Hello one and all! Hope you all are enjoying your winter break (I know I am!). Here I present to you the next chapter! Woo! Lol. Anyways, for this chapter I would suggest that you listen to the following songs when directed: Want You Bad by The Offspring, Here In Your Arms by Hellogoodbye, and Your Guardian Angel by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Also, if you like or don't like the way I wrote out the song lyrics let me know so I can change it.
darkheart1992: I'm glad that you like it! Here's the next chapter, enjoy!
I-Eat-My-Vegetables: Lol, thanks!
lilypop8: Thanks so much! The wedding chapter is coming up next, so I hope you like it!
Samansa4U: I'm glad that you thought it was funny. Enjoy the next chapter!
Lady Anja: Lol. Yeah, that's true. Setsuna needed to realize that she couldn't be selfish about certain things. Lol, when is Kyoya never plotting something? He is a very sneaky man. Yup the ever long waited wedding chapter is coming up next! Hope you like it! Have a good break!
Heartless576864: Thanks! Enjoy the chapter!
Hurricane Rachel: Lol thanks! I'm glad that you are finding Setsuna's thoughts amusing!
Black-HunterXX: Lol, I know what you mean. Thanks and enjoy the next chapter!
Thanks to those who added this story to their Story Alert List: d'mon child, Heartless576864,QUEENOFNARUTARDLAND, and hotredhead.
Special thanks to Heartless576864, KittyPersona and QUEENOFNARUTARDLAND who added this story to their Favorite Story List!
Special, special thanks to Heartless576864, who added me to their Favorite Author List! I feel privileged to be on your list so thanks!
Disclaimer: Ouran, characters and plot, belong to the awesome Bisco Hatori while everyone else belongs to me. Want You Bad belongs to the ever awesome The Offspring, Here In Your Arms belongs to the totally cool Hellogoodbye, and Your Guardian Angel belongs to the ever fantastic Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Enjoy the chapter everyone and Happy Holidays!
Chapter 13: Rehearsals
When I woke up the next day, I felt a bit weird. No, there was nothing wrong with my body; it's just that I don't remember the last time I woke up in my room in my okaa-san's house on a weekday. Yeah, I'm weird like that. I grabbed my cell phone that was resting next to my pillow and opened it.
"Okay, it's Thursday and it's ten eleven AM. Why am I up early?" I asked myself.
I got up and stretched my arms and I heard my back crack. Man did that feel good. I got off my bed and walked towards the bathroom. Doing my daily business, I got out and then headed towards the kitchen in search for food.
"Ohayo, kaa-san," I greeted as I walked in and began to head towards the fridge to raid the food that she had.
"Ohayo, Setsuna. I looked at the music list that you sent me last night and I like most of your choices. There is only one that I cut from the list and I already sent the others to the musicians as well," She told me as she sipped from her coffee mug.
"Which one?" I asked as I balanced a bowl and spoon, a carton of milk, and Fruit Loops cereal.
She placed her finger on her chin and said, "I believe it's called Bleed American."
'Nooo! I really wanted to sing that song,' I thought as I poured a large amount of cereal into the bowl. "Oh. Well what about the other ones?" I poured some milk, about half way of the bowl, and went to put it away.
"The other ones are pretty good since it is romance songs that connect to the teens that are going."
"Oh you mean my friends," I sat down and got ready to eat the cereal.
"Yeah, them and Fuka's and Kazumi's."
I was about to take a bite when I stopped. Oh hells no. I placed the spoon back into the bowl and asked, "Do you know by any chance who Kazumi invited?"
And from the top of her head, she began to list the people that Kazumi invited, "Hidekazu, Manami, Jiro, Masahiro, Jun Kazumi, Tatsuo, and Satoshi."
Oh hells no. I got along with most of them, but there are a few who I didn't. Let me give you a break down of these people.
