Title: A cold night of January
Fandom: ONE OK ROCK
Chapter: 2
Characters/Pairing: Ryota/Stranger
Rating: all ages
Genre: mistery, friendship, slice of life.
Disclaimer: you may find a terrible grammar, be warned.
On the
second day of the year, 15 years old Kohama Ryota, found himself walking to the
music store. This had been happening quite often during the past few days. The
eager to get himself a new bass was too big to contain.
Holding his
freshly acquired money with his left hand, he buttoned up his black coat, and
tied his green with white stripes scarf (a Christmas present from his
onne-chan) around his now cold neck. Running through the passing cars, and
being exited enough to ignore the traffic lights, he crossed the street in order to
get to the store.
Inside,
there was Christmas décor everywhere; apparently, the owner was too lazy to
remove them. Ryota walked straight to the counter that had that big ass five
strings bass he wanted so much. He stayed there for a long time, staring at the
magnificent instrument, as if it had some strange power that kept him
hypnotized.
-You would
look really good with that on your hands- The strange voice forced him to snap
out of his fantasy.
-Excuse me?
- The figure of a tall onne-san appeared in front of his eyes. She had long
dark blonde curly hair, a rare silvery skin and “golden eyes? WTF! She must be
using contact lenses, for sure!”
-Think
about it! I know it looks big, but I bet you’ll grow taller in a couple years. It’ll
look awesome! - She said with a charming smile.
Ryota felt
his heart go heavier. Something wasn’t right.
People always told him he had some sort of sixth sense, and this time,
it was telling him to be careful. He got
closer enough for her to be only one who listens to him.
-What are
you? - He whispered in her ear with the softest voice he could make, although hormones didn't help much.
She looked
straight into his eyes. Ryota felt as if she could pierce his head out of pure
intensity. He tried to look away, but there was a sort of gravity that drowned
him and prevented him from doing so.
-What and
not who… That’s an interesting question. – A smirk appeared on her face- I knew
you were good, but I didn’t think it was this much- Her eyes shined with a
reflexive glow.
She was
right. That was a strange question, but somehow, it seemed fitted. He
contemplated her crooked smile for a while. Her upper lip was thinner than its
lower counterpart.
-You didn’t
answer my question…-
-Why ask a
question when you know you won’t like the answer? - Again, the crooked smile showed up.
-Curiosity
is one of my major features. - If this was a challenge, he wasn’t going to
lose. That was for sure.
-Alright.
But I bet for the money you have on your left pocket, that you won’t believe me
if I tell you the truth. -
-What makes
you think I have any money with me?-
-Exactly
45.000 yen. A large effort from your parents and sister.-
Ryota
dropped his jaw. Was it possible that she was a sort of psychic? How else would
she know about onne-chan anyway?
-How do you
know? - His nerves managed to make him
stutter a bit.
- I didn’t.
You just told me. You’re too young for these kinds of games, my dear. - She
shook his hair with her left hand.
Ryota felt
his nerves switch to anger in an instant. She was good, but that didn’t mean
she could mock him for free, and in public.
-Fine!!
What do you want from me? - His pout was now too evident.
-Two
things!- her smile went from crooked to full of warmth- First, I want you to
promise you will keep practicing no matter what or how you
feel about it. You, my friend, are going to be one hell of a bass player. Trust
me, I know.-
-Yeah,
right… And you know that because you can see the future…-
-Actually,
I can. – Her voice sounded honest.
-What…?
But, I’m the only one that doesn’t know how to play anything. I’m barely
starting, and there’s no way I can ever catch up to them. Plus, I’m…- He made
an effort to contain his upcoming tears.
-Hey! I’m
the one who sees the future! Trust me, make this your new year’s resolution.
You’ll be alright, I promise. - She finished the line by kissing her index
finger while forming a cross sign, first vertical, and then in horizontal way.
-Hey!! Kid!
Are you Ok? - A low deep voice called from the other side of the store.
Ryota
followed the voice, just to find out it was the owner who was talking to them.
-Quick!! We
don’t have much time! - She forced him to face her again; by holding his chin with a
very delicate touch- I want you to give Alex this message…
- Hey! Kid!
I’m talking to you!!- The owner was getting impatient.
She
whispered the words on his ear.
-You’ll
know when the right time comes…
-Hey, kid!!-
A heavy palm slapped his right shoulder, forcing him to turn back at it.
-Hai!! I’m
sorry!! Is there something wrong?-
-Eh?? You tell me. You’ve been talking alone for an
hour. - The look on the owner’s face was true concern.
-What? No,
I was talking to…- Ryota turned back just to find his strange companion gone.
There was no trace of her, only the five strings bass as a final silent witness
of the strangest day of his life.
May 6 of 2009.
A 19 years
old version of Ryota is on the phone with Alex. Lying on the hotel bed, he
plays with the phone cable, while trying to calm down his depressed friend.
-Dude, it’s
going to be OK. But you have to stop drinking so much. If you keep going like
this, your liver is going to be a mess in a couple of years. That’s not cool,
man.- His voice trembled due to the fatigue the recent concert left on him.
- Yeah, you
keep saying that, but…
-But?
-But today
would’ve been the release if it wasn’t for me. I hate myself for that.
-Again?!!
Dude, we already talked about this. Everything is going to be fine. The fans
are going to be fine, the band is…
-I know the
band is going to be fine!! You guys are awesome… It’s like you never needed me
in the first place…- His voice trailed off into a sob.
“So this is
what all is about”. Ryota scrambled his head in search for an answer. There was
no nice way to explain it. They weren’t better than before, they were just
different. But it was true they were also awesome. After Alex left, the four
remaining members felt more in balance and that allowed them to create better
songs. “Tsk! One single answer… Is it too much to ask?” Suddenly, a stream of
words appeared in the back of his head. “You’ll know when the right time
comes”.
-Dude!! Are
you still there??!!- His voice brought
him back to reality.
-Sorry,
what?
-Look, if
you’re sleepy or something, just tell me, and I’ll leave you alone…
-What? No,
it’s nothing like that. I was just thinking, that’s all.
-Thinking?
About what?
-About
something a fan told me, a few days ago. She was very pretty, by the way.
-Really?
What did she say?
- She said:
“We still miss you, and we always will”.
-What? Miss
who?
-Who do you
think, dumbass?!!
-Oh… Hmmm… Right... She meant me...- suddenly, the atmosphere became wormer- Ah... I’m getting sleepy… Sorry I kept you up so late… I…- Ryota could perceive a
hint of relief on his voice.
-It’s Ok.
Just promise to not get drunk. I don’t want to risk my life buying you a new
liver in the black market…
-Haha…
Don’t worry, I won’t. Thanks dude!! Bye!!
He hung the
phone. The clock on the wall struck 00:12 am.
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