Chapter 10 - Track Ten

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“You are such a pervert,” sighs Ryuko, watching her friend daydream dirty thoughts about her parents, “How would you like it if I started stalking your parents, waiting for them to start making out?”
Himeka blinks, looking up from her dream state. “My parents? Don’t be ridiculous, they’re a male and female, that would make you a pervert.”

“Where the hell is the difference?!”

“Your’s are two guys– attractive ones at that; enjoying watching that sort of thing makes you, you know…super straight.” Himeka reaches into her bag and presents a manga, the cover has two young men kissing, “Just look at this manga and tell me you don’t feel anything.”

Giving her a distasteful look, Ryuko takes the book and flips through it. Her cheeks go flush with embarrassment as she looks at the images; screaming at the sight of a naughty scene, she throws it back. “Oh my god!”

“See, doesn’t that make you all gooey inside?” Sighs Himeka, snuggling the manga.

Ryuko pulls at her hair, “I think I’m gonna be sick! If being super straight means having to enjoy looking at that then I think I’d rather track down a drunk Saki and declare myself bi.”

Himeka glares at her, “Oh so if you were going to turn gay you’d rather hit on Saki Ukai than me?”

“Ne?” Ryuko blinks, “Are you saying…?”

“Don’t get your hopes up,” snickers Himeka, “It’s the principle of the matter, as your best friend you’d think you’d want to approach me first!”

Ryuko rubs her forehead. “OK Hime-chan, I’ll keep that in mind. If I ever discover my lesbian side I’ll call you first so you can reject me.”

“As long as we have that clear,” grins Himeka, “Now can I go back and watch your dads make out?”

“No!”

Himeka slips her manga into her bag, “You are such a dog, Ryu-chan. I guess we can get some practice in to kill time, unless you want to sing ANOTHER song with Slacker and Saki?”

Ryuko sweat-drops nervously at her friend’s hostility, “Hey, Bad Luck forever, you know me. We’ll find Sara-chan and show these goons what the Bad Luck gals are made of!”

~@~

Away from the hustle and bustle of the music and camera crews, within a dimly lit trailer, is the stirring of strings as a violin is played. The music is slow, yet vibrant, echoing beyond the metallic walls. A small crowd draws outside, listening to the sombre melody carry them to some distant land. As the violent comes to an end, the listeners break out in a rousing clap.

The door opens, a confused, blushing girl with curved green hair and hazel eyes pokes her head out. She nervously laughs, “I’m sorry, did I bother you?”

“No, not at all!” They urgently reply.

From the small crowd emerges a smiling blonde boy; he’s dressed in faded blue jeans and a worn yellow long sleeved shirt. He leisurely claps and bows to her, “An excellent performance as ever, Sara-chan.”

Sara steps onto the top metal step of the trailer and returns the bow, “Thank-you Seguchi Senpai. I was practicing for our school’s recital next week.”

Slacker tilts his head to the side, motioning for the crew to get back to work. Taking the hint they quickly leave. Alone with Sara, he feels the bars of the stairs and sits down. Sara follows by seating on the top stair.

“Will you be confident enough to play keyboard tonight?” He asks.

“What do you mean?”

Slacker smiles, “I love listening to you play violin, I feel your essence with every cord, but whenever I listen to you play piano it feels so…shallow.”

Sara lowers her head, “Violin is my main instrument, Seguchi Senpai…”

“Do you think it’s in your best interests to perform keyboard live? Aren’t you concerned with how your effort or lack thereof will reflect on your father?”

Stunned and breathless, Sara holds her mouth, shaking in fear.

“Music is more than the making of music, it is a divine expression of the soul. If you are not willing to give your soul for one moment of melody, then you would be better off – “

“Yeah, I know what you’d be better off doing,” warns Himeka, taking Slacker by the collar, pulling him to his feet, “Shouldn’t you be off rigging the stock market or starting a gang war among the Yakuza?”

Slacker cheekily grins, “Oh, Miss Nakano, what a pleasure it is to hear you. I had just finished firing 36% of Father’s staff, when I decided to come to give my regards to my dear cousin Sara.”

Ryuko stands by the stairs, rubbing Sara’s back. “It’s OK Sara-chan, don’t listen to him.”

“Why’d you fire 36% of your dad’s staff?” Curiously enquires Himeka.

“They know why.” Slacker lifts Himeka’s fingers from his collar, clearing his throat. “I had best be off, I have preparations to make and people to hire.”

The girls watch the cheerfully snide boy wander into obscurity.

Himeka folds her arms, scowling, “That is one screwed up guy…with way too much power. Don’t you think so, Sara-chan? Sara-chan…?”

Sara burries her head into her hands and begins to sob. Ryuko reaches through the bars and hugs her, “Sara-chan, you know what Slacker’s like…we believe in you and think you play amazing keyboard.”

Himeka rubs Sara’s knee, “Yeah, Slacker’s a jerk, if you were bad your dad would say something, or at least Ryuko’s blonde one would. Mr. Yuki’s frightfully blunt. The other day he said I write like a sterile widow…I am not sure what that means but it really pissed me off.” Himeka remembers it, frowning to herself.

Ryuko laughs, “He was in a really bad mood. A critic publicly undermined his talent; so he spent all day condemning anything anyone wrote. Daddy cried fifty-two times that day, passed out from dehydration too.”

