Melodies and Memories

“Since all four of us are gathered, why don’t each of us perform our own unique musical piece?” Yuusuke suggested, his face practically glowing with excitement as he gazed at us.

“I, I’ve only ever played the thumb piano… I only know a single tune…” Nanase confessed bashfully, her head bowed low as she tentatively extended her two index fingers, tapping them together with the delicate, fleeting touch of a dragonfly on water.

“Oh… I only know how to play one piano piece as well…?” Takagi offered, his eyes drifting towards the upright piano that stood against the wall.

“Uh… I… I don’t know how to do anything at all…” The instant these words escaped my lips, the air around us thickened with an abrupt and palpable awkwardness.

“…No, no, it’s fine! Kamimura-san, you can sing, can’t you…?” Yuusuke, quickly stepping in to salvage the situation, broke through the burgeoning awkwardness.

“I can sing a little, but I hope you’ll excuse me if I happen to be off-key…” I replied with a humble inclination of my head.

“Then there’s absolutely no problem! For someone outside the professional circle… merely being able to sing is already quite impressive! So… allow me to be the first to perform.”

“Huh? Didn’t you just perform a moment ago?” Takagi inquired, a bewildered expression on his face as he looked at Yuusuke.

“That was merely a warm-up, just a warm-up! Now, this is the moment for my magnificent performance, so everyone, please watch closely—no, actually, listen intently!” Yuusuke declared, slinging his electric guitar across his body before taking his place in front of the microphone.

We instinctively fell silent, adjusting our postures to properly savor his melody.

A vibrant electric guitar prelude spontaneously unfurled, weaving through the air, and then, as his voice joined in, it resonated with an undeniable, sudden charm.

“I didn’t know why I came so far~

Was I blind or did I know this wrong path

Ahead of my way you walked always

That day I just go so sick of it

Run away run away from the day I gave up can’t see you no more”

“Are you ready go face your desire~

What will I see~

Today I won’t let you down

Are you ready go face my weakness~

I see you smiling face~

Tomorrow is a brand new day you know~”

The notes seemed to tremble delicately beneath his fingertips, and the vibrant melody from the guitar strings stirred a profound resonance within my very soul. ‘Hmm… it certainly sounds like a Japanese rock song,’ I mused.

“Incredible… ah! That truly sounds delightful!” Takagi exclaimed, visibly shaken by the profound impact of Yuusuke’s performance.

“It’s clearly a rock song… yet Yuusuke-kun sings it with such a gentle touch…” Nanase whispered, a hint of surprise in her voice.

“People who sing rock are absolutely cool, aren’t they?!” I commented with a knowing smile, offering Yuusuke a direct and unreserved compliment. His cheeks, in turn, flushed an involuntary crimson.

“Th-thank you all for your kind praise! It is truly my honor to have allowed everyone to enjoy such a beautiful piece!”

“Who’s up next? Hmm… Nanase-chan, you’re the one!” Yuusuke declared, his finger pointing directly at her without a moment’s hesitation.

“Eh, eh, eh?! Why is it suddenly my turn…?”

“Alright, alright, now quickly begin your performance!”

“I, I understand…! Just don’t rush me so much.”

Nanase-chan delicately cradled the thumb piano in both hands, her two small, nimble thumbs gently plucking the keys on its body.

In that instant, a melody, as ethereal as a spring breeze, drifted into my ears and resonated deeply. It felt less like notes being plucked by her hands and more like them gracefully leaping forth from her very touch. Her thumbs danced across the instrument with an understated elegance, weaving a tune that felt akin to a timeless, nuanced essay unfolding. She continued to pluck with serene composure, utterly lost in the exquisite music she was creating.

The moment the final note gracefully faded, all three of us erupted into enthusiastic applause.

“Beautiful,” I uttered, finding myself utterly bereft of words to adequately commend such a delightful melody.

“Such delicate, tender accompaniment; it truly suits Nanase-chan’s personality.”

“Indeed… it sounds incredibly gentle…”

“Thank you… for everyone’s kind words,” Nanase-chan responded, maintaining a modest composure as she bowed gracefully in gratitude.

