'I woke up a while beforehand but I wanted to wait before messaging you. Thankfully, I've managed to calm down a lot.'

'I'm glad to hear that.'

'Since our meeting's not terribly long from now, I think this is okay for me to ask. Are you willing to bring sake for my visit? I'll be all right by the time we see each other but I won't be upset if you don't.'

'I'll bring some. Take care of yourself until then.'

'Right. See you eventually, Bansai.'

.

.

.

.

.

Evening came by when Michiru left her house. She said few words if any out loud throughout her walk towards her destination. At one point did she return to her last text message towards Bansai, mainly where she wrote his name.

Michiru burnt whenever attempting to spare a glance at it. Finishing her reply with the aforementioned name and sending it didn't get registered in her mind until mere minutes after happening already. Avoiding to acknowledge the fact up till now, to which hardly helped.

When placing a palm over her cheek and shutting her phone, Michiru caught sight of the boat.

Letting out a sharp gasp, she forced her feet to halt by digging them into the ground. Mildly annoyed for not paying closer attention at the distance but the woman went to take deep breaths.

This night wouldn't be anything special; just her and Bansai making conversation while having drinks. Michiru found no reason to ruminate on something as mundane as an upcoming hangout.

Regaining her composure after some more inhaling, she resumed her stroll without averting eye contact from the boat. It took nearly no time reaching the doors, followed by Michiru going inside.

There sat Bansai, adjusting shamisen with sheets of paper beside him. In the center of the room rested a tray with a carafe and one small cylindrical cup.

"Hello."

Michiru made the same greeting, then slipped out of her sandals to sit in front of said tray by having her legs to the side.

"I really appreciate you making time for this," She said while rubbing the back of her neck underneath long locks of hair.

As he wrote down a few words, the musician made his reply, "I've been preoccupied during the day, especially as of late. I won't be drinking tonight as I don't want my focus towards writing and playing music to be affected."

"Understandable. Are you also gonna practice the song you're currently writing?"

"Not much if at all." Temporarily setting his instrument down, Bansai reached for the carafe, eventually pouring some sake into the small cup. By already holding said cup did Michiru thank him.

She started with the cup in front of her lips, "I ended up having a huge breakdown on my shift." Shifting her gaze to the side, Michiru held a crooked smile as well. "To say it felt awful then would be a rather big understatement, especially when Otsu-chan and Mika got concerned about me."

As she took a sip of the drink, Bansai replied with a question, "Forgive me for asking but did there end up being a public commotion?"

"Barely. The worst that happened was suspicion from the audience and most of my coworkers but even then, Otsu-chan managed to get it covered…by claiming it to be part of the show." After a shrug, she added, "Though, I guess it's better than potentially ending up on the media for disrupting her Halloween concert all due to something personal. Not to say there weren't questions brought up afterwards but we tried keeping it as private as possible."

Michiru sipped more of the savory beverage, taking in the taste.

"It's one thing to be stressed beyond your control; it's another story when the situation happens beside a plethora of people," He said whilst bringing his bachi to the steel strings.

A soft scoff left her mouth before she could have a second thought. "No kidding. I bet if the concert wasn't Halloween themed the suspicion would've risen further."

Neither said anything else in the moment and noise came mainly from the instrument. The pacing went consistently slow, pleasant rhythms filling Michiru's ears to where her lips formed a more natural smile. Shifts in her expression were seldom even during the time she drank.

It didn't take long to finish her first serving, requesting Bansai another fill of her cup to which he obliged. The muscles in her legs relaxed significantly until perceiving numbness, leading Michiru to shift her position towards crossing them.

"Crap. Didn't think my legs would fall asleep."

"I daresay it's bound to happen when they lay on the floor like that," Bansai indicated as his fingers slid over the strings, bachi doing the same though with longer brushes than previously.

Michiru said, holding a blank stare, "I guess but not this fast." Upon returning to her drink did she sense a tad of heat washing over her face. She slapped a palm on her cheek. "Is it me or is it getting warm in here?"

