-- "All I Ask of You;" The Phantom of the Opera; Christine and Raoul's duet

Angel of Music

    "Ne, Oishi-kun, are you free this Saturday?"

Oishi Syuichiroh looked up from his notebook, only to find himself gazing into dark brown eyes. He smiled, recognizing this person immediately. "Not in the morning, because Ryuuzaki-sensei organized an extra training session for all the Regulars, but I'm free in the afternoon. Why? Was there something you wanted?"

He was speaking to , a classmate of his at Seishun Gakuen, and an old childhood friend. The two of them had been neighbors since as far back as Oishi could remember, and had always been in each other's company since the day they met at the local playground's sandbox.

smiled at him then. "I don't know if you remember, but you know how I told you before that I was auditioning for the role of Christine? I got the role, Oishi-kun, and Phantom of the Opera is opening on Saturday night."

    "H-hontou?" he murmured, stunned. "But the auditions were two months ago! How come you didn't tell me?"

laughed softly. "Because it was the start of the year, and you were busy training. You know me: I don't like butting in unnecessarily."

Oishi smiled. He knew that that was not the only reason why. He looked around, making sure that no one was around, and then he asked: "Was it because of that, or because you were avoiding him?"

blinked, blushed, and said nothing further. "Oishi-kun, please…"

Oishi smiled, and patted her hand. " -chan," he said, using her given name since it was just the two of them, "he's not as cruel as you think he is, or as unreachable. He's really quite nice, if you give him a chance."

looked away. "I know you say that, Syuichiroh-kun… Demo… He's so far up there, if you know what I mean. So far up there, and so unreachable."

Oishi frowned. "Tezuka's the farthest thing from unreachable."

    "Is he, really? He's so intelligent, and so popular…you know that, and I know that. Why would he want a plain, mousy girl like me?"

Oishi sighed, and shook his head. What had said about herself was not a lie, but neither was it the truth. She was quiet and reserved in class, speaking up only during recitation, and not saying much else otherwise. Some thought that this was because she was unpopular, which was not true: in fact, a lot of girls envied her closeness with Oishi, and, in consequence, Fuji Syuusuke and Kikumaru Eiji. Others believed that she was cold, which was, again, a fallacy: Oishi knew for a fact that was one of the warmest people he had ever known.

The truth of the matter was: was simply not someone who was very vocal about her emotions or her thoughts – not to the general public, anyway. She preferred speaking to the people she trusted, which meant her family, and her close friends. In Seigaku, the latter meant Oishi, Fuji, and Kikumaru - though of course, Inui was also in on the secret, since he knew more or less everything about something or someone if it interested him.

It was these four people, in the entirety of Seishun Gakuen, who knew 's passion, and her goal: Broadway.

Oishi knew that over the last summer, had been going to Hyoutei for voice and theater lessons, all to improve her chances at getting a spot on the cast list of Phantom of the Opera, which was being produced by one of the best teen theater companies. Two weeks after the start of school, told him that she was going to audition for the role of Christine – the lead female role, and a particularly challenging one at that. When she didn't mention anything to him or to any of her other friends, Oishi figured that she had not gotten the role, and just did not want to talk about it. It was typically her, after all.

Apparently, he was wrong, because as she told him now, she had gotten the role, but she had neglected to tell him because, according to her, he was busy.

But Oishi knew that wasn't the real reason why she had not told him anything.

The door of the classroom slid open then, and Tezuka Kunimitsu stepped into the classroom. "Ohayo, Oishi, -san."

Oishi smiled, and greeted him back. "Ohayo, Tezuka." He glanced at , and heard her say a soft "Ohayo, Tezuka-san," before turning around to face the blackboard whilst pulling a book out of her bag as she did so.

Out of the corner of his eye, Oishi saw Tezuka look at a while longer, as if waiting for something, but when no further reaction came from the young girl, Seigaku Tennis Team's buchou merely squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, before turning away, and taking his seat.

Oishi sighed. It was just another day for him: another day of school, and of watching two good friends dance circles around each other.

Yes, it was another, normal day.

    "We really have to do something about this situation."

Fuji Syuusuke gave Oishi an inquisitive look. "Do you mean the situation between Tezuka and -chan?"

