We agreed on the details for the date over the phone, after she had so boldly asked me out. My heart was soaring, I never would have expected this development. Still, I didn't want to get my hopes up; the way she asked me out in such a passive manner didn't sit well with me. I wanted her to go the extra mile for me, I wanted to feel like I was that special someone to her. I had initially decided I would arrive somewhat after the agreed time, only ten minutes late or something, but I ended up being so nervous that I arrived half an hour in advance instead. Thankfully, Umi was very punctual and she arrived at the shrine, our meeting place, by 1 pm exactly, so she never knew I had been so excessively early. I noticed her from a distance and casually waved at her. As our eyes met, her pace quickened somewhat. Clearly she was happy to see me, her smile was a lot broader than usual, but there was also a very clear blush on her cheeks. It seemed to me like she hadn't often been on a date before.
"Hello, Maki, I hope the trip here wasn't too inconvenient." Of all the things I was expecting her to say, that line was just about the least likely option, and she said it with such sincerity too. She clearly wasn't trying to act cute, like some other people would, so was she always this unintentionally adorable?
"The trip was alright", I said while absentmindedly playing with my hair. Umi's jade eyes lit up, as if that answer pleased her tremendously. Before she could catch me staring, I crossed my arms and changed the subject. "So where are you taking me today?"
Silence followed and clear panic was legible on her face. Her skin turned white as a sheet and her eyes almost became twice as big. Was she being serious? Had she not thought of any plans beforehand? Could she not improvise something? There's no way I'd be the wiser if she did.
Eventually the corners of her tight-lipped mouth began trembling and I couldn't bear to watch idly anymore. I sighed and continued: "I'll take you to the mall and show you my favourite stores there."
Umi quickly composed herself again. "A-alright!"
"But you better remember them, okay?" I said, trying to maintain my confident demeanor. Umi nodded in response. I took off and so did she. For a short while we were walking side-by-side without saying anything. I glanced to my left and eyed her right hand for a bit before wrapping my left around it. Umi flinched at the sudden advances, but didn't try to pull her hand back. For another while longer, we walked like that, wordlessly. When we were making music together, it felt like we were dancing a passionate tango, evenly paced in our intensity. This date felt more like a waltz and she had never danced one before. The feeling of her hand in mine was nice though.
We were in a clothing store, quite expensive, but it was one of the few places that provided items up to my standards. I was holding out a number of dresses in front of me, facing a mirror. It was difficult choosing between one or the other. I turned to Umi, who was browsing in the section with formalwear. "Which do you prefer?"
Umi looked up from the suit that she was inspecting. "Hmm... the left dress is a bit short for my liking." It reached a little above the knees, but not that much, well covering the thighs. Then again, Umi had always been very vocal about her disdain for revealing clothing. She herself was used to the uniform she'd wear during archery practice, which reached all the way to her ankles. "The right dress complements your eyes better too." The nonchalance with which she made her second remark made me almost do a spit take. I looked into her eyes to see if there was any irony or insincerity that I was missing, but there was no trace of that. I averted my eyes and put the two dresses back where I'd found them, while making a mental note to buy the rightmost one later.
"A-anyway, what about that suit you're looking at?" I tried getting the conversation back on track.
"I'm looking for something to wear to formal occasions, like a job interview", Umi said with a pensive look. Clearly this particular suit was a nice fit in her eyes. It was a blazer and trousers two-piece set, with a white blouse and striped tie.
"Why not choose something with a pencil skirt instead? Women tend to wear those more", I suggested.
Umi's face revealed she was not into the idea. "Pencil skirts are so... shameless." I chuckled at her almost comically exaggerated displeasure.
"Well, try it on then", I egged her on. She hesitated a while longer, before ultimately taking the set to one of the changing rooms. About a minute passed before the curtain swung open again, revealing Umi with a look I could not have imagined her having in my wildest dreams. The way she adjusted the blazer's sleeves and collar with the look of focus I had come to expect from her, made her look so... for lack of a better word, cool. The trousers accentuated that air even further, and much more strongly than a pencil skirt ever could have. Only her tie had been wrapped haphazardly around her neck, whereas the rest of the outfit was toned to perfection. She made no advances to tie it properly.
I gestured at her to turn around and wrapped my arms around her chest. "Wh-what are you doing?!" Umi asked with a tone of shock.
"Relax, I'm just going to fix your tie. I've seen my dad do it plenty of times before." Her shoulders were still tensed and her arms awkwardly raised, but eventually I did manage to tie it. I took a few steps back and observed the complete picture.
"So... what do you think?" Umi inquired, a little out of her element. It was perfect. I was sincerely hoping that the rising temperature of my face didn't bring my cheeks to be tinged with red, even ever so slightly.
"It... it looks good..." I said, barely audibly.
