章 60: Chapter 60: Preliminaries (III)
"Good job, Uesugi. I really enjoyed your playing." Maruno patted my back just as I entered the tunnel.
Holy crap, that scared the hell out of me. The tunnel was dark, to begin with, and with the sudden voice and a hand on my back out of nowhere, my reaction should be perfectly normal.
"Thank you, but aren't you supposed to be in the waiting room?"
"Well, we wanted to listen to you play on stage first. Plus, it's not like any of the audience can see us in the tunnel anyway, so we wouldn't be bothering anyone." Suzuki softly spoke as we walked towards our waiting room.
I see.
We quickly changed out of our formal attire and left the hall before re-entering through the main entrance and the rest of the audience.
Since we had just finished performing, none of us were in the mood of going anywhere else. The pressure on us and the adrenaline we had during the short performance started to take a toll on us, and we were too tired to do anything else for the rest of the day.
So for the next few hours until dinner, we just sat with the rest of the audience and watched the rest of the contestants until 7 pm, when the judges announced they were done for the day.
After eating a light dinner, we quickly entered the hotel room and fell asleep almost immediately.
It might not have been a long day, but it was sure a tiring one.
For the next few days, we three alternated the days to do what each of us wanted.
We walked around to discover what was so different in a bustling city compared to a more rural area (based on my request).
Maruno went around to try the food, while Suzuki, as expected of a piano addict, went to the competition to see the performances happening now. We didn't mind and felt that it would be good to know the standard of the competition for ourselves. It also allows us to learn how to judge others, and in return, it would also make us more aware of how we are playing ourselves.
The six days of break also helped calmed the nerves from day 1, and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.
*****************
"Welcome back, everyone! After a long week of qualifiers, I'm surprised. However, I'm also saddened by the fact that there were not many people who passed the first round." Okura spoke sadly, "I was already prepared to eliminate at least 90% of the contestants here by the time we reach the finals, but I didn't expect that not even 30% managed to survive before even reaching the finals."
"How disappointing."
A huge uproar erupted, and everyone started talking about what Okura had revealed.
"And thus, instead of hosting three more rounds, we, the judges, decided to immediately host the finals to see who would be getting into the international stage. You would see a whiteboard that would contain all the names playing for the finals on your way out. Finalists would also receive an email later tonight in case you miss out on your name outside." Okura paid no heed to the intense murmuring and continued with her microphone, "This would be all for tonight and finalists! I'll be seeing you again three days from now."
Okura and the other 8 judges didn't look back and immediately packed their things before walking out. No matter who called out for them, they only waved or straight out ignored them, not answering or replying to any of the audiences' questions or queries.
"Wow, that was..."
"Impressive."
"Really asserting down her dominance there."
"As expected of the best judge in Asia."
"But those curves, though..."
"Did you see how those jiggled when she spoke?"
Oi! This conversation just steered into a weird direction.
"Chotto matte."
"Yes?"
"You guys..."
"Hahaha, you are still young. You don't know how to appreciate a woman's curves." Maruno laughed and spoke, "Wait till you're older."
I have a girlfriend, you know? Two, at that. But they're currently both just junior high schoolers whose curves haven't yet developed.
∞ At Sumiya Junior High School ∞
""Achoo!""
"Nishimiya-kun? Miyazono-kun? Are both of you okay?" The teacher asked in concern as her class was interrupted by simultaneous sneezes. One person sneezing might still be fine, but two people sneezing at the same time?
"Do both of you feel unwell?" The teacher couldn't risk any of her students falling sick, not for any reason apart from the fact that she just didn't like seeing any of her students suffer.
"I'm fine, sensei," Kaori replied, and Shouko nodded.
"Alright, then. Please come up and solve this question on the board."
'Fuu-kun, I sense you...' Shouko thought as she looked towards the board, 'When will you come back?'
∞ Back to Tokyo ∞
"Cheh, I have a girlfriend, you know?"
"You do?" Maruno raised an eyebrow and asked.
Looking at his expression, it sort of ticked me off. Am I that unattractive that I don't even attract anyone?
"And how old is she?"
"13."
"That's what I thought."
What are you implying with your thoughts?! Are you saying that my girlfriend is flat?!
"Is she not?"
And now you're reading my mind as well. Wow. And the worst thing? I couldn't even refute him.
"Fine. But it's only a 'for now' situation. My girlfriends will grow up to be beauties."
"Of course you would say that. Anyways, let's go see who made it to the finals, shall we?"
