That Summer

Chapter 9

I woke up to the sound of wooden chimes violently ringing against the wind. I immediately felt a white chrysanthemum at the tip of my finger. I picked it up and looked at it. I noticed my hand was slightly bigger and my feet could touch the edge of the bed. I slowly got out of bed and realized that I was off balance. I went to the bathroom and looked at my appearance. I was back in my 21-year-old body. We safely traveled back to the future and it was fall semester but I was actually excited to spend my last months of summer break in a different time period. I quickly got ready and headed downstairs.

"Good morning." He greeted me.

"Good morning." I smiled.

"What a nice expression so early in the morning." He had already made me a plate of waffles and fruit.

"It's a nice day to smile." I laughed.

"That's good to hear." He smiled.

Traveling to the past was a blessing in disguise. Going on a side adventure while experiencing a completely crazy one already, was fun and honestly something I've been waiting for. My mood was boosted for the rest of the summer. I was so excited to go back to my music class and play a new instrument. More importantly, I was excited to see Hiro again. I only saw him that one time. After meeting that teenage boy, I felt like I need to put more effort into building a friendship with Hiro. 

"I can't wait to go back to class." I happily ate my fruit.

"What type of instrument will you be learning about today?" Haru watched me explain with excitement.

"The flute!" I was excited because it was one of the instruments I wanted to play.

"Well, then we should head out so I can continue to see that nice expression throughout the day." He grabbed my wrist and we flew to campus.

We went to campus and I ran to my class in excitement. He transformed into a squirrel and followed behind. He was interested in seeing me play the flute for the first time. When I walked into class, there was a flute waiting for me at my unassigned assigned seat. I was so excited to start class.

"So, today, the class will be about flutes." Matt, the professor, started.

"Is it because flutes have some significance in a lot of orchestral pieces?" That one annoying kid in class who never stopped asking questions asked.

"No, there's another reason." Matt seemed to be getting tired of him.

"Is it because of its deep history?" The overachieving kid said.

"Partially. Want to chime in, Mirai? See what I did there?" Matt laughed at his own joke.

"Symbolism?" I honestly had no idea what he was talking about.

"Exactly." Matt slammed his hands on the grand piano sitting next to him.

"What do you mean?" That annoying kid asked.

"In many early cultures, the flute played an important role in magic and mythology." Matt played a whimsical tune on the flute.

"Why?" Another student asked.

"The sound of this instrument has an unworldly almost heavenly pitch, doesn't it?" Matt explained.

"Does that mean it was also connected to the spiritual world?" I asked and became completely engrossed in the lecture as always.

"Yes. Many ancient civilizations believed it was a god's instrument or even symbolized the voice of the gods. Other cultures believed that the flute was a gift to humanity from the gods. Have you ever thought about why the pan flute is called that?" He walked around the classroom with the flute in his hands.