Chapter 3: Fanfare to Nostalgia

The plan worked well. Too well. Aoi began listening to In a Sentimental Mood by Duke Ellington on repeat as she studied into the following week. It was even tempting to play a few bars with her sax. The memories she kept bottled up through intense studying were spilling forth with no end in sight. Aoi struggled to put a stopper on them so she could focus on the assigned books. But using her work as an escape, or at least a distraction, was proving far harder than it was before. Becoming mechanically absorbed in math problems or writing a dry history essay was easy. Now that she solely studied literature, it was impossible to read novels without some emotions being elicited.

The constant themes Aoi found in her literature assignments were a kind of alienation and confusion. Be it from the rapid modernization in the Meiji era or the chaos and rebirth of Japan after the war. It was hard to tell if this trend was due to her selection of books or her simply gravitating towards it, seeing it in everything she read. The idea of being torn apart in different directions—drawn into the past, yearning for the future, being isolated by differing ideals—was harrowing. Yet, it resonated with Aoi as the torrent of memories resurfaced.

They were still mostly blurred snippets, appearing even in her dreams. An afternoon spent in classroom 3-2 with the saxophonist. A rainy-day where time crawled as they waited for the showers to pass in the music room. An argument between her and some juniors outside the executive committee room. Most of the time, it was hard to even pinpoint which year it was, unable to recall any faces. But strangely, she could remember the minute details, like the colour of their scarfs, for what little good that did. The colours were recycled with each batch, giving her no temporal grounding.

The one bright spot in her lonely, internally turbulent weekend was Haruka. Besides late in their first year at Kitauji, they had never texted this much. Sadly, it was impossible to follow that tangent down memory lane. It had all happened in the distant past of 2013 as LINE was on the verge of the dominant texting application. Aoi, of course, was a late adopter, stubbornly clinging to text messages until her hand was forced. All those SMSs were long gone.

"What time do you finish classes today?" Haruka asked as their train rolled into Demachiyanagi Station.

It was much easier to remain awake with someone else on the early morning commute to campus with Aoi.

"Around four in the afternoon,"

"Could you wait for me?" Haruka said, her grip tightening around the strap of her bag. "I end a little later today."

"Of course," Aoi said with a bright smile. She did not want to go home alone either. Their schedules aligned relatively well, both with morning classes each day. "I'll just stop by the band room for a bit. There's supposed to be an update on our upcoming plans."

The train doors slid open, prompting them to alight.

"They didn't announce it over LINE?"

"Not everyone is in the group, apparently," Aoi sighed. Just another one of their inefficiencies.

With over a hundred members, at least on paper, it was impossible to manage a chat group. Everything was buried continuously by new waves of text. Some of the more detached members just opted to leave the group entirely because of the unending barrage of idle chatter. Aside from in-person announcements, which quickly got repetitive, they used an old-fashion bulletin board in the band room.

Haruka sucked in the air between her teeth. This kind of haphazard organization was unbearable to her. "How do you guys even function…"

"We don't really. The past two weeks have been kind of aimless."

"You're not preparing for anything?"

"No idea. They aren't going to participate in the All-Japan Competition. I guess there must be some other events coming up."

"Like the station concert?"

"Maybe," Aoi mumbled.

Before their final year, Kitauji had never been invited to appear for public performances. SunFest was about as far as it got. And that was because it was open to all high schools that were wanted to participate. The university open days and cultural festival were still far away in the next semester. She could only wonder what a more competent band's timetable looked like.

"If you're free…" Haruka started. She began to sway gently back and forth as they stood on the escalator. "Doshisha has an event going on next week."

"During Golden Week?"

Haruka nodded. "There is some stuff open to the public on campus during the holidays."

"Like a carnival?" Aoi shuddered just thinking of those words. Asuka and Mirai had etched that song into her mind like groves on a record, leaving Aoi able to recall it at will. It was a jolly tune, but their first practice had forever associated it with hand cramps, chaos, and inadequacy.

"Something like that," Haruka muttered. "It's a tradition they brought over from universities in Britain and America."

Aoi was aware that Doshisha was founded by a Protestant educator. It was strongly modelled on Anglo-American colleges, both in appearance and academic tradition. They even had a fancy Latin moto. Veritas liberabit vos: Truth shall make you free. All that aside, she had assumed the student activities were just as Japanese as any other university.

"I think they call it May Morning in England." Haruka continued, sounding uncertain of herself. "There are plenty of performances happening until lunch."

"Oh yeah, that sounds fun!"