“Well then… I suppose it’s my turn now?” Takagi remarked, having already made his way to the piano and settled onto the bench.

“I shall be performing a piece for you all titled ‘Sunflowers in the Night’…”

His nimble fingers began to dance across the piano’s keys, conjuring a succession of exquisitely beautiful and moving melodies that were at once healing, delicate, and rich with dynamic rises and falls. The music enveloped me in an ineffable sensation: I felt as though I stood atop a rooftop, my gaze inextricably drawn to the boundless, cerulean expanse of the sky, where a cluster of white clouds orbited the sun with rhythmic precision. ‘Was I truly looking at the sky?’ I pondered.

…………

No, it was the sky gazing back at me.

The celestial deity merely returned the reverent gaze I had offered.

It was utterly mesmerizing, profoundly intoxicating…

The melody, at some unknown point, receded from my conscious mind, yet it imprinted itself deeply upon my heart, stirring within me an overwhelming impulse to journey along the path that seemed to lead directly into the sky…

“Takagi-kun’s performance was also incredibly gentle…”

“This piece truly holds a wondrous power… Just a moment ago, my spirits were soaring, almost uncontrollably high, yet this melody has somehow soothed them completely…” Yuusuke observed, his expression one of utter disbelief as he gazed at Takagi.

“Indeed… this piece invariably brings to mind the boundless azure sky… Rather than simply a musical composition, it feels more like a ‘tranquilizer’,” I remarked, employing a vivid metaphor to commend Takagi’s performance.

“Thank you…!” He responded, sheepishly scratching the back of his head just as he had on a previous occasion.

“It’s your turn now, isn’t it, Kamimura-san?” Yuusuke asked with a wide grin, while Nanase-chan and Takagi both watched me, their faces alight with eager anticipation for my singing.

“Ahem… well… if I genuinely can’t hit the high notes, you absolutely mustn’t laugh at me, alright?”

“Anyone who dares laugh at you, I’ll be the first one to bash their head in!” Yuusuke declared, raising a fist in a symbolic gesture of protection.

“Rest assured, Kamimura-san, no matter how you sing, we will wholeheartedly embrace it,” Takagi assured me, placing a hand over his chest.

“Me too… Anko-chan…”

“Then I’ll just sing a small excerpt…”

Clearing my throat, I positioned my mouth directly in front of the microphone.

“Too many fragmented moments of happiness have passed…

I’m already weary, like a hungry, pitiful hyena

Tearing at all that obstructs, imposing myself upon others

Enough…

Who truly is the villain?

Struggling, weeping, clutching my own blood-stained self

Why does nothing ever change? Am I still utterly alone?

Unable to find joy, unable to fulfill desires, is that why I yearn to escape?

Giving no love, yet desperately craving it

I am so fragile, so fragile, fragile yet stubbornly defiant

Even though I can accomplish nothing on my own

Pushing away the love that draws near, with a tone that feigns understanding everything

Even I will strive to grow stronger, please, just listen to me…”

I brought my song to a halt, slowly opening the eyes that had been closed in deep immersion.

“The melody is quite pleasant, but the lyrics are a bit… ill-suited to the mood…” Yuusuke remarked, a slight frown creasing his brow as he looked at me.

“I feel it too… it imparts an overwhelmingly oppressive sensation…” Nanase-chan admitted, her face now etched with melancholy and sorrow.

“Hmm… such profoundly sorrowful lyrics… Kamimura-san, what prompted you to sing this particular piece…?” Takagi inquired, his gaze fixed on me with an expression of deep concern.

“Ah… I apologize, I didn’t mean to make the atmosphere so incredibly heavy… My mistake entirely.”

“I’m not entirely sure why that particular song came to mind… Nanase-chan, please don’t look so downcast; it’s truly just a song,” I said, turning to Nanase with a reassuring smile, hoping to lift her from the oppressive mood.

“Mm… I’m alright now… But Kamimura-san, you’re not allowed to conceal any sad things from me, understand?”

“I know,” I affirmed, forcing a brilliant, sunny smile to mask the intensely dark past I strove to keep hidden.