Miwa Hidekazu and Manami: Both are siblings who are born during the same year, except their not twins. They are older than me by one year. Both can sing really, really well. Hidekazu is extremely musically talented. He plays the guitar and it was he who taught me some of the basics. Manami is really sweet and intelligent and an amazing actress. Hidekazu has black hair and brown eyes while Manami has brown hair, with light brown highlights, and hazel eyes.
Daigo Satoshi: Satoshi is Manami's boyfriend right now. He also is musically talented, meaning he plays the guitar as well. He is like an older brother to me since he used to help me out with guy problems that I would have. He is also a year older than me. He has dark brown hair and eyes.
Hayashi Masahiro: Now Masahiro is my anime/manga buddy. He would supply me with any mangas that I didn't have and we would always talk about it. He is a year older than me and is tall. Maybe as tall as Tamaki, but not like Mori. Even though he is tall, he is a bit on the plump side. He also plays the drums, an instrument Fuka really wants to learn. He has black hair and brown eyes.
Asaka Jiro: I'm alright with him. He is a year older than me. There are moments when he freaks me out by saying the most weirdest things and all. He is also a perv, but not the cool kind. He plays the guitar as well. I think Kazumi likes him. Dunno. He has dark brown hair and eyes as well.
Matoba Jun Kazumi: Let's just say, we're not friends anymore. Jun Kazumi, who prefers to be called Kazumi since she dislikes the name Jun, is my age and used to be my best friend. She has money, thanks to the fact that her mom works in some fancy place and that her dad is a lawyer. Also she inherited money from her older sister who passed away. She always talks behind peoples back and when she talks to the person face to face, she becomes 'nice'. She is now 'best friends' with Kazumi. She has light brown hair and big (not pretty like Haruhi's) brown eyes.
Fujiwara Tatsuo: He is a year older than me. He is musically talented, plays both guitar and bass. He is very artistic meaning that he can draw really well. One word: asshole. He can be mean to you and insult you. Oh, and he is my ex-boyfriend. So I don't talk to him, period! Yet it's rather funny that before we even dated we used to be great friends, but then it all went downhill as soon as I went out with him. He has light brown hair and hazel eyes.
'Effing Kazumi had to invite those two people. I swear man. Oh well, I'll be with my new friends. Screw those two!' I thought as I angrily ate my cereal.
"Are you alright, Setsuna?" Okaa-san asked me with a worried voice.
I gave her one of my fake smiles and said, "Oh there's nothing wrong."
She seemed to have bought it because she then smiled and said, "Okay. Oh and you should hurry. I'm gonna drop you off with the band that we hired."
"Okay, kaa-san."
After finishing my breakfast, I went back to the room and got dressed. Pulling out a pair of dark blue skinny leg jeans, along with my black studded belt, and a green shirt that had Gir all over the place, I got dressed. Then I put some socks, rolled on some deodorant, and combed my hair with my fingers, got my shoes and then I was ready.
As soon as I announced that I was ready, we left okaa-san's house. She was telling me along the whole drive how excited she was that I was going to sing in her wedding. I smiled and said that it would be a new experience for me and this is true. Why? Because one, I have never sang in front of a large crowd, and two, I have never sang for a wedding.
After driving for another ten minutes, we arrived outside of a studio. I removed the seatbelt and opened the door. I got out and immediately, I was starting to get nervous.
'What if these people don't like how I sing? What if they tell my okaa-san they won't sing for the wedding? Gah!' I ran my fingers through my hair one last time and then followed my okaa-san inside the building.
The first thing I heard was the music of the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. Looking down as I walked, I stopped seeing that okaa-san stopped. Not only that, but the music stopped as well.
"Saki-san! It's so good to see you again," I heard a woman say my okaa-san's name. I looked up and there I saw a woman who was about 5'6, with red hair and brown eyes, and who looked to be about in her early thirties. She wore a black button up shirt and a blue jean skirt that reached up to her knees.
"Keiko-san, it's good to see you too," Okaa-san smiled and hugged the woman as soon as she approached us. After letting go, the woman, whom I now know as Keiko, looked directly at me.
