A Promise Filled With Roses

"...What are you listening to?"

The first time Haru Shiro met Ayako Hatano she was sitting on the grey, plastic bench right outside his hospital room.

She had little white buds in both ears and a cord that connected back to her phone that was laying in her lap.

They were hardly visible because of her long brown hair that started straight, but then became curly as it went down.

There was something about her hair, something that seemed familiar to him.

Not many people sit on this bench. It's cold, plastic, and uncomfortable.

The only time he has ever seen someone sit here, was his mother, crying as she looked at the papers in her hands.

Haru didn't like this bench.

But here this girl was, sitting as she slightly kicked her feet in the air, wearing a soft smile.

It immediately confused him.

Smiling in a hospital like this?

Intrigued by her cheery mood, he decided to ask her what she was listening to.

Ayako didn't respond the first time he asked.

Her eyes were studying her phone very closely, making him even more interested in just what could be on there.

Since his first attempt to ask failed, it gave him more of a chance to look at the strange girl.

Her face was lightly freckled, and her eyes perfectly matched her hair color.

Haru found himself staring for a bit too long, so he decided to ask her again.

But this time, with a different approach.

In a quick movement, he slid beside her on the bench and put his ear close to her left earbud.

A soft melody immediately entered his eardrum.

There was a jazzy beat with vintage chords. There was the occasional dusty, yet satisfying, snare drum.

It all came together to create an atmosphere of a room in the big city at night.

The music was lofi.

It's common for people to listen to lofi when they want to focus or get rid of stress.

For some reason though, that didn't seem to be her intention.

Ayako was studying her phone like it was the most interesting book she had ever read.

With curiosity taking the best of him, Haru leaned over, putting his face right next to hers, to look at exactly what was on her phone.

What he saw surprised him.

"Woah, did you create this on here?"

"Ah!"

She startled in suprise, and when she did, he realized what he had just done.

Haru has always been told by family members that he has no concept of personal space.

He always brushed it off because they were family, but he had no defense now that it had just been proven.

Haru jumped up along with her, which startled her even more.

Since Ayako had no context other than a stranger getting close to her face, she began to quickly walk away, but she hadn't noticed her missing left earbud that was in Haru's right ear.

"Ah, wait!"

It was too late though, with her quick walking speed, the earbud came out with a pop.

"Ouch!"

With the sound of someone in pain behind her, Ayako immediately turned around and began to walk back.

"Ah, are you okay?!"

It didn't hurt that much, but the way she was freaking out, someone would've thought he was having a heart attack.

And someone did.

A nurse immediately came over, since there is always one nearby in this hospital.

"What happened?"

She squatted down immediately and checked Haru's forehead with her hand.

He looked up at the nurse, and what he saw were purplish bags under her eyes, from multiple overtime shifts.

He knew how hard she had to work here, he wanted to cause no trouble for her.

"Oh no, I'm fine. I was just startled and fell."

The nurse and the girl let out a synced sigh of relief.

She gave him a stern look as she stood back up.

"Try not to venture out too much. Especially since you're on new drugs now."

The nurse's name was Sakura, and she has been here since the day he arrived.

She's strict, but she cares a lot.

Maybe a little too much. She could stand to sleep at least more than two hours a day.

"Right. Sorry."

With that, she walked away.

He looked back up to the girl, who now had her cheeks slightly puffed out.

"So, what were you doing putting your face next to

mine? Are you some kind of pervert?"

"P-pervert?! How did you come to that?!"

"Well, I thought you might be trying to smell my shampoo or something."

Haru's cheeks slightly turned red. Now that he thinks about it, one could make that assumption.

"I-I would never do that! You were the one being weird!"

"Me?! How was I being weird!?"

"Well, you were smiling on the bench and having a great time! Kind of weird to be doing that in a hospital!"

She immediately looked taken aback, her last sign of happiness fading, and he could tell he struck a chord.

"So...I can't be happy here at all...?"

"T-that's not what I meant..."