Aoi was not sure how she would squeeze that into her schedule. But it was rare to be asked out like this. There was an off chance going to Doshisha could go awry, though it was unlikely since it was a holiday. On a regular school day, that campus was probably best avoided.

"That's not what I meant…" Haruka had her arms behind her back as they walked out of the station. Even though it was early, the riverside path was already bathed in golden light more akin to late morning. Summer was starting its approach as the sun rose earlier and earlier.

Haruka abruptly spun around. Her brown twin tails swayed with the force of her turn, catching the light, giving it a lush gleam. "I want to play something."

"Just the two of us?! Maybe we should get more people? I mean… Norwegian Wood is probably not going to cut it, right? Since this is supposed to be a lively spring event and all."

She was stunned into stillness for a moment, the hope draining out of her expression. "Yeah… your right." Her head drooped as she swung back towards their direction of travel. "I asked the others, but they were also hesitant."

Aoi's mistake had a familiar tinge to it. "Wait…umm, if you want to play, I'll do it as well."

"No," Haruka kept her gaze forward as Aoi continued to trail slightly behind her. "if you don't want to, you shouldn't force yourself. The two of us can't really do much on our own anyway."

Aoi could feel the precious time was slipping away as a silence lingered. "So, how's school? You never gave me any details."

"Oh… it's going okay. All the classes are still doing introductions to public policy and its different branches. It's kind of hard, but nothing compared to what you do at Kyodai."

Aoi was not sure how to respond. Kyodai was undoubtedly more demanding. Its whole reputation as a school was based on that. There was no way Haruka would believe her if she lied. Yet, she could not just concur and give into her souring mood.

"I'm sure it's hard too," Aoi replied. "I have to spend all my free time studying to keep up. And the term just started."

"You wouldn't say it if you went to Doshisha." She sighed.

Said by anyone else, it would have been either faux modesty or a lament at their poor choice of school. But it was Haruka. Her words were disparaging just her abilities, the university being worse off for taking her.

As they walked along the riverbank, Aoi struggled to find a way to stretch out the moments. The junction of Imadegawa road was fast approaching.

"Did you really mean it when you said you would have gone to Doshisha?" Haruka asked.

"Of course."

"Was it your second choice?"

There was a short pause as Aoi again debated lying. "No…"

"Ritsumeikan's been climbing the tables. They'll probably overtake Doshisha permanently." Haruka's expression remained stagnant, as if she already knew the answer somewhere in her heart. "That was your safety, right?"

Aoi vigorously shook her head, hoping to recover from her misstep. "Ryukoku University."

"But they're below Doshisha in the rankings. Was it for their concert band? They win gold at nationals all the time."

While selecting a high school for its band program was acceptable, it was certainly stupid to choose an academic university just based on that. There was no more standardized testing at the end of their studies. For better or for worse, it was the reputation of their institution that gave the degree any weight. If they were really that concerned, they would have gone to music school instead of trying to have it both ways.

"Academic reasons,"

"It can't be for the literature course," Haruka was talking more to herself. "Doshisha has a much better Letters Faculty than the other universities. Except for Kyodai." Ironically, she pointed out how competitive her school was despite all the pessimism.

Aoi saw an opportunity to deflect the conversation. "Did anyone else from the band go to Doshisha? Most of them were on the humanities track."

"Hiroe," Haruka immediately replied. "She's in the Social Sciences Faculty with me. I think the rest are in Letters."

"The rest?" Did everyone in the concert band do that well?

"Some of the clarinets, Torizuka and Hagiwara. I think Kayama is there too, but I haven't seen her. But you should know, right? She's from your class."

Aoi had known Kayama Saki for three years, but they had barely talked. The percussion section was on the opposite side of the room from the saxes. And the only person Saki was not reserved around was Knuckles. But then again, it was hard for anyone to stay reserved around someone so goofy and energetic.

"Aoi, I have to get to school," Haruka said, slowly inching away from her.

They had been talking at the junction for some time. Aoi saw the pedestrian signal turn green as they finished.

"Oh,… right. I'll see you in the evening." Aoi said.

Haruka gave a halfhearted wave before she disappeared into the growing crowd that was crossing the bridge.

Getting their morning walk out of her head was almost impossible. It had this strange sense of familiarity. But one that was entirely imagined. As if Aoi dreamt up this scenario, or something like it, so many times but never consciously remembered it was not reality. It left a residue of longing for something she knew was out of reach, gone with the passage of time.

