A/N; I knew finding Jenna on youtube was hard if you didn't know where to look, but here's the link to the audio she's done so far.
www. yout ube u ser /fluffns tuff131 /videos
I also set up a link in my profile, so feel free to enjoy! Chapter Three of Just Trust Me is up!
Oh, and um, to the people wondering why I'm updating a week early? It's my birthday. You'll find this ironic as you read.
Chapter Five: Everything I'm Not
He's into me
For everything I'm not
According to you.
Orianthi, 'According to You'
xxXxx
Haru opened her eyes, the motion allowing a fresh stream of tears to fall down her face. She was panting heavily, and her hands were trembling, despite the fact that it usually took a lot more than that to wipe her out.
Withdrawing from the piano slightly, she studied her hands before placing them on her throat, which suddenly felt raw from overuse. Her eyes managed to glance over at Tsuge, who literally had his jaw open in complete shock and had fallen against the couch like her voice had slammed him against it.
Haru's imagination had never run away like that before! The music videos she used to summon were a mere comic strip in comparison with the 3D presentation she just executed. Her eyes trailed back to the music book in front of her as a wild smile overtook her mouth. She thumbed through the music again, noting the places where she had made mistakes.
Part of the words were supposed to be spoken, not sung, plus she had sung part of the chorus by mistake. Also, the last line was supposed to be 'man's salvation', not 'my salvation'.
But at the same time… it was her salvation! It had been imperfect in many ways, yet her blood, her very soul was charged with an exotic energy that wanted to burst out of her. Almost like… lighting.
Or fire!
"In my hands," she sang again in a soft voice, although she wanted to scream it as loud as possible. "I hold the answer!" A wild laugh escaped her, making her jump off of the bench in order to tackle her friend. "I've found it, Tsuge! This is my fire!"
He was still paralyzed with shock, so he pretty much just let her hug him tightly.
"Thank you so much, Tsuge! I never would have found it without you!" She gave him one more affectionate squeeze before getting off him to retrieve the book. "Oh, this is going to be such fun! What song should I do for the talent show?"
"Um, Haru?" he managed to squeak. "You're going to do this for the show?"
"Yes! Well, maybe not this one, but definitely something out of here!" She gave another happy giggle. "You should have seen the imagery this song inspired."
"I did."
She looked at him curiously.
"I saw everything, Haru. The tower, the lightning, your grey Frankenstein… everything. Are you related to a siren?" he asked suspiciously.
"Not to my knowledge, and the creature wasn't named Frankenstein; his creator was."
He brushed the trivia aside for now. "Haru, I'm all for breaking stupid rules, but performing that will damage your reputation for good!"
"That's just it, Tsuge!" she exclaimed, still leafing through the musical with glee. "Every time a girl at school decides to change her image, she tries to focus on her sexuality and gets into huge trouble. I'm not out to completely change my image, I just want people to think twice before forcing me into the classic 'girl next door' mold, you know? If I perform something from this at the talent show, no one's going to call me boring for a long time, right?"
He didn't answer her, so she looked over one shoulder at him. He was staring at her in complete shock.
"Tsuge? Come on, it's not like I'm turning Goth or trying out for the cheer leading squad."
"N-No, it's not that," he stammered, slamming his fist against his heart to make it work properly. "I'm just shocked that the word 'sexuality' came out of your mouth."
She didn't bother to restrain the urge to slam one hand against her forehead. "Forget rest; my case is now in a coma. Just because I have better things to talk about than-"
"Please not that word!" Tsuge pleaded.
"Fine, that word, doesn't mean that I don't know what it means. Don't you see?" she begged, setting aside her book to give him another hug. "This is why I need to do it. I've always had a dark side, Tsuge, and I'm sick and tired of pretending that my life's one big rose bush. That's why people hate me, for crying out loud! The only thing I'm suggesting is showing it in public, using Frankenstein."
"Haru… you know I'll support you no matter what."
She deflated a bit.
