Disclaimer: I do not own Slam Dunk!! *boo hoo!* And, I certainly do not own Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata! ~_~ Life is just so unfair isn't it?? *pouts*
A big thanks to the reviewers again! ^_^
sLL: hmm…what can I say? I'm predictable sometimes? So… hehehe… really no comments on that part you were talking about :P
RaPt142: *waves* Hello~~ :D tnx for reviewing again ^_~ ano… the himitsu? :x eeto… if I tell you what it is, it won't be a himitsu anymore rite? ;) hehehe…
Fiery-chan: ah~ ehehehe… ano… well… erm… Ying didn't faint b'cos of the allergy lah :x I did mention the word 'cramps' and the word 'abdomen' rite? So… you should know what it is lor, right?? :P hehe… As for being a bad influence on u… hehe… I'm good at it aren't I? *grins, very evilly* bwahahahaha~ also, your xmas pressie… er… think I should be able to get the secret out then… and I emphasize on the word "should" very strongly, so… no promises k? ^_~ hehehe… ;P
NB: … Thoughts
"…" Character's speech
(Numbers) Explanations in akane の teahouse
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Chapter 5 – The Cake… The Park…
Hisae woke up at midmorning. Lucian stirred from his sleep as she pulled the covers away and slid out of bed. Ying had stay over for the night. As they had chatted into the wee hours of the morning, Ying was still in dreamland now.
Hisae quickly showered and fed Lucian. The poor koneko had been limited to its cage and Hisae's room since Ying arrived on the previous day's afternoon. After finishing his morning meal, Lucian waited patiently for Hisae to wash his bowl and made herself a cup of tea before following her to the piano. She placed the cup of tea on a cup coaster on top of the piano and drew the curtains open. The bright rays of the summer sun shone through the floor length window, illuminating the room with its warmth.
Hisae sat down by the baby grand and opened its covers. After taking a sip of her tea, she replaced the cup on the coaster before she put her hands onto the black and white keyboard. Soon the slender fingers pressed the first key and the laborious drill of scales practice began. From basic scales to arpeggios. She played on and on for half an hour before switching to a proper piece of music. The room was soon filled by the slow but sweet music of Nocturne by John Field.
At first Ying cringed at the clanging sounds produced by the piano. However, when the scales practice gave way to Nocturne, her frown loosened and she sat up from her bed. Fuzzily, she scratched her head and turned her head to the door as her ears picked up the music. She glanced at her watch and saw it read 11:15am. Getting out of bed, she opened the door of the guest room soundlessly, and yawned widely as she walked to the living room.
"You're up early." Ying yawned not so gracefully standing next to the baby grand.
Hisae glanced at Ying and smiled. "Not really. Did I wake you with my practice? I'm sorry if I did." She said as she turned her attention back to the piano.
"Nah, it's about time I get up anyways." Ying shrugged.
"Meow…" Lucian meowed softly at Ying as he strolled over to her stealthily.
Ying broke into a sneeze at the sight of the little Birman kitten that had grown slightly over the past week, and took a few steps back. Hisae stopped playing and scoped Lucian into her arms.
"Lucian, be a nice kitty and don't go near Ying-nee chan ne." Hisae poked Lucian's head playfully.
Ying heaved a hopeless sigh and rolled her eyes at the two. "You and your fur ball."
Hisae dismissed Ying's criticism and stood up from the piano bench to put Lucian in his cage. She stopped when she noticed something different with Ying.
"Ying, your eyes! They are black!" Hisae gasped.
Ying shrugged. "They've always been black my dear, I just wear blue contacts to make them blue."
"Oh. But don't the contacts make your eyes dry and painful?"
"Nope. They don't bother me at all."
"Sou."
"Speaking of which, I'd better go freshen up ne, I haven't brush my teeth yet." Ying stuck her tongue out playfully.
Hisae smiled. "OK, I'll make us brunch in the mean time."
"Yokatta!" Ying exclaimed exuberantly and walked back to the guest room humming a cheerful tune.
Hisae had just finished making their brunches when Ying came out again dressed in a pair of torn jeans and a t-shirt with 'super girl' written on it. Hisae pushed the plate of chicken and Swiss cheese filled croissant and a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice in front of Ying as she sat down on the kitchen counter.