As she approached the band room, the distinctive sound of a euphonium wafted down from the above. Looking up, the Asuka was perched right at the parapet as she played. The tune her silver euphonium was puffing out had changed, but it still had the same Neapolitan quality as the Carnival of Venice. Aoi was not sure what that was supposed to describe, but she had heard Mirai and Asuka use it.

The music abruptly cut, a brief ray of light blinding her. "Aoi-chan! Come up here."

Aoi struggled to keep her eyes open, using her left hand as a shade. By the way light glanced off it, Asuka's euphonium looked as if it was made of pure chrome. For all she knew, it could be one of those high-grade instruments that were plated with actual sliver.

"I didn't bring my sax today," Aoi replied, still unable to get a clear look at her.

"Never mind that. We can practice some other time."

"I'm just here to read the updates."

"Let's talk about that. I can fill you in." Asuka was persistent, maintaining her upbeat tone.

Aoi grit her teeth before sighing. "Can you at least put your euph down? I can't even see you."

"Oh! Sorry, sorry." Asuka said as she moved her instrument behind the parapet. "Now can you properly bask in my beauty?" She threw her hair back for extra effect, the silver and blue bracelet on her arm glinting briefly as it caught the sun.

Aoi had to admit, she was stunning. Even though Asuka's over the top personality was trying at times, it was endearingly entertaining on good days. As she made the short climb to the roof, another round of the same tune echoed down the stairwell. Aoi had heard it somewhere before but never identified it.

"What's that song?" Aoi asked as she emerged from the shade of the roof access.

"Funiculi, Funicula!" Asuka said as she set her euphonium gently on her chair. "Mirai gave me a copy of the score."

They were getting awfully close. Not just on a first-name basis, but she had stopped bothering with any honorifics. "Is it a Rikka standard?"

"Not really. But they played it last year at SunFest. Rikka likes to do Sing, Sing, Sing. Oh, and plenty of Disney songs, but Mirai can't stand those. I'm just playing this since it's got variations like Carnival of Venice."

"You're done with it already?" Just how talented was Asuka? And why was she squandering it here?

"I just got a bit bored. And I could tell I was getting through Carnival more by memory than actual improvements. So, I changed tune for a bit."

"Wow… I'll never be able to play like that."

"Come on, I know you went to see Haruka, but there's no need to let her lack of confidence rub off on you." Asuka let out a small laugh as a short silence hung in the air.

Of course, Kaori would tell her. Aoi anticipated something like this, but Asuka's sheer gall threw her off. She could feel heat rising to her cheeks as Asuka continued to give her an impish smile.

"You even puff your cheeks up like her!" Asuka teased. "I thought you guys were the perfect pair back in first year!"

Aoi could only huff before she forced the conversation back on track. "I've got to get going soon. What's the band planning?"

"You're going to wish you hadn't heard this."

"Better than just playing on aimlessly," Aoi replied, her hands locked on her hips in irritation.

"Our next performance is only in June."

"What?—"

"It's not the Kyoto competition if that's what you're thinking," Asuka said, cutting her off. "We're playing at a baseball game."

"To support the team?"

"Yup, we're a glorified cheerleading squad." Asuka shrugged. "Even worse. I checked the Kansai Big Six League. Kyodai's never won a championship."

"Never?"

"Nope. They've never won in over eighty years."

There was a short pause as Aoi attempted to grasp the situation. "Well… at least we get to perform, right?"

"Have you seen how these games go? We're supposed to dress up in Showa style gakuran with headbands and do ridiculous cheers. There's no way a prude like you would want to be involved in that."

"Hey! If it's what a university band does, then I'll do it." Aoi caught herself about to puff her cheeks out and pouted instead. "How's this any different from SunFest."

"For one," Asuka said, raising her finger. "Our outfits aren't going to be cute anymore."

"I mean, it's just the boys that dress up all ridiculous, right?"

Aoi had seen pictures of Kyoto University's graduations. The more traditional elements were to be expected. Some students chose to wear kimonos instead of suits. What was incomprehensible was the tradition of cosplaying. Like most bizarre actions, it seemed to be confined to the guys, graduating in ridiculous outfits or cross-dressed as anime characters. It was not her problem if they wanted to immortalize themselves as idiots.

"It's all of us. And don't pretend your gonna be okay with it. You were barely involved with the cultural festivals in high school."

"I always did all the paperwork for you guys. I didn't want to dress up as a maid!"