His demeanor turned dreary as well.

"I just...don't see that very often anymore."

Silence overtook them.

Haru felt terrible. He had no reason to ruin this girl's day just because she was happy, while he wasn't.

In an attempt to recover, he spoke up again.

"I saw what was on your phone when I...well when I leaned over your shoulder."

"Hmm...so you admit it."

She puffed out her checks again.

Her anger was warranted, Haru should have just tried to talk to her first.

"W-well, I saw the music editing software that I tried using once..."

Ayako's eyes got wider as she now had a surprised look.

Was this a bad idea?

"...I was just wondering if you created that lofi music I heard..."

She still stared at Haru with that same surprised look as he attempted to recover himself.

This was a bad idea.

"Sorry, I really shouldn't have-"

Right when Haru was about to walk away in shame, the girl ran towards him and grasped both his hands into hers.

"Ah, so you like creating music too!"

"H-huh?!"

She looked at him with a bright smile. It shone brighter than any light in the hospital.

"Well, I tried it once or twice, it didn't turn out very well though..."

He turned his face upward. Ayako was very close to him, and she was still holding his hands.

Was she the same as Haru?

Did they both lack a sense of personal space?

"Really?! Can you help me make this song then?"

She ungrasped his right hand, and pulled her phone back out of her pocket.

She put it right up to his eyes, so he could get a better look.

"See, look! I have chords and drums, and I even added some jazz sounds for the night in the city effect!"

Haru squinted his eyes as he looked at the music software.

DoomTrap.

That was the name of the software.

It was old, and most people had moved on to

newer music-creating sites that are easier to use.

DoomTrap is difficult to use, and Haru used to spend entire nights up late trying to figure out everything about the software on his own.

Eventually, he gave up and settled for a three-hour YouTube video to help him.

That was years ago though.

But with all those hours spent on the site, he still remembered everything about it.

"Hmmm..."

He was having a hard time focusing on the software with Ayako looking at him with so much anticipation, that it made him look like a professional judge.

"Well?"

She bit her bottom lip as she waited for his judgment, but Haru hadn't even started to form an opinion.

Something needed to change so he could even remotely focus on the site.

"Hey! Is that lofi girl over there?"

"Huh?!"

She whipped around at the empty hospital room he pointed at.

Lofi girl was a constantly streaming, live YouTube video that played lofi music 24/7.

Anyone interested in lofi knew about it.

When she turned around, he plucked her phone out of her hand.

"I'll just take this real quick."

After taking it, he quickly turned his back to her.

Now he could finally look at the music.

Ayako took a few seconds to realize what happened.

"You could've just asked for it, you know."

He couldn't see her, but Haru was sure she was making that same pout face.

"Y-your right...but you were the one that fell for the lofi girl lie."

She fell to her knees, holding her head in embarrassment.

"How did I even fall for that?! She's a drawing!"

"See? I think we're both in the wrong here."

"Huh?! Are you even looking at the music?"

"Of course I am."

Haru was paying attention this time.

Ayako let out a deep sigh, then got up, and trodded over to stand next to him, standing on her tiptoes, and looking over his shoulder.

They were about the same age, but she was at least a foot shorter than him.

Haru tried not to focus on it, but his cheeks still tinged red.

This should be nothing since he also has the same problem with personal space, but this still made him embarrassed.

After a few minutes, he finally formed his opinion.

"I think you should add a different kind of drum. The one you have now is way too noticeable to be calming. You shouldn't be afraid to add some mixing sound effects in there somewhere, kind of just for fun. Also..."

He peered over to look at her reaction.

Haru realized that he sounded like a teacher just now, even though he hardly knew much.

Ayako probably didn't want to hear this from him.

"Also?"

She looked up into his eyes, waiting for the next criticism.

She wasn't mad or bored, she seemed to be paying attention to what he was saying.

"Also...I like the distortion you put on everything. It gives off the vibe your trying to give. I could study to this."

"Really?! Do you think I could post this on YouTube? Like lofi girl.