Oishi nodded, and sighed. "Hai. I can't stand it anymore, watching them do that to each other. -chan doesn't know that Tezuka likes her – has liked her for a long time – and Tezuka doesn't know just how much -chan likes him back."

Fuji nodded his head. While normally, he would have considered this situation very, very interesting, he knew that right now, it was quite serious already. He might have been sadistic, but he knew better than to let his good friends go through this sort of emotional torture.

Kikumaru Eiji puffed out a breath. "But you know Tezuka-buchou… He won't say anything until the very last minute, or he'll get someone as a go-between nya…"

    "In this case, he won't say anything at all," Fuji concluded.

The three friends fell silent then. Fuji might have been a genius, but how did one resolve three years' worth of secret admiration on both sides? This whole situation between Tezuka and did, after all, go all the way back to first year in junior high, and in all that time, had never found any form of resolution. There were many chances – both coincidental and manufactured by Fuji – but nothing ever happened.

    "Eh? Minna, why the long faces? Are you all right?"

Fuji looked up, and saw standing there, a tray of food in her hands, her expression inquisitive yet concerned. He smiled at her, and waved his hand. "Ah, we're all right, -chan. We were just thinking about the upcoming game against St. Rudolph."

    "Ah, I see." She smiled at them as she slid into the chair next to Oishi. "I don't know if Oishi-kun told you yet, but you remember what I told you about auditioning for Christine two months ago, right? Well, I got the part, and the opening night is on Saturday."

    "Nya!" Kikumaru reached over, and gave her a hug. "Congratulations, -chan!"

Fuji opened his eyes a little in appreciation, and smiled at her. "Why didn't you tell us sooner, -chan?"

She laughed softly, and picked up her chopsticks. "All of you were busy with training. I didn't want to interrupt. Oh!" She twisted around in her seat, and reached into her bag. After a few moments of rummaging, she pulled her hand back out, this time clutching a sheaf of tickets.

    "These are the complimentary tickets that I was given for the opening night of Phantom," she said, placing the slips of cardboard on the table. "I was given fourteen, originally, but I took four for my family. There are ten tickets left, and three are for you. I don't know to whom I should give the rest, so I want you three to decide who gets them."

Kikumaru's eyes glowed. "Nya… That's so generous of you, -chan!"

giggled, and shrugged. "I really don't know who else to invite, so you do it yourselves. I know that the musical will be in English, but the music itself is beautiful. Besides, it would make me very happy if you could make it."

Fuji took one of the tickets, and checked the details of the performance. The venue was one he was familiar with; it was a theater that had a reputation for putting on some really excellent shows and plays. The time was also quite convenient: six to around eight-thirty in the evening, with an interlude in between. All in all, it was not quite bad.

Also, Fuji saw in it an opportunity, a chance to finally correct the situation between Tezuka and once and for all.

He looked up at once again, and gave her a smile. "Ne, -chan, you don't mind if I take these tickets, do you? I think I know whom I want to give them to."

nodded. "As I said, it's entirely up to you whom you will give them to."

Fuji glanced across the table at Oishi. Cerulean and emerald met for a brief moment, before the two boys exchanged secret smiles. They had a plan up their sleeves, and they were going to make sure that it worked.

Momoshiro blinked. "Nani, nani?! -senpai is singing in Phantom of the Opera?!"

Oishi nodded, smiling. "Hai. She's loved singing since she was a little girl, and she loves Broadway too."

    "Demo, how come none of us found out until now?" Momoshiro asked again, not having recovered from the shock of finding out that – quiet, reserved – actually had the guts to go onstage and sing Broadway.

It was Inui who spoke up then: "That is because she simply does not talk about it except to her closest friends. According to my data, she is a very reserved girl and does not speak of anything except to those whom she trusts, meaning: Oishi, Fuji, and Eiji. Anyone else outside of that circle will not have known anything about this until now."

    "Fsssh… But you knew, Inui-senpai," Kaidoh said then.

Inui smirked, and pushed his glasses up. "Of course."

    "What are you doing?"

Momoshiro looked over his shoulder, and saw Tezuka standing in the doorway of the clubroom, frowning at all of them.