"No, don't do that," he protested, giving her a hug back. "I'm really impressed that you could be that intense, and I think everyone else deserves to see that side of you. But I think that you've forgotten something critical."
Haru cocked her head at him. "Like what?"
"This is unlike anything you've shown anyone but me before. We both know that the principal will throw a fit if you do something like that instead of the usual Bach or whatever. There's a good chance that he'll lock you in his office and try to contact your parents."
Her mouth fell open in a shocked gape. "… That's brilliant. They'd have to step up if the principal told them I was going bad."
"No, not brilliant! Think for a minute; if the principal finds out just how little your parents are around, he could tell the police. You're not turning seventeen until next week; you could be taken away to a foster home. You'd lose your freedom."
Haru's brief joy faded. "I would, wouldn't I?"
"You would. I'm sorry to say it, but frankly, it's a choice between your integrity and your freedom. Which is more important to you?"
Haru looked away, and took a few steps out of his embrace. Then she leaned against the large mirror facing her beloved piano, taking comfort in the sweet coolness that seeped through her side, as well as his words. Once her decision was made, her lower lip trembled as she looked up at her friend.
"It's not a choice between integrity and freedom, Tsuge. It's one between safety and one last chance for my parents to redeem themselves. I've sent them countless emails and phone calls, but nothing's worked. If they won't listen when I'm behaving myself, maybe they will when the principal calls."
"And if worse comes to worse?" Tsuge pressed.
"… I'll know never to return for holidays. I'm sick of celebrating them alone, anyway."
Tsuge walked over to give her another hug. "You won't," he asserted forcefully. "Not if I have anything to say about it."
Haru was able to smile gratefully while returning the embrace. "Thanks, Tsuge. But I won't blame you if you don't want to get involved with my plans."
"Don't be silly; of course I'll help. But there's another problem I should bring up," Tsuge said while scratching his head from nerves. "Don't take this the wrong way or anything, but… your voice is all wrong for that song. It's too angelic. Maybe if you were going for a Phantom of the Opera thing, you'd make a great Christine, but you're not exactly a Frankenstein."
Haru stared at him, feeling naughtier than she had in a long time. "You really think so?"
"Definitely. You have plenty of enthusiasm, but you'd need a different voice to pull that one off."
Her smile deepened. "Then perhaps I should borrow another voice," she informed him in her best Darth Vader impression.
Tsuge gasped and actually backed up against the couch in shock, making him fall over the arm rest.
"Maybe Yoda, you would prefer," Haru offered with a giggle, feeling more alive than she had in a long time. "Relax, Tsuge. I've been mimicking voices for years, thanks to my parents and solo movie marathons. It shouldn't take too long to invent one more suitable for Frankenstein. Or maybe several," she thought aloud as another spark coursed through her system. "The whole cast… yes, I could do that!"
"… We're going to get into so much trouble," Tsuge couldn't help but laugh, once he recovered from the shock. "Let's get started!"
ooOoo
Wonderland the Musical Sheet Music. Add to Cart
Jekyll and Hyde Musical Sheet Music. Add to Cart
Vox Lumiere's Hunchback of Notre Dame Musical Sheet Music. Add to Cart
Recommended for You; Count of Monte Cristo Sheet Music, Wicked Sheet Music, Phantom of the Opera Sheet Music.
Add to Cart, Add to Cart, Add to Cart
ooOoo
The following week was on the chilly side, but that wasn't strictly thanks to the weather. In fact, the one place Tsuge couldn't protect her, the girl's locker room, was particularly freezing.
"Hashima-san!" the assistant coach snapped outside the curtain Haru was changing in. "Give me that cell phone!"
"I was just checking my email," Hiromi protested as the slim brunette hurriedly threw on her gym shirt.
"You could do that in front of your locker, if cell phones were allowed in school! Give it here, or detention for a week."
"Party pooper," Hiromi grumbled as Haru stepped out from behind the curtain.
