.(Oneshot) Any Day One Day
Title: (Oneshot) Any Day One Day
Author le_chocolats
Pairing: Hikanoo
Rating: PG-13
Genre: angst, hint!romance
Warning: Enjoy reading :)))))
Summary: It was any day one day that Hikaru met Inoo Kei. A stranger who came to a coffee shop for one song. The tune he long forgotten…
Pen tapping the book’s surface, Hikaru’s staring at the blackboard in front of the class. Doing his utmost digesting words by words written there. And it wasn’t long enough till a silent sigh escaped from him when his attempt on doing so, fell into a failure all over again.
Another sigh, he looked down. For a short while staring at the watch on his wrist. It’s only 10 minutes left until the class’s over, but the time’s surely seems ticking very slowly.
Then, he averted his eyes, looking outside the window of the class.
Fastly racing down the ascending seatings of the spacious outdoor amphitheater, Hikaru smoothly jumped up the amphitheater’s stage then turned around at his 3 other bandmates, whom standing down the stage.
“One day, we’ll perform here,” he said to them. Confidence laced his smile and passion flared his eyes. “Our band will. We’ll make great performance together and everyone will cheer so loudly for us!”
His lips bent a thin smile at the remembrance as he floats off, staring at the warm tawny autumn’s afternoon sky outside.
“Can you please stop that?” And a voice got him back to his senses. He threw his gaze to the source of the voice, which happened belong to his lecturer, whom now staring very clearly in annoyance at him from the front of the class. Even now, the whole class’s attention fell upon him.
“Hai?” The reaction came with his half dumbfounded expression as he confusingly answered every stares from the whole room at him. Obviously oblivious to what’s really going on.
“Yeah, you, young man,” the lecturer confirmed. “Can you please stop making noises with your pen there? Because the other’s trying to following the class.”
“Ah, I’m sorry-”
“And if you’re smart enough, instead of uselessly making noises with your pen to disturb my class, you might as well use it to note down some important points from today’s lecture,” his lecturer mumbled before he continues his lecture.
It took him quite awhile staying in silence after that before his lips gradually creased a bitter smile.
“Ano…” He heard someone’s whisper then soon Hikaru felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked over to his side and found a girl sat beside him cautiously waving her hand at him with her smile. “You are Yaotome Hikaru, deshou?” she whispered her question.
Hikaru furrowed his brows, confused that this girl knew him even though as long as he remembers, this is the first time they met.
“Yaotome Hikaru the youngest son of Yaotome Sousuke?” In the instant, his frowns eased down as his expression turned dreary. “I recognize you,” the girl said, still whispering, preventing their lecturer caught her talking to him. “I saw a picture of you and your 2 older brothers in your father’s memoir,” she explained.
“He’s my favourite architect. Your father is. He’s really an inspiring person,” the girl praised, smiling excitedly.
Hikaru returned the smile and bowed slightly at her before quickly looked away.
“Bear this in mind, son, in this life, what’s meant to be, then it will be. And in what way you expect me to make you see that be in a band, living a topsy-turvy life, isn’t something you meant to do??! It’s not something to be pursued! It’s a disaster!”
“It’s not like you and your bandmates doing great either with your music. Because if you are, you’d already get a contract with some music production house or something. But then you’re not.”
“Listen to me carefully, Hika, to be an architect and be the future leader of our firm is what you meant to do.”
Walking out of the university building, Hikaru stopped his feet and looking up to the said building not too far behind him. To where his future’s been put on, the future he wasn’t even sure anymore.
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“You okay?” The question had Hikaru looked up to Takaki standing behind the coffee shop counter.
Takaki Yuya is his childhood bestfriend. His father’s the owner of a quite well-known coffee shop in the area. And ever since he was little, Hikaru came to this place a lot to play with Takaki.
He likes being there, in the coffee shop. It’s one of the place that can make him feel equable. Also, Takaki’s family is so nice and funny. His parents always let him and Takaki pick out a cake they like from the shop to be eat together. And it’s always interesting to see they bicker with each other and then laughing out loud as their bickering started to lose its point and they realize that they actually just shouting out random things. The simple thing of events that he never once has in his own house.
But, as they get older, Takaki’s oblige to help his father taking care of the coffee shop. And so, Hikaru offered himself to do a part time there, so he can spend more time there.
“Un,” Hikaru answered, glancing his smile at his bestfriend.
“Then stop making that dull face and giving off the dark aura, you~” Takaki whined. “You’ll freak our customer out.”
Hikaru chuckled at the way Takaki seemed striving very hard to look scary as he scolded him. “You know, it’ll look a lot scarier if your father’s the one saying that,” Hikaru teased him.