"What was that?" Umi got a little closer in order to hear me better, but I could already feel the blood coursing to my head.
In a panic I covered my face with my arms and said, much louder this time: "I-it looks good! Really good!" I turned away from her and crossed my arms again. "Now change back so that we can pay at the cash register."
"O-okay", Umi stammered. I shot a quick glance behind me and noticed how she was heading back to the changing booth with a noticeable spring to her step. How was she being so adorable, I thought to myself with a silly smile. She may have never danced a waltz before, but she was the type of girl I wouldn't mind teaching.
After two quick exchanges, Umi and I were headed to our next destination, with a two-piece suit and a dress that "complemented my eyes", in tow. Something in the window of the same store caught Umi's eye though. For a while she stared at a particular item, mesmerized: it was a crescent necklace with a deep blue gemstone attached. Such an accessory seemed like the kind of thing that would look good on her, but it seemed like she wanted to observe it from every possible angle first, before making a decision.
I decided to go on ahead a bit further, maybe I'd find something to my liking in the next store over, but Umi stopped me. "Wait!" she said, and so I did. I turned to face the necklace again and observed it a little closer. It really would go well with Umi's marine blue hair, though the price tag was the bearer of particularly bad news. It would take years to collect this amount of money with only my allowance. I imagined Umi would have to save up even longer. "Sorry for the interruption, I just wanted to... take a closer look at this item."
"Is it something that you would like?" I asked.
"S-something like that..." She didn't elaborate and instead just went on ahead. What was going through that girl's mind, I wondered.
Nightfall was already upon us. I did have the tendency to overstay my welcome in the mall and that led to scenarios such as this, where the sun was already setting on this clear spring day. Umi and I hadn't even eaten yet and at this rate, it would be too late to still cook something up, by the time either of us arrived home. I was about to suggest hitting up a nearby burger joint to get a quick dinner, but Umi looked up at the sky and excitedly took hold of my hand.
"The time, this weather, it's perfect! Can I take you somewhere, Maki?" She radiated an entirely different vibe now, oblivious to the fact she was usually very mindful of physical contact.
"Uhm... I was about to suggest getting dinner somewhere-"
"Don't worry, there will be food!" I was intrigued to be sure and I wouldn't want to deny Umi her one request, given she had tagged along with me throughout the mall all day.
"Sure, I don't really mind", I said, trying to conceal my curiosity. With a nod, Umi guided me alongside the road at a brisk pace. We walked quite some distance away from the city center and therefore most establishments that I was familiar with. I was just hoping that we wouldn't touch down in an eccentric old establishment where they would serve some unappetizing foreign foods, like snails or frog legs. Eventually, we arrived at a classy, cozy place with a traditional aesthetic, tucked away within the outskirts of the city, far removed from the bustle and hustle of the downtown area. By now, the sun had well disappeared from the sky already, leaving the odd street lamp and the restaurant's interior as the only sources of light left. However, there was seemingly a warm glow emanating from the back end of this establishment too. Peering into the building, I was greeted by the sight of a handful of customers sitting by several kotatsu, all dressed in a yukata. Suddenly, I was feeling desperately underdressed.
"Are you sure we're allowed in like this?" I asked hesitantly.
"There's no dress code here, so no need to worry", she reassured me. "My family and I often go eat at this restaurant." It was a nice-looking place for sure, but I was wondering whether the atmosphere alone was worth travelling this far.
Politely we eventually entered and the host addressed Umi: "Ah, Sonoda-san! Not with the family this time?"
As if she only just now remembered who she was with, she released my hand and her cheeks attained a bright red color. She proceeded to stumble over her words: "N-no, I'm... uhm... This is Maki- I mean Maki-chan, s-she's an underclassman and-"
I wasn't feeling very flattered by her description, so I decided to help her out: "We're on a date here."
Umi's expression revealed utter shock at my bluntness. "M-Maki, you shouldn't-"
"On a date?" the host echoed with a sly smile on his face. "I take it you want a table outside, as usual?" Umi nodded her head very slightly. I was surprised she was still able to do even that much; it looked like she had crashed. I chuckled to myself as the host grabbed a few menus and guided us to our table.
There was a cool breeze blowing past my face, sending a chill down my spine. It wasn't unbearable, but it made me wonder why Umi wouldn't have chosen one of the many empty tables inside. However, once we arrived at our kotatsu, and we each took our place at it, the warmth of the table's heater and the heat lamps surrounding us complemented the breeze well, making this moment feel like a midsummer night. Right next to us was a pond illuminated by the light of several lanterns; looking a bit closer, I even noticed the silhouettes of some koi roaming the water. Surrounding the pond were different species of water reeds, among which the kind that looked like a sausage on a stalk. I had never seen it in real life, so it was interesting to finally witness it in the flesh.
