea."
Keiko, Nanami, Aiko, and Yuuko were seated at yet another table, having
some sort of argument. Touga looked on in amusement as he sipped his coffee
and ate a danish. Sitting by himself, Saionji ignored all Anthy's efforts to
start a conversation. He looked tired.
Later, the two groups parked their buses side by side in an empty lot, and
anyone watching noticed a stream of people going back and forth between the
two vehicles. But then the lights went out and everybody got some
well-deserved rest.
Except for Utena. She spent the rest of the night beating off Touga and
Akio with her baseball bat.
~~owari~~