“Shut up, I’m trying real hard here! After all, I’ll be his successor one day, so I have to learn properly gaining a strong charisma like his from now. In fact, I’ve been thinking if changing my hair color to black again would help, since this brownie one makes me look more like a movie star or something, don’t you think?”
Hikaru gaped, half amused looking at Takaki for a moment before he bursted into a giggle and caused Takaki frowned by his reaction.
“What?”
“Nothing,” Hikaru said, stifle back his laugh while shaking his head.
“No, come on, what’s funny? I’m serious here!”
“I know, I know. Whatever makes you happy, baby~” Hikaru retorted, playfully wink his eye at Takaki whom instantly shuddered full of disgust.
“Euww, man, stop that! You’re ruining my reputation here!” Takaki protested but soon he followed Hikaru, laughing along together just like the old times. Nothing’s really change even now, unless the fact Hikaru doesn’t laugh a lot anymore.
“So,” Takaki said after awhile. “How’s your first month in university?” And Takaki saw the lights on Hikaru’s expression slightly toned down after the question.
“Well… great, I guess. I couldn’t get almost everything of what the lecturer talked about in class. There’s no club that doesn’t relate to architecture except the knitting club. And those bunch of this-and-that-architect’s son or daughter’s keeps acting all high and snooty. So, yeah… couldn’t been better.”
“It sounds sucks,” Takaki commented, scoffing.
“Yeap… And by the way, I’m sorry for not being able to help out in the shop this whole past month. With the entrance ceremony and the adaptation and all-”
“It’s cool, don’t mind it,” Takaki assured, patting Hikaru’s shoulder. “But, you see, no offense, I do think you could’ve said something to your dad. Convince him more that although he and your brothers are the so-called famous architect, but it’s just not your thing. Maybe he’d understand.”
“I bet you know more than everyone how I’ve tried in many ways possible to do so.”
“Then try again! Many ways possible doesn’t mean every way possible, so there must be still some way.” Hikaru shook his head.
“After all, I started to think maybe… maybe dad’s right. If music is something that meant for me to do, me and the guys would’ve made it somehow, get a contract or something. But, my dad’s right, we didn’t. Maybe I didn’t realize how suck I actually in music all this time.”
“Oh, come on, don’t say that! You know it’s not true, we all know it’s not true. Do you remember the CD demo I asked from you back then?”
“My CD demo?”
“Sou, the one with you singing a song you composed with your guitar. Well, I have to say, that’s really great!”
“You still have it?”
“Of course! In fact, we play it a lot here in the coffee shop,” Takaki said.
“No, you didn’t.”
“Yes, we did and still do. It’s- Oh, no, there he came again,” Takaki mumbled, his face gradually grew annoyed after one certain guy came inside the coffee shop.
“What? He? Who?” Hikaru asked, moving his head around the coffee shop to find the person Takaki meant.
“That guy,” Takaki said without breaking his eyes from the said guy. Hikaru followed Takaki’s eyes and he saw a guy sitting on the table near the corner window.
“You know him?”
“No, well not, literally. But, he’s been coming to the shop for these past 2 weeks.”
“Isn’t it good? Your shop got more loyal customer.”
“Well, normally, yes, it should be good. But the other waiters reported that this guy would just came and sit on one of the table ordering nothing all day! Even with the fact they’ve offered to take his order. Though lately there’s an improvement, if we keep coming to him, he’d eventually make an order. And that would be… a mineral water!” Takaki nearly screamed in horror and frustration.
“I mean, isn’t it weird? This isn’t a park where we can just sit around and do nothing. It’s a coffee shop, there’s clearly a word ‘shop’ involves here, and in a shop we buy something. Seriously, is he trying to make this shop sink into bankruptcy?! We’re running some business here!”
“Maa… maa…,” Hikaru attempted to calm the latter. “I’ll go take his order now, go calm yourself first,” Hikaru suggested then walk to the table where the guy’s currently sitting.
“Hi,” Hikaru greeted him, flashing off a smile. And the guy’s attention averted to him. For a brief seconds looking at him half blank and sort of confused.
“H-hi…” Now the guy had frowns slightly formed on his forehead. “Can I help you?” Suddenly the surprising question spoken out and left Hikaru dumbstrucked for this guy apparently oblivious to the waiter’s uniform and the black apron he’s wearing.
“Can I take your order?” Hikaru asked while trying to hold back his smile. Taking out a pen and a note readied in hands.
“Aaah! I’m sorry… I didn’t see you wearing the… I…” Might be deluged in embrassment and nervousness, the guy lost for words and ended up just smiling sheepishly at him.
“No, it’s okay. The uniform was made transparent anyway, so you might find it hard to see it.” And it was meant to be a joke, his words just now are. But instead, this guy’s eyelashes started to blinking rapidly as his eyes get a little wider by this information.