"Thanks. Itekimasu." Ying chirped happily and picked up the croissant, biting into it. "This is heaven!" She sighed contentedly.
Hisae drank the last of her orange juice and smiled at Ying who was gulping down the croissant as if she had not eaten for days.
"Glad that you like it. Ying, you're not wearing your contacts today?"
Ying shook her head. "Forgot to bring new ones. Those were due for throwing out."
Hisae nodded. She noticed that without the blue colored contact lenses, Ying's eyes were as dark as midnight itself. Mysterious and beautiful.
"Maybe you should stop wearing them Ying; your eyes are beautiful without them."
"You think so?" Asked Ying as she devoured the last bit of the croissant.
"Uh huh." Hisae nodded truthfully.
"Hmm… I'll think about it." Ying replied as she drank her orange juice.
When Ying finished her orange juice, she took note of Hisae's attire. The taller girl was wearing a beige, short sleeved linen shirt and a pair of tailored silk pants in charcoal color.
"Do you always wear clothes like these, even at home when no one's around?" Ying gaped as she pointed a finger at Hisae.
Hisae looked at her clothes then asked confusingly, "What's wrong with my clothes?"
"Don't you think they're a bit too formal, especially as house wear?"
Hisae shook her head slightly. "I think they're fine."
"They make you look old."
"I think the word is mature, Ying." Hisae said smiling as she collected the dishes and headed for the sink.
"Ch." Ying snorted.
"Besides, I've worn these types of clothes ever since I was young."
"You're aging yourself by wearing those clothes. You look like an obaa-san in them." Ying frowned.
Hisae let out a good humored laugh. "They're not that bad, are they? At most, people will think that I'm in my twenties, not my seventies."
"I don't understand you sometimes, Hisae. Why'd anyone want to make themselves look older than their true age?"
Hisae just smiled. How'd Ying understand that she was brought up on the ideology that she should be looking her best at all time, even within her private quarters?
By the look Hisae gave her, Ying knew that her friend would not discuss further about the topic. Therefore, she shut up and watched her friend thoughtfully. What made her so passive and damn mature anyways? Why do I feel that she is keeping a big secret and suffering from it? Argh~
"Ying, what time did you ask Kogure-kun and Akagi-kun to come over?" Hisae's voice broke Ying from her reverie.
"Oh, three this afternoon."
Hisae nodded. "Hmm…that means we have about three hours before they come. That should be enough time."
"Huh? Enough time for what?"
"You said that they were coming after basketball practice right? I am thinking of having afternoon tea with them before we start working on the project, what do you think?"
"That's not a bad idea. But you'll have to prepare some stuff right?"
"Yea, I'm going to make a Tiramisu cake for afternoon tea."
"Tira what!?" Ying gasped at the foreign word.
"Tiramisu. It's an Italian desert." Hisae said as she turned to open the pantry, looking for the necessary ingredients and her recipe, and then the fridge for more ingredients.
Ying gawked at the various ingredients, ranging from sugar to coffee flavored liqueur and mascarpone cheese. Hisae flipped the pages of a clear folder to the page containing the recipe for Tiramisu.
"Hey, I'll help."
"OK. Demo…I thought you just got a dressing-down from our home economics teacher the other day?" Hisae teased.
Ying blushed and pouted. "So what if I'm butterfingers when it comes to cooking?"
Hisae held back a laugh. "Anyways, let's start on the cake k? Because it requires some refrigerating time ne."
The two girls then began opening boxes and packages. The normally easy and minimal preparation time required recipe turned out more strenuous than normal, with Ying's help at it. Finally giving up, Hisae shooed Ying away after an hour of constant messing up due to her clumsiness around the kitchen. As Ying walked away pouting, the door bell rang. Hisae looked up at Ying who shrugged in gesture of not knowing who was at the door.
"Ano, can you get the door please Ying?"
"K." Ying said and walked to open the door in her rather untidy looking state.
o o o o o
"How come you're calling the practice off early today Akagi?" Mitsui asked as he caught up with the leaving captain and vice-captain.
"Exams are coming up and all of us have some sort of end-of-term project or assignment to finish off, so I thought everyone would need the extra time." Akagi said a-matter-of-factly.
"I see. Then where are you two heading off to?" The point guard asked blandly.