"Even last year, when we joined with Haruka's class, you couldn't just wear the cape and hat. Not that anyone can ever pressure you into doing something you didn't want to." Asuka shook her head with a sigh. "Our first game is against Ritsumeikan. Their band is way better, and their baseball team are last year's champions. With the way we sound now, we're just going to be a public embarrassment."

"Maybe I should have gone to Doshisha…" Aoi muttered.

"Then you wouldn't have a band."

"I would have joined a light music circle or something. The saxophone is pretty versatile, you know."

"What, you and Haruka going to set up your own jazz group with your saxes?" Asuka's sly smile had returned.

"Maybe…"

"She asked you too, didn't she?" Asuka started to pack up her stuff. Both her bag and euphonium case was on the roof as well. It seemed she had not set foot in the band room at all.

"Did you turn her down?" Aoi's hoped she at least was not alone in her unintentional harshness.

Asuka was the least likely to agree to perform without any purpose. And she had a way of making those around her feel inadequate with her playing. Though definitely aware of that, it was hardly, if ever, toned down. It was not quite a natural demeanour either. Despite knowing Asuka for a fourth year now, she only knew that the many masks were not put on out of malice.

"Where are you going?" Aoi asked as Asuka placed the music stand with the chairs. She had no intention of returning to the band room, keeping everything she needed for practice up on the roof.

"The same place you are," She replied without bothering to face her.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Home, Aoi. I'm going home." Asuka's expression was amused, but there was that tinge of condescension mixed in.

Aoi resisted the urge to groan. "Demachiyanagi Station?"

Asuka shook her head as they made their way down the stairwell. "I'm crossing the river. But we'll be heading the same way for a while."

"You're going to meet Kaori?"

"Clever girl," Asuka replied. Her smile was different, exuding none of the teasing impishness that should have accompanied those words. It was warm, shining through her varnished exterior. It was clearly not meant for Aoi.

The sky had turned orange as they walked towards the west on Imadegawa Road. Asuka was strangely silent, just continuing to whistle the tune she was practising. This left Aoi's mind and eyes to roam the street.

They passed by a rather spartan but recently constructed row of apartments. Too many bicycles were crammed into each block's tiny entrance while legions of banners were draped from every other window and landing—all as you would expect from student housing. Aoi had considered staying closer to campus only to be thwarted by the requirement that first years needed a roommate. Worse, they were assigned at random. Too many students, not enough dorms. The only other option was to privately rent a place. But that was extravagant and even more lonely than travelling two and a half hours each day.

Lost in thought, Aoi indulged the first impulse that entered her mind. "If Haruka asked, would you play next week?"

"Hmm… depends."

"Depends on what? We're not really doing anything better."

"There's always course work to be done."

Aoi was starting to feel some pressure. Reading was proceeding slower than she would have liked.

"But the band isn't doing anything. I bet they're going to change the music set again, so there's no point practising."

"Take it as a chance to study," Despite Asuka's suggestion, she was the last person that needed more time for schoolwork.

"I can make time. Haruka's not asking for much. If it makes her happy, then let's do it."

"Why do you need me?" She was detached as ever.

"We're her friends. I know you don't get much out of playing at some campus performance, but it'll cost you nothing."

"My presence is not what's making Haruka happy," Asuka said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What about Kaori's presence? If you come, she'll follow you."

"Kaori can make up her own mind. It's not like we're married."

"Why are you so reluctant? The band is just muddling along, and you're practising your own things anyway. At least we will be doing something useful."

Asuka only gave her a shrug.

As they approached the bridge, Aoi's phone buzzed. Haruka was about to cross the river, putting them on a collision course.

"Was that from Haruka?" Asuka said with an exaggerated wiggle of her eyebrows.

"Yeah," Aoi sighed. There was no point trying to hide it.

"Oh, how cute, going home together. You two going to do that every day from now on?"

"Shouldn't you be taking the same train?"

She ignored the question, leading Aoi to the railing of the bridge. The water reflected the setting sun, painting the landscape amber. The rainy season with its typhoons had yet to start, leaving the Kamo River shallow, its small floodplains lush with reeds and silver grass.

Asuka pointed downstream towards a collection of grey, rectangular buildings a few hundred meters away. "Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine. Kaori's school. We take the bus up from Sanjo in the morning."

That explained how Haruka had avoided her for a few days. "You take the Tozai Line from there back to Rokujizo."

"It's probably faster for Haruka to take the Nara Line to Kyoto Station and then switch to the Karasuma Line. Less walking for her as well since the station is right outside her school." Asuka said, anticipating Aoi's interest.