“Really?” he asked, surprisingly sounded totally buying what Hikaru’s said. And by that time, Hikaru can barely conceal his amusement at this guy reaction.
“N-no, of course not. You can see it now, can’t you?” he said. “It’s a joke,” he added.
“Oh…,” the guy nodded. And Hikaru secretly let out an amused smile when this guy seemed disappointed.
“So, your order?”
“Is it… alright if I order later?”
Hikaru stayed silent for awhile before he nodded his head, “Alright, I’ll come for you again,” and headed back to the counter. From there waiting for the guy to call him back. Yet, after almost 45 minutes passed, he still doesn’t show any sign of making an order.
So, Hikaru decided to approached him again.
“Are you ready to make an order now?” he inquired.
“15 minutes more,” the guy said and Hikaru’s brows arched.
“Hai?”
“Give me 15 minutes more, I’m still deciding…”
“O…kay…” Hikaru agreed, though he began to feel suspicious now. This shop is famous, yes, but it’s not like it has a thousand menus that after almost an hour you still cannot decide what to order.
But he followed suit. 15 minutes passed, he came back. The guy startled when he saw Hikaru already standing beside his table again.
“You’re ready to make an order now, I suppose,” Hikaru said.
The guy slightly bit his lower lip, evidently appeared to look completely uneasy before he said, “Can I have mineral water, please?” Exactly just like what Takaki told him.
“Sure,” nonetheless, Hikaru wrote it down on his note.
“Thank you,” the guy said and somewhat hastily back on reading his novel. Expecting Hikaru would soon leave him alone.
But after another minute elapsed, Hikaru’s still standing on his place. The guy stealed a vigilant glance at Hikaru, now grew anxious with Hikaru not showing any single sign of leaving.
“Anything else?” Hikaru finally asked. “Would you like to try our caramel macchiato? Or gingerbread latte, perhaps? They’re our recommended menus for this autumn,” Hikaru offered.
“Just water, please,” the guy said and gave a rueful grin. “I don’t… really drink coffee. W-well except when I came to someone’s house and they served it, then it’d be rude if I don’t drink it, right? Like everytime I come to uncle Nobue’s house, he always serves coffee. He really…,” suddenly the guy stopped talking when he caught Hikaru’s perplexed expression.
“…likes coffee and I don’t,” the guy drawled awkwardly then looped his eerie smile. Being aware that he might’ve ranted nonsense.
“But, this is a coffee shop,” Hikaru said in a matter of fact, still frowning.
“I know… it’s just… Ano… Well, how do I say this?” the guy grinned nervously, seemed to appear all the more uneasy as he slightly fidgeting.
“Is everything alright?”
“Actually,” the guy paused for awhile. “I wanted to hear this song,” he confessed. “The one playing right now…”
“Eh?” Hikaru baffled. Until then he slowly perceived the song that’s currently playing in the coffee shop. And his eyes went wide. He recognized this song.
“I know it sounds silly, but I really really like this song and this is the only place I know where I can hear it,” he explained. “And that’s the reason why I came here…”
To spend his life playing his music is what Hikaru always yearn for. It’s been the only time where he can feel like himself the most. And it’s always been his dream, to someday having a chance playing his music and let other people hear it.
But, life never grant you everything you want. And after everything, his father, the actuality he never really made it anywhere with this dream of his, also how his father seemed right about everything, Hikaru let it go. Even if it costed him slowly losing himself day to day and that it feels like he doesn’t even know what he really want in his life anymore.
And out of all of that, he just never thought there’d come a time like this. To actually knowing someone really listen to every tune he has long forgotten…
The song of his own.
“You’re going to tell me to go, aren’t you?” the guy guessed in a low voice. “I’m sorry, I’ll leave now,” he apologized with a slight smile then started to packing up his things on the table, getting ready to leave.
“No, wait,” Hikaru stopped him before the guy even get a chance to step away. “I’ll… let me get you your mineral water…”
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“I-is this really alright?” the guy asked, unsure after a glass also a bottle of mineral water served in of him on the table. “I can just go, you know…”
“It’s alright,” Hikaru assured before then placing a plate of blueberry cheesecake along onto the table. The guy looking at the blueberry cheesecake before averting his questioning look at Hikaru. “Have some blueberry cheesecake too,” Hikaru answered the question in his stare.
“But-”
“You don’t like blueberry cheesecake?”
“No, no, I like them, its just, I didn’t order this…”
“Our boss won’t be happy seeing you sitting around here ordering nothing but mineral water. So, you have to have something aside than that… Then, you can stay longer…”
“Then, I’ll pay this blueberry cheesecake.”
“Don’t worry, this one is on me.”