"Is this her?" She asked my okaa-san. Then, okaa-san grabbed my arm and pulled me next to her. Smiling, she then said,
"Yes, this is my Setsuna. Setsuna, this is Kishimoto Keiko. She is the wedding singer," Okaa-san introduced me to her.
"It's nice to meet you, Kishimoto-san," I said to her.
The woman laughed and said, "Please call me Keiko-chan since we are going to work together." I nodded my head.
"Well now that you both are well acquainted, I should be heading out. I'll pick you up at six Setsuna," Okaa-san said as hugged me.
"Okay, kaa-san." And with that, she left.
"C'mon Setsuna-chan, let me introduce you to the rest of the band." With that, Keiko-chan pulled me to her band. There three males there and one girl. The drummer had dark brown hair and blonde spiked tip with brown eyes. From what I was able to see, he had on some black jeans and a brown shirt.
The bassist had brown hair, which was short and messy, and blue eyes. Now this one looked to be close to my age, while the other looked older. The teen had on a black shirt and some blue jeans.
The last male had brown hair and blue eyes and was early in his late or middle thirties. He wore a white button up shirt that was open with had a black shirt underneath and some black slacks.
Lastly, the girl had light brown hair, that rested halfway her back, and brown eyes to match. She wore a purple shirt and had on a blue shorts that reached the middle of her thighs.
"Everyone," she began her announcement, "This is Setsuna. She will be singing the songs that Saki-san sent to me." Pointing at the drummer, she said, "That's my brother, Watanabe Sousuke."
"Hey," Sousuke said with a wave.
"Hello," I replied back.
She then announced the guitarist, "This is my wonderful husband, Hatori."
Her husband smiled and said, "Pleasure meeting you."
"Nice meeting you too."
Then she pointed to the young bassist, "This is my son, Kain."
"Hey!" Kain said enthusiastically with a wave.
"Hi." I smiled at him.
"And lastly, this is Watari Anzu. She is my son-to-be-daughter-in-law if she and Kain get married."
"Okaa-san!" I heard Kain say in embarrassment.
"Nice to meet you, Setsuna," Anzu said.
"Nice to meet you too, Anzu." Then, Keiko-chan told me that she was going to get me a water bottle before we began to practice. I nodded my head and said alright. After she walked away, Kain and Anzu came up to me.
"It's cool that we now have someone that's our age around here now," Anzu said with a smile.
"Thanks, I guess," I replied back at her. I looked at her shirt and saw that it had various hearts around the place with different neon colors. "Cute shirt," I complimented her.
"Thanks! I like yours too. Gir, right?"
"Yup!"
"Hey Setsuna, did you pick out the set list?" Kain asked me.
I rubbed my neck as I replied, "Yeah. I didn't want to sing the same old sappy love songs, so I choose some that are more for our generation. You know?" They both smiled at me and whole heartedly agreed.
"Here you go, Setsuna-chan," Keiko-chan came back and handed me a water bottle. I thanked her and after that she said, "No problem. Now let's get to work people!"
Everyone moved to their respective spaces. Sousuke went and sat down behind his drum set; Hatori grabbed his guitar and placed the strap over himself; Kain did the same, but with his bass, and checked to see whether it was properly tuned or not; and Anzu went behind the extra microphone, which was next to a keyboard. I guess my assumption was wrong about Anzu playing the keyboard since I saw Keiko-chan walked behind it.
I slowly walked behind the last microphone that was right in front of the drum set. I grabbed the mic and said into it, "Keiko-chan, what are we going to work on first?"
"Hmm," I looked at her and saw her finger on her chin thinking about what song we should do. "I say we do that Want You Bad song first so I can see how well you do."
I nodded my head as I saw her walk towards me. She then whispered in my ear, "If you're nervous, try picturing someone that you really, really like and want to show how much you like that person."
An image of Mori flashed in my head as I blushed and nodded, "Okay, Keiko-chan."
She smiled at me and said, "That's the spirit." She looked at everyone else and then said, "Okay on Sousuke's count."