Maruno quickly changed the topic, and I agreed. We turned to leave the hall, which was still filled with various cheers, complaints, taunts, and other different reactions to Okura's seemingly taunting words.
*****************
"I hope all of you had a good three days break!"
As usual, Okura was as enthusiastic as always, pseudo-shouting into the microphone, which further amplified her voice.
"This year has produced an unusual situation, but we shall not let it stop us from doing what we have always sought for: The pinnacle playing the piano and what being a pianist means. Precisely 78 of you are present in the finals. Because the new rule was implemented, it is possible for all 78 of you to head towards the international stage."
"That being said, it is only just a 'possibility', not a 'fact'." Okura hurriedly added, stopping any more cheers from resounding, "I highly doubt most of you can even get all 18 of our votes anyway."
"The finals will last over two days, and we will begin the first performance at 11 am sharp."
The time now was currently 10.50 am a mere 10 minutes before the deciding whether or not the first contestant would be able to go onto the international stage. Sitting in the audience seats, I could feel the excitement and anticipation all around me. It was highly infectious, and soon, Maruno and I began to feel them too.
Needless to say, all three of us entered the finals.
Fortunately or unfortunately, Maruno and I were assigned to play on the second day, while Suzuki was going to play today.
The people who played on the first day were definitely at a disadvantage as the piece we were supposed to play was sent out together with the email stating that we passed. Thus, the people playing on day 2 would have an extra day to practice.
It might be unfair, but we would know better than to practice at the last minute when it came to people of our level. After all, not everybody could sight-read a complicated piece in a few minutes and memorize it well enough to play it in front of some of the most excellent judges. Unless you are some abnormal beings, like me.
[Sight-reading is defined as the art of reading and performing a musical piece without previous knowledge, insight, or rehearsal of the piece.]
Anyway, the first 39 players started playing their piece one by one, and of course, similar to round 1, the music played by every group of 13 players was different.
Throughout the entire process, I looked at everyone's playing with utmost concentration, broadening my horizons and increasing my music proficiency as a side benefit.
Everyone played really well; there was no doubt about that. Yet, only one or two managed to leave an impact on me. Both in their late thirties to early forties, there was almost no doubt about it.
They were grandmaster pianists.
I cannot properly judge music above grandmaster level, so I could not tell how good I am compared to them. But I wasn't the one competing against them today.
"Suzuki-san..."
It seemed that Maruno noticed it as well as I could see him frown.
"Let's just hope that Suzuki-san doesn't get too nervous or pressured by her and plays to his very best."
Although Maruno said this and I also prayed, we both knew that even if he passed this round, it was only because the competitors weren't competing against each other directly. If it was so, well...
Suzuki wouldn't stand a chance.
∞ The next day ∞
There was no one left beside me. All 78 contestants had already gone on stage, played, and left the stage over two days.
6 pm. It was the current time.
Breathe in, breathe out...breathe in, breathe out...
The finals of the preliminaries, the performance which would decide whether or not I would be worthy of getting on the international stage.
And more importantly, whether or not I would be worthy of getting that 2 million yen.
Don't panic, don't rush; stay calm and relaxed. Straightening out my attire to look the best I can be, I stood at the very end of the 'tunnel', waiting for my name to be called out.
After hearing 78 contestants played before me, it made me more self-conscious. Sometimes, going last isn't a very good thing. The expectations that have been placed upon the previous contestants only piled up for the last contestant to do his best, which, in this case, is me.
"Uesugi Fuutarou, you're the last one to play. Good luck out there." The man who spoke was the same man who guided all of us throughout the entire two weeks, but I had never heard him say any word of encouragement until now.
"What?" He asked as he noticed my look.
"Nothing." I shook my head, "It just that you don't exactly strike me to be someone who wishes people good luck."
"I don't. But since you're the last one that I have to guide, I'm hoping you can get this done quick. I was wishing good luck for you to literally get out there, not because I want you to succeed or anything like that." The man replied monotonously, "This way, I can hurriedly receive my salary for this tiring job and be done with it."
"..."
I have no idea what to say about this statement. Sigh, whatever. It's not like I need everybody to be happy about their job anyway.
"Well, even if you say that, thank you for guiding all of us over the past two weeks," I said before going on stage. This was my time. I had listened to everyone's playing, and even if I don't guarantee myself first place, I'm sure that I can become one of the top few.