"I don't feel warmer than when I arrived. It's likely the alcohol."

Pausing for a moment or two, Michiru held her own chin. "Oh yeah. Ain't buzzed but sure felt the sake. I can still drink."

With that, she went on to take longer sips of the sake with great care. How much more time went by, though feeling as if it went sluggish, she overall had a zilch clue. Not that she cared; only thing worth noting being the few audible sounds—specifically some bugs Michiru couldn't identify and water—coming from outside.

Bansai concluded another piece of music, followed by him asking, "How are you doing?"

She raised a thumb towards his direction. "Pretty good, thanks! Got any more of that yummy drink?"

"No."

"Huh? I thought it was full before."

"There was less sake than you believed."

"Boo…" Trailing off, Michiru slapped the same arm on her leg and puffed her cheeks. "Bah, whatever. A bottle can only hold so much."

"It's a carafe," He corrected, "and you didn't even listen to what I said."

Her eyes narrowed. "Says you who blasts your headphones with music." After pushing herself from the tatami mat, the reddened woman added, "Why's it matter? I don't wanna keep sittin'."

In a speed not enough for Bansai to initially grasp her actions did Michiru attempt a cartwheel, albeit ending in an inflexible way. In spite of the evident trembles in her body language, Michiru repeated her action at least twice more.

Breaking his attention from her, Bansai rested the shamisen beside himself, turning towards the sheets and pencil. The musician raised the volume in his headphones, blocking Michiru's snickers while she rolled over the mat. His eyes glued to his work. Only times facing the other individual whenever she became close towards the paper, preventing either drool leaking from her mouth or a possible cut on Michiru's face.

A noisier laugh bursted out of Michiru's mouth during her prolonged rolling. Halting herself as fast as she started, she pushed from the floor before taking long steps to the window.

Bansai turned his head around, only to witness her pushing spandex down with said window wide open.

"Michiru!" He hurried over to wrap his arms around her shoulders, receiving a squeak and subsequent burp. "That's not where you do your private business!"

She instead managed to relieve herself outside, of course close to where the boat rested.

Upon returning, Michiru rested the front side of her body on the flooring.

Bansai suspired while sitting beside her. "I can't believe you were about to do that here."

"Hey, don't blame me for something outta my control…" Michiru hardly made movement other than sparing him a sideways glance. Redness remained spreaded on her cheeks.

"Also, aren't you uncomfortable in that position? It's not good for your posture."

"I'll feel too far away from you sitting by the wall."

Bansai arched a brow at her claim. "What're you talking about?"

"My ears are muffling." Her cheek rested on the mat, receiving a full upwards view of him. "Or maybe not, I dunno…either way, my eyes are gettin' heavy and if I'm far from you, I'll believe to be dreaming then."

"You're still making little sense. Besides, this room isn't very large."

She said nothing to his response, focus shifting back to the floor. It led the man to heave out another breath, less dense than previously.

"Would you like to rest against my back?"

In an instant, Michiru's head turned with widening eyes. "You mean it?"

"Can you sit up straight?"

Halfway closing her eyes, she questioned back with dryness in her voice, "Why do you think I'm lying like this?"

One corner of his lips twisted upwards with him holding back a potential chuckle. "I'll take that as a no." Bansai shifted position until having his back face her. "Rest against me, but try not to move too much."

"All right, all right…" Slurring her words, Michiru used her palms to thrust herself up to his level. Though fumbling, she soon placed her back onto his' at last.

It took less than ten seconds to sense the heaviness leaning into him. He turned, holding a frown.

"Michiru, I can't play the shamisen when you're pressing on me."

"Sorry." She released a long yawn while readjusting an inch away before resting on Bansai a second time. Less pressure was placed on his back, giving him the ability to straighten himself and reach for the instrument.

Giving her legs a stretch, Michiru planted her forearms over her own stomach, eyelids lowering in the process.

