Off Season Freestyle

A new "stroke"

Rin stared at Haru for a while.

He had just asked him if he wanted to start a band with him. At the very least, try some jam sessions.

Rin had been to a rock show recently and it was the first time he'd seen a band perform live.

A number of months ago he had a chance encounter with a band member while waiting in line for a beverage at a coffee shop. He struck up a conversation about music upon noticing a guitar backpack on a boy standing in front of him. It turned out the boy was in a rock band and after chatting a while he invited Rin to an upcoming show.

Rin had always loved music but had never considered playing anything himself. He figured as long as there's a season where he doesn't practice swimming as much, he could mess around with a guitar once in a while.

Eventually he bought an electric guitar and amp. He had already been teaching himself some chords and a few songs by the time he considered asking Haru about playing with him. Specifically, he was hoping Haru would play bass guitar. He wanted to keep the option open to possibly starting a band, and he figured having a guitarist and bassist was a good start.

He also kept it in mind that band practice might be unrealistic when swimming eventually takes up a lot more of his time. Considering all that, he had already decided playing guitar would be a fun pastime whether he played with friends or not.

Surprisingly, Haru replied with a lifeless yet affirming "yes".

Rin's eyes opened wider. "Really?? No pressure Haru...but I'm glad I asked!" Rin ran his fingers through his hair as he grinned from hearing this answer.

He asked Haru to start a band after he had finished playing a few songs (on his phone) from the band he had seen live.

Haru knew Rin had bought a guitar and amp, but hadn't heard him play yet. They were hanging out at Rin's house, so Rin grabbed his guitar and switched the amp on. "Haru, you gotta hear this. It's really not that hard! I mean, I'm not THAT good, but I'm able to play a few songs already. As long as the chords are easy, it doesn't sound half bad."

Before Rin started playing he asked Haru if he knew anything about music, specifically bass guitar.

He looked at Haru with hope in his eyes. "It would make the most sense if you played bass. I honestly think it would suit you well, Haru." Rin paused before adding more, albeit with slight hesitation. "The bass guitar is deep and mellow, but strong...." he took a deep breath and continued, "...simple and in the background, yet without it a song is...lifeless."

Haru was processing everything Rin said, but sensed he hadn't finished.

Rin was trying to figure out how to put it in words without sounding too mushy. But there was no other way.

Rin was staring at the ground and slowly started to speak. "With all that being said, I guess the bass just reminded me of you."

He paused a moment then looked into Haru's eyes. Rin's body was tense and he allowed it to soften before letting out a sigh. "You know what I mean, Haru. You're mellow...and you're not usually the center of attention. But, for example, if you stopped participating in swimming- the relay...the team...it would be lifeless without you."

Rin waited for a response as he watched Haru's cheeks flush just a tiny bit.

"You're such a poet," Haru replied, with his usual expressionless face. Rin casually looked to the side. "You know me...heh," he nervously chuckled.

"Well," Rin took a deep breath, "I'm gonna play this now." He strummed a few chords a couple times before playing an actual song. Haru watched and was a little surprised to see how quickly Rin had learned the chords.

The slightest chills ran through his body as he thought,

...these sounds...my body...

...whatever this is that's happening...I like it.

Rin stopped playing and explained to Haru that he was going to sing but wasn't sure his singing voice was that great.

"Either way," explained Rin, "I was trying to learn the song well enough before adding vocals. Not bad, huh?" He let out a sigh of relief from the nervousness of playing for the first time in front of someone.

Haru was staring at Rin's hand that had been holding the pick. "It sounds really good, Rin," He paused then added, "I've heard you sing when you listen to your music. It's soft, but I could hear it. You sing on tune...you have a good voice. I bet it'll sound great once you add vocals." Haru lifted his gaze to Rin, who had been looking at him with the slightest smile as he listened to his (usually) quiet friend say these words.

Haru knew Rin had a wide range of emotion to his character, experiencing first hand his anger as well as his extreme joy and zest for life. But he also knew Rin had a soft side as well, and as he imagined his singing voice (with guitar) he felt a little impatience grow within. He really looked forward to when he could hear him sing. As he had this realization he felt a warm heaviness come over him as if his body felt the gravitational weight of his thoughts.

Haru's thought process was interrupted by Rin. "Heh, really? Thanks man." Haru gave him a head nod and Rin added, "You really can be surprisingly encouraging sometimes," he said as he smiled.

There was a slight pause before he suggested they listen to some songs on his phone again. As they listened, Rin would ask Haru if he had an ear for music and if he could decipher the sound of each instrument. Haru didn't usually pick apart each sound when listening to music, but the challenge was quite interesting to him. He found that he was able to hear the bass (which was the one he wanted to focus on for obvious reasons) and imagined just for a moment what it would be like to play next to Rin.

For a second he couldn't believe such a fun thing was happening. He would do whatever it takes to help bring this vision to life with Rin. The boy had done so much for him throughout the past year, encouraging him just when he felt like giving up on swimming. Their friendship had endured so much over the years, but the past year Rin went above and beyond in helping Haru when he had experienced a depression that had made it difficult to carry on with life, especially swimming. Through this, his respect and enjoyment of his friend's presence simply grew.

"I like the sound of the bass. It's single notes, so it shouldn't be that difficult," Haru said after hearing the music.

He bought a bass guitar the next day.