It was Fuji who spoke up. "Ah, Tezuka, you came just in time. Would you like to hear -san sing?"

Tezuka blinked, and Momoshiro almost swore he saw his buchou's face turn slightly paler. "What are you talking about, Fuji?"

Fuji lifted a ticket into the air, smiling as he did so. "You might have heard that a local theater company is producing Phantom of the Opera. Well, -chan auditioned for the role of Christine two months ago, and she got the part. She gave Eiji, Oishi, and I ten tickets at lunch today, and said that three of the tickets were for us, while the rest were for anyone else whom we wanted to invite along. And we thought that maybe, the Regulars would like to come along and watch the musical."

Kikumaru nodded his head rapidly. "Hai! It'll be fun! -chan has been working hard on her voice for a long time now, so I bet that she's going to sing beautifully!"

Oishi smiled. "It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, minna. This sort of thing doesn't come everyday."

    "Hai," Fuji agreed, and his eyes opened as he did so, his gaze focused directly on Tezuka.

Momoshiro blinked, not quite understanding where this was going. It seemed to him that the senpai had some sort of plan going on, but he really didn't know what it was. In the end, he merely shrugged, and said: "I guess I'll go. I don't have anything to do on Saturday night."

    "Here you go then," Kikumaru said cheerfully, handing him a ticket.

Momoshiro looked at the ticket in his hand. It was all black, the only thing on it the details of the musical, and a white mask on one side.

Just then, he heard Fuji speak: "Well, looks like everyone is going."

Momoshiro looked around, and realized that everyone was holding a ticket. However, Kaidoh and Ryoma looked a bit green, though he suspected it was because Inui was holding up a new batch of juice. This batch was a radioactive orange, and Momoshiro was glad that he had willingly accepted the offer to go.

    "That leaves one more ticket," Kikumaru said as he stared at the ticket in his hand. "Maybe I should give it to Ryuuzaki-sensei."

    "Hai, that's a good idea," Oishi remarked cheerfully. "We should give it to her after practice today."

Tezuka spoke up then. "If everyone is finished talking, go out to the courts. It's thirty laps for all of you." "Nani?!"

    "I did not know she sang Broadway." Tezuka stared at the ticket in his hand. singing Christine… He shook his head, rather impressed by the fact that she was singing in a lead role. Christine, in particular, was a difficult role to sing, since it required a voice that could take on an operatic quality.

Oishi chuckled, his footsteps matching his as the two of them walked home from school. "Fuji, Eiji and I have known since first year, though I think that Inui only found out late last year. It's not something she talks about often." He glanced at Tezuka, and said softly, "She really does like you, you know."

Tezuka looked at Oishi, waiting for him to continue.

    "She does," Oishi affirmed. "She has liked you since her freshman year. But, you know -chan… She doesn't just talk about anything."

    "I thought you liked her." There, he had said it: the chief reason why Tezuka had not made a single move in 's direction even though he knew he liked her.

He always thought that Oishi Syuichiroh was courting her.

It was something that he took notice of during their sophomore year, when he saw Oishi leave a box of chocolates in 's locker on White Day. While he didn't know if Oishi received anything from her on Valentine's Day, he speculated that he must have, since Oishi was giving her something on White Day.

Though Tezuka had been harboring a great deal of romantic feelings for the girl, he told himself that his chances with were practically zero. The odds, as Inui might have put it, were very, very slim. After all, she and Oishi had been friends since they were children, which more or less gave Oishi a very large advantage in terms of winning her heart.

Oishi blinked at him, and laughed. "Tezuka, -chan and I are just friends! We've known each other since we were children, and she's like a little sister to me."

    "You gave her chocolates on White Day last year. I saw that."

    "It was to thank her for giving me éclairs on Valentine's Day."

    "See? She gave you éclairs, and on Valentine's Day, no less."

    "Tezuka."

Tezuka stopped upon hearing the tone of Oishi's voice, and looked at his best friend and fukubuchou. The look on Oishi's face was serious: the same look that Oishi had given him during their first year in the tennis club when Tezuka had threatened to leave.