“You really don’t have to do this, I-”
“Ii yo,” Hikaru cut in.
The guy then stood up from his seat and bowed his head, “Thank you so much,” then he beamed full of gratitude.
As they now stood in front of each other, Hikaru started to notice some things about this guy. His long eyelashes and his serene unguarded eyes, his wavy hair that fell lightly, his pouty lips and his dainty pale skin. Very delicate.
“It’s nothing,” Hikaru smiled, shaking his head.
“Still, at least you’re kind enough to not shoo me out of the shop. At first I thought I’d get kick out and yell at. So, thank you, um…,” the guy squint his eyes to read a name written on the black apron Hikaru’s wearing.
“Arata-kun? Is that your name? Arata-kun?”
Hikaru launched his chuckle hearing it, “It’s actually the name of this shop…”
“Eh?”
“Arata-kun. It’s the name of this shop.”
“Gomen…,” the guy said, grimacing. And Hikaru watched the guy’s cheeks constantly grew crimson red as he glanced down with his embarrassed smile.
“Yaotome desu,” Hikaru said then. “Yaotome Hikaru,” he introduced himself.
“Ah, hi, Inoo Kei desu,” he said. “Again, thank you for the cake… also for not kicking me out of the shop,” and Inoo gleamed his smile.
Hikaru just nodded his head casually and walked away from there. But only a few steps away, something suddenly poked his mind. And so, he turned around and walked back to Inoo’s table.
“Hey,” Inoo looked up at him. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” Inoo agreed, although he doesn’t have a slightest idea of what Hikaru’s going to ask.
Hikaru then took a sit on the chair in front of Inoo, for a moment feeling uncertain. “Why?” he asked. “You don’t even drink coffee, but you came all the way here only for one song…”
Inoo smiled, “Well, I don’t have the answer to that either. But, one day, I was accompanying my friend to grab a coffee here. That day wasn’t actually a good one for me. I… didn’t get accepted in the university I enrolled for. While my friends already start their new life in university, chasing their dreams. But, there I was, the only one left behind.”
“Then, as I sat with my friend here, I heard this song. And… it instantly got me on the first time the guitar starts to play. I fell for it already. So, I tried to listen to its lyrics. I remember having this feeling like my heart slowly lifts up through each words of the lyrics.”
“That sometimes the road might get tough, but to be able to hold on tight onto your very own dream and make it through the cloudy days, you’ll eventually find yourself wake up to an even brighter day. I guess, that’s what the singer want to say through this song. And suddenly, that day wasn’t feel so bad anymore.”
“Maybe, I just have to be a little more patient and try harder and just like what the singer sings in his song, then I’ll eventually find myself wake up to an even brighter day.”
“The song really got into me. I tried to search it on the internet. I… well, I typed some lyrics of it into the search engine, sadly I found nothing. I’ve asked some of the waiters, but they know nothing too. That’s why, I keep coming here, so that I can hear it…”
Hikaru stayed silent, somehow still trying to digest Inoo’s words. It stunned him and in other way, stirred him in bitterness. He feels ashamed that he wasn’t strong enough to prove anything he wrote by his own self in that song.
“Sou ka…,” he managed to utter something out.
“Un, the song has been like a friend to me. It got me accompanied walking through day to day, somehow it doesn’t feel that lonely anymore…”
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“Here, your change,” Hikaru handed out Inoo’s money from behind the counter. And after Inoo took the money, Hikaru handed something to him. A CD case.
Inoo furrowed his brows at him after seeing the CD case being handed out to him.
“So you won’t have to force yourself sitting around ordering mineral water in a coffee shop with a possibility of getting kick out again,” Hikaru said half teasing. And Inoo’s eyes widened in that instant as he took the CD case, for awhile looking at it and then turned to look at Hikaru in disbelief and a smile that threatened to come out wide.
“Is this???” Hikaru nodded. “Really?!?! Can I really keep this??”
“If you want to…”
“I want to!” Inoo exclaimed eagerly. His reaction had Hikaru laugh, while Takaki whom been watching from a far only shook his head, half amused at the suddenly-buddy-buddy-Hikaru-and-the-mineral-water-guy.
“Oh my, he’s sleeping with the enemy,” Takaki mumbled to himself at the view, still shaking his head, he let out a sigh and continue on counting the shop’s income for the day.
“Thank you for everything today, Yaotome-kun. You made my day…” One last smile and Inoo made his way out of the coffee shop.
It was any day one day that Hikaru met Inoo Kei. A stranger who came to a coffee shop for one song. The tune he long forgotten…
“No, you made my day,” Hikaru whispered to himself as he’s watching Inoo’s back slowly disappearing.
