When Umi moved out of the house, she decided that she visit her family every week. She was wearing a hoodie that day, it was one of those ones were they had those little laces that you could pull for the fitment of the hood, she fidgeted with it every now and then, which was the reason why she wore it. But the main reason was that it was a cold night. Her hair was also tied up in a neat ponytail.

It was a regular dinner; all of them sat on the dining table, eating and talking to each other until she said:

"I think, I'm gonna continue the band." Everybody looked at her, she looked down knowing this was brash and insensitive and maybe even hurting. 

"T-thats great Umi!" Her mother said, trying keep a composed face. 

"Why so sudden?" Her brother asked pointing his chopsticks at her. 

"I just want to do something new." Umi answered, her appetite suddenly gone, though she couldn't know why. After a moment her dad finally spoke. 

"No, I wouldn't allow such a thing." 

Umi could notice the tiredness from his own voice but also from the aura he was emmiting. Still she was suprised that he would say it without hesitation.

"So you wont let me use the studio?" She said sadly, her hopes lost. 

"Yes."

Umi's heart sank once again. An awkward silence filled the table. Why? She was about to ask this when her father held up his hand to keep her from speaking. He said, 

"I will let you use the studio after all, but promise me that you will have a good experience." He held her hand and smiled. 

"O-of course." Said Umi, thoughts of uncertainty filling in her head. 

... 

Umi was on the way home that night, riding a train. Beneath her feet she could feel the slight vibration produced by the rails. 

What does he mean by that? A good experience. 

"What's with the long face?" A person beside her asked. 

"It's nothing." Umi looked at him and saw that he had brown hair, he was also wearing glasses. He sighed and looked up. 

"Something bad happened to me too." He took off his glasses and wiped both his eyes with his index finer and thumb, though Umi couldn't confirm if it was from fatigue or sadness. Probably both. 

"I got dumped..."

"What am I even saying?" He shook his head and chuckled. He put his glasses back on as fast as he took it off and said, 

"Sorry, my name's Tachibana, Tachibana Kenta." He reached out a hand which Umi shook. 

"Akaisuki Umi." 

"Akaisuki? That's, kind of weird." 

"I know right? people used to make fun of it whenever they had the chance." Umi laughed and she felt much more better than before.

Kenta looked at her as a shimmer of light from the station shone on her face. He slightly reddened and looked away. 

"Well, my stop is right here." Umi pointed, she was about to exit the train, but she felt a hand on her shoulder. 

"Hey, um, thanks, thanks a lot." Kenta smiled. 

"No, no, it's no problem." Umi put both her hands in front of her, palms facing Kenta. 

"You should get going now." Kenta nodded. He saw Umi exit and wave, he waved back. He sat back and relaxed on the train seat. Kenta was sweating a little bit, he suddenly felt warm, and he shuddered. 

... 

Tomorrow that day, when Umi finally got the keys to the studio, she lifted the metal gate and unlocked the door. Memories of her dad bringing her here came flooding back as if a switch had been flipped. Inside was the reception/break room, and past that was, Umi guessed the restroom, which was suprisingly clean. 

When she got in the music room, she recognised it from floor to ceiling, wall to wall, the black egg box shaped soundproofing, and the faded green carpet, and the suspicious coffee stain on it, Umi was about to cry, she didn't know why but she was. Her phone rang: It was her dad. 

"Yes dad?" Besides from a series of confirmation and simple responses, she was instructed specifically to check the instruments. 

The instruments were already there, although they needed some serious maintenance, and the drums still needed assembling. Umi tried carrying the various parts of it but it was too heavy for her.

I need brother for this. She thought. She sat down on one of the spots that looked the most comfortable, and tried calling him but he didn't pick up, no matter how many attempts he still answered her calls. After some time he texted her, telling her to wait and he'll send someone. 

Send someone? Umi thought. 

"Who are you sending?" She typed. 

"A friend, he'll be there in a while. Don't be afraid to order him around, he owes me." 

She sighed and decided to sit it out in the reception, where the aircon was delivering fresh cold air. After an hour or so she felt someone shaking her by the shoulder. 

"Hey, hey." A voice called out, interrupting her short rest. 

"Oh! Sorry." Umi sat up straight. 

"You shouldn't sleep while the aircon's running, at least wrap a blanket around you, honestly." The man lectured her, while he turned up the aircon's temperature a little. 