With her words, a flood of nostalgia overcame Haru.

He tried to do the same thing with the music he made.

It hardly ever got any views or likes, but Haru's intention wasn't to become famous, he just wanted to share for anyone who would listen.

Ayako looked at him with those bright eyes again, and Haru took a heart kick.

"I'm sure you could..."

Something clicked in Haru's mind.

While he was looking at Ayako, he finally realized what seemed so familiar about her.

"What's wrong? You suddenly stopped."

"I was just thinking...why are you here? In this hospital? Do you have any relatives or friends hospitalized?"

Ayako's bright smile suddenly faded into a soft, sad smile.

"Oh, so did you notice?"

She motioned for her phone back, so Haru handed it back.

She just looked at the music as she talked.

"I have cancer. It's not too bad yet, but..."

She trailed off as her last bit of happiness faded with her words.

Haru felt another kick to the heart, but this wasn't the same as before.

"I got into making music soon after I was told. All I did before was sit in a hospital bed. But one day, while I was getting a check-up, one of the nurses asked if I wanted to listen to music. I said yes, wanting anything to take my mind off what my life was now."

Haru understood, he understood it better than anyone.

"She played lofi, and I was immediately entranced. It took me to another world. I just closed my eyes and imagined myself walking in Tokyo, or New York as the bright lights shine on me, with the rain beating against the sidewalk.

After the check-up was over, she let me keep the headphones she gave me. I've been trying to make my own music ever since."

She smiled again, but the brightness she once had, still wasn't back.

Haru wanted to say something, maybe tell his own story, but he wasn't ready for that yet.

"My family doesn't have much money, but I make due on my phone. My mom pays for the software, and she visits every so often. My dad..."

"I-is he okay?"

Haru blurted the question out, but Ayako didn't seem to mind.

"He left. I don't know where he went, but it was soon after I was hospitalized. My mom still doesn't mention him at all. He only visited me once. He promised to be by my side, and he promised that when I got out healthy, he would buy me roses."

"Roses?"

Haru didn't know much about flowers, but he at least knew what roses were.

"They're my favorite flower. I can't explain why, but that's the name of the song I made.

Roses."

Ayako still didn't look at Haru, she still kept her eyes on the phone

Haru felt angry, sad, and at the same time, connected to everything Ayako was saying.

No words came to his mind though.

He thought he should console her, or say anything to redeem himself.

Ayako was happy before he came along and made her lose her brightness, forcibly making her dig up memories.

He felt awful once again.

Before Haru came up with anything, Ayako began to walk away.

"Bye, thanks for helping me with the music."

"Wait!"

Haru couldn't let her leave like this. There was no way he could let this girl leave with that expression on her face, the one he caused.

Ayako turned around, surprised at Haur suddenly stopping her.

"What's your name?"

"Ayako. Ayako Hatano."

Haru mustered up all his courage.

"Listen, Ayako, my family doesn't have much money either, paying my hospital bills and everything, so I might not be able to buy something big but..."

"But?"

With one last push, Haru balled his fists, and with a red face, tried to cheer her up.

"When I grow up...I-I'll buy you a rose!"

-

The entire hospital went silent, and Haru realized that he just screamed in a place not meant for screaming.

He turned to the nurses and quickly apologized.

"S-sorry."

He then heard laughter from in front of him.

It was Ayako, holding her hand to her mouth, giggling.

"What's so funny?!"

"Nothing, it's just..."

She trailed off as she laughed again.

Haru stood there until she was done.

"Really? A single rose?"

Haru turned red again.

"W-what? Is that not enough for you?!"

"No no, it's fine. That would be more than enough."

Ayako's bright smile returned.

Relief washed over Haru.

She looked him right in the eyes.

"Sure! Please buy me a rose!"

—

Chapter 1: As the boy starts to feel like he's lost his place in the world, he meets a girl that shines brighter than any light he's ever seen.

He decides to make a promise to her.

A promise filled with roses.