A/N: So uh, this one doesn't turn out exactly the way I picture it, so forgive the lameness... Comments are love :))))
Author le_chocolats
Pairing: Hikanoo
Rating: PG-13
Genre: angst, hint!romance
Warning: Enjoy reading :)))))
Summary: It was any day one day that Hikaru met Inoo Kei. A stranger who came to a coffee shop for one song. The tune he long forgotten…
Pen tapping the book’s surface, Hikaru’s staring at the blackboard in front of the class. Doing his utmost digesting words by words written there. And it wasn’t long enough till a silent sigh escaped from him when his attempt on doing so, fell into a failure all over again.
Another sigh, he looked down. For a short while staring at the watch on his wrist. It’s only 10 minutes left until the class’s over, but the time’s surely seems ticking very slowly.
Then, he averted his eyes, looking outside the window of the class.
Fastly racing down the ascending seatings of the spacious outdoor amphitheater, Hikaru smoothly jumped up the amphitheater’s stage then turned around at his 3 other bandmates, whom standing down the stage.
“One day, we’ll perform here,” he said to them. Confidence laced his smile and passion flared his eyes. “Our band will. We’ll make great performance together and everyone will cheer so loudly for us!”
His lips bent a thin smile at the remembrance as he floats off, staring at the warm tawny autumn’s afternoon sky outside.
“Can you please stop that?” And a voice got him back to his senses. He threw his gaze to the source of the voice, which happened belong to his lecturer, whom now staring very clearly in annoyance at him from the front of the class. Even now, the whole class’s attention fell upon him.
“Hai?” The reaction came with his half dumbfounded expression as he confusingly answered every stares from the whole room at him. Obviously oblivious to what’s really going on.
“Yeah, you, young man,” the lecturer confirmed. “Can you please stop making noises with your pen there? Because the other’s trying to following the class.”
“Ah, I’m sorry-”
“And if you’re smart enough, instead of uselessly making noises with your pen to disturb my class, you might as well use it to note down some important points from today’s lecture,” his lecturer mumbled before he continues his lecture.
It took him quite awhile staying in silence after that before his lips gradually creased a bitter smile.
“Ano…” He heard someone’s whisper then soon Hikaru felt a tap on his shoulder. He looked over to his side and found a girl sat beside him cautiously waving her hand at him with her smile. “You are Yaotome Hikaru, deshou?” she whispered her question.
Hikaru furrowed his brows, confused that this girl knew him even though as long as he remembers, this is the first time they met.
“Yaotome Hikaru the youngest son of Yaotome Sousuke?” In the instant, his frowns eased down as his expression turned dreary. “I recognize you,” the girl said, still whispering, preventing their lecturer caught her talking to him. “I saw a picture of you and your 2 older brothers in your father’s memoir,” she explained.
“He’s my favourite architect. Your father is. He’s really an inspiring person,” the girl praised, smiling excitedly.
Hikaru returned the smile and bowed slightly at her before quickly looked away.
“Bear this in mind, son, in this life, what’s meant to be, then it will be. And in what way you expect me to make you see that be in a band, living a topsy-turvy life, isn’t something you meant to do??! It’s not something to be pursued! It’s a disaster!”
“It’s not like you and your bandmates doing great either with your music. Because if you are, you’d already get a contract with some music production house or something. But then you’re not.”
“Listen to me carefully, Hika, to be an architect and be the future leader of our firm is what you meant to do.”
Walking out of the university building, Hikaru stopped his feet and looking up to the said building not too far behind him. To where his future’s been put on, the future he wasn’t even sure anymore.
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“You okay?” The question had Hikaru looked up to Takaki standing behind the coffee shop counter.
Takaki Yuya is his childhood bestfriend. His father’s the owner of a quite well-known coffee shop in the area. And ever since he was little, Hikaru came to this place a lot to play with Takaki.
He likes being there, in the coffee shop. It’s one of the place that can make him feel equable. Also, Takaki’s family is so nice and funny. His parents always let him and Takaki pick out a cake they like from the shop to be eat together. And it’s always interesting to see they bicker with each other and then laughing out loud as their bickering started to lose its point and they realize that they actually just shouting out random things. The simple thing of events that he never once has in his own house.
But, as they get older, Takaki’s oblige to help his father taking care of the coffee shop. And so, Hikaru offered himself to do a part time there, so he can spend more time there.
“Un,” Hikaru answered, glancing his smile at his bestfriend.
“Then stop making that dull face and giving off the dark aura, you~” Takaki whined. “You’ll freak our customer out.”
Hikaru chuckled at the way Takaki seemed striving very hard to look scary as he scolded him. “You know, it’ll look a lot scarier if your father’s the one saying that,” Hikaru teased him.
