Heavy Metal Love

When the next schoolday arrived, I didn’t see Haruko Saiki at all. I didn’t know what was going on. I thought that we had finally won her mother over. Was I wrong? Did our actions actually backfired on us and Saiki had been transferred to another school? I know that this might be going too far, but it’s not exactly an impossible thing to consider.

I was seriously about to return back to my depressing ways when, that afternoon, Saiki walked into the classroom. Apparently, her car broke down and she was waiting for it to get fixed. Seeing her here made me happy. I’m glad that the plan didn’t backfire and made things worse between us.

I was also glad to learn that Saiki wasn’t ignoring me anymore. Now, she had returned to her normal self and we talked to each other during breaks and even had lunch together just like old times! This was the best! I mean—ahem—I was happy that things had returned to normal.

Well, maybe not entirely normal. After that concert, I became quite famous amongst my classmates for my guitar skills. Some had even compared me to shred’emall_\m/! (But you guys get the irony of that, right?) More people had started talking to me and wanting to get to know me. Now, I wasn’t really a fan of all of this attention, but I got to admit, it did feel a little nice to actually be noticed once in a while. But I still didn’t like being the center of attention.

After school today, I walked with Saiki to the front gate. A black car pulled up and Haruto Ichiko got out. She walked up to the gate and saw Saiki and I holding hands. We both stopped in place and let go of each other. She gestured for Saiki to get into the car and her daughter obeyed. Now, it was just me and her. Haruto Ichiko walked up to me and I could feel my heart racing. I didn’t know what she was going to do to me….

“Shiomi Yoshiki,” she said.

“Y-Yes!” I squeaked back.

“Are you dating my daughter?” she asked me. What surprised me though was how gentle and graceful her tone was compared to how she would speak to me before.

I gulped and said, “Y-Yes.”

“I see,” she said with a nod of her head. “You are Shiomi Shu’s nephew, are you not?”

“I am.”

“Your uncle told me a lot about you,” she told me. “You are very hardworking and honorable and you always put others before yourself. You are loyal to your friends and you will go to great heights to help them. But you are also sensitive and empathetic. He told me how you planned to break Saiki out our family estate for her own sake. He told me how you refused to give up even though I have separated you from her. He told me that your passion for music is unrivaled and is as big as the love that you have for my daughter.”

As I listened to her say these words, I could only blush. What the hell was my uncle thinking when he told her all of this stuff?!

Haruto Ichiko sighed and said, “I want to apologize.”

“Apologize?” I asked.

“I want to apologize to you for being very critical and judgmental of your character and your music without reason. That was very rude and childish of me.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Haruto Ichiko is apologizing to me?! As much as I wanted to believe that this was all a surreal dream, hearing her words come out of her mouth reinforced that this was very much reality.

“Y-You’re fine,” I told her. “I apologize for being rude, too. And for trying to undermine your authority as Haruto’s mother.”

Haruto Ichiko simply nodded and I saw her cheeks grow red. “A-Anyway,” she said, clearing her throat, “I must get going.”

“Oh! Of course!”

She turned around and was about to take her leave. But before she took one step forward, she said the following words: “Take good care of Saiki.” They were spoken as clear as day and it floored me. Have I finally won Haruto Ichiko’s respect? Yes! Yes, I did!

The next day, our group, which was now all back together, was having lunch on the roof. As we ate our lunch, we talked about a myriad of things: school, the festival, music—the usual stuff. As we were talking about music, Ikki suddenly asked Saiki, “So, are you going to accept the offer?”

“Offer?” she asked.

“You know, to replace Shiny Killer in Humdinger,” he told her.

Saiki looked at me and I responded with a shrug of my shoulders. “I…I don’t know yet,” she replied honestly.

“Why don’t you do it?” Ikki told her. “I mean, it sounds like she’s already chosen you anyway.”

“But….”

I knew what she wanted to say: she already has Nijigami. But only I know that she’s Eva Nascent of Nijigami, no one else. She couldn’t very well expose her own secret for the purpose of protesting against an offer.

“It’ll be great!” urged Ikki. “You’ll be playing with the leading figures of Japan’s rock and metal scene!”

“That does sound tempting,” admitted Saiki.

“Think about it as an upgrade,” he told her. “You’ll gain professional experience and it’ll prepare you for life in the music industry!”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but he’s actually speaking some truth,” concurred Fumi. “If you want to do music, this could be a chance for you to get in with the big dogs. People rarely get chances like this to already become a member of a band that has already achieved superstardom.”

“And they're still in their prime,” added Ikki.

I looked at Saiki and said, “This is your decision. Whatever you choose, we’ll support you all the way.”

“You’re right,” she said with a smile.

“Alright, alright, enough about this,” said Ai. “For some more pertinent news, my band is giving another concert at KABANG! to celebrate the release of an album!”

“An album?” I asked in surprise.

“Since when did you release an album?” asked Ikki.