"Yes, sorry, so your Asahi's friend?" She said standing up, still a feeling little groggy. 

"Asahi? Ah, yes, sorry I don't call him by his first name." He extended a hand then bowed 45 degrees. 

"Yoshiro Shiroiro, I look forward to working with you." 

Wow, so formal. She shook Yoshiro's hand. He had the grip of an office worker. 

"Let me show you the room." She said as she walked to the room and opened the door for him. When they both entered Yoshiro nodded and thought aloud:

"So this is what he was talking about, I see, pretty impressive." 

"Yeah right? But the instruments and the studio need a little care." Umi said and Yoshiro nodded once more. 

"Yes, what's the use of driving when you don't even know how to wash your own car?" He quoted while he stood proud. 

"From where did you hear that?" Umi asked, realising he had an above-average height. 

"From my grandpa, man was he cool." He answered in a childlike manner. 

He can be pretty lame at times though. Umi thought. 

"Anyways, you needed help right?" Yoshiro asked, already lifting a part of the stands for the drums. Umi nodded and helped him. When they took out most of the drum heads and cymbals, the afternoon sun lit up heating the already hot room, Yoshiro exhaled and took off his jacket saying:

"It sure is hot in here." He patted his sweat with a handkerchief that he got from his pocket, it had a plaid pattern and the smell of men's perfume. 

"Yeah right?" Umi agreed, stumbling on her words a little. She never expected for him to take his jacket off so casually. 

"With that said, I think we can call it a day." She continued. Yoshiro nodded, the jacket resting on his forearm. They sat down and Umi looked at her feet, thinking of something to say. 

"Hey, thanks for the help. I don't know why you owe my brother, but thanks for coming on a short notice." said Umi. 

"Nah, it's nothing. This actually gave me a bit of nostalgia; I was in a band before, haha, we weren't really popular though." said Yoshiro, before realizing that what he said was a mistake. 

Umi's impression of him raised a bit more. 

"Wow, really!? You were in a band! What instrument did you play? Maybe you could give me some tips. This is perfect!" Came Umi's relentless barrage of words. 

Yoshiro scratched his head sheepishly and said, 

"I don't know.. You really think that I would be much of a help?" 

"But you already helped me loads! I wouldn't be able to carry all this heavy stuff you know." she replied. 

Yoshiro hesitantly looked around the studio and sighed. 

"Well, from what I'm seeing, the instruments need serious maintenance, the drums still need assembling, and you need more people. Hmm, fine I'll help you." Each phrase he spoke Umi felt, like heavy blows, but the last part healed the imaginary bruises. 

"Really?! You'll really do it?" Umi held both of his hands, his in a clap stance and surrounded by hers.

"Y-yeah, if thats, fine with you." Yoshiro looked away, he couldn't move as his hands were ensnared by Umi's. 

"Anyways, don't get your hopes up! I'll be absent most of the time, and I already have a lot on my plate." He said, facing her, and he felt the pressure on his hands relax. He saw Umi looking down, her excitement gone by his words. 

"Hey, chin up, It's not like I don't have weekends, and plus you don't know what might happen." Yoshiro quoted once more as he stood up. Umi looked up at him and asked. 

"Where did you get that from?" She smiled. 

"From experience." Yoshiro smiled back, but it looked more like he smirked. 

"Sorry, I gotta go." He pointed at his watch. Umi couldn't read it because of the afternoon sun, but she got the message. 

"Yeah, me too." She nodded, standing beside him, while they walked, walked, until they reached the station and realised they both ride the same rail line. 

"Oh, what? Shiroiro-san, you didn't tell me you ride the same line as me." Umi said, nudging Yoshiro with her elbow, since he was tall and Umi would have a difficult time his shoulder. 

"That's because it's unecessary, besides I didn't even know in the first place." He answered, not minding that she added a 'mister', since he often hears that alot. After a moment they boarded the train and he heard that Umi was talking to another person or a man rather.

"Tachibana-san! I didn't expect to see you here again." 

"Yeah, same here." came the reply. 

Yoshiro recognized the name, and when he looked at their direction, he saw it: Brown hair and glasses, that was all he needed to know to confirm it. 

"Kenta?" He blurted out loud. 

"Yoshiro?" Kenta adjusted his glasses, and walked closer to him. "It is you!" Kenta pointed to him. 