“Shut up, I’m trying real hard here! After all, I’ll be his successor one day, so I have to learn properly gaining a strong charisma like his from now. In fact, I’ve been thinking if changing my hair color to black again would help, since this brownie one makes me look more like a movie star or something, don’t you think?”
Hikaru gaped, half amused looking at Takaki for a moment before he bursted into a giggle and caused Takaki frowned by his reaction.
“What?”
“Nothing,” Hikaru said, stifle back his laugh while shaking his head.
“No, come on, what’s funny? I’m serious here!”
“I know, I know. Whatever makes you happy, baby~” Hikaru retorted, playfully wink his eye at Takaki whom instantly shuddered full of disgust.
“Euww, man, stop that! You’re ruining my reputation here!” Takaki protested but soon he followed Hikaru, laughing along together just like the old times. Nothing’s really change even now, unless the fact Hikaru doesn’t laugh a lot anymore.
“So,” Takaki said after awhile. “How’s your first month in university?” And Takaki saw the lights on Hikaru’s expression slightly toned down after the question.
“Well… great, I guess. I couldn’t get almost everything of what the lecturer talked about in class. There’s no club that doesn’t relate to architecture except the knitting club. And those bunch of this-and-that-architect’s son or daughter’s keeps acting all high and snooty. So, yeah… couldn’t been better.”
“It sounds sucks,” Takaki commented, scoffing.
“Yeap… And by the way, I’m sorry for not being able to help out in the shop this whole past month. With the entrance ceremony and the adaptation and all-”
“It’s cool, don’t mind it,” Takaki assured, patting Hikaru’s shoulder. “But, you see, no offense, I do think you could’ve said something to your dad. Convince him more that although he and your brothers are the so-called famous architect, but it’s just not your thing. Maybe he’d understand.”
“I bet you know more than everyone how I’ve tried in many ways possible to do so.”
“Then try again! Many ways possible doesn’t mean every way possible, so there must be still some way.” Hikaru shook his head.
“After all, I started to think maybe… maybe dad’s right. If music is something that meant for me to do, me and the guys would’ve made it somehow, get a contract or something. But, my dad’s right, we didn’t. Maybe I didn’t realize how suck I actually in music all this time.”
“Oh, come on, don’t say that! You know it’s not true, we all know it’s not true. Do you remember the CD demo I asked from you back then?”
“My CD demo?”
“Sou, the one with you singing a song you composed with your guitar. Well, I have to say, that’s really great!”
“You still have it?”
“Of course! In fact, we play it a lot here in the coffee shop,” Takaki said.
“No, you didn’t.”
“Yes, we did and still do. It’s- Oh, no, there he came again,” Takaki mumbled, his face gradually grew annoyed after one certain guy came inside the coffee shop.
“What? He? Who?” Hikaru asked, moving his head around the coffee shop to find the person Takaki meant.
“That guy,” Takaki said without breaking his eyes from the said guy. Hikaru followed Takaki’s eyes and he saw a guy sitting on the table near the corner window.
“You know him?”
“No, well not, literally. But, he’s been coming to the shop for these past 2 weeks.”
“Isn’t it good? Your shop got more loyal customer.”
“Well, normally, yes, it should be good. But the other waiters reported that this guy would just came and sit on one of the table ordering nothing all day! Even with the fact they’ve offered to take his order. Though lately there’s an improvement, if we keep coming to him, he’d eventually make an order. And that would be… a mineral water!” Takaki nearly screamed in horror and frustration.
“I mean, isn’t it weird? This isn’t a park where we can just sit around and do nothing. It’s a coffee shop, there’s clearly a word ‘shop’ involves here, and in a shop we buy something. Seriously, is he trying to make this shop sink into bankruptcy?! We’re running some business here!”
“Maa… maa…,” Hikaru attempted to calm the latter. “I’ll go take his order now, go calm yourself first,” Hikaru suggested then walk to the table where the guy’s currently sitting.
“Hi,” Hikaru greeted him, flashing off a smile. And the guy’s attention averted to him. For a brief seconds looking at him half blank and sort of confused.
“H-hi…” Now the guy had frowns slightly formed on his forehead. “Can I help you?” Suddenly the surprising question spoken out and left Hikaru dumbstrucked for this guy apparently oblivious to the waiter’s uniform and the black apron he’s wearing.
“Can I take your order?” Hikaru asked while trying to hold back his smile. Taking out a pen and a note readied in hands.
“Aaah! I’m sorry… I didn’t see you wearing the… I…” Might be deluged in embrassment and nervousness, the guy lost for words and ended up just smiling sheepishly at him.
“No, it’s okay. The uniform was made transparent anyway, so you might find it hard to see it.” And it was meant to be a joke, his words just now are. But instead, this guy’s eyelashes started to blinking rapidly as his eyes get a little wider by this information.