"That's more like it," An involuntary murmur eased through her lips, corners of them curling up by the time Bansai went on to stroke his bachi on the strings.

Brushes on said strings leaned towards merrier melodies in comparison to the last set of chords. While having her lids block her view, Michiru hummed at each tune as well as tapping a finger on her hand. Every time Bansai went into an abrupt turn of the song, a bright spark dragged across inside her internal vision. Bouncing off a nonexistent floor even.

A more tranquil noise filled her ears, leading a different visual to enter. Rather than a spark, it was a sole finger trailing over perspiring skin. Michiru had her lips parted in the midst of the finger dragging across a midriff. Puzzled at first, but it went short lived when the vision in her mind transitioned to a fuller body lying on the ground.

There, she witnessed Bansai planting a kiss on her lips along with having his entire hand roaming over her bare hip. Michiru's arms wrapped around his shoulders while pressing into him, especially with his tongue diving in her mouth.

Michiru emitted a second hum, this time with a smirk forming.

"Is something on your mind?"

Ceasing the sound vibrating in her throat, Michiru said, eyelids scarcely opened, "Huh? I thought you knew already."

"I don't, actually."

"Oh yeah, you listen to music, not read minds. Anyway…" She waved her hand lazily before continuing, "I really needed your company this time."

"You made it clear in the phone call." Although averting from his instrument, it didn't distract Bansai from the performance.

"I know but I mean it. I don't think I've met anyone nearly like you…well, not that there'd be two Bansai's in existence." Michiru rubbed her nose with the back of her hand. "That's not the point, though. I can't help thinking of us together like some secret lengthy red string of fate. Silly thing to claim, yeah, but it's the closest I can think of and it's been annoying me."

"I can't say that's surprising."

Michiru released a snort, more so towards herself than Bansai's nonchalant response. "There's too much to say yet it's all one giant blur. I don't have a proper way of putting this but being in your presence relaxes me especially when you play and when you made love to me a few nights ago."

Gradually bringing his playing to a halt, Bansai said as his brow furrowed, "A few nights? It was longer than that."

"Really? Maybe I'm confusing between those days." She brought a hand to her chin. "I think it was when I was alone."

The near silence on her comment brought him to repeat, "Alone?"

"Used my fingers, y'know…" An nth yawn escaped, briefly interjecting her words. "I'd say more but I can hardly speak…"

As her breathing grew into soft snores, her weight inadvertently leant on him.

"Michiru." Bansai's voice raised enough for the woman in question to perk up and blink a handful of times.

"Eh? What's up?"

"Are you starting to fall asleep?"

"Heh, you could tell," She sang and gave out an inexplicit snicker. "I've been here for…um, how long?"

"Two hours I believe."

"Huh, guess time slows down when you're having sake," Droning, Michiru scratched her scalp.

Placing the instrument a few feet away, Bansai simultaneously inched forward to suggest, "Would you feel more comfortable resting on my lap? It's likely you'll fall if you stay on my back."

She faced the musician. "Sleepin' on the floor is the worst so yes."

With his calves brought underneath him did she plant the side of her head over his pants. Positioning comfortably, Michiru let out a deep breath followed with a heartfelt smile and resting her eyelids.

Bansai tugged a few locks of wavy hair from her agape mouth where a tad of drool stuck.

The smile holding upon his face almost mirrored hers'. "Goodnight, Michiru."

"...ight," Was the most Michiru could utter; in a short time, her snoring returned. Each noise she produced went smoother, ending up borderline hushed.

Gaping down, he pondered on her tangent as his lips dwindled to a thin line. When doing so did her tune play in his mind; echoing in the farthest back yet full of clarity.

A giant blur of too many words to say, Michiru claimed.

Bansai, however, contemplated, I can't hear classical music this time. Actually, it doesn't generally sound like music in the slightest. He brought more strings of hair behind her ear.

Waves gently washing against an ocean shore would be a better description for her current song.

To be continued…