ならばお前が書け。それが唯一その小説を完璧なままにしておく方法だ。
Then you write it. That's the only way to keep that story perfect.
-Natsume Souseki
Final~
Two years after surgery
He played the last note at the same time as her, and sat back, his shoulders relaxing with a sigh.
"That was good," Kaori said, lowering her violin.
He turned to her and smiled wearily. "Yeah."
"You know what – I'm satisfied with that."
He nodded. "Agreed."
"Good," her mother said from the doorway, clapping her hands together briskly, stepping in with two glasses of water. "Well, if you're done for the day, will you two please come down and have dinner now?"
"We'll just have it here, thank you," said Kaori, accepting her glass of water gratefully.
Her mother smiled slightly. "Fine," she said, and turned to Kousei.
"Ah, thank you," he said, taking the water and taking a long draught.
"Kaori!" her father said loudly. "Kousei-kun! You guys are done practicing?"
Kaori nodded. "Hope this is enough…"
"Don't worry!" her father said with a laugh, walking to Kousei and slapping him on the back. The younger man found himself thankful he was sitting, or he would not have been able to withstand that hit. A baker's arms were strong, as he had seen. "There isn't a pair of musicians better than the two of in that competition! You have this thing in the bag!"
Kousei lowered his gaze, running his fingers gently over the piano keys. Tomorrow was the final of the nationals… They'd made it this far… Her father was probably right. Realistically, he shouldn't be this nervous. There was probably not a pair of musicians in the world who could best the two of them…
Kaori set her glass on the table beside her, now empty but still chilled, and made to stand up.
"Oh, no," her mother said, waving her down quickly. "You don't need to get up. You either, Kousei-kun."
"Ahh," Kousei said awkwardly, halfway between sitting and standing.
"Yeah, we'll go bring your dinner upstairs for you," her father said.
"But… I wouldn't want to cause you any trouble…" he said, shooting his girlfriend a glance.
"It's no trouble," her father insisted. "Sit down! We'll bring it up!"
He looked to Kaori. She was sitting unconcernedly.
"Well, I – Thank you," he said in defeat.
"Don't worry about it," Kaori's mother said kindly, and she and her husband left the room.
Kousei sat back down, a sigh threatening to escape.
Silently, he drummed the edge of the piano with his fingers. So much depended on their performance tomorrow… If they won, the opportunities that would open up before them would be incredible. Kaori would get the chance to compete against violinists from all around the world in Italy. He could not botch this, whatever happened.
"You're nervous," said Kaori softly, sitting down beside him, and, taking his hand, resting her head on his shoulder.
"I really want to win."
She hummed, her voice musical even without words.
"This is so important… As your accompanist, I just… I can't let this go wrong, not when you've come so far…"
She laced their fingers together. "When we've come so far. This is for us, Kousei, don't forget it. We're a team. We're one, you and I."
"Yes, I know."
She looked at him, and he stared worriedly ahead. For a moment she hesitated. He really wanted all the best things in the world for her, really wanted her to be happier than anyone else in the world. For a moment she could not speak, her heart fluttering because the love she had for him could not be contained. She raised herself up from the bench an inch – for her was now taller than her – and kissed his cheek. He looked at her.
"Don't worry about anything," she said, closing her eyes and resting her head on his shoulder again. "You are everything to me. I'd lay the world at your feet if you asked me to."
My writing is way too sweet. Don't hate me for it – by know you should have figured out this fic is pretty happy. And sweet. Don't forget sweet. Sigh… I'm dead inside. It's only writing these happy, fluffy stories is what makes me feel like I'm alive. Helps me pretend I matter even a single bit in this world, even though I know I actually don't. I could die today and it wouldn't matter to anyone...
...
I'm kidding, don't worry. :P
Yeah, as if anyone would worry…
Again, joking. xD
I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's chapter. I actually really like that one. It's quite different. Wow, this story is coming to an end, eh? It's been quite fun working on it, and I'm kinda sorry to see it go. But look forward to it!
And, to the guest reviewer: Thanks a lot. I really appreciate it. ^_^