After I had sufficiently studied my surroundings, I turned back to face my date, who had a lot of trouble admitting she was on a date. I expected to see her from behind the menu she was likely studying, but instead I discovered she had been looking right at me. Upon realizing she had been caught staring, she recoiled and pushed her menu into my hands. "I-I don't need to see the menu, I already know what I want to have!" I had already been given a menu, but nonetheless accepted her... gracious gift.
There were a few kanji I couldn't immediately identify, but I was able to navigate the menu no problem for the most part. I would probably go for an option I was familiar with anyway. Out of curiosity though, I eventually did ask Umi: "What are you getting?"
"I'm having miso soup next to an assortment of maki rolls."
Without looking away from my menu, I replied: "So you want to eat me out?"
Umi's brow furrowed as she was clearly having a difficult time understanding my somewhat crude joke. "No, I don't want the inside out maki rolls. They fall apart too easily."
I tried holding back, but seeing the sincere look with which Umi said those words made me burst out in laughter. Taken aback, she tried asking what was so funny, but I was barely able to get a word out. Eventually, I caught my breath again somewhat, but thankfully, before Umi could ask again whether there was a joke she had missed, the waiter arrived to take our orders. I just barely managed to contain my laughter again when she made her order as straight-faced as she'd told me. There was no way I would explain that joke to her though; she'd understand it one day maybe.
We exchanged a few more pleasantries, talked about our studies, about our families, about µ's. It wasn't at all formal, like it would be during practice, in fact, it felt nice to talk about these things with someone so casually. It wasn't often that I got to express how thankful I was for µ's rekindling my love for music. Umi said that she'd never seriously considered picking up writing as a hobby prior to joining µ's, but now she couldn't imagine her life without it. The parents of the both of us were more apprehensive about our passions though, we both had to agree upon with dismay. Eventually, lively and colorful as the conversation had been, it died down again.
I was about to present another topic, wanting for these blissful moments to continue, but Umi got a word in first: "Do you like looking at the stars, Maki?"
I was a bit surprised by the sudden subject change. Besides, I hadn't taken Umi for someone with an interest in astronomy, but the look in her eyes spoke volumes; they sparkled almost like the night sky. Even still, I had never paid much heed to the stars. I could never get a good look at them because of something called light pollution: the street lamps and other sources of light in the city made them poorly visible. Maybe you could see them better from the outskirts of town...
Umi interpreted my lack of response as an invitation to continue: "Over there is a small hill. The view of the stars from on top of there is breathtaking."
"What about... light pollution?" I wasn't sure whether I was saying it right and didn't want to embarrass myself.
"That's why I love this place, especially at this time of night. There's almost no light pollution!" She rose from the kotatsu and started walking in the direction of the hill. I wanted to ask her what we'd do if our food arrived, but I didn't deem the question all that important. Quickly I hurried after her, as opposed to what we'd been doing all day, in a pleasant twist of fate; she was much more in her element in a place like this.
We sat down on a patch of grass, through which the breeze ran, making for a soothing rustling sound. From here, I could see the back of the restaurant in its entirety as well as the street lights reaching above the houses, allowing me to trace the shape of the streets in this part of town. However, more pertinent to the matter at hand was the vast speckled expanse that stretched out above us as far as the eye could see. I wasn't usually the type to look above me, and when I did I was usually only greeted by the sight of several of the brighter stars and not much else. Here however, the number of dots that pierced the blanket of darkness was almost innumerable, millions upon millions of tiny lights illuminated this night. My mouth lay agape as I observed the spectacular sight for a while.
One stretch of stars shone especially bright, somewhat like an astral pathway. I closed my mouth again and turned to Umi in order to ask her about it; maybe she was more knowledgeable on the matter, given her enthusiasm earlier.
"That's the Milky Way", she answered my question.
"The Milky Way?! You mean, you can see the Milky Way from earth?! I thought we were part of the Milky Way... and didn't it look like a spiral?"
"That's true, but our solar system is located at the edge of the Milky Way, so you can look inward from here. It looks like a thick band from our perspective, because of the way it's oriented." I was trying to wrap my mind around the mindblowing information she had just taught me. I had heard so much about the Milky Way, but I could have never imagined being able to see it, with the naked eye even.
"... what else can you see in the night sky?" I asked, hoping that Umi could teach me more.
"You mean something like constellations?" It's not exactly what I had in mind, but then again, I didn't know about many more noteworthy celestial bodies, aside from our sun, the moon and the planets. As such, I let her talk about constellations, like the big and small dipper, Orion, Casseiopeia, the Winter Triangle despite it being late spring, and many more. "You can see Aries from here too."
I perked up. Most of the things she had been telling me were new, but I recognized that name. "Hey, I think my star sign is Aries."
"Star sign...?" Umi echoed.
"Yeah, I hear that in the West, people predict their future based on their star sign."