Oishi's voice was equally serious when he spoke. "Tezuka, those éclairs were for you. She was supposed to give them to you on Valentine's Day that year."

Tezuka blinked, unable to keep the surprise off his face. "For me?"

    "Hai. Like the éclairs I was eating during our first year were also for you."

Now Tezuka was stunned, and he made no effort to hide it at all. "Even during our first year? Demo… Why didn't she give them to me?"

    "Because she saw all the other gifts you got during our first year, and she got discouraged. She told me it was going to be different last year, but I guess she saw that there were more boxes, and she got even more discouraged." This time, Oishi gave him a small smirk. "You are popular after all, Tezuka."

Tezuka frowned, suddenly annoyed by the fact that he was so popular. The one person whom he wanted to get something from on Valentine's Day, and she didn't give him anything because she saw that other people had gotten ahead of her… A rash plan formed in his mind, one that involved setting up a placard on his locker on Valentine's Day that said: "I will accept no gifts except from ."

He cancelled the thought just as quickly as it came to mind. It was a very silly idea, one that was formed out of annoyance rather than out of careful planning. And if there was one thing that Tezuka Kunimitsu was proud of about himself, it was the fact that he left nothing to chance.

For the first time in a long time, he felt helpless. There was nothing that he could do now. He might go and watch Phantom of the Opera and watch as she played Christine, but that was all that he could do. He wanted to take some form of action immediately, before any further complications came into play.

But what was he going to do?

    "What am I supposed to do now?"

Oishi patted him on the shoulder then, and said: "Don't worry, I think we can figure something out for tonight…"

    "Wonderful performance, -san."

    "Congratulations, -chan!"

laughed. "Arigatou, minna! And thank you for everything as well."

There was a chorus of "good nights" and "thank yous" before her cast mates left her alone in the dressing room, but afterwards, she sighed, and sat down, looking at the table in front of her.

The musical had come off well – very well, in fact, judging from the standing ovation and resounding "Bravos" that they received from the audience. It more than made up for the hours of lessons, the grueling practices, and the rather uncomfortable costumes that she had to wear. The thrill of being onstage, of singing songs that she loved, playing a role that she enjoyed, and of being hailed by the audience… All of those things made the difficulties she had encountered getting to where she was worthwhile.

As she undid the rather elaborate tangle that her hair had been set into for the final scene of the musical, she heard a knock on the door. "Come in, door's open!" she called, not once looking away from the mirror in front of her as she slowly brushed out her hair.

The first thing that came into the room was an enormous vase of roses. She blinked, and halted in mid-stroke as the roses seemingly walked themselves into the dressing room. It shifted to the left, towards a table not that far away, before she heard a grunt, and the roses shifted away to reveal a familiar face.

    "Ohtori-san!"

Ohtori Chouratou grinned at her, his eyes glimmering in the light from the bulbs around the dressing table as he approached. "Konbanwa, -san."

Ohtori Chouratou was one of the few people at Hyoutei whom had come to know and like. His violin teacher, Sakaki Tarou, was also 's voice teacher, as well as being Ohtori's coach in Hyoutei's Tennis Team. The two of them had come to know each other over the summer, when went to Hyoutei for her voice lessons with Sakaki.

smiled at his reflection in the mirror, running the brush through her hair. "I'm sorry if I can't talk to you properly, Ohtori-san. My hair's all tangled up and it's going to take a while to untangle it."

Ohtori laughed, and waved his hand. "Ah, it's okay, -san." He tilted his head at her as he leaned against the tabletop behind him. "You did very well tonight. Sakaki-sensei and Atobe-buchou were really impressed."

nodded, and laughed, a bit relieved. "That's good to hear." Sakaki had always pushed her to improve her voice, always challenging her to develop whatever talent she already had. Atobe Keigo, on the other hand, she knew to have very high and exacting standards – even though technically, he was only the same age as she was. To hear this news from Ohtori was a welcome relief.

She tilted her head slightly as she ran the brush through a particularly nasty snarl. "So the team was watching?"

    "Hai. All of them were." Ohtori nodded towards the bouquet that he brought in. "The roses are from Sakaki-sensei and the team, actually."

nodded, before she smiled at him. "I saw you in the orchestra pit. First Violin, right?"