"Asuka! Aoi!" Haruka shouted from a distance. She was almost skipping towards them. At least her mood had recovered.

"Hey! President!" Asuka shouted back. "Can I play a solo next week?"

Haruka almost tripped over herself as she stopped a few paces away. Asuka had been teasing her the whole time. No doubt enjoying weeding out little bits of information for her own amusement.

"Kaori told me what you were planning." Asuka continued. "We need to get more people if we want to make a proper ensemble." She raised her hand to her chest in a playfully pompous gesture. "My euphonium is a baritone instrument too you know. I don't want to be stuck playing bass all the time."

Haruka was almost stumbling her way towards them. "Kaori?"

"Of course she wants to! She was just making sure she had the time."

"Doesn't she have practicals or attachments? I don't want to affect her grades." Even when she was getting what she wanted, Haruka still raised objections.

"Not until second or third year, apparently. For now, it's just classroom stuff like the rest of us."

Haruka's face was bathed in the ochre light, hiding the blush that was overcoming her, almost, perfectly. It was her watery eyes that gave it away. In joy or sorrow, it seemed the way she expressed herself best was with her tears. "Who else can we ask?"

They knew over twenty musicians, somewhere out there, now scattered around Kyoto. Most would be happy to play with them. But Aoi had a feeling Haruka was too embarrassed to approach them.

"I think I know some disgruntled musicians with nothing better to do." Asuka's sly smile had returned.

Getting Mirai onboard was easy enough. All it took was one text on their way home. On the other hand, Yuki was without her own instrument until her tuba arrived the following week from Fukuoka. She was definitely another rich girl since anything beyond a rudimentary model would cost over 100,000 yen. That left Mamoru to play bass. Despite Ryuusei being an uncompetitive band, he went out of his way to own his own student tuba. It was apparently still better than the well past exhausted instruments the school used. Their ensemble was starting to come together.

It was tempting to find a horn player to better match the composition of a brass quintet. The only ones that they knew were Sawada Juri and Kahashi Hiro, not exactly the most reliable performers. Aoi was thankful she never had to work with them directly. It was fun to just watch their witty back and forth with Knuckles or their manzai-like interactions with each other and their section. But they were the last people that would want to put in the extra effort for anything. Not that they had horns to play anyway.

That left Aoi and Haruka to substitute the horns with their saxophones. They were all set until Asuka messaged her right before bed, insisting that they find a second trumpeter. A few options came to mind, but the most obvious one seemed to be to asking Kasano Sana. She and Kaori had always been close in the trumpet section and were familiar with playing together. She was not the greatest; slightly less able than Yoshikawa and flat out unable to keep up with Kosaka, but perfectly capable.

A wave of annoyance overcame her as she saw Asuka's next message. "Can you ask Kyouko?" Supposedly, she had accessed the situation and concluded that only Aoi could pry her away from Chiyomi.

"She seems to have a special interest in you." Asuka wrote, only confusing her more. It almost sounded like she was supposed to seduce Kyouko or something equally ridiculous. Was there even a need to match Chiyomi's influence? It was not like it was a choice between their makeshift ensemble and the band. This was just a little side project.

Then, Asuka made an excellent point. All of them could get away with practising on the roof since the seniors never came or asked questions. Even then, they still needed somewhere to leave their instruments. Unless they wanted to continually drag them between Uji and school. Kyouko was the only one who stayed on campus. Recruiting her just to use her dorm as a storage room was a little mercenary. But the long commute was taking its toll.

There was no need to go looking for her. The next day, the blonde rushed to find Aoi after their lecture to discuss one of her favourite topics.

"Aoi, which short stories are you planning to cover?" Kyouko said while still packing away her own laptop.

Their introduction course had moved to novellas and short stories. There were too many to make them all compulsory reading, leaving them with their first of many choices to make for university.

"I'm not sure yet," Aoi said as she went over their reading list again. "I was thinking I might read some of Miyazawa Kenji's works. I liked them a lot when I was younger. Though Dazai's works are definitely making my list."

"Oh! I loved reading Schoolgirl." Kyouko's expression somehow lit up even further. "It's going to be relatable with all your early mornings on the train."

"Really, Kyouko? That's your greatanalysis of it?"

"I don't want to spoil the rest for you," She said with an exaggerated wink. "But I do think you'll like those elements. I went back to Osaka to see my parents last week, and I spent more than four hours travelling."

"You could have just taken the Thunderbird or Shinkansen. You would have been at Osaka Station in less than forty minutes."

