Chapter 4: Summer Sunshine
Sweet beginnings
And bitter endings
And coffee's sitting
We've borrowed heaven
Don't give it back
I've never felt so wanted
Are you taking me home?
You tell me have to go
The heat of summer sunshine
I miss you
Like nobody else in the heat of
Summer sunshine
I'll kiss you
And nobody needs to know
Summer Sunshine – The Corrs
Aeris knocked on the door to the music room. Shera nodded her in. It was time for her one-on-one session
"Hello Aeris."
"Hi Shera."
"Well, what shall we work on today? Written any more songs?"
"A couple of drafts."
They sat down at a table and Shera smiled as Aeris handed her the notebook.
"Have you given any thought to the Christmas Concert?" She asked.
"No… we were going to plan it next lesson."
"Alright then. But you all have to do a solo piece. By the way, how is Yuffie doing on piano? She seemed far more confident yesterday."
"I know! She's doing really well. She's playing simple tunes with both hands and she wants to start writing her own music."
"Wonderful. Everyone is doing so well. And Cid has been telling me about some of his students. This year's lot are an extremely talented bunch by all accounts."
"My friend is in Cid's class. Cloud Strife."
"You know Cloud? Cid thinks he's great. Won't stop raving about him!"
They turned back to the music. Shera looked at her over the rim of her glasses.
"Aeris, I want you to work on your voice."
"My voice?"
"I know you love to play instruments but you've also got a fantastic voice. I want you to use it in the Christmas Concert. You can play as well, but I'm going to insist that you sing."
"Well… the thing is that I get nervous about singing in front of other people."
"You sing fine in class."
"Well it's different to be in front of fifteen other music students." Aeris pointed out. Shera smiled.
"Sing me this one." She said, pushing music towards her.
Aeris looked at it.
"Summer Sunshine? I haven't really had time to practise that one."
"I don't care. Sing it."
Aeris took a deep breath.
"Everyone's changing
I stay the same
I'm a solo cello
Outside a chorus
I've got a secret
It's time for me to tell it
You've been keeping me warm
Sweet beginnings
And bitter endings
And coffee's sitting
We've borrowed heaven
Don't give it back
I've never felt so wanted
Are you taking me home?
You tell me have to go
The heat of summer sunshine
I miss you
Like nobody else in the heat of
Summer sunshine
I'll kiss you
And nobody needs to know."
She stopped. Shera continued to watch her carefully.
"That was good. But you need practise. Get Yuffie to help you with vocals, in return for the piano lessons, OK?"
"OK."
"Good. Now let's see how you are with that Saxophone."
Aeris sat at the counter in the café. Barret was counting through the till before the lunchtime rush came in. Aeris was reading through on her literature books. Yuffie was at her music session, and Cloud and Tifa were in Media Production.
She was reading Jane Eyre. Sipping her coffee, she turned a page. It was a good book. Professor Jenova had told them to make notes on the interaction of sexes in the book and how they applied to modern day life.
She made some notes on pad of paper and continued to read.
"Refill, Aeris?" She looked up. Barret held a coffeepot. She nodded and he filled her cup.
"Hey, Aeris, do you like art?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Because a friend gave me this ticket to an art exhibition nearby. It's at the museum. But I hate art and that kinda stuff. D'you want it?"
"Sure, that'd be great!" Aeris said, smiling. Barret handed over the ticket and turned to serve a customer. Aeris read the ticket. It was for that night. She slipped it into her purse and returned to Jane Eyre.
"An art exhibition? Booring!" Yuffie groaned. She, Cloud, Tifa and Aeris were sat in Tifa and Aeris's room.
"Just because you don't appreciate art…" Aeris said calmly. Cloud poked her.
"Do you want to go to a movie tomorrow night?"
"Sure. Oh, your mom sent me a package."
"Huh?"
She fetched the box. He opened it and started to laugh.
"No way."
"Way. All of your old comic books. I'm surprised you didn't bring them with you."
"Why'd she send them to you?" Yuffie asked.
"Because Cloud's mom knows him. He always forgets to pick up his mail."
They spent the rest of the day reading the comic books. Tifa looked at Cloud.
"These are probably quite valuable now."
"Probably. I'd never sell them though."
"You guys want to head over to the café? Barret's trying out a new pastry recipe and he wants us to try it." Tifa said.
As they walked to the café, Cloud put an arm around Aeris's shoulders.
"Aeris? My dear, darling Aeris?"
"What do you want?"
"Just a teensy little thing…"
"Cloud, I don't believe I've shown you the latest move from my self-defence class." Aeris said casually. He grinned.
"OK, it's this. We're making mini-documentaries in Media Production and I want to do mine on poverty in third world countries."
"Nice positive choice." Yuffie interrupted. Cloud ignored her.
"But I need help with the music. I don't suppose, me being your bestest best friend in the whole wide world-"
"I'll help you."
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"But only if you stop sucking up and buy me a coffee." She finished as they walked into the café.
They sat at the counter and Barret said,
"The usual?"
"We've been here, what, a month? And we already have usuals." Yuffie said.
"Thanks Barret. Oh, and let's have a couple of the new pastries." Cloud asked. As Barret prepared the coffee, Tifa asked,
"When's the next open mic night?"