    "Ah…hai," Ohtori replied, turning slightly pink at the mention. He laughed. "Demo, -san, you were the real star tonight. I was listening to you hit the high notes, and I was really happy that you got all of them. You had trouble with a few before, right?"

    "Hai," replied, nodding in response. She knew that she could be honest about such things with Ohtori; he was, after all, the only one who knew just how hard rehearsals had been for her at times, since he was also around with the rest of the orchestra, learning to play the pieces for the musical.

She shrugged, and smiled cheerfully, running the brush a few more times through her hair. Most of the tangles were gone now, and her dark brown hair now fell down evenly around her shoulders. "We were all stars tonight, Ohtori-san, and we all worked hard to get here."

He laughed, and walked up to her. "That's true, but I wasn't the one up there, singing." He grinned as he lifted up a posy of rosebuds. He gave her a slightly embarrassed smile as he put it on the table in front of her. "I know that it's nothing like that big vase over there, but-"

    "Iie, it's lovely," cut in, picking up the posy and lifting it to her nose, inhaling the perfume. She peered up at him, and smiled. "Arigatou, Ohtori-san."

Ohtori laughed, and bowed like a gentleman. "It was nothing, -san. And congratulations."

laughed, and responded by congratulating Ohtori for a job well done in the orchestra. She reminded herself, while watching him leave, that she ought to get him something as well. After all, he had given her flowers; maybe she would ask her aunt to make a cherry pie for him.

She felt her heart twinge slightly. The last time she had asked her aunt to make anything for her to give to someone else, it had been during the last two years, when she had asked for éclairs that she had hoped to give to Tezuka Kunimitsu on Valentine's Day.

But, always, she failed to give them to him, because every year, she would see just how many boxes there were in his locker, and it would always remind her that he was popular, and she was not. She always ended up giving the éclairs to Oishi instead, who accepted them gratefully, and always left a box of her favorite chocolates in her locker on White Day. While it was sweet of him to do so, it was nothing to what she felt at the mere daydream of Tezuka giving her something on White Day.

She watched as Ohtori left the room, but the door had barely closed before the door flew wide open again, colliding with the wall behind it with a bang.

    "Nya! -chan!" laughed as Kikumaru burst into the room, followed by Fuji, Oishi and, much to her surprise, the rest of the tennis team Regulars, all of them dressed in semi-formal clothing, as was appropriate for the event.

She noted, however, that there was one person missing in the group that crowded around her, but she did not have time to think about it, because Kikumaru had bounded up to her, and hugged her very, very tightly.

    "Nya, -chan, that was so cool!" Kikumaru exclaimed as he perched on the dressing table. He winked playfully at her. "I never knew you could sing such high notes."

Fuji nodded, his ever-present smile taking on a more cheerful tone at the moment. "Aa, I have to agree with Eiji-kun. It really shows just how much work you've done in order to improve your voice."

Oishi nodded as he handed her a small bouquet of daisies. Her childhood friend grinned at her, green eyes twinkling with pride. "You've come a long way, -chan. I'm really happy for you."

looked all around her, at the happy, smiling faces, and, for the first time in a long time, she felt accepted and loved. "Ah, arigatou gozaimasu, minna," she murmured, giggling softly as she brushed away the slight trace of tears that had come to her eyes at that moment. "I'm so happy that all of you could make it."

    "It was a very interesting experience," Inui said then, and he gave a small smile as he pushed his glasses further up his nose. "According to my data, prior to this you could only sing two and a half octaves; now you can sing nearly three. That is a very impressive achievement."

merely returned the smile, unsure as to how she should reply. She didn't remember telling Inui about her fondness for Broadway music and of her aspiration to someday sing that music, but she figured that maybe he had done his research on her.

The idea was unsettling, in some odd way. What exactly did Inui know about her? She knew it was silly to wonder about such things, but she really couldn't help it.

Just then, Fuji leaned in, and whispered, "Ne, -chan, there's someone in the hallway who wants to talk to you."

She blinked up at Fuji, mildly surprised to see him peering down at her with his blue eyes open. "Huh? Who is it, Fuji-kun?"