"I'll go broke doing that," Kyouko laughed. It was probably true with the amount of money she spent eating out. "You know, I thought you would be reading one of the chapters from I am a Cat. Kokoro is one of your favourites, right?"

"I like Soseki's works, but I'm not that into cats. I have a friend from band who loves that book, though. She couldn't get enough of cats either."

Torizuka Hirone was at Doshisha now. Though Aoi only found out when Haruka had told her yesterday. No doubt also studying literature with Hagiwara Shouko in tow. Those two were another pair that were exceedingly close in the band.

"You sure have a lot of friends."

"Well, she's more of an acquaintance."

"Even after three years of playing at Kitauji together?"

Aoi only nodded while she finished packing up.

The clarinets were the natural people to talk to, being near the saxophone section. Tori-chan was like a bird, fluttering back and forth between groups in the band. Her nickname made her love of cats exceedingly ironic. If not for Kaori, she would probably be their most beloved member. Shouko was just as sweet, if not more energetic, but tended to clamp up around unfamiliar people. There had not been many chances to get to know either of them until well into their second year. By that time, 'political' discussions dominated everything in the band.

They were the last to leave the lecture hall, crossing the short overhead bridge between the Letters Faculty's two main blocks.

"About playing together," Aoi took a large gulp as she prepared to make her strange request. "Would you be willing to play in a small ensemble next week?" The wince from practically vomiting out her question was hard to cover up.

"Oooh, interesting. I assume the rest of the first years in your clique are also playing?"

Aoi hated that description but nodded along since Kyouko's interest had been seized. "Two of my bandmates from other universities are also joining us."

"Aww, it's nice you still call them your bandmates even after you graduated." Kyouko smiled. "So what songs are you guys going to play?"

They had cobbled their music set together in a hurry, just throwing in what they felt like playing. Mamoru was indifferent since he was mainly just providing the bassline. Mirai was just happy to finally have a chance to showcase her hard work.

Aoi had considered playing Norwegian Wood. But after that day, it suddenly went from just another piece of music to being too personal to play for anyone but themselves. Aoi even wanted to call it their song. Following the tangent from Norwegian Wood, she put forward the next best thing that did not have that significance or baggage.

"I chose In My Life by The Beatles," Aoi said after organizing her thoughts. "Haruka, the girl you met at matriculation day, wants to play I Look Up as I Walk by Sakamoto Kyu."

Haruka's choice was an old crooner song from the sixties. It was about holding back tears while remembering better, happier times. Why it was rendered as Sukiyaki in English was beyond her. It was not much different from her own choice of song, almost as if it was its Japanese counterpart from the same era.

"Are you sure the two of you are turning nineteen this year? Those are songs my grandparents would choose."

"It's the classics," Aoi shrugged. "I thought you would appreciate them."

"Not ancient enough to be fantastical, not modern enough to be hip," Kyouko said before sticking out her tongue. "How long do we have to play for?"

"It's more of a street performance. So I guess roughly ten minutes of music in a set would be good. We'll just repeat the whole thing a few times. Asuka is planning to play a solo. She's keeping it a secret, but I think I know what it'll be. Kaori, she's a trumpeter too, wants Moon River. You know, the Audrey Hepburn song."

"Uggh, more old-fashioned music. You guys are a bunch of sentimentalists. I bet it's what you've been reading that's infected everyone else." Kyouko drew in her breath. "If you want me on board, I get to pick a song. None of this sappy, old stuff."

"Keep it simple. We only have a few days to practice."

"Come on, you Kitauji guys must be good. Getting to nationals and all. Plus, I've heard what Tanaka can do. I'm sure we can play something more challenging."

"That's really just Asuka… Kaori is pretty good too, but the rest of us are more or less average."

"I want to do some pop. How about Hirano Aya, Hare Hare Yukai."

Aoi froze midway through the entrance of their faculty building, leaving the door half open as she processed the choice of song.

"What?" Kyouko huffed.

She carefully searched for the right words to use. "I didn't know you liked that kind of stuff. It's an interesting choice."

"Oh, come on, don't be such a snob. Not everything needs to be highbrow, miss literature princess. It'll be fun." Kyouko jostled a stunned Aoi through the door and out onto the quad. "So it's a deal?"

It was not like there was much choice. "Okay, why not."

"Awesome, so when's the first practice?"

"Now. At our usual roof." Aoi said as they turned towards the sports complex.

"No wonder you brought your sax. I thought you were finally going to leave it in the band room."

