1 Short Story

The sky looks sad this morning. The sun refuses to touch the earth. There is only the wind that blows and always accompanies living things on earth.

Thunderstorms filled the silence. The trees looked frightened. Birds flew towards his house.

Will this be a bad ending?

Not long after, heavy rain poured down on the earth. The sky began to share its sorrow with the living creatures on earth.

A sigh emerged from a girl who was staring at the rain that almost soaked all her clothes. She seemed annoyed by that and all he could do for now was take shelter in a store that wasn't open.

Annoying, isn't it? However, a moment later he saw a pair of shoes in front of him made him look up at the person standing in front of him. A man in a black coat and umbrella was staring at him intently.

"Um...excuse me?" She tried to figure out the meaning of the man in front of her. The man just smiled.

"Kyaaaaa!!!"

The screaming at the girl in the cafeteria made the story have to stop. The storyteller could only support his chin when he saw things that were no longer surprising to him.

"Who are they?" asked a girl with dusk pink hair color with an innocent look. The man in front of him just sighed in exasperation, "The Sakuma brothers. I heard, they just came back from France."

"Sakuma?" The girl looked at the two men with black hairs with red beads who were crossing the group of women who admired them.

Unknowingly, that gaze made one of the men from the Sakuma clan stare at him with a smile that tended to look like a smirk.

"Hey, Neko. Don't look at him like that," said the man in front of him which made the girl turn her attention.

Kurosaki Neko is the name of the girl who was listening to the previous story. She is known as an innocent and simple girl. There's nothing interesting about it.

"Eh? What?" said Neko which made the man in front of him sigh, "Don't look at him like that."

Neko just chuckled seeing her friend acting like a child who had been snatched away by another child. The idea came from Neko's mind.

"Alright, Mister Sakasaki Natsume. So, what should I look at so you don't get angry like that?"

"You know, the next schedule is music. Try to stay as far away from them as possible."

"Eh? Why?"

"There is not anything."

"Natsume-kun, I won't stay away from people. My mother always taught me to be friends with anyone."

"Therefore, your mother entrusted you to me," replied Natsume which made the other person purse their lips.

Funny, isn't it?

For most men, Neko is not attractive. But it was quite different for a Sakasaki Natsume. This man has known Neko. Perhaps, from the embryo Natsume had known him.

"So how's the story going?" said Neko who was still curious about the story that was cut short by the scream.

"Hmmm, maybe next time I'll continue."

"Other ...."

The school bell cut off Neko. Hurriedly, Neko finished her lunch and went to the music room after saying goodbye to Natsume.

"Don't forget my message, Neko."

"Yes-yes, Natsume-chan," replied Neko which made Natsume furious and would give him divine light if Neko did not have a class schedule after this bell.

*****

The music room still looks deserted. Some musical instruments made of metal also look cold without the warmth of humans.

Neko who deliberately arrived early, chose to take the violin and check the balance of the strings so that the sound produced was not discordant. After he felt good, he played the violin slowly.

The friction between the strings and the bow produces a beautiful note. He also added appreciation and became a melody.

Neko closed her eyes, letting everything pour into her melody. However, all she could remember was a red beaded man with short black hair who met his eyes.

I don't know how long he played, it felt like she wasn't quite satisfied. However, like it or not, he had to end it for today's lecture.

When he managed to perform the last melody, the sound of applause echoed. The cheers of her friends were heard and a middle-aged woman approached her with a smile.

"That was beautiful, Kurosaki-san. Now sit down, we will start the class," said the teacher.

"Okay," answered Neko and when she was about to return her violin, Neko's bead again crossed paths with the man's surnamed Sakuma bead.

Neko just smiled, then she got up and returned the violin he was holding and returned to his seat to focus on today's lesson.

*****

This afternoon, after music class, Neko doesn't have any schedule. Thus allowing him to wait for Natsume in the garden.

As usual, she was always waiting in the flower section and playing the violin for the flower. As if understanding the strains of the melody, the flowers spread a sweet fragrance as a thank you.

On the other hand, Natsume is currently tidying up the equipment he used in fortune telling class. He did a lot of things earlier, so many of his tools were messy.

After finishing, Natsume ran a little to quickly get to where the girl was. However, he saw one of the Sakuma family standing not too far from Neko who was playing his violin.

'What is he here for?' thought Natsume.

Before Natsume could speak, the man surnamed Sakuma noticed his presence and the man also left without a word. Natsume just watched the man silently with mixed thoughts.

"Boom!"

A tap landed on Natsume's shoulder and startled him. Neko just laughed a little when she saw him surprised.

"It's a lot of daydreaming. Is it because your fortune-telling class does future predictions that you will have bad luck tomorrow, that you have to bring lucky tools from Oha Asa?"

Yes, Oha Asa is the daily zodiac forecast. Starting from bad things to good, to things that are used to ward off bad things are also conveyed.

"Don't think it's weird. After all, the knowledge I have is far greater than the prediction that morning." Natsume replied with a thought that wasn't with him at the moment.

"Really? Really? I see Natsume is in a daze right now."

"That's enough, Neko. Come on, let's go home before dark."

"Very well, great Sorcerer Lord."

Natsume didn't say anything else. Now all he has to do is take care of Neko until he reaches his house safely. After all, their house was also next door, making it easy for Natsume to be more intensive in guarding Neko after Neko was followed by one of the men from the Sakuma clan.