“Oh, just last week before the festival,” said Ai. “My band and I contact each other regularly through ChatTime and that was how we recorded this album.”

“That sounds really cool!” said Saiki.

“Thank you,” replied Ai smugly. “Anyway, you guys are all invited to come. It’s this Saturday.”

We all looked at each other and it was agreed that we would attend this show.

Saturday came and I walked to KABANG! with Saiki, Ikki, Fumi, and Taka. We made it inside and we saw Ai’s band, Aneme Jam, setting up on stage. The band members were all dressed in anime cosplay and their instruments had cute designs, as befitting their band name. Soon, it wasn’t long before the venue got filled for the night.

From what I learned about the band, Aneme Jam plays anison and post-grunge with a heavy metal edge. Each of the members have stage names and costumes based on popular anime series. They included: Love Nitta (lead vocals/bass), Medusa Box (lead guitar), Miyagi Days (keyboards), Initial G (rhythm guitar), and Suki Dance (drums). They have gained a large following ever since their early days and have continued to grow in popularity.

Finally, it was time for the band to play. Love Nitta (Ai) addressed the audience and introduced their first song: “Magical Girl”. Despite the rather geeky name, the song was a banger. The guitar riffs were angular but catchy, the bass kept a very steady pulse, the drums were precise and in the pocket, and the keyboards were melodic and kept the song interesting. When Ai’s voice came on, it was very cute and poppy, but it also had a grungy quality to its lower range that gave her a nice growl and just enhances the rock elements of the song.

They played a total of six songs and the crowd loved them. I was very impressed with them and I really liked a lot of their songs. Don’t tell Ai, but I’m really considering buying their debut album right now.

As we were talking to each other while the people were exiting the venue, I heard a familiar voice approach us. “Ah, it’s you guys!” We turned and Saiki and I immediately exchanged surprised glances. Takasaki Kira, dressed in her normal clothes and free of the black and white makeup of her rock star alter ego, walked up to us with her hand held up in a wave.

“Do you guys know her?” Ikki asked us.

“She’s a friend of Ryuki’s,” I quickly told him.

Saiki and I looked at each other and it seemed that we had the same idea. We both got up, excused ourselves from our friends, and walked up to meet Takasaki Kira halfway. The three of us then sat down at a table on the opposite side of the room.

“I don’t mean to be rude when I say this, but why are you here?” I asked her.

“I was in the area and thought that I should come check out a show,” she told us. “Anyway, have you thought about the offer, Saiki?”

Saiki remained quiet. I could tell that she was still on the fence about it. “Actually—,” I began to say.

“I’ll take it,” announced Saiki.

“You will?” I asked her in surprise.

“Hooray!” cheered Kira.

“But only on one condition,” said Saiki.

“Okay, what is it?” asked Kira.

Saiki pointed a finger at me and said, “I’ll join Humdinger if Shiomi can join too.”

“H-Huh?!” I exclaimed out loud. “Haruto, are you out of your mind?!”

“Are you a guitar player?” Kira asked me.

“He’s the guitarist on my solo album,” answered Saiki before I could even say anything.

“Oh, I listened to your album. It was really great!” praised Kira. She cleared her throat and then said, “You know something? The band is also looking for a new lead guitarist.”

“They are?” asked Saiki and I in unison.

“The lead guitarist right now, he’s my future husband,” Kira revealed with a huge smile. “After we’re getting married, he’s going to become a music producer. So while we were looking for replacement singers, we were also looking for a new lead guitarist.” She looked at Saiki and held out her hand. “You got yourself a deal.”

I couldn’t believe it. Saiki and I are now the new members of Humdinger. We just became part of the leading figure in the Japanese rock and metal scene. We just joined the big leagues! This was literally a dream come true. If you would’ve told me years ago that I would one day join one of the biggest bands in the world, I would've laughed in your face. But now…now, it’s a reality. And what’s more, it’s a reality I’m sharing with Haruto Saiki.

Is this a dream? I asked myself this as the voices kept on growing louder and louder. My hands won’t stop shaking and the pick anxiously slipped in between my fingers as my sweat made it slippery. Was this all real? Are the voices chanting out my name for real? The thunderous roar of feet stomping on the ground and the consistent machine-like handclaps, were they all really for me? I looked at my hands and stopped them from shaking. ‘This is not a dream,’ I told myself.

A voice called out from a few paces in front of me. I looked up and saw the face of the person who had helped make this all possible. It was because of this one person that I could stand up here on this stage right now before a crowd of thousands. She smiled and winked at me and held up a thumbs-up. I smiled back and nodded my head. And then, the drummer started the count off and the song began….And in case you’re wondering, no, this is definitely not a dream.

Haruto Saiki looked at me and mouthed the following words: “Thank you, Miomi.”

“It’s Shiomi,” I mouthed back with a smile.

“I know,” she replied. “I love you.”