“Really?” he asked, surprisingly sounded totally buying what Hikaru’s said. And by that time, Hikaru can barely conceal his amusement at this guy reaction.
“N-no, of course not. You can see it now, can’t you?” he said. “It’s a joke,” he added.
“Oh…,” the guy nodded. And Hikaru secretly let out an amused smile when this guy seemed disappointed.
“So, your order?”
“Is it… alright if I order later?”
Hikaru stayed silent for awhile before he nodded his head, “Alright, I’ll come for you again,” and headed back to the counter. From there waiting for the guy to call him back. Yet, after almost 45 minutes passed, he still doesn’t show any sign of making an order.
So, Hikaru decided to approached him again.
“Are you ready to make an order now?” he inquired.
“15 minutes more,” the guy said and Hikaru’s brows arched.
“Hai?”
“Give me 15 minutes more, I’m still deciding…”
“O…kay…” Hikaru agreed, though he began to feel suspicious now. This shop is famous, yes, but it’s not like it has a thousand menus that after almost an hour you still cannot decide what to order.
But he followed suit. 15 minutes passed, he came back. The guy startled when he saw Hikaru already standing beside his table again.
“You’re ready to make an order now, I suppose,” Hikaru said.
The guy slightly bit his lower lip, evidently appeared to look completely uneasy before he said, “Can I have mineral water, please?” Exactly just like what Takaki told him.
“Sure,” nonetheless, Hikaru wrote it down on his note.
“Thank you,” the guy said and somewhat hastily back on reading his novel. Expecting Hikaru would soon leave him alone.
But after another minute elapsed, Hikaru’s still standing on his place. The guy stealed a vigilant glance at Hikaru, now grew anxious with Hikaru not showing any single sign of leaving.
“Anything else?” Hikaru finally asked. “Would you like to try our caramel macchiato? Or gingerbread latte, perhaps? They’re our recommended menus for this autumn,” Hikaru offered.
“Just water, please,” the guy said and gave a rueful grin. “I don’t… really drink coffee. W-well except when I came to someone’s house and they served it, then it’d be rude if I don’t drink it, right? Like everytime I come to uncle Nobue’s house, he always serves coffee. He really…,” suddenly the guy stopped talking when he caught Hikaru’s perplexed expression.
“…likes coffee and I don’t,” the guy drawled awkwardly then looped his eerie smile. Being aware that he might’ve ranted nonsense.
“But, this is a coffee shop,” Hikaru said in a matter of fact, still frowning.
“I know… it’s just… Ano… Well, how do I say this?” the guy grinned nervously, seemed to appear all the more uneasy as he slightly fidgeting.
“Is everything alright?”
“Actually,” the guy paused for awhile. “I wanted to hear this song,” he confessed. “The one playing right now…”
“Eh?” Hikaru baffled. Until then he slowly perceived the song that’s currently playing in the coffee shop. And his eyes went wide. He recognized this song.
“I know it sounds silly, but I really really like this song and this is the only place I know where I can hear it,” he explained. “And that’s the reason why I came here…”
To spend his life playing his music is what Hikaru always yearn for. It’s been the only time where he can feel like himself the most. And it’s always been his dream, to someday having a chance playing his music and let other people hear it.
But, life never grant you everything you want. And after everything, his father, the actuality he never really made it anywhere with this dream of his, also how his father seemed right about everything, Hikaru let it go. Even if it costed him slowly losing himself day to day and that it feels like he doesn’t even know what he really want in his life anymore.
And out of all of that, he just never thought there’d come a time like this. To actually knowing someone really listen to every tune he has long forgotten…
The song of his own.
“You’re going to tell me to go, aren’t you?” the guy guessed in a low voice. “I’m sorry, I’ll leave now,” he apologized with a slight smile then started to packing up his things on the table, getting ready to leave.
“No, wait,” Hikaru stopped him before the guy even get a chance to step away. “I’ll… let me get you your mineral water…”
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“I-is this really alright?” the guy asked, unsure after a glass also a bottle of mineral water served in of him on the table. “I can just go, you know…”
“It’s alright,” Hikaru assured before then placing a plate of blueberry cheesecake along onto the table. The guy looking at the blueberry cheesecake before averting his questioning look at Hikaru. “Have some blueberry cheesecake too,” Hikaru answered the question in his stare.
“But-”
“You don’t like blueberry cheesecake?”
“No, no, I like them, its just, I didn’t order this…”
“Our boss won’t be happy seeing you sitting around here ordering nothing but mineral water. So, you have to have something aside than that… Then, you can stay longer…”
“Then, I’ll pay this blueberry cheesecake.”
“Don’t worry, this one is on me.”
“You really don’t have to do this, I-”
“Ii yo,” Hikaru cut in.