"We're going to Hisae-chan's house to finish off our group project." Kogure answered. He then turned to his best friend, "Did you get Hisae-chan's address from her, Akagi?"
"Well, it was Ying-san who gave it to me actually."
Mitsui raised an eyebrow curiously. "What has that shrew gotta do with this?"
"Maa, maa, be nice ne Mitsui. Ying-san is one of our group partners." Kogure said good-naturedly.
"Hn." Snorted Mitsui.
"Where does Hisae-chan lives anyways? I remember her mentioning that she stays quite close to school." Kogure asked Akagi.
"Let me check." Akagi pulled a piece of paper from his jeans pocket and gawked at the writing on it. "Apparently she does live very close to school indeed."
"What do you mean?" Kogure asked.
"Take a look at this." Akagi handed the piece of paper to Kogure.
Kogure was also stunned by what was written on it. "Se…Setsuge-ka…En?"
"Nani? What did you just say Kogure?" Mitsui asked, as he was not paying attention to his two teammates just now.
Kogure looked at the indigo head, flabbergasted. "Setsuge-ka En. That's where Hisae-chan lives."
This time it was Mitsui's turn to be stunned. The point guard's mouth formed a soundless o. "Wow, she lives in that billion yen establishment?"
"I'm pretty sure that Ying-san did not play a trick on us, so…that would be a yes to your question, Mitsui." Akagi said in an astounded tone.
"Hey, can I tag along with you guys then? I really don't want to miss this chance to get inside that building and take a look around." Mitsui said enthusiastically.
Kogure smiled at his friend. "I'm sure Hisae-chan won't mind. But, with Ying-san there…" He paused then looked at the indigo head teasingly. "Are you sure you wanted to come with us because you wanted to look around Setsuge-Ka En and not because of the presence of someone?"
Mitsui knew who that someone Kogure referred to was and blushed beet-red. "Urusai Kogure!"
Akagi and Kogure grinned at the indigo head's predicament and burst out laughing.
o o o o o
"Ying-san?" Kogure gawked at the chocolate powder and don't-know-what-else-covered Ying.
In a similar manner of disbelief, Akagi looked at Ying while Mitsui burst out laughing.
Ying narrowed her eyes and snapped at the indigo head. "What are you doing here? We never invited you!"
Mitsui shrugged and grinned. "But they did." He pointed at the other two boys.
Ying rolled her eyes. "Whatever, come in."
"Ojyamashimasu (1)." The three basketballers chimed in unison.
The three boys were overwhelmed by the spacious and elegant setting of the living area when they walked inside after taking their shoes off. Wow!
Hisae came out from the kitchen wearing an apron and was surprised to see the boys. She bowed. "Aa. Konichiwa minna-san. You're early ne."
The three boys turned to the purple eyed girl and bowed in respect. "Ojyamashimasu."
"Aa. Iie." Hisae said and gestured for them to take a seat in the living room. "Ano, please make yourselves comfortable."
"Otsukaresama (2)." Kogure said as he took a seat at one of the sofas.
"Please excuse me for a little while." Hisae smiled and returned to the kitchen.
"What happened to you?" Mitsui grinned at Ying.
"NOYB!" Ying humped and walked into the guest room to clean herself up.
Mitsui looked at Kogure questioningly. "What's NOYB?"
Kogure stifled a laughed. "Ano, it means none of your business."
"What!? The nerve of that girl!" Mitsui hissed.
Hisae returned shortly with three tall glasses of cold barley tea in a tray. She placed the teas in front of each of the boys. "Ying and I will be with you shortly, sorry about making you wait."
"No, it's us who should apologize. We showed up earlier than intended without prior notice." Akagi interrupted apologetically.
Hisae shook her head and smiled gently. "Iie, daijoubu. Just make yourselves comfortable for now."
With that, the purple eyed girl returned to the kitchen to finish off the last steps of the Tiramisu cake while the three boys looked around the condominium with fascination.
"Man! This is the latest technology in home theatre!" Exclaimed Mitsui as he looked at the large screened plasma TV, and its accompaniments. "Shitsuki must be really loaded."
"Don't think we need you to tell us that." Grunted Akagi as he shook his head at his teammate's boorish antics.