"Uesugi Fuutarou. We're all looking forward to hearing you play." Okura let out a smile as she said, and I also noticed that the other eight judges were smiling as well, even those who looked stoic before.
"Indeed. I hope you don't disappoint us."
Nodding my head in response, I secretly drew the kanji for 'people' on my palm and ate it discretely as I sat down on the piano stool.
My fingers paused just slightly above the keys, and I took one last deep breath before my fingers lowered, producing the first chord.
The blinding lights, the noiseless and pitch-black audience's stand, the only thing that could be heard was my own playing. Everything seemed to flow past from my vision, my surroundings.
No one was here; no one was beside me. All that's left is the calm pool of clear water beneath me that stretched to no ends. The clouds above me weaved through the sky slowly, and the water beneath me reflected them all, producing an astounding image of scenery.
Playing by myself in this seemingly perfect world felt terrific.
It was almost perfect; the temperature, the weather, the mood, the atmosphere, the piano, my current condition.
It was almost perfect, yet something was missing.
Someone was missing.
But it wasn't time just yet...
∞ The next day ∞
"Thank you for waiting patiently over the last three days. Due to that, we were able to finish up with the judgment in due time. Out of the 78 people who reached here, only 5 of you were able to move on to participate on the international scale. Here are the five names!
Number one, Mayeda Akira.
Number two, Tamashiro Naoko.
Number three, Sugimoto Manami.
Number four, Maruno Yoichi.
And lastly, number five, Uesugi Fuutarou. As for the rest, thank you for your participation. May all of you improve leaps and bounds with this experience. Can all five pianists meet me at the waiting room now?"
Upon hearing the five names, various reactions erupted. But the most important thing to us three was that Suzuki's name wasn't mentioned.
"Suzuki-san..."
"Don't worry about me. I'll meet you at the foyer after both of you meet with the judges."
I looked at Maruno, and he nodded.
"Alright then. I'll see you later."
*****************
"Sigh..." Suzuki sighed for the nth time as he packed his bag in our hotel room. The news had sunk in a long time ago, but he was still wallowing in his self-regret.
"It seems like it's time for me to retire for real now. I haven't been on the international stage for 8 years already."
I didn't say anything because I didn't know what to say to comfort the forty-year-old man for not making it to the international stage.
"Don't worry too much. It's only natural for an old man like me to complain after losing." Suzuki let out a wry smile as he looked at me. Is it just me, or are they reading my mind more often now?
The meeting with the judges was typical, I guess. They told us about the arrangement, date, attire, and all sort of essential things to note. An email containing more details will be sent to us later, though Okura specifically mentioned that I needed a guardian accompanying me since I was only 13. Otherwise, I wouldn't be allowed to attend.
"Why don't you follow me back to my home? I'm sure that it'll be fun! And there might be activities that could cheer you up." Maruno suggested as we packed our luggage.
"Your home?"
"Where is your home, though? If it's too far..."
"You don't have to worry about that. You are returning to Matsuyama, right?" Seeing me nod, Maruno continued, "My home is in the Mie prefecture, Owase city. And let me tell you, you won't regret following me home."
That sounds so wrong, but I'm sure that he's not a gay pedophile. Still, Owase city is surrounded by the ocean.
"You live on a beach?"
"Hahaha, you're not wrong. You'll know for yourself once you go there. So, what do you say?"
I looked at Suzuki, and he shrugged, "I don't mind. I need to keep an eye on you until you return home. Otherwise, your parents might just sue me if you ever get injured."
"Thank you."
"So it's decided then, huh? It's time for us to go to the sea!"
Well, I guess it's time for a short vacation, then. I just realized that it was still part of the second trimester, and by going to the ocean, it's basically truancy.
Well, if no one knows, no one knows. Besides, I already told my teacher that I would be leaving for a month or so, and since only two weeks have passed, I technically still have two more weeks or even slightly longer to enjoy myself.
*****************
A/N: I'm sorry this chapter contained a lot of segments. I didn't know how to properly merge all of them into a smoother action, so forgive me for that.
Tamashiro Naoko and Sugimoto Manami are female, while Mayeda Akira is male, just for your information.
As for the next arc, it would obviously be by the sea. Can you guess which anime it came from?
P.S. I was writing a few chapters ahead, and do you guys remember that some of you complained why Fuutarou gave Shouko a senzu bean to cure her the moment they met? Yeah, I finally had the chance to insert it (the reason) smoothly into the story while making perfect sense. So look forward to it lol.
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