"I was done, anyway," Haru said, sparing a glare for her former friend, who sent it right back.
The assistant coach growled low as she pocketed the cell phone. "High school girls," she muttered under her breath with disdain, her eyes rolling skyward. "Just get out there before I lose my temper."
Haru hurriedly stuffed her clothes into her locker before joining the other girls. But not really. There was a healthy distance between her and the others as she got in line.
"Too good for us?" Aiko sneered.
"Of course not. I just don't trust any of you," Haru answered, not up to being polite today.
"All right, now that the ladies have bothered to join us, we can begin," the regular coach grumbled as he gestured to the clipboard in his hands. "I know we had hockey scheduled for today, but there's been an overlap."
'Praise the heavens!' Haru cheered. She hadn't been looking forward to being used for target practice, no matter what the rules dictated. Her suspicions were confirmed when the other girls made groans of disappointment.
"Since I won't teach dancing, we've only got a few days with another school's instructor." Without further ado, he handed the clipboard to a woman Haru sort of remembered from the year before.
Haru relaxed noticeably. That woman didn't play favorites.
"Go-od morning, everyone!" the young dancing coach chirruped like a bird as she looked over the attendance. "It looks like we'll have to do a few girl to girl pairings, but I think we'll manage. Please choose your partners."
There was a great rush from both sides, making Haru jump back to keep from getting hurt. But there was also the relief of knowing that she wouldn't be forced to dance with another girl like last year.
"Let go, Hiromi," Tsuge snarled, shaking the girl off him when she tried to keep him from reaching Haru. He let out a growl of frustration as he grabbed his friend possessively around the waist. "What do I have to do; wear a sign around my neck saying that I hate her?"
"I think she'd ignore that," Haru admitted, wrapping her own arm around his shoulders comfortably.
Hiromi seethed with jealousy, but the young coach shooed her away to find another partner.
"But at least we don't have to deal with hockey right now," Tsuge whispered with a silly grin.
"You probably would have been targeted by your old teammates," she responded sadly.
The tall boy gave an indifferent scoff. "I could handle them. I was worried about you."
She gave him a grateful smile and a hug before the sensei commanded their attention.
"I know the standard box step is kind of boring, but let's see how many of you can handle it before we move onto something more fun." Borrowing one of the boys that happened to be taller than her, she gave a quick demonstration to the Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty Waltz emanating from a nearby CD player. "All right then. Do your best!"
Tsuge grinned self-consciously as he turned Haru to face him. "I apologize in advance for the number of times I'll step on your feet."
"I highly doubt that your feet will be spared, either. Hey, there's an idea; maybe you could switch to Hiromi after a few rounds," she giggled while placing her hands on his shoulder and left hand.
"Nah, she'd ignore the inevitable limp. Oops, sorry," he mumbled the first time he stepped on her toes.
Haru fought back a wince. "You already apologized in advance, so don't do it every time it happens." She fought back a wince as he stepped on her foot again. "It could be worse."
"Yeah? How?"
"We could be doing ballet."
Tsuge couldn't help but laugh at that one. "That might be better. I could just lift you over my head whenever I wanted, just as long as they didn't make me wear the tights."
"I think the tights are required."
"No, no; use her waist to steer the girl! Haven't any of you even ridden a bike before?" the coach lamented as she flitted from couple to couple like an irritated butterfly.
Noticing that Machida was making his way over with the random girl in his arms, Tsuge twirled Haru around a little roughly to avoid them.
"Could you loosen your hold slightly?" she whispered, making him immediately do as she asked.
"Sorry; I've never been good at this," he muttered self-consciously as they kept avoiding Machida's pointed hopes of a collision.
"Neither have I," she confessed as she accidentally stepped on his foot. "I'm thinking this is going to be one of our lousier grades."
He couldn't help but laugh in agreement. "… Say, Haru? Since we're both probably going to fail anyway, can we try something a little different?"