Kogure walked over to the baby grand and placed a hand on it, smiling. He then noticed a something golden gleamed as it caught the sunlight. He walked to the left side of the piano and saw an alto sax standing in its holding-stand. Piano and saxophone. She must be talented…
"Eeto, did you guys hear a scratching sound just now?" Mitsui asked as he began to snoop around for the source of the sound.
Kogure turned and shook his head, as did Akagi who was sitting comfortably in the sofa.
"Ano, I think I found the source of the scratching sound, or should I say I found the thing that was scratching at its cage." Mitsui said as he took Lucian and his cage over to the coffee table from the foot of the grandfather clock. "I think it wants out."
Placing Lucian's cage on the coffee table, Mitsui opened it slowly. The Birman kitten sprang out of the cage as soon as its door opened. Mitsui fell back and his back hit one of the soft sofas as he caught Lucian.
"Hey there little fellow." Mitsui said as he stroked Lucian's fur.
"Meow~" Lucian purred at the point guard's gentle stroking.
Kogure came over and patted Lucian's head. "Cute koneko ne."
"Didn't know you guys like cats." Akagi said as he looked at his teammates, a little stunned by the fact, especially by the gentle actions of the ex-gangster.
"No one asked for you opinion Akagi." Mitsui scoffed.
"Ok, ok, don't need to be so hyped up about it." Akagi held up both hands in submission.
Kogure just smiled at both of his friends.
Ying came out of the guest room newly refreshed and walked over to the living room. "Hey what are you guys...?"
Mitsui looked up and walked over to Ying whose face had greened suddenly. "We're just playing with koneko here. Hey, you ok? You don't look too good."
Ying backed a few steps. "Stay away from me!"
"Why?" Mitsui grinned badly as he noticed Ying's eyes were fixed on the kitten in his arms. He stepped forward as she stepped back.
"Go away you jerk!" Ying shouted as her face paled by another shade. By then, Ying was off-colored and Mitsui felt his heart fell at this sight of her. Forgetting that he was holding Lucian in his arms, he tried to inch closer to make sure that she was all right.
"Ying…" The indigo mumbled concernedly.
"Argh! Get away from me, fur ball!" Ying screamed at the top of her lungs.
Lucian had sprung out of Mitsui's hands and onto Ying's shoulders. Her allergy soon kicked in and she grabbed the kitten roughly, throwing it onto the nearest sofa.
"I'm gonna…go…ah choo…gonna skin…ah choo…you alive…ah choo…alive one of these days!" Ying gritted her teeth as she grabbed a tissue from its box, her eyes starring daggers at both Lucian and Mitsui.
Hisae had just put the cake into the refrigerator when she heard Ying's threat. She ran out of the kitchen and saw Ying sneezing badly, and her eyes watery. She rushed over to her friend's side, grabbing a box of tissue with her.
"Are you alright?" She asked Ying worriedly.
Ying nodded as she took some more tissue out of its box. "I'll wait for you guys in the study."
Hisae nodded while Ying turned and headed for the study. When Ying was gone, Hisae walked over to the sofa Lucian had curled up in after the scary incident he endured. She knelt and picked up the shaking kitten and patted it gently.
"You've been a naughty boy ne, Lucian. You shouldn't have upset Ying-nee chan ne." She spoke softly with slight irritation and concern in her voice.
"His name is Lucian?" Kogure asked as he knelt next to her by the sofa.
Hisae looked up and looked into his warm brown eyes. "Hai…" She said softly as her cheeks pinked slightly.
"Nice name." He smiled at her and reached out a hand to pat Lucian.
She smiled shyly back at him. "Sankyu (3)."
Mitsui glanced at Akagi and they smiled a knowing smile as they both gestured toward the pair with the kitten.
Hisae put Lucian back into his cage and said, "Now be a good koneko and go to sleep?"
Lucian meowed softly then curled into a ball, and closed his large blue eyes. Hisae smiled affectionately at the antics of the koneko.
She stood up and faced her classmates. "Gentlemen, if you will please follow me, we will work on our project in the study."
The three basketballers followed Hisae into the study; a spacious room furniture with two large oak book shelves along one of the walls and a large glass study table with a desktop pc and a laptop on it. Ying was already seated at one of the chairs. She was playing a card game on the pc.