He smiled mysteriously, and pulled her up from her chair. "You just have to go out there and find out."

    "Demo, my hair isn't-"

    "Just leave it down like that; it looks beautiful that way." Fuji smiled at her again, and waved her towards the door. "Now, go."

stood there, uncertain about whether or not she should go, but in the end, she gave Fuji a hesitant smile, and walked out of the room, reassuring Kaidoh and Momoshiro along the way that she would be back as soon as she was through with business.

The hallway beyond was devoid of people; almost everyone had already left, heading for the grand cast after-party that Sakaki was throwing in their honor. Behind her, the voices of her friends echoed through the hall, and she laughed softly at the sound of Momoshiro and Kaidoh arguing over something.

    " -san."

The rich baritone that resounded in her ears made her blood run cold with surprise. She whirled around to face the source of that familiar but unexpected voice, and found herself staring at Tezuka Kunimitsu.

He stood there, partially hidden in the shadows – the reason why she did not see him when she walked past. He looked heartbreakingly handsome, dressed in a white button-down shirt over black slacks and leather shoes, with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows in a less formal manner, now that the show was over and the crowds had gone. His face – normally stern and harsh in its expression – was now somewhat softer, though perhaps that could have been because of the dim lighting. His hands were behind his back in a polite, controlled stance that she had seen him use a few times before, when addressing a large group of people outside of the context of the tennis team.

She smiled at him, trying to appear cheerful. "Ah, Tezuka-san! Gomen nasai, I didn't see that you were there."

    "Iie. It's all right, -san." As he spoke, he approached her, and she blushed at the intensity of his gaze. How often had she imagined that he would look at her with that same intensity? It was easy to imagine that she would return that gaze when she was just imagining it, but now that he was looking at her that way, she realized that she could not look at him.

She glanced away, looking instead at a rather dusty spot on the floor. "Anou… Fuji-kun said that someone out here wanted to talk to me. Did you see anyone?"

    "I was the only one here."

Her heart rate picked up just then as she looked back at him in surprise. Surely not, she thought. Surely he was not the one who wanted to talk to her.

She opened her mouth to speak, but Tezuka walked up to her, and lightly pressed two fingers against her mouth. "Onegai, -san," he murmured, his voice suddenly taking on a more gentle and caressing tone. "Allow me to speak."

There was nothing she could do, save to nod wordlessly at him.

After she had done so, Tezuka's hand dropped to his side, and he sighed. "I…owe you an apology, -san."

She blinked. An apology? When had Tezuka ever needed to apologize to her? "Apology?"

    "Hai." He approached her, and revealed two long-stemmed red roses from behind his back. "These flowers are…rather delayed, I am afraid."

She stared at the two roses, unable to comprehend what he was talking about. "I… I don't understand."

A small smile curved on Tezuka's lips then, and at the sight of it felt warmth flash through her body, the heat increasing when he reached out, and took her hand in his.

    "They are for the last two White Days when I neglected to give you anything," he murmured, carefully pressing the stems into her palm. "I hope that you will still accept them, as well as the emotions that accompany them."

It seemed as if all time had stopped when he said those words. She looked up at him, eyes wide with stunned surprise. "Then…does that mean that, all this time-"

He nodded. "Hai. I have liked you for a long time now, but I did not know how to approach you. I thought that Oishi was courting you already."

She smiled, and shook her head. "Oishi-kun is like my brother. He never tried to court me."

    "A mistake that I thought I had realized too late."

She laughed softly, and went to him, placing a hand on top of his. "Iie, you weren't too late. You were just in time." She laughed again, but bowed her head this time, unable to say the words to his face. "I…I have liked you since we were freshmen, Tezuka."

She felt him twist his hand so that his palm was in contact with hers, and he clasped her hand in his, lacing his fingers between her own. Using that contact, he pulled her towards him, lifting his free hand to cup her face as he lightly brushed his lips against her mouth in a seeking kiss.

His breath was warm and thrilling against her lips as he spoke: "Then will you sing for me, -chan? Not here, not now, but sometime soon, when we are alone? I would like to hear your voice again."

She laughed softly, and nodded. "I will, I promise."

fin.
Kage
13.July.2005