I began to breathe in and out in a regular and calm pace. 'Relax Setsuna. This is your chance to show that you have feelings for Mori. Even if he doesn't catch on, you'll be able to release all the feelings that you got.'
Then I heard sound of drumsticks hitting each other. "One, two, one, two, three, Go!"
I heard the intro and as fast as it came, I knew I had to begin singing soon. I grabbed the mic in front of me and began to sing my heart out.
"If you could only read my mind, you would know that things between us, ain't right," I took a breath before singing again. "I know your arms are open wide, but you're a little on the straight side, I can't lie," I paused before signing the next verse. "Your one vice, is you're too nice. Come around now can't you see."
'Chorus time ' I thought before signing with Anzu.
"I want you, all tattooed, I want you bad. Complete me, mistreat me, want you to be bad, bad, bad, bad, bad," We both sang together. The next verse, I knew I had to sing on my own.
"If you could only read my mind, you would know that I've been waiting, so long. For someone almost just like you, but with attitude, I'm waiting, so come on." Taking another deep breath I sang out, "Get out of clothes time, grow out those highlights. Come around now can't you see."
"I want you, in a vinyl suit, I want you bad. Complicated, X-rated, I want you bad, bad, bad, bad, bad... bad," Anzu and I sang together.
Then the tempo got a bit slower, "Don't get me wrong, I know you're only being good. But that's what's wrong, I guess I just misunderstood."
"Go!" I shouted out of no where. And apparently, Keiko-chan liked it since she gave me a thumb's up. The guitar solo rang out and I really wanted to bounce up and down.
Smiling, we sang the next and final part, "I want you, all tattooed, I want you bad. Complicated, X-rated, I want you bad. I mean it, I need it, I want you bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, bad, really, really bad."
That's when the song finally ended. I smiled looking at Keiko-chan as she applauded. She walked up towards me and said, "Saki-san was right. You do have some amazing pipes."
My smile got larger as I said, "Thank you."
"Setsuna that was awesome!" Kain said as he and Anzu came up to me.
"Good job, Setsuna!" I heard Sousuke and Hatori say from where they were at.
"Thanks!" Maybe it was going to be really fun with these people. Anzu then said,
"That was really good. That song went perfectly well with your vocals."
"Thanks Anzu. You did really awesome too." Then, clapping got our attention. We looked at Keiko-chan, who did the clapping and said,
"Alright, time to work on the next song. Kain, pick a song from the set list." Kain then grabbed a sheet a paper with all the songs. After looking over it for a minute or two, Kain had chosen one.
"Let's do Hellogoodbye."
"Sweet!" I heard Anzu say.
"Um, I'm gonna need a voice synthesizer or something," I told Keiko-chan.
She pointed at the little lever-looking type thing on the ground and said, "Got it covered. To use it, all you have to do is step on it once. To turn it off, you have to do the same thing." I nodded my head and said okay. She smiled and said, "Okay, let's get to it." Keiko-chan then walked to her keyboard and got ready. "On my count, one, two, three, Go!"
The intro of the song began and a few seconds in, I began to sing, "I like where we are," I sang, but...
"Stop," I looked at Keiko-chan as she said to me. "You forgot to step on the lever."
"Sorry," I said with my own little sweat drop. I stepped on it and said into the mic, "Got it." Wow did it sound freakin' cool. "Alright, I'm good to go."
"Okay, on my count. One, two, one, two, three, Go!"
The music began to play and I breathed in before beginning to sing. This song was the same one that Mori and Hunny had caught me singing to.
"I like where we are, when we drive, in your car. I like where we are... Here." I waited for about fifteen seconds and then I started singing again. "Cause our lips, can touch. And our cheeks, can brush. Our lips can touch here..."
"Well you are the one, the one that lies close to me. Whisper's 'Hello, I've missed you quite terribly'. I fell in love, in love with you suddenly, now there's no place else I could be but here in your arms." It was that part of the song that Hunny and Mori caught me singing.