The guy then stood up from his seat and bowed his head, “Thank you so much,” then he beamed full of gratitude.
As they now stood in front of each other, Hikaru started to notice some things about this guy. His long eyelashes and his serene unguarded eyes, his wavy hair that fell lightly, his pouty lips and his dainty pale skin. Very delicate.
“It’s nothing,” Hikaru smiled, shaking his head.
“Still, at least you’re kind enough to not shoo me out of the shop. At first I thought I’d get kick out and yell at. So, thank you, um…,” the guy squint his eyes to read a name written on the black apron Hikaru’s wearing.
“Arata-kun? Is that your name? Arata-kun?”
Hikaru launched his chuckle hearing it, “It’s actually the name of this shop…”
“Eh?”
“Arata-kun. It’s the name of this shop.”
“Gomen…,” the guy said, grimacing. And Hikaru watched the guy’s cheeks constantly grew crimson red as he glanced down with his embarrassed smile.
“Yaotome desu,” Hikaru said then. “Yaotome Hikaru,” he introduced himself.
“Ah, hi, Inoo Kei desu,” he said. “Again, thank you for the cake… also for not kicking me out of the shop,” and Inoo gleamed his smile.
Hikaru just nodded his head casually and walked away from there. But only a few steps away, something suddenly poked his mind. And so, he turned around and walked back to Inoo’s table.
“Hey,” Inoo looked up at him. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure,” Inoo agreed, although he doesn’t have a slightest idea of what Hikaru’s going to ask.
Hikaru then took a sit on the chair in front of Inoo, for a moment feeling uncertain. “Why?” he asked. “You don’t even drink coffee, but you came all the way here only for one song…”
Inoo smiled, “Well, I don’t have the answer to that either. But, one day, I was accompanying my friend to grab a coffee here. That day wasn’t actually a good one for me. I… didn’t get accepted in the university I enrolled for. While my friends already start their new life in university, chasing their dreams. But, there I was, the only one left behind.”
“Then, as I sat with my friend here, I heard this song. And… it instantly got me on the first time the guitar starts to play. I fell for it already. So, I tried to listen to its lyrics. I remember having this feeling like my heart slowly lifts up through each words of the lyrics.”
“That sometimes the road might get tough, but to be able to hold on tight onto your very own dream and make it through the cloudy days, you’ll eventually find yourself wake up to an even brighter day. I guess, that’s what the singer want to say through this song. And suddenly, that day wasn’t feel so bad anymore.”
“Maybe, I just have to be a little more patient and try harder and just like what the singer sings in his song, then I’ll eventually find myself wake up to an even brighter day.”
“The song really got into me. I tried to search it on the internet. I… well, I typed some lyrics of it into the search engine, sadly I found nothing. I’ve asked some of the waiters, but they know nothing too. That’s why, I keep coming here, so that I can hear it…”
Hikaru stayed silent, somehow still trying to digest Inoo’s words. It stunned him and in other way, stirred him in bitterness. He feels ashamed that he wasn’t strong enough to prove anything he wrote by his own self in that song.
“Sou ka…,” he managed to utter something out.
“Un, the song has been like a friend to me. It got me accompanied walking through day to day, somehow it doesn’t feel that lonely anymore…”
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“Here, your change,” Hikaru handed out Inoo’s money from behind the counter. And after Inoo took the money, Hikaru handed something to him. A CD case.
Inoo furrowed his brows at him after seeing the CD case being handed out to him.
“So you won’t have to force yourself sitting around ordering mineral water in a coffee shop with a possibility of getting kick out again,” Hikaru said half teasing. And Inoo’s eyes widened in that instant as he took the CD case, for awhile looking at it and then turned to look at Hikaru in disbelief and a smile that threatened to come out wide.
“Is this???” Hikaru nodded. “Really?!?! Can I really keep this??”
“If you want to…”
“I want to!” Inoo exclaimed eagerly. His reaction had Hikaru laugh, while Takaki whom been watching from a far only shook his head, half amused at the suddenly-buddy-buddy-Hikaru-and-the-mineral-water-guy.
“Oh my, he’s sleeping with the enemy,” Takaki mumbled to himself at the view, still shaking his head, he let out a sigh and continue on counting the shop’s income for the day.
“Thank you for everything today, Yaotome-kun. You made my day…” One last smile and Inoo made his way out of the coffee shop.
It was any day one day that Hikaru met Inoo Kei. A stranger who came to a coffee shop for one song. The tune he long forgotten…
“No, you made my day,” Hikaru whispered to himself as he’s watching Inoo’s back slowly disappearing.
A/N: So uh, this one doesn't turn out exactly the way I picture it, so forgive the lameness... Comments are love :))))