"Thursday. Two days away, and we've got no entries for it. Hey, you two do music. Sign up." Barret said, eyeing Yuffie and Aeris. Yuffie jumped up and scribbled her name on. Aeris shook her head.
"I don't think so. I don't do public performances."
"Which is kind of a bummer, since you know, you have to perform in the Christmas Concert." Yuffie said, biting into a pastry. Aeris shrugged and ate her own cake.
"Hey, Barret, these are great!"
"Thanks. Think I should put them out?"
"Absolutely. Anyway, I'll ask in the music class and see if we can get some of the others to sign up for it." Aeris said, brushing herself down.
Yuffie returned to her own dorm to finish a paper and Tifa and Cloud sat down in Tifa's room to discuss their Media Productions. Aeris had already left for the arts exhibition.
"I could go for the easy way out." Tifa said, doodling on the corner of a paper pad.
"How do you mean?"
"Well… how about 'The Day in the Life of a University Student'?"
Cloud thought about it.
"That's actually not a bad idea. You could turn into a comedy thing. And then Computer Department could put it on the internet for future students."
"Really? You think I should go for it?"
"Yeah."
They sat in silence for a while, and then Tifa said quietly,
"I'm glad I got Aeris for a roommate."
"She's the best, isn't she?"
"Yeah. I've never met anyone quite like her. She's so…"
"I know what you mean. There isn't quite a word for her. Even when we were little, she was the same. Always so sweet and kind, but she was so much fun. She always knew the best places to play and she was so kind to everybody. When her mother married Professor Gast, she fell in love with him. A lot people, if their parents remarry, they instinctively hate them. Not Aeris. She was over the moon that she finally had a daddy."
Tifa didn't speak. Cloud smiled and patted her shoulder.
"What's up?"
"Nothing. It's just so good to have you guys."
Art intrigued Aeris. It was like music, in a way. It was a person's heart and feelings poured out onto canvas, the way musicians poured theirs into music. There weren't many people at the art exhibition, but Aeris preferred it that way. The quiet atmosphere was wonderful. It was almost as if the museum was in a different time zone to the rest of the city. The bustling world she could faintly hear outside seemed a million miles away from the white walls, hardwood floors and colourful creations of the museum.
She stopped in front of a painting. It looked different from all of the other paintings. It was of sunny park. The painted sun shone done on the scene. There were trees of various sizes and types growing. Aeris could see each blade of grass and every leaf on the trees. It looked like a beautiful summer's day.
But there was a tree in the very centre of the painting. It was dead. There were no leaves on its branches, which were twisted and parched white. The sun seemed harsh on its limbs, in contrast to how warm and soft it seemed on the other trees.
Aeris stared at it. It seemed so out of place here. It was as if she were looking out of the window instead of at a painting. It was so realistic. She wondered who had painted it, why he had painted it.
"Hello again." She jumped. Vincent Valentine stood behind her. She put a hand to her chest.
"You made me jump."
"I noticed. You like the painting?"
"Yes… it's amazing. It's so… I don't know. Well, I do, but it's as if I can't find words to describe it."
"You sound like a true artist." He said wryly.
"How do you mean?"
"Artists make art because they can't speak."
"I'm not an artist. I'm a musician." Aeris said. She looked back at the painting. "But it's the same. I make music because I don't have words."
Neither spoke for some time. Then Vincent said,
"I hate this painting."
"What? Why? It's so beautiful."
"It's not the art itself. That's satisfactory. It's what it represents."
"Boy, critical much?" Aeris said with a little smile. Vincent looked as if he was going to smile but he didn't.
"That's the problem with being an artist. You find yourself criticising others far too much."
"Everyone does that. It's only human to judge other people." Aeris said. She turned to him.
"So what does the painting represent?"
"It's not a picture of a tree. Its how the artist feels. It's the artist's emotion of loneliness, of feeling dead among the living. It's the tallest tree in the picture. It tried hard to get where it was but now it's failed by dying." Vincent told her, keeping his eyes on the painting.
Aeris scanned the picture.
"Wow."
"Hmm. I didn't expect to see you here." He said, as they walked on to the next painting.
"I got a ticket from a friend."
"I didn't know you like art."
"It interests me. I couldn't say that I love it the way I love music. But they're not that different. They both play on the senses."
After looking at the rest of the paintings, they started the fifteen minute walk to the campus.
"Do you live on campus?" Aeris asked. Vincent shook his head.
"No. I own my own flat nearby."
"Really? That's pretty cool."
"I need my own space. What dorm do you live in?" Vincent asked her
"The Avalanche Dorm."
"Near Barret's café?"
"Yes. You go there a lot." Aeris said.
"It has a good atmosphere. I see you there a lot."
"My roommate's dad owns the place. We get discounts." Aeris said, laughing. She rubbed her head.
"It's nice there. I was so afraid that I wouldn't be able to make any friends here."
Whatever Vincent might have said next was drowned out by a roll of thunder. Aeris looked up to see lightening strike some way off, and then another roll of thunder. A second later it started to rain. Hard. Vincent called over the noise,
"Follow me. We can wait it out at my flat."
And he started off down a side street. Aeris followed, somewhat apprehensively.