Each of them took their seats, took out their assigned part of the project, and began working. Mitsui on the other hand had nothing to do, so he strolled over to the book shelves and took a book off it by random. He plopped himself in one of the chairs next to Akagi and began reading. Ying raised an eyebrow at Mitsui's actions, as she found a new side to the wayward point guard.
Kami-sama! That arrogant bastard is reading?! The sun must have risen from the west today. Ying snickered mentally.
"Ying, are you ok?" Hisae asked seeing her friend's frown.
"Nandamonai." Ying shook her head. "Let's get to work."
Their end-of-term history project was finally done after two hours of hard work. Each of them stretched their rigid limbs as Hisae pressed the print icon on her pc. The sound of a printer hard at work soon filled the room.
"If Eguchi sensei doesn't give us an A+ on this stupid project, I'm gonna chew his head off." Ying yelped as she massaged her stiff neck muscles with her right hand.
"Ha! As if that's possible!" Snorted Mitsui as he put down the book he was reading.
Ying sneered at Mitsui but did not say anything. She had lost too many brain cells after working on the project, so she chose conserve her energy, for now.
Hisae was collecting the printed pages as Ying asked her about the cake. "Is your cake ready, Hisae?"
Hisae glanced at the wall clock and nodded. "Should be. It's been the fridge for long enough."
"Great! Let's go have some cake then." Ying chirped happily.
"What cake?" Mitsui asked with a raised brow.
"Tiramisu." Hisae replied with a smile before Ying could start snapping sadistically at Mitsui. "A simple but nice Italian desert."
Mitsui grinned teasingly. "Did you make a cake so that you can celebrate Kogure's birthday?"
Hisae blushed furiously at his words, as did Kogure. "I didn't know…" She mumbled. Ying, why didn't you remind me?
"Yeah?" Mitsui winked at Kogure, causing the brown eyed boy to blush further.
"Hey, let's pack things up and go have some cake ne?" Ying said cheerfully.
Hisae gave her a thankful look and smiled. Kogure let out a silent sigh of relief. Mitsui burst out laughing while Ying scowled at him. Akagi just sat there smiling.
Everyone was seated on the thick carpet of the living room when Hisae brought out the cake. Ying had set the plates and forks, also the drinks earlier. Hisae placed the cake in front of Kogure.
"Sorry but I don't have any candles at home." Hisae said with a shrug.
Kogure smiled at her and shook his head faintly. "It's ok. Besides, we don't need any candles for you guys to know my age right?" He winked at her playfully.
Hisae blushed a little and sat back.
"Ne, let's sing and wish Kogure-kun a happy birthday." Ying said happily. "Oh, and Hisae, why don't you play the piano so we can sing to the tune?"
Hisae nodded and got up from her seat beside Ying. She walked over to the baby grand and opened its covers then sat down on the bench. She turned and looked at her friends, nodding to indicate that she would start playing now. The soft tune of happy birthday soon flowed into the air as her fingers pressed the ivory keys, and she and her friends began singing to the tune.
They cheered three cheers after the song, and Hisae returned to her seat on the floor beside Ying. Ying took over the job of cutting the cake and handed the slices to everyone.
"Itekimasu." They said in unison.
"Sugoi. This is delicious Hisae!" Ying said wide-eyed.
Hisae held a hand up to her mouth as she stifled a laugh. "Ying, the cream on your lips."
Ying quickly wiped her lips with a piece of tissue. "Gone?"
Hisae nodded.
"Shitsuki, looks like you really can cook ne?" Mitsui held up a thumb to Hisae.
"Not really." Hisae blushed slightly at his compliment.
"If you don't call this good cooking, then I don't know what is." Akagi smiled.
"Thanks Akagi-kun." She smiled back at her tall classmate shyly.
"What Mitsui and Akagi said was true ne Hisae-chan. If you weren't a good cook then you wouldn't be able to make such a scrumptious cake." Kogure said softly as he smiled.
"Arigatou for your compliments ne, Kogure-kun, Akagi-kun and Mitsui-kun." Hisae said blushing. Her heart was flying high when Kogure praised her cooking.
"Hisae, there was something I've been meaning to ask you." Ying said as she helped herself to a second piece of the Tiramisu.
"Eh? Nani?"