She cocked an eyebrow at him as they narrowly avoided Machida again. "You're the one leading, not me. Go crazy."
He grinned like a little boy, and picked her up by the waist with one arm. He picked her up completely to swing her around like a doll, dipping her before allowing her to get back on her own feet.
Haru exclaimed in surprise, but soon grinned just as wide as her friend.
"Hey, what are you two up to?" the dance teacher asked, but she was already too late.
The resulting dance was a bit more interesting than the normal box step, but it was not good by any stretch of the imagination. Actually, it was lousy. But the funny part was that neither of them cared. They were having a good time, without needing anyone's permission or approval. Even better; because of how wildly Tsuge was flinging and twirling Haru around, even Machida had no choice but to retreat when his partner did the same.
"Now see here; that is not how a box step is done!" the dance teacher steamed, storming over to put a stop to it.
"No, but at least we're having fun!" Haru laughed as she got the hang of Tsuge's beat instead of letting him do as he pleased.
Then, just as the player switched to the next song, the windows began exploding in time to the music. Everyone screamed as Tsuge instinctively buried Haru's face against his chest to protect it from the falling glass.
"Get down!" the regular gym teacher yelled as he followed his own advice. "It might be gunmen!"
No one needed to be told twice, despite the fact that the windows had been too high for anyone to shoot from.
"Quick, out of the gym!" the dance teacher added, her previous displeasure turning into panic.
The students were quick to do as she ordered, leaving only the player behind, but Haru guessed she was the only one that had seen the irony of the timing.
The new song was Introduction of the Lilac Fairy.
ooOoo
Everyone was still badly shaken an hour later, when policemen were interviewing everyone they could and had blocked off the gym for clues. The principal was talking in a low voice with the chief, but was looking more and more upset by the minute, especially when reporters began showing up.
"How late do you think they'll make the students stay?" Tsuge's mother asked as she carefully plucked shards out of her son's arm, Haru squeezed his other hand to distract him from the pain.
They were outside the school with all the other students, just inside the gate as the parents that were allowed in tried to soothe their children. But by now, all anyone wanted was the okay to go home.
"Not much longer, I hope," Tsuge's father muttered under his breath as he paced behind his wife. "There's no telling if there's a second one of those things around. But who on earth could have gotten up to those windows to plant a bomb without anyone noticing?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Haru shrugged, squeezing Tsuge's hand as he grunted in pain. "But even over a grudge, isn't this incredibly risky and expensive?"
"The essentials to make a synchronized bomb alone would be expensive, never mind replacing the glass," her friend responded automatically, squeezing her hand back. You know, I wouldn't have minded seeing that in a movie, but when you're in the middle of it…"
"It's terrifying," Haru finished as his mother wrapped his second arm in the bandages she had brought with her.
"Are you sure you don't have any glass in you, Haru?" the woman asked worriedly, still in mothering mode.
"If there's any, a shower will take care of it. Tsuge protected me very well." She gave him an apologetic but grateful smile.
"That's my boy," his father approved as Tsuge wrapped an arm around her warmly.
"Ugh, really?" a random classmate sneered at them. "In the middle of a crisis?"
"Up yours," Tsuge responded in a pleasant voice, deliberately keeping his arm around Haru's shoulders as he dragged her onto his lap.
His mother made some outraged sounds. "Tsuge! What have I said about-"
A second shattering sound from behind made her cut off to shriek in horror as the scattered students and parents did the same. Despite how long it had taken to get all the shards out of his arms and hair, Tsuge immediately curled around Haru and held her face against his shoulder to keep her safe.
Haru managed to loosen Tsuge's hold on her enough to look over one of his shoulder, stunned at what she saw.
A second series of explosions had annihilated the windows of the school facing them, but all at the same time! It had been violent enough to throw shards mere feet from where she was sitting with Tsuge, but at least he didn't flinch from any more injuries.
"Everyone stay clear! We don't know how many more of those there are!" the chief ordered as he waved some of his men forward to see if anyone have been caught in the latest explosion.