"About that," Aoi started. "Asuka doesn't want to let Anzai-san and the others know." She searched for signs of discomfort on Kyouko's face but found nothing amiss.

"So sneaky," she playfully chided, "But I can see why you guys would do that. I don't hang out with the president much, but I can tell you Chiyomi-senpai is the sweetest person there is."

Aoi had heard it all before. It seemed every band had a saintly idol among their number.

"It's not that forgiveness is simpler than permission." Although Asuka probably agreed with that sentiment. "I don't want to start any drama if we can avoid it."

"The drama is the fun part sometimes." Kyouko chuckled.

Unease was building up in Aoi's stomach, coalescing into a ball that was steadily plunging itself into her guts. "It really isn't. It's terrible."

"Alright, alright, it's your event after all." She said, shaking her head.

Once they reached practice, Aoi only managed a short wave to Kaori before an air of stiff formality set in. It was the first time some of them were meeting. Even though she knew everyone present, the mood overtook her as well. She followed the path of least resistance and quietly stuck to Haruka throughout their run-throughs of the song.

If only Asuka and Kyouko could do the same and let them have a mellow practice. Both of them had a way of making people uncomfortable with their loud personalities. For Kyouko, it was literal with her frequent comments on their playing. Her words were either positive or obviously benign, but the energy felt jarring since they only covered the slower 1960s songs. Although Aoi hoped that sheet music for Hare Hare Yukai did not exist, it was undeniable they needed something more upbeat to balance their current selection.

"So that's why you guys recruited me," Kyouko said as they walked along Imadegawa Road towards the apartments Aoi saw yesterday. Somewhere in that low-rise mess was her dorm.

"You don't have to put it like that," Aoi mumbled.

"You're not even denying it!" She laughed. "I don't blame you. And it's not like you're just ignoring me beyond that."

That what she would have liked to do at some points, but it was impossible to block out Kyouko's flashy presence.

"Hey," It was her first-time hearing Kyouko lower her volume somewhere near normal. "That girl, Nakaseko-san, she's quite pretty. Real cute too with the beauty spot on her cheek."

Not another one. "You're not the first person to think that."

"I'm probably not going to be the last." She sniggered. "Were you watching Sanada-kun? His eyes kept moving between Tanaka and her."

"I don't have the skill to split my concentration like that," Aoi replied nonchalantly. She had noticed it, but idle gossip was the last thing to be involved in. Talking to Hiroe for years was more than enough.

"Is she available?" Kyouko asked casually.

"She doesn't have a boyfriend," Aoi said as they entered her dorm block.

Kyouko led them up multiple flights of stairs. For all of Kyodai's prestige, there were no elevators in their student housing. Mercifully, her room was on the third floor.

"My roommate is out, so no need to be shy," Kyouko chimed as she violently kicked her shoes off on the way in.

"This place is pretty neat," Mamoru said as he waddled his way inside. The doorframe was barely large enough to fit his tuba's hard case.

There were strands of golden hair all over the wooden floor, and her trash was overflowing in a small alcove by the door. The lack of any musty or rotting scents was a good sign. At least all their garbage was dry or inorganic. Even without obvious odours, it was clear the room had not been aired in a while, or probably at all since Kyouko took up residence.

"Mamoru, are you insane?" Mirai took the words from everyone else's mouth. "Only slobs could live here."

"I've seen much worse." He shrugged after placing his tuba down. "Ryuusei is an all-boys school."

"I don't want to know," Mirai said with her arm raised.

Haruka was desperately trying to cover up her repulsion at everything in the room. There were two beds, both unmade with clothes strewn over them. The only way to tell they were clean was another mound of fabric tucked away in the corner. They did not even bother with a laundry basket. It was easy to tell which desk was Kyouko's since it was piled precariously high with various books. Aoi was pleasantly surprised to see Kokoro among them, only to discover it was actually a light novel called Kokoro Connect. All the clutter made the room feel even smaller than it was—a tragically impressive feat.

"You won't use our instrument cases as a clothes rack, right?" Aoi sighed. Space in their closest was getting tight. Though it hardly mattered since neither person living her appeared to use much of it for its intended purpose.

"I take good care of my trumpet. You have nothing to fear." Their criticisms just bounced off Kyouko.

Aoi and Haruka evacuated the room as quickly as possible. The sight of the place vindicated her decision to suffer the long commute to campus. If she had been stuck with a roommate like that, she would have gone insane by now. Kyouko showed them out since she was headed for dinner with yet another group of friends. It was probably for the best since eating in her room would have created a biohazard.