After the chorus, I just listened to the musicians behind me. Smiling, I then sang again, "I like where you sleep, when you sleep, next to me. I like where you sleep... here." Anzu and I then sang the next part together. "Our lips, can touch. And our cheeks, can brush. Our lips can touch here."
"Well you are the one, the one that lies close to me. Whisper's 'Hello, I've missed you quite terribly'. I fell in love, in love with you suddenly, now there's no place else I could be but here in your arms." I bounced along with the beat as I sung this part. I heard Keiko-chan play her part on the keyboard and I thought it was magnificent.
Like the previous song, the tempo began to slow down a bit. "Our lips, can touch. Our lips, can touch...here."
The slow tempo began to pick up again as I heard Sousuke play. My foot followed the beat of the drum and then before I knew it, I sang again,
"You are the one the one that lies close to me. Whisper's 'Hello, I've missed you quite terribly'. I fell in love, in love with you suddenly, now there's no place else I could be but here in your.
"You are the one the one that lies close to me. Whisper's hello I miss you, I miss you. I fell in love, in love with you suddenly, now there's no place else I could be but here in your arms."
Bobbing my head with the sound of Hatori playing, Anzu and I sang, "Here in your arms."
The song was close to ending and I finished with the last lyric. "Here in your arms."
As soon as we finished playing, I step on the lever. I bent down and grabbed the bottle of water that Keiko-chan had given me earlier and opened it. Chugging down some of the water, I quenched my thirst. I closed the cap and turned to look at everyone.
"So how'd I do?" I asked with a smile.
All around me I heard that it was amazing and that we all did great. I smiled and complimented everyone on how great they did. It sounded it they were the actual band members of the bands that I had chosen.
"Alright, why don't we practice those two songs a few more times more? Then we can take a quick break and from there go over another song," Keiko-chan announced to everyone.
Me and everyone around me agreed to the idea. We went over Want You Bad and Here In Your Arms a few more times. With the Hellogoodbye song, I messed up in forgetting to hit the lever. While with want you bad, I confused some parts of the chorus with another. But after going over it more and more, I was able to do it.
Finally it was our break time. I hanged with Anzu and Kain while the adults went to grab something for all of us to eat.
"So did you volunteer with singing for your okaa-san's wedding?" Anzu asked me as she drank some of her water.
I sighed and ran my hands through my hair, "Well, I was kinda forced into it but I'm okay with it now. I mean, I was able to meet you guys." I smiled.
"Yeah! Imagine if it was someone else, man it would probably be boring." Kain announced playing around with the bass he had.
I laughed and said, "That would be a bit boring."
"Setsuna, how old are you?" Anzu suddenly asked.
"I'm seventeen, but gonna turn eighteen in August."
"Oh cool! We all are in the same year," she said with smile.
"Sweet!" Kain raised his fist in the air.
I laughed at his antic. Then Anzu suddenly asked me, "What was it that Keiko-san told you before we sang the first song?"
"She told me to not be nervous and to think of someone that I like so I wouldn't get nervous," I answered with a blush.
"Awww, Setsuna's got a boyfriend! Setsuna's got a boyfriend!" Kain sang out as he danced around with his bass.
"I do not!" I shouted like a child. A blush was still present on my cheeks.
Anzu then got up from where she was sitting, raised her fist and punched Kain on the head, "Quiet you! I think it's rather sweet." I could hear Kain complain about the pain that he was feeling. She then sat down and said, "So tell me about this soon-to-be-boyfriend of yours?"
I sighed and then explained the story of Mori and the Host Club. She and Kain listened to every word that I said. I felt like if I was explaining a fairy book story and they were the kids who would be so into it that if I would to stop, they wouldn't even notice. After I finished my long explanation, Anzu and Kain then spoke.
"Wow," Kain first spoke.
"It's like a modern fairytale," Anzu said with a sigh.
I scratched my head as I responded saying, "I guess so."
"So what are you gonna do?" Kain asked me.