"You mean like how Nozomi predicts the future with her tarot cards?"
"Sort of. Those star sign readings are called a horoscope, I think." I pulled out my phone. "When's your birthday, Umi?"
There was a look of confusion on her face. "What does that have to do with... It's March 15."
I ran a quick Google search and discovered that her star sign would be Pisces. "Pisces... It says here that people with that star sign are wise and compassionate."
Umi clearly not very superstitious, crossed her arms and said with a skeptical tone: "People are bound to recognize themselves in such vague descriptions-"
"It also says that they're musical and their element is water." Umi was clearly taken aback by the spot-on interpretation of her character and her name.
"L-lucky guesses... This all sounds like a scam."
"Oh really? So you wouldn't mind if I read your fortune for tomorrow? Or looked up the compatibility between Pisces and Aries?"
Umi stood up and turned herself away from me. "I don't want to hear it. It's all nonsense anyway, I'm not going to let myself be guided by it." She then noticed the waiter arriving at our table with our food. "Oh look, our food has arrived, let's head back." Before I could say another word, she was already on her way. I chuckled to myself at her behaviour. I didn't think I would ever tire of teasing her like this. Eventually I heaved myself off the ground and followed her back.
Today had been remarkable, a day that, for as long as it was, felt like it had gone by in a flash. Everything from the newly bought dress in my shopping bag to the delicious food in my stomach gave me a fluttery feeling. I snatched a glance at Umi, who was looking ahead with her usual look of focus, but I noticed a content smile as well. It felt like she had finally gotten accustomed to the motions of this waltz and she had surprisingly been harboring an inherent talent for it this whole time.
...this waltz, this dance... it couldn't end yet, not until the clock had stricken midnight at least. This fairy tale was far from over, as the music in my heart swelled to a point that I could no longer contain it.
I took hold of both of Umi's hands, drawing out a surprised gasp. I peered into her eyes as I spoke my heart: "We can't let the day end like this." Umi was at a loss for words. "Don't you feel it too? This wave of inspiration?"
The words connected with her and her pupils stopped shaking. Her lips moved almost autonomously, as if she was an exasperated poet, piercing the rough sea's waves from on top of her modest sailboat: "Submerged in a sea of words..." I was a dolphin guided by the light of the sun, beckoning me to breach the water's surface and breathe in the salty air. It was all coming together, the sounds of the deep sea, from the whale's wails to the cries from the seagulls' gullet.
A lining of hesitation almost broke that spell though, like a cloud moving in front of the sun. "It's late though and we really must be going home."
"My parents aren't home and you can just say you're sleeping over at my place."
Her gaze jumped from meeting my eyes to some unspecified region in our surroundings and back again; she was clearly really conflicted about this. Eventually though, she restored that connection from before again, with a single wavering word: "A-alright..."
My eyes lit up and I could barely regulate my breathing: "Come on! Let's hurry!" I ran while intensely clenching her hand, as if releasing that hand meant releasing the sound of my heart. The sounds of passing cars, chirping crickets and our panting flowed into one another, creating an overwhelming soundscape. We ran, chasing after that inspiration, as if it was the last train home out of the station. Before long, my house rose above the others in the distance and I could practically hear the piano tuning itself. We came in through the door, tossed our coats and shopping bags somewhere in the hallway and entered the living room, hands still intertwined. There, in front of us both, stood the conduit of our music, a glorious ebony-colored grand piano, gleaming in the light of the chandelier hanging above us.
I sat myself down on the piano stool and Umi went to sit down on it as well, closer than she'd ever been. I took a deep breath, calling out to the raging storm and bringing it to an expectant quiet. That silence was then broken by the sound of the first accord I played, gentle yet firm, like a sculptor letting their hammer come down on the chisel, carving out the first piece from a chunk of marble. And the song that we had been dancing to all day took form.
I let a few isolated notes resound through the chamber, like the twinkling of stars in the night sky. Umi picked up on that and matched her lyrics accordingly. She wasn't writing them down, there was no need for that, the words came out perfectly as they were. For a while, she answered my every question written in music notes, with her clear voice carrying supple tones and tender lyrics. With every measure, our connection grew stronger and we grew closer, as Umi gently laid her head on my shoulder, her eyes glued to the motions of my hands. Eventually, even though my heart had been racing prior, as gusts of inspiration had fanned that passionate flame, those winds slowly grew weaker and the flame dwindled, going out entirely at the hands of the now soft breeze.
However, I didn't mind, as I noticed Umi's voice trailing off until eventually she gave into her sleepiness and dozed off. I savored the sound of her rhythmic breathing for a short while, before I eventually picked her up and carried her with me to the couch. I carefully laid her down, sitting upright, grabbed a blanket and went to sit right next to her, covering us both. Before long, I too drifted off, though the sound of that song lingered in my head throughout that entire, blissful night.