"Okay, that does it," Tsuge's father snarled, his arms still around his wife in a manner similar to his son's. "I'm taking all of you home now."
"No complaints," Haru answered shakily, keeping close to Tsuge as he stood up and let his parents guide them to his father's truck. The back was a bit small, but Haru didn't mind.
In fact, she barely noticed, even when the curves in the road pushed her against the back of the mother's seat. But something was definitely wrong about those bombs. Who on earth could have set those bombs, let alone with no one the wiser? And the timing; if whoever had done it wanted the best publicity, they would have held out for a pep rally or game when the gym would have been packed.
Haru suddenly looked at Tsuge with shock. "There was no smoke."
Tsuge looked at her sharply from the other side of the cramped back. "What?"
"I didn't see any smoke in either of the bombs. Did you?"
"I can't remember. I was a little distracted with keeping you safe."
"I think she has a point," his mother realized. "I didn't see any smoke, either."
"It just means that it was probably a frequency bomb. If you hit it just right, you can make almost anything break apart. But that would have to mean that equipment will be found."
"Or a gun," Tsuge offered, but then shook his head quickly. "No, I'm pretty sure I didn't hear any shots, and someone would have noticed that many gunmen near a school."
"Oh come on!" his mother snapped. "Explosions don't happen without a cause!"
"True," Haru responded, soft and thoughtful. 'But what was the cause?'
ooOoo
Tsuge was nearly drooling the next day. "Pretty please?" he begged like a little boy as he pointed to a very particular box.
Haru couldn't help but laugh at his antics. "Why would we need that thing? You can hear me play any time you want, you know that."
"But can't you see the fun we could have with something like that?" he pleaded, using the puppy eye routine for everything it was worth. "I mean, you even said that there's going to be parts with more than one voice, right?"
Haru looked over from the display of trumpets.
"Or even instruments," he added, tugging on one shoulder. "I'm pretty sure you said that particular music demands both a trumpet and violin. It'd be impossible to play both at once."
"So how could a recording set help me with that?" she asked with amusement.
"This one's compatible with flash drives! If you were to do all the music and such on that thing, I could download it onto my computer and blend all the separate parts into one recording!"
"We're not trying to make a cd, Tsuge."
"Couldn't we, though? I could even add special effects like lightning, oh pretty please?" he begged, actually getting on his knees. "I really, really want to do this!"
Haru looked from him to the recording set, and even checked the price. "… It'll have to wait until I get my birthday money. I can only afford the trumpet right now, anyway." 'I really blew a lot of my money on all those instruments!' Going crazy with musical sheet music hadn't helped, either.
"So four more days?"
"Yes. Even though they know I..." Haru cut herself off as a wave of depression hit her.
Tsuge's boyish anticipation faded into a barely concealed snarl. It wasn't hard for him to guess the rest of her sentence.
'Even though they know I would rather have them.' "I'll take the trumpet," Haru said a little quickly, hoping to get both of their minds off her parents. She hurriedly ran her purchase through the sales clerk, and dragged both her friend and new trumpet out of the store.
"But on the bright side, a cello is pretty much a giant violin, so if I keep practicing on the one I have, I'll be ready for when I can get a violin, too. I think I have Victor's voice down, and Elizabeth's a cinch, but the monster's a bit hard on my throat. I'm thinking that if I start drinking something with honey in it-"
"I know you're trying to distract me," Tsuge grumbled, his grip on her arm turning fierce. "It isn't working."
Haru gave him a guilty smile. "You can't blame a girl for trying."
"I think I can, when it comes to them. Can I reserve your birthday?" he asked out of the blue. "Especially since we've got the week off school so officials can find out what happened with the glass?"
She blinked at him. "You know I have nothing planned. Do you?"
"Not yet. But I will," he promised while squeezing her around the shoulders.
"Now, don't go doing anything over the top," she warned, but he shook his head at her.