"That saxophone of yours. I have seen you play the piano but I have never seen you play your sax. Naze?" Ying eyed Hisae as she forked the Tiramisu.
"Oh that." Hisae uttered. "Well, I just took up the saxophone at the beginning of this year and I'm afraid that I'm still not very good at it."
"Why don't you play something for us?" Kogure asked and smiled reassuringly at her.
Hisae tilted her head as she pondered on the suggestion and nodded.
"What would you like to hear?" She asked them.
"I know!" Ying pushed her fork and hand into the air exuberantly. "One More Time, that song sung by Chante Moore with Kenny G playing in the background?"
"Oh please! That's so sappy!" Mitsui groaned.
Ying shot him a death glare while Hisae furrowed her brows as she recalled that piece of music.
"Shut up you baka, what do you know about music anyways?" Ying sneered.
"Hn. More than you think!" Mitsui snapped back.
"Yea right. You know music and pigs can fly!" Ying mocked.
"Hmm…I don't know. I don't guarantee anything, but I'll try k?" As she was too engrossed in her thoughts, Hisae was oblivious to the little bickering between Ying and Mitsui.
Ying nodded her head frantically in agreement. Mitsui groaned out of despair again, and Ying shot him another death glare telling him to shut up. All these happened while Kogure and Akagi watched sweat-dropping.
Hisae got up from her seat and walked over to the saxophone. Sitting herself on the piano bench, she picked up the sax and adjusted the mouthpiece before blowing a few notes to make sure that the mouthpiece was secured. The touching melody of One More Time reverberated through the room capturing everyone's heart. Hisae closed her eyes as she played. She had only heard this piece once when she and Ying visited the local CD store. For some reason, this song sank immediately into her head. Now, she was playing the tune from memory.
When the tune ended, the magic enveloping everyone broke as well. Hisae removed the mouthpiece and returned the sax to its stand.
"Wow, you call yourself a beginner when you can play like that?" A gaping Mitsui said in disbelief.
Hisae smiled and shrugged. "I started learning the sax only just this year."
"You must be a fast learner then." Akagi added.
"Guess so…" Hisae mumbled and smiled weakly to herself.
"Ne minna-san, I've got a suggestion." Mitsui announced and winked at Kogure. "Since it is Kogure's birthday today, why don't we go out for dinner later?"
"Not a bad suggestion. What do you think Kogure? It is your birthday after all." Akagi said thoughtfully.
"Even a brainless mule can come up with a good suggestion once in a while." Ying said insultingly.
"Hey, watch it!" Mitsui sneered.
"I guess we can go to dinner together. But if we go directly from here, I'll have to ring home to let my parents know first." Kogure said.
"I agree." Said Akagi, nodding his head.
"Hisae? What do you think?" Ying turned to the quiet purple eyed girl.
Hisae smiled and nodded.
"K, since everyone agreed, then we'll all go to dinner later." Ying said jovially. She glanced at the grandfather clock and frowned, "It's only four thirty. We have lots of time before dinner ne, so what about watching a movie before we head out for dinner?"
"Nothing good's on at the theatres." Mitsui grumbled.
"Ch. Who asked you anyways?" Ying stuck a tongue out at the indigo head. "Besides, I was talking about watching a movie here. Hisae has a collection of some quality movies right here."
Ying went over to the cabinet, which held the home theatre system and took out a stack of DVDs.
"Whatever." Mitsui rolled his eyes. Then he noticed something different about Ying and started staring at her.
Sensing someone is gazing intensely at her back; Ying turned around abruptly and looked the culprit in the eyes. "What?!" She glared at Mitsui.
"Your eyes…" Mitsui pointed. "You wore contacts before didn't you?"
"So what if I did?" Ying huffed grumpily.
"Nothing. Just that your eyes look good as they are." Mitsui shrugged.
Ying froze as if struck by thunder. Her face twitched as she glared harder at the Shohoku point guard. "Who asked for you opinion anyways? Besides, is that even supposed to be a pick-up line? If it is, it is the worst one I have ever heard. Go and think up something more creative before you try to use them on me next time. That line was just pure lame since it's been used so many times in the past and history has it that it is one line that always failed. But I guess you just can't get the idea through that thick, mushy brain of yours. So the conclusion and word of advice to you is, don't attempt over-used pickup lines because it will never work."
