The Undying Voice |『 Female OC 』• Oshi no Ko

Verse 3: Harmonic Beginnings

The day went by as usual, but Umeko couldn't stop remembering the melody she heard earlier. The way Tsukasa played each note with as much passion and rhythm could soothe the hardest heart.

'I'm sure I heard that song before as well,' thought Umeko, tapping her cheek with her pen. She was so concentrated that she unintentionally started humming, which caught Anya's attention.

Raising her head, she looked at the back of Umeko before her eyes locked with Etnia. The two shared a knowing look before the petite orange-haired girl giggled softly. 'She never changes,' realised Etnia, refocusing on her work.

Still in her own world, Umeko kept trying to figure out the song Tsukasa was playing. "...meet me where the...snow mounts flows," she whispered, figuring out the song bit by bit.

She was tapping her pen in the rhythm, which made more and more of her classmates turn toward her. Even the teacher, already used to her antics, seemed focused on Umeko.

"...take us...take us back," softly sang Umeko when she reached the chorus before her eyes widened. "I got it!" she said a bit too loud before putting her hands on her mouth.

Looking around, she saw the whole class looking at her, embarrassing the dual-haired girl. "I-I'm sorry," she apologised, which made the teacher smile. "It's fine," she reassured before one of Umeko's classmates clapped his hands.

"Umeko-chan, you're so talented!" he said, making Umeko bashfully smile. "Right!? She sings so well!" said a girl, making the class nod in union and not stopping Umeko's embarrassment. "Thanks, guys," she said before the teacher tapped the board while smiling at Umeko.

"Even if it was a nice performance, you know what happens when you disturb the class," the teacher reminded Umeko. Nodding, Umeko stood up and walked toward the board to respond to the question.

"I'm always impressed how you can be so distracted..." the teacher trailed off as Umeko returned to her seat. "But still manage to find the good answer," the teacher complimented, which made Umeko smile.

"I just have a good ear for things," she said, causing the teacher to chuckle. "That's good, but try to focus more, okay?" asked the teacher, making Umeko nod. "I will try my best," she replied before glancing over her shoulder at Anya, who looked amused. "I said nothing," she said when she saw Umeko looking at her.

With a sigh, Umeko smiled at her and refocused on her work. 'I guess this could count as my first public performance,' she thought before pausing. ''And I got this embarrassed in front of the class,' she realised before shaking her head.

'Is that what stage fright is?' she wondered before closing her eyes. 'I guess I will need to work on that as well in the future,' concluded Umeko before the final bell rang.

As the bell echoed through the corridors, signalling the end of the school day, Umeko's mind was already racing ahead. The encouragement from her classmates had ignited a fire within her that burned with the melody Tsukasa had played earlier.

She gathered her things slowly, her determination solidifying with each passing second. "Going somewhere?" came Anya's voice breaking through Umeko's thoughts as she approached, her bag slung casually over her shoulder.