Sara wipes her eyes, giving her a small smile, “Thank-you for trying to cheer me up Sakuma Senpai, but…he was right about me. I’m a violinist; I’m nowhere near my father’s talent when it comes to the keyboard.”

“No one expects you to be as good as him,” assures Himeka, “and you’ll have us to look just as much an idiot with. That’s what Bad Luck’s all about!”

Ryuko scratches her head, “Looking like an idiot or doing it together?”

“Exactly.”

“Huh?”

Sara giggles, widening her smile. Himeka and Ryuko help Sara to her feet and lead her down the stairs. Ryuko pats Sara’s head, “Let’s go practice our song, if we all suck at the same time no one should notice you reeking up the stage.”

Sara cringes and goes to race up the stairs; Himeka takes hold her skirt just in time. “Nice one, Sakuma!”

“Sorry, I was only trying to be supportive!”

~@~

Atop a nearby building stand two men wielding rifles. Their blonde hair waves in the wind as they look down on the stage.

The younger man turns to the older one, he lowers his rifle. “Dad, shouldn’t you have arranged more security for the performers than you and me?”

“Nonsense Michael,” laughs K, “One of us would be more than enough.”

“Then why are there two of us?”

K lays a hand on his son’s shoulder, “Your mother’s always saying we should do more things together, what better way for a father and son to bond than to use their skills to protect pop idols and randomly shoot at people you don’t like?!”

Michael loads his gun, “Makes sense. Hey, there’s Mr. Sakano!”

“Ooh, going to shoot him first?” Wonders K, “He’s good for entertainment, but he really does get irritating.”

“Nah; just noticed him panicking and wondered what caused him to flip this time. Think something interesting is happening?”

~@~

“Miss Sakuma, please calm down!” begs Sakano, biting onto his hanky.

Ryuko goes chibi and chucks a fit on the floor of the stage, “I will when Himeka stops being stupid and takes that damn THING off!!!”

Himeka flips her hair back, proudly dressed in her traditional performance robes. “You know very well I always wear this when I perform on stage, I don’t know why you’re being a baby about it.”

Chibi Ryuko jumps up and points accusingly at her, “You wear that when you do your traditional Japanese music! This is pop; you’ll make us look like IDIOTS!”

“Oh believe me; you’re doing a much better job than I could.”

Sara desperately tries to calm them down, “It’s not that big of a deal, really, let’s do the song and then talk about it.”

“I’m not taking this off,” warns Himeka, turning away from Ryuko.

Ryuko turns back to normal and turns off the microphone. “I am not performing with a Kyoto bumpkin in denial.”

“Bumpkin?!” growls Himeka, raising her guitar to hit Ryuko. “A public school commoner shouldn’t speak so highly to a private school star student!!!” Himeka swipes her guitar, narrowly missing Ryuko.

Hiro folds his arms, watching the two girls fight, “Shuichi and I went to public school and we turned out great, right Fujisaki?”

Suguru quietly blinks, “Ah…right, Nakano…”

“Hi guys,” greets Shuichi, “Hey, what’s going on?”

“Ryuko’s mad because Himeka wants to wear her traditional kimono tonight,” replies Suguru, “Himeka’s refusing to wear anything else, so they’re both fighting about it. Meanwhile my poor Sara looks ready to cry in her keyboard and Mr. Sakano doused down six bottles of pills to calm his nerves.”

Shuichi looks to the side to see Sakano dizzily spinning around, pale white, “They didn’t seem to work much. Damn and I was in such a good mood too.”

Hiro raises an eyebrow, “Why’s that?”

Shuichi coyly grins, “Oh, no reason particularly…”

“By the way, your fly’s undone,” says Hiro with a smirk.

Shuichi nervously laughs and peers down. “Hey; no it isn’t.”

“Made you look.”

Shuichi goes bright red, “It’s not what you think! We weren’t doing anything in the café’s bathroom, honest!”

Hiro and Suguru stare at him stunned. Shuichi clears his throat, “Oh look Hiro, Hime-chan’s about to bash Ryu-chan with your good guitar!”

“No sweetie!” yells Hiro, “Use the red one, it costs less!”

Backstage, Saki and Slacker watch the girls boisterously bicker. Saki opens a can of beer, sighing to herself, “So this is the next generation of Bad Luck? Rather disappointing, isn’t it?”

Slacker rests his arms behind his head, “They’re not too different to the normal Bad Luck, though Mr. Nakano would have been decent enough to go backstage and deal with the vocalist.”

“I see your point,” Saki takes a sip of her beer; “I heard what you said to Sara-chan earlier.”

“Oh?”

“I found it quite amusing. Like the pot calling the kettle black.”

Slacker lowers his smile, “What is your meaning, Miss Ukai?”

Saki playfully taps two of her fingers on Slacker’s nose, “Bam, bam, bam-bam! Stress-less, baby!”

“Huh? Oh no…that is your first beer for the hour, right?”

Saki unbuttons the first four buttons of her shirt, “Call me Sake! Ryu-chaaaaaan!”

Ryuko holds onto Himeka, “Ugh! Save me, Hime-chan!”

Himeka holds out the guitar, warding off ‘Sake’, “Back off dog! If she discovers her lesbian side I’m gonna be the one to reject her FIRST!”

Shuichi, Hiro and Suguru blink in unison, choosing to just not ask.

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