She turned back to the DVDs, ignoring everyone and everything around her. Especially one very embarrassed and enraged Mitsui.
The others watched this little incident with a sweat-dropping contest.
o o o o o
It was almost six thirty when they finished watching the movie at Hisae's condo. When they were going out for dinner, Hisae told them to go on ahead while she went into her room to fetch something. She opened the drawer of one of her bedside table, took out a wrapped box, and put it into her shoulder bag. She then let Lucian out of his cage and shut the door of the condo.
When they were walking to Danny's, they passed an open-aired evening concert at the nearby park. They stopped to listen to the band playing for a while before went their way again. When the band ended the song they were playing, one of its members spotted the group of five.
"Yo! Mitsui!" Band member no.1 called.
Mitsui waved back. "Yo!"
"Mitsui, come and join us!" Band member no.2 shouted.
Mitsui smiled and shook his head to decline the invitation.
"Oh c'mon Mitsui, you've joined us before!" Band member no.3 hollered.
Before Mitsui could answer, a petite girl with her face donned in heavy makeup hooked onto his arms and pulled him toward the stage. "C'mon Hisashi-kun."
"Ooi! Cho…chotto matte!" Mitsui yelped as he was dragged onto the stage.
The four Shohoku students just stood there and watched as their friend was dragged away, flabbergasted.
"Aa. So nice of you to join us finally, Mitsui." Band member no.4 patted the point guard's shoulders and said to the other members. "Guys, we should do Mitsui's usual number ne?"
"Yosh!" All the band members shouted cheerfully, including the petite girl.
The girl swung an electric guitar over Mitsui's shoulders. And before he could refuse, the drummer had already started on the cue. Thus, the indigo head could only go along and start playing on cue.
The song they played was Ken Hirai's Kiss of Life. As the fast beat music rang out from the stage, Mitsui began to sing with his deep, sensual voice. The audience below, especially the female audience became ecstatic when he sang. He smirked and pointed a finger at Ying during the refrain as if reminding her of what he had said earlier: He knows a lot more about music than she thinks.
Ying was furious at his action. If looks could kill, Mitsui would look like a bee hive and very dead on the ground. Her eyes were flaming with white rage.
When the song ended, his smirking grin widened from ear to ear. He stepped in front of the microphone, "Miss Zhi Ying, would you like to join me on stage?" He taunted in a seducing tone with his magnetic voice.
Hisae watched Ying closely as she saw her friend's face turned from red to scarlet. Ying clenched her fists and took a step forward.
"Ying…" Hisae began but stopped when she saw the determination on Ying's face.
Ying continued to walk toward the stage with stiff steps and her face cold without expression.
"Daijoubu?" Kogure asked as he stepped up next to Hisae.
Hisae looked up at him and smiled weakly. "I hope so."
Kogure put a hand on her shoulders and squeezed slightly in reassurance. "Should be ok, don't worry."
Hisae nodded and smiled again, but with thanks this time.
When Ying stepped onto the stage, she scowled at Mitsui. "I will shut you up once and for all."
"Oh yea, how? If I may ask." Mitsui grinned.
"Hn." Ying was too enraged to quarrel with him. She just walked over to the electric piano the group had set up and sat down in front of it. She smirked at Mitsui and put her hands onto the keyboard. Mitsui stood there waiting for her to do something when she banged the keyboard brashly, making the most horrendous clanging sounds. The band members, Mitsui, and all the audience gawked at Ying. Soon, Mitsui broke out laughing.
"Ahahahahahaha! You call that playing? Ahahahahahaha!" Mitsui exclaimed cynically as he laughed.
Ying… Hisae looked at her friend worriedly.
Then…the horrible noise was gone and replacing it was the soft tune of A Comme Amour, composed by Paul de Senneville and Olivier Toussaint, a piece of piano music made famous by Richard Clayderman. The racket died down as soon as the music began and Ying smirked victoriously at the gaping Mitsui. She shot him a look saying: who is laughing now? Not only Mitsui gaped like a fool at Ying. The band members and audience who booed at Ying before were also gawking at her with their o-shaped mouths.
"That's a really nice piece she playing ne." Kogure commented.