"I'm gonna have to tell him at some point. Hopefully, he feels the same way."
The door suddenly opened and there was Keiko-chan, Hatori, and Sousuke with food. They all walked towards us and then we were presented with food-goodness. I grabbed two rice balls, a can of soda and a water bottle.
"Setsuna-chan, Saki-san told me that you are currently in your senior year, ne?" Keiko-chan asked me as she was un-wrapping her food.
"Un," I replied.
"And how is that going for you?" Hatori asked me before drinking some of his water.
"It's going pretty good. I'm keeping a good pace with my school work and social life," I replied.
"Why can't you do that?" I heard Keiko-chan say to Kain.
"I try," was all he said.
"Do you by any chance play any instruments?" Sousuke asked me.
"I can play the guitar."
"Really? Hmm, maybe you can play the acoustic part for that one song," Keiko-chan thought aloud.
"I wouldn't mind," I told her after swallowing a piece of the rice ball.
"Great!"
Our break ended soon after that. Sousuke brought me a chair to sit on as I lowered the microphone to my level. I thanked him and he said no problem. I sat down on the chair and adjusted the mic for the last time.
"Here you go Setsuna," Hatori got my attention as he handed me a beautiful acoustic guitar.
"Wow this is beautiful," Amazement was in my voice when I told him.
"Thank you. Would you believe that this is my first guitar ever?"
"No way!? It's in perfect condition!"
He chuckled and said, "Well, I did take good care of it. Now let me connect it and we'll get started." And he did. After connecting the acoustic, he made me play the C major chord to see if it was properly tuned. I did and it sounded like magic.
"Alright Setsuna-chan, on your count," Keiko-chan said as she was now standing with Anzu with another microphone.
"Okay. One, two, one, two, three, go."
I began to play the chords of the intro to Your Guardian Angel. I was really trying not freak out since I haven't played and sang at the same time in quite a while. As I imagined an orchestra playing in the background, I kept on playing more chords before I began to sing and Anzu and Keiko-chan started after me.
"When I see your smile, tears roll down my face I can't replace. And now that I'm strong I have figured out, how this world turns cold and it breaks through my soul, and I know I'll find deep inside me I can be the one."
"I will never let you fall," I sang as Anzu and Keiko-chan sang,
"Let you fall."
"I'll stand up with you forever. I'll be there for you through it all,"
"Through it all."
"Even if saving you sends me to heaven." I played more chords as I sang, "It's okay. It's okay. It's okay."
Anzu sang the next part with me as Keiko-chan harmonized with her voice. "Seasons are changing, and waves are crashing, and stars are falling all for us. Days grow longer and nights grow shorter, I can show you I'll be the one."
"I will never let you fall."
"Let you fall."
"I'll stand up with you forever. I'll be there for you through it all,"
"Through it all."
"Even if saving you sends me to heaven."
"Cuz you're my, you're my, my, my true love, my whole heart. Please don't throw that away." Anzu and Keiko-chan sang the ending of this verse with me.
Hatori then began to play with me as I kept going. "Cuz I'm here for you. Please don't walk away and please tell me you'll stay whoa, stay whoa." Everyone else then joined in with the playing as I kept on playing and singing.
"Use me as you will. Pull my strings just for a thrill. And I know I'll be okay, though my skies are turning gray."
I sang as Anzu and Keiko-chan harmonized. "I will never let you fall. I'll stand up with you forever. I'll be there for you through it all. Even if saving you sends me to heaven." I repeated the last verse one more time before I made it to fade.
I turned to face Hatori and asked, "Was that good?"
He smiled at me and said, "Very." And with that said we went back to practicing more. That's how I basically spent Thursday and Friday. I have to say that I had lots of fun singing and playing with them all. Before leaving Friday night, I got Kain's and Anzu's email and cell phone number and I gave them mine.
As soon as I got back to okaa-san's place, I showered and once I changed into my pajamas, I literally passed out in my bed and into a dreamless slumber.