K-ON! After Story

The Melancholy of Azusa Nakano

Azusa Nakano sighed.

She lounged herself on the rear seat of a cab. She remembered that the cab was supposed to take her somewhere. The destination, she could not recall. Her phone buzzed. She looked at the cracked screen of her phone, which had been gifted by her parents on her 25th birthday. It was a message from someone. Her agent, to be precise. For some reason, her intuition suggested that the message wasn't going to be encouraging.

"Hey Nakano, it seems that the guys at Enoshima cancelled the gig, sorry."

"On the plus side, it means you'll be free on Christmas Eve! Got any plans?"

It was December 18, nearly a week before she was supposed to perform at Enoshima for an event organized by the local cultural council. It was a major event; the earnings would have covered her living expenses for the next 3 months.

"I expected that."

It wasn't surprising. After nearly a decade as a professional musician, Azusa had gotten used to rejection. She was 27 now, a point at which she could no longer be considered a rookie. She didn't have much to show for it. A handful of performances every year, 2 singles which she released when she was 22, and a YouTube channel with around 4k subscribers. It hadn't been easy, but Azusa was determined to not give up.

"Music is something I enjoy creating; it doesn't matter if I have to face a few hardships along the way, as long as I enjoy it," she thought.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, another voice muttered, "Am I enjoying this?"

She decided to switch off her phone and decided to forget about the message.

Her gloomy eyes stared through the window.

She had reached her destination.

After paying the cab driver the fare, she began walking down an alley. The streets were covered with snow, and grey clouds stretched across the sky. She knocked on the door of an apartment in an old building. The building wasn't shabby, but had seen better days. The occupant of the apartment had rented it simply because it was the cheapest one she could find. Azusa knocked again.

"Gimme a minute!"

"Ahh, it's so cold, winter always ruins my hair, such a pain."

Azusa thought the door had been opened by a yeti with brown hair. Upon closer inspection, she realised it was her childhood friend.

"Took you long enough Azusa, you said you'd come at 5, it's nearly 6 now."

"I had to take care of some things, Jun."

Jun Suzuki had been drying her hair for an hour. The voluminous heap of keratin on top of her head had overgrown and was overflowing in all directions, seemingly defying gravity.

"I don't need a Christmas tree this year, I'm just going to put all ornaments in my hair."

"How are you even okay with this thing; doesn't your workplace have attire rules?"

"It's called work from home, Azusa-chan. Unfortunately, musicians don't have that luxury."

After graduation, Jun went to a university in Hokkaido. She had majored in a humanities subject, something involving social sciences. She was currently working for a magazine. What work she did, she could not recall. Azusa had gone to the Tokyo University of the Arts, a prestigious music school in Tokyo because she wanted to pursue music seriously. It was the first time she had been separated from Jun, who was in the same school as her since 1st grade. The senior members of HTT had all joined J Women's University, along with Ui. Azusa wanted to join too, but decided that a music school would be much better for her career. It was an extremely difficult decision. As time went by, Azusa was offered a contract by a company which specialized in scouting young talent. She got busy trying to create a niche for herself in the world of music. She lost contact with the other members of HTT but remained in touch with Jun.

"So, what did you want to talk about."

Azusa wanted to speak. She was trying to say something. It was the sole reason she had travelled all the way from Tokyo to Saitama. And yet, she could not formulate the words. The words to describe the feelings which she had pent up inside her all these years.

"Jun."

She started crying.

"I just...I'm tired of it! Sick! Music was my passion but I-I failed! I've been trying for years now. I did everything I was told. Formed connections, reached out to veteran musicians, improved my fashion sense, set up social media accounts, and even got a manager. I even brought a newer guitar, because they told me my Mustang was too old-fashioned! Every day I practice for 3 hours, I don't drink anything cold to protect my voice. I don't drink or smoke, because that weakens the larynx...I DID EVERYTHING RIGHT!! Then why...why can't I be successful?!"

Azusa paused.

"I don't want money or fame, I just want people to appreciate my work. To recognize me. I want my music to touch their hearts and motivate them. I wanted to create music that would give people hope and transform their lives. I don't want to spend my entire career making covers of more popular bands. This isn't what I wanted to do! All my agent does is book random events in the middle of nowhere. They book me to perform songs from popular musicians because those musicians are too expensive to book. I want to make my own music, but the two singles I released didn't do well...so now the company refuses to give me a chance."

Jun's merry expression had turned sombre. She turned towards Azusa and placed her arm on Azusa's back.

"T-this isn't how I wanted things to be. I never thought this would happen, b-but music is becoming a burden for me. It's not fun anymore. Waking up is a chore, putting on a fake smile and pretending everything is okay. I thought music was interesting, especially in high school."

Azusa paused again. She thought of her school days. She thought of Sakuragaoka High, she thought of the Light Music Club. She thought of her senpais.

"I miss them, I miss them so much. I shouldn't have gone to that stupid university, if only I'd been with Yui-senpai and the others. Even if I had gone to Tokyo, I should have remained in touch with them. I abandoned all of them in pursuit of my dreams. I'm such a terrible person!"

"You're not, Azusa."

"You're not a terrible person. In fact, you're braver than any of us. We all played music in school. But none of us had the courage to actually become a professional. We thought of it as a foolish dream. But the truth is, we were all scared. Or at least I was. I thought it was too bold of a career path. So I embraced my mediocrity and gave up. But you were always more serious and passionate than either me or Ui. You have accomplished so much. I'm sure our senpais are proud of you."

Azusa had stopped crying. She reached out for a glass of water which Jun had brought. It was ice cold.

"I want to meet them," Azusa began.

"I want to meet them, talk to them. I want to see what they're up to. If only I'd been in touch with them."

Jun brought a box of donuts from the kitchen. She held them in front of Azusa.

"You know what, let's do it. You don't have any events for at least another month, right?"

"None."

"Then let's meet them. I'll help you search for them. What you need the most, Azusa, is a change of surrounding and mind. Think of it as an extended vacation."

"Jun, thank you!", Azusa leaped and hugged Jun excitedly.

The force of Azusa's sudden leap caused Jun to lose her balance and fall onto the sofa. The donuts were sent flying across the room.

"Oww, my back. More importantly, MY DONUTS!"

"I'm sorry!" Azusa said.

"It's alright, just remember - graduation wasn't the end, Azusa."

"Our real after story has just begun."

[Meanwhile, in the city of Sakuragaoka]

"Ahh-choo!"

"Hirasawa-san, the cold must be getting to you."

"Hehehe...for some reason I thought an old friend had called out to me."

To be Continued in "The Surprise of Yui Hirasawa"