Hisae nodded. "That is A Comme Amour."
"You know the piece?" Kogure raised and eyebrow.
Hisae only nodded and did not reply.
When Ying finished the last note of the piece, she stood up from the bench and walked over to Mitsui gracefully. She smiled sweetly at him.
"I may be a brash and hot headed person most of the times, but all that are just my ways of expressing myself. What is on the outside does not matter much; it is what is held within that matter most. Hope this taught you a lesson about not judging people by their looks in the future."
When she finished what she wanted to say, she turned on her heel and walked off the stage. She smiled at Hisae, Kogure and Akagi. "Ikimasho?"
Hisae nodded and walked off with Ying. "You were great Ying."
"Thanks." Ying stuck her tongue out cutely and smiled broadly. The brightest smile she had smiled in quite a while.
Kogure glanced at his friend who was still on stage and said, "Ano Mitsui? Are you still coming to dinner with us?"
Not getting any reply from the flabbergasted indigo head, Kogure and Akagi shrugged and walked off without their teammate.
"O…ooi! Chotto matte guys! Wait for me! Matte!" Mitsui shouted at the backs of his companions when he finally broke out of his trance. He jumped off the stage and dashed to catch up with his teammates.
o o o o o
Dinner was a rather quiet one since there was no Mitsui-Ying brawl for once. Ying ignore the indigo head totally, even when Mitsui tried to apologize to her. When Mitsui couldn't stand the tension anymore, he blurted out the sacred words. However, Ying scoffed at his apology and thus, another fight ensued.
After dinner, Kogure and Hisae walked home together since their houses were in the same direction while the others separated. When they were in front of Setsuge-ka En's gates, Hisae pulled out the wrapped box she had in her bag and gave it to Kogure.
"Ne Kogure-kun. Otanjoubi omedetou." Hisae said softly with a gentle smile.
"But…" Kogure gasped in surprise.
"It's just something small, please accept it."
"You shouldn't have." He took the box and smiled sheepishly.
"This was intended for onii-san, but since it's your birthday, and I haven't bought anything for you… Anyways, I hope this little substitution won't offend you ne." She said while blushing.
"Iie. Thank you for the present Hisae-chan." He smiled. "What's in the box?"
"Open it and find out yourself. It won't be a surprise if I told you." Although she was blushing, there was still a hint of teasing in her tone.
The bespectacled boy raised an eyebrow at her then he began to take the wrapping off. When the unwrapped box revealed the TAG Heuer emblem, Kogure froze in surprise. He was more surprise when he saw the content within the box, a black-faced watch from TAG Heuer's Kirium series.
"I can't accept this. This is way too costly." He gasped and closed the box, wanting to return the watch to her.
She pushed his hand back. "Iie. I bought it during the sales, so it didn't cost that much. Please accept it Kogure-kun."
"Demo…"
"Just accept it please? If you don't like it as a birthday gift, think of it as a thank you gift from me then? A thank you gift for helping me during the past few months?" She said in a rather pleading tone.
He heaved a sigh then nodded. "I'll accept it, but only this once k?"
Hisae nodded and her eyes sparkled as she smiled up at him. Kogure was dazed by her smile. The two just stood there in the balmy summer night staring into each other's eyes while blushing furiously.
"Ano, it's late. Oyasumi Kogure-kun." She said shyly and ran inside.
Kogure stood there staring after her tracks and smiled like a big idiot for a while before heading home…
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akane の teahouse…
K… Let me start with a big declaration: I don't own any of the music or songs mentioned in the fic. :~ Another thing is…honto ni arigato MoonGlow-san for helping out again!!! :D
Now…I don't know if I need to explain the 3 jab words/phrases I numbered in the fic or not, but if you as a reader do need them clarified, here they are:
(1) Ojyamashimasu ~ A phrase the Japs say when they visit someone's home, kind of an shy or subtle way of saying sorry to bother you.
(2) Otsukaresama ~ Another way of saying thank you, but on the basis of being offered something.
(3) Sankyu ~ The direct translation of 'thank you' from English to Jap, i.e. katakana X_x
Ano… That's it from me then, hopes you guys liked this chapter :) Bye Bye~
The lazy neko signing out~ =^.^=
P/S: Don't forget to drop me a review ne? 10Q~ ^_~