Before she broke off from the group, Kyouko pointed towards a second block of dorms. "Seizaki-chan, I think you'll find that I am very clean compared to the people living there."

"It's the boy's dorms, isn't it." Mirai sighed.

There was only cackling laughter from Kyouko in response before crossing the road towards Seifu Hall, where her friends stayed.

Before they could continue, a familiar person stepped out of the block entrance. His chestnut hair was unruly as it had been in high school, glasses still framed in a plain silver metal.

"P-p-president? Vice-president?" He said, stopping in his tracks.

"Usui-kun," Asuka responded. "I didn't know you were in Kyodai."

"All of you are here too?"

"Nope, just me and Aoi. Haruka and Kaori are across the river."

"Another one of your former bandmates?" Mirai asked.

Asuka gestured for him to introduce himself.

"I'm Usui Hitoshi. I used to play bass clarinet at Kitauji." He said with a polite bow. "I'm doing Astrophysics now."

There was a brief introduction from Mirai and Mamoru before she continued with her questions. "How come you didn't join the band? We could use someone like you."

Hitoshi was headed for dinner across the river at Demachi Masugata Shopping street and continued to walk with them.

"Band, huh?" He replied shyly. "I'm actually meeting Knuckles and Hideri now—Umm, they're from the Kitauji band as well—I guess I just didn't really feel it. I joined the astronomy circle. But it's pretty informal. We just go star gazing once in a while."

"How are Knuckles and Noguchi-kun doing?" Haruka asked.

"They're fine, settled in well at Kyoto Institute of Technology."

"Hmm, Kosen," Asuka said. "Must be miserable for them. Less than twenty-five percent of undergrads are female."

"It should make Mei and Saki pretty happy," Kaori said with a nostalgic smile.

"I don't know about Saki," Hitoshi said uneasily. Everyone knew Knuckles and Saki were probably interested in each other. But not even Hiroe could pry a confirmation from anyone close enough to know. The boys were surprisingly reticent about it. "So I guess you guys must be in the Kyodai band. Any upcoming performances?"

"It's a secret," Asuka said with a blatant wink.

"Don't tease people like that, Asuka," Kaori said. "We're going to play next week at Doshisha. Stop by if you're free."

"The Kyodai band? At another university?" Hitoshi appeared even more confused now.

"It's a long story," Aoi finally interjected. "We'll tell you some other time around campus."

He was clearly curious but gave a familiar pliant nod. There was a tinge of guilt at keeping him in the dark again. The girls in the band tended to ignore him since he did not have a strong personality like most other guys. It was mainly the clarinets that unwittingly perpetrated this, though Aoi had contributed to it on occasion. In a way, it was a complement since some of the boys were sometimes too obnoxious to just disregard.

"You should come, Hitoshi-kun," Kaori said.

"Yeah! And who knows? Shouko might come to watch the performance as well." Asuka wiggled her eyebrows before Haruka managed to reign her in.

The poor boy was left even more flustered, attempting to keep his silence for the remainder of their walk to the station.

"You guys are weird." Mirai's whisper to Aoi elicited a nod from Mamoru. The two of them had fallen behind with her as the trio of girls in front continued to encouragingly tease Hitoshi about his love life. "And why do you have someone called Knuckles."

"Isn't Rikka like this? Or Ryuusei, for that matter?"

"Can't really compare since it's an all-guys band," Mamoru said solemnly. "The nickname sounds pretty normal, but we definitely don't have any romantic complications."

"There weren't any guys in my batch." Mirai mused. "I guess there were some nicknames, but they were all cutesy. You know, things like 'Momo' or something with 'nyan' in it."

"Maybe Akiyama-san's band is similar." Aoi mood was dampened when she remembered Yuki was missing out. Though there was no reason they could not make up for it with a future event. "What school is she from anyway?"

The two of them shrugged before Mamoru spoke up. "I never asked, actually. Probably one with a pretty good band since she's way better than me."

They all went their separate ways once they reached the familiar junction along Imadegawa Road. Mirai stayed in Rokujizo as well, but she told Aoi and Haruka to go on ahead as she ducked into a konbini. It was disappointing to see such a transparent attempt to avoid them, but Aoi could understand not wanting to be a third wheel. They would eventually get to know her better anyway.

As they settled down for the train ride home, Aoi's felt a pulse of warmth surge through her. It had been a long time since she had seen Haruka excited at the prospect of performing.