"I know the kind of birthdays you've had. You will go along with whatever I end up planning, end of discussion."
She cocked her head at him with a smirk. "Feeling bossy, are we?"
"No. Just angry. Really, really angry."
ooOoo
Haru stared in horror four days later. 'I thought we were past this!' She ran to the front door to throw it open. "Just stay still, Tsuge!" she called, doing the familiar dance through the vines in order to reach her friend.
"Ow, thank you!" he yelped as his father tried to detangle him, only to get stuck himself.
"I don't understand, the thorns accepted you the last few times you came through!" the brunette lamented as she began unwinding the vines.
"I- ow!- know! It's like they're trying to eat me! I thought we had an agreement!"
"Have you- ouch! Thought about getting a guard dog instead, Haru?" his father moaned.
"Not a chance. My thorns can put any security system to shame. Easy there, Tsuge," she nearly crooned like soothing a child as the thorns fell away at her touch.
"Oh thank heaven!" he sighed happily as she made quick work of the father's restraints.
"So, where are we going?" she asked curiously once he was freed as well.
Now that they were freed from the thorns, a childish grin overtook both of their features.
Tsuge pulled one of his Sunday neckties out of his pocket to bind her eyes shut. "You'll know when we get there," he informed her in a sugary sweet tone that didn't suit him at all.
Now guiding her by the shoulders, he eased her into the front seat of his dad's truck, and was able to squeeze into the back from the driver's side.
"I'm okay with being in the back-" Haru tried to protest.
"No such thing! It's your birthday, after all," Tsuge's father insisted, patting her shoulder before driving away from her home. "Just sit back and enjoy the ride."
"At least I know it isn't the Sakura Festival. School officials canceled it because of the bombs."
Tsuge made a snort of disgust. "One, we're bad dancers, and two, they might have continued with whatever they were planning when Machida was involved."
"Honestly, what is it about teenage girls trying to turn their lives into a bad soap opera?" his father grated as he tried to keep the ride as smooth as possible for the girl. "You'd think that ordinary high school life would be enough to deal with."
"You would think. Too bad they don't indulge in such an activity," Haru said with a snarky grin.
Both of them laughed at that one, but it was still another ten minutes before reaching their destination. Tsuge's father quickly released his son so that he could open Haru's door for her.
"Can I take this thing off yet?" she asked as he eased her out of the truck.
"No, just hold on," he pleaded, once again taking her by the shoulders to guide her down what felt like a sidewalk, then completely picking her up and setting her on the top of a small set of stairs.
'Good move. I trip up stairs when I can see.'
Tsuge tucked her into one arm in order to open a door and guide her into what felt like a small space. "Okay, now just let me loosen the knot, and-"
"Surprise!" several people cried out as the tie fell away from her eyes, making her jump back on instinct. She stared, not quite expecting the scene in front of her.
There hadn't been as many people as she thought at first. It was Tsuge, his parents, and an adorable little girl with jet black hair that she guessed was his six year old sister, Sakura. The living room they were in was small but clean.
… He had taken her to his home?
"Happy birthday, Haru!" the small child squealed, jumping forward to hug her by the legs.
"Th-Thanks, Sakura. Tsuge, you didn't say she was this adorable!" she couldn't keep from gushing, picking the girl up for a random hug.
"He talks about me?" she beamed, wrapping her arms comfortably around the older girl's neck.
"I knew your name, didn't I?" Haru couldn't keep from teasing, squeezing the girl like she did Muta.
If any of the other students could have seen them, they would have said it was a boring night. It had consisted of a family dinner at the table, followed by cake and a random parade of board and card games until long after Sakura had fallen asleep on the slim brunette's lap. They would have thought it mundane, even if they could have heard the jokes and laughter that accented the evening like the scent of Haru's beloved roses.
It would be years until Sakura would understand that the reason Haru didn't open a gift that night, was because that night had been one of the best gifts of her life.
Yet Tsuge was already making plans to top it.