Heart Strings

Three

Nagi sat through the rehearsal. Not like he really saw much of a choice, and it seemed, in some sense anyways, less of a hassle than leaving and taking the entire trip home right after he arrived. Plus, he could never deny himself a free lunch. It was worlds better than his canned tuna and dried seaweed crackers back at home.

The rehearsal was nothing more than music class to him. More complex skill and rhythm, maybe. But more or less the same. He read the music, played through it on the worlds lightest violin, and let his notes blend in with everyone else's. They played a few songs. Five or six, maybe. He hadn't counted. Then, Reo laughed, dropped his baton onto his podium, and said with a laugh that they should ease Nagi into it. Then, he dismissed then.

Most of them, anyways.

Nagi packed up the black violin, lowering it back into the Mikage case and clicking it shut with all the carefulness he'd taken to treating it with. A couple of the fellow musicians came up to him on their way out, looking at him wide eyed, telling him he was great, and that they hoped they'd see him again. He wasn't phased and he wasn't surprised. He was used to that treatment. In this setting, anyways. He didn't bother telling them that he was just doing this for a free lunch and that they shouldn't hold their breath when it came to seeing him again. It would have been too much work. He just said thanks and let them leave.

Reo watched him accept all the thanks, leaning his forearms on the podium, smiling.

Then, after everyone else cleared out, his grin became even wider and he asked, "Ready?"

Nagi nodded in place of an answer.

Reo took the violin from him as soon as the exited the rehearsal hall, let me take that for you, and used his free hand to rest it on Nagi's tricep as they walked. His touch was light, casual, but he couldn't help but feel the heat of it. He wondered if that was really necessary, it's not really like the route they were taking to the back entrance was overly complicated, but he found he didn't really mind it either.

Reo's car was black and sleek. Longer than an average car. Nagi was ready to go around to the other side of the car to get into the passenger side, but before he could, Reo just stopped walking and paused a second. Nagi took a look around, trying to figure out if there was something blocking their path, or rain, but Reo didn't look troubled. He kept rambling on while a man in sunglasses let himself out of the driver's side door and opened the door to the backseat.

Reo held a hand out, as if to say, after you.

Nagi climbed inside. The backseat was not just spacious but luxurious, freshly wiped down, and smelled like something crisp and nature-like.

This was weird. The dude was weird, his car with the driver and the mini bar in the backseat was weird, and his interest in Nagi was weird. But so long as he was getting a free meal out of it, he supposed that he could forgive the weird.

Reo went over to the mini bar, took a bottle out, and poured them each a tall flute of the bubbling liquid. He held Nagi's out to him. Nagi resisted in taking it.

"It's non alcoholic," Reo told him.

Without being sure that had been his hesitation, he took it, and sipped the crisp liquid. Whatever it was, it was nice. "Thanks."

"Thank you," Reo said to him. He held his own glass, but he didn't bother with it. He just leaned over, twisting until he could look him head on. "You really are incredible."

Nagi took a nervous glance towards the violin case that he'd left on the floor of the backseat, and started to feel like it was a wretched, cursed thing. "Thanks."