People stared at them with tired eyes, some angry. One even groaned from all the built up frustration. They just wanted peace and silence from a long day of strenuous work, and they were ruining it, or Kenta at least.

"It's been a long time since we met, Yoshi." He said, folding his arms, his old habit whenever he was talking to Yoshiro. He felt like he needed to, like to compensate for his height. 

"I told you to stop calling me that a long time ago." He laughed. 

"Yeah, yeah, what are you gonna do about it?" Kenta taunted him, pulling his old friend torward by the shoulder. Yoshiro looked at him with dangerous eyes. 

"Nothing. I just feel like your showing off a little, just because theres a girl nearby." he said. Shoving Kenta, just enough to get out of his grasps. 

The two were locked in a cold stare. 

"Um, can somebody tell me what's going on?" said Umi, as she looked on with a concerned expression. The two looked at Umi, and relaxed a little. 

"Oh, sorry Akaski-san. You see, Yoshiro and I go way back. We were friends when we were just kids. It's also been a long time since we last met again." Said Kenta with an apologetic look. 

The tension around the car relaxed a little. Umi spoke up again:

"Geez guys, if you haven't seen each other for a long time, then atleast be friendly with one another."

"R-right.." said Kenta. "Sorry Yoshiro."

"Apology accepted. And keep your voice down, you're disturbing the people around you." replied Yoshiro. 

Kenta laughed embarrassingly, and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. Some people nodded their thanks. 

"Well, it's not like I can help it you know." 

Umi smiled at them, glad that they were friendly again. 

"Guys, this is amazing!" she said. "This is like a fateful reunion from an Anime or something." she exclaimed aloud, before covering her mouth with her hand. 

The train slid into a gentle stop, and some of the people stood up, preaparing to exit, and Umi did the same. 

"I guess that's your stop." Yoshiro nodded to the floor of the station, moving aside so it would be more easy for the people both entering and exiting, though it was nighttime, so the former would be fewer, if not then none at all. 

"Bye-bye." Said Umi, softening her voice, careful not to cause anymore disturbance. So Kenta did same as her. 

"Yup, bye-bye, be careful." And with that said, both men left alone in the train car, and an awkward silence fell upon them. Yoshiro sat beside Kenta, who was thinking about a topic talk to about. Then it hit him, but first he focused on small talk of course, a strategy he picked up from experience on socialising. 

Small talk opens up people's mouths as they talk about a small topic, then before they realise it, you hit them with the big one. 

"I know this is silly but, you do have a phone, don't you Yoshi?" 

"Hm? Oh, no I leave it at my place, it can be distracting sometimes." Yoshiro answered. 

"I see." Kenta fixed his glasses in a exaggerated manner, and took a deep breath, readying himself. "So do you like her? Akaski-san I mean." 

Yoshiro looked at him with his cold eyes. 

"I like her." he said. 

Kenta was shocked for awhile. Before he opened his mouth to speak, Yoshiro spoke again,

"I like her, to some extent, but only as a friend."

Kenta was silent, so Yoshiro spoke again,

"Don't worry Kenta, she's not my type. She is a nice girl though. I guess that's why she caught your eye. That's what you were so worried about?"

Kenta laughed at this out loud. Since there were no more people, he was free to be his usual self.

"Nah I wasn't worried, I was just asking." he said.

Both were silent, then settled again on small talk. They reminisced about the past, their friendship. Kenta was the one doing all the talking mostly. 

"You like Akaisuki-san don't you?" asked Yoshiro, taking Kenta by surprise. 

Kenta reddened in surprise. 

"W-what makes you think that!?" he said. 

Yoshiro raised one of his eyebrows at him. 

"It was kinda obvious as to why you asked me if I liked her." He said. 

Kenta sighed. 

"I couldn't be subtle alright?" He said. "I like her.. There, I said it." 

Yoshiro stood up and got ready to leave.

"This is my stop. You're still using the same LINE account right?" he said. 

"Yeah, I still use the same account." he replied. 

(The Japanese public use LINE for their messaging, it is the most common and widely used messaging service in Japan.)

"Gotcha. It was nice talking to you again. Goodbye, Kenta." said Yoshiro, as he exited the train onto the platform. 

Kenta smiled at him, and waved goodbye. 

End of Chapter

...