"Alright, I am going focus on you two individually," Kaien stated with a tone of finality.
Not far from him, Mei sat in a corner of the room, legs crossed. She was on her phone, not concentrating on them at all. He expected nothing more from her. They were strangers at best, and the relationship between them was that of respect. She just so happened to have her residents die, leaving their six-year-old child behind. She didn't have the heart to throw him out, and so she turned a blind eye to his stay.
Sometimes she had her eye on him, watching him leave and enter the apartment through the camera. He was dull for a child. That's not normal even if the absence of parents was considered. Something about the way he spoke, how he stood, even how he moved—his entire being screamed maturity. That is rare at a young age.
So here she was, about to see a kid teach his peers how to play music.
'Well, pigs might as well fly.'
Kaien, unaware of the landlady's musings, went through every drum piece available.
"We're gonna start with a basic set. Listen well, 'kay?"
Naruto nodded, his face growing stern. He gripped tightly on his drumsticks. A flare lit up in his eyes. He was serious about learning something today.
Kaien approached the drums before he stood beside Naruto, pointing at his right foot.
"That's your kick, and I want you to step on that pedal at a snap of my fingers."
The blonde boy nodded, and not so long after, he followed the simple rhythm orchestrated by his mentor. At first, it was a little difficult to catch up to the mock beat due to his inexperience. He slowly got used to it, and he grew bored.
"Now, we will add a new element to the beat. It's called a snare, and it's simple to integrate. Just follow the motion of my finger. The rhythm of your kicks should NOT change."
And so began the chaotic beating of drums.
"Yeah, let's stop here," Kaien said after fifteen minutes of trial and error. Naruto wasn't getting it right at all, and this left him rubbing the bridge of his nose. A sharp exhale escaped his lips, before words followed as well.
"What went wrong?"
"I don't know. At least I was getting there," he defended.
"And do you think that's sufficient for you? Are you satisfied?" he pressed on again, with the same monotonous tone he maintained throughout the entire conversation.
Hearing that, the blonde went into deep thought. His head tilted downward slightly, and what crept into his mind were the answers he wanted to share.
"And your answer better not be an excuse," Kaien threw in.
Naruto's parted lips shut tight that instant. Every single thing he wanted to say, he swallowed. Now he really had to come up with a feasible answer. Impulsive he may be, but even he had to think for a second.
"Aren't we helping you here?"
After a quick pause, a calm reply followed.
"Maybe, but I never said I needed help."
'Huh?!'
Blue eyes landed on Kaien's figure, intently staring at him. His hands clenched into fists, and then his frustration soared.
"Why are we playing then!?"
"I remember asking if you would like to learn an instrument. Now I am asking this: why do you wanna learn in the first place?"
Blue eyes bulged wide. The revelation and looming question were perhaps unexpected. The weight of those words seemed to topple over Naruto, as he struggled to even process them. Only the sound of faint breathing was present—yet too indiscernible to pick up from a distance.
The slow tapping of shoes was enhanced, but it was only background noise to Naruto. Only the dilemma he was in currently held his focus.
'Why did I wanna play drums in the first place?'
Kaien patted him on the shoulder, but he never even took a glance.
"You have till the end of the day to find a satisfactory answer."
Naruto sat on the pavement right outside the garage. His eyes fell on the fluffy clouds in the sky, drifting away lazily to who knows where. The clouds were heading south from his position. They kept moving forward, without wavering or changing direction.
It was the direct opposite of what he was doing right now. He was stuck, delayed by the uncertainty of his choice. A cloud of doubt diluted his vision. What he thought was clear before now seemed elusive.
'Why do I want to play drums so much?' he asked himself yet again.
Was it because of the feeling of gratitude? While that could have been it, that never crossed his mind at the time. Was it hope that it would perhaps deepen their friendship? Or something else he can't think of right now.
Regardless, there was only one conclusion to his thoughts. None of it was really related to Kaien in general. He pictured himself playing drums, thinking that maybe he would be able to have something on par with Kaien's. Talent or fame. It was debatable—but perhaps he wanted both.
And then his thoughts came to a halt. His mind—which was swarmed with endless questions and filled with emotion—became increasingly silent. His new obsession with music had now become justified. He wanted recognition, and music was one way to do that.
A brilliant but goofy grin touched the blonde's lips. Looking at the sky again, he found that the clouds were still moving. The wind blew gently as the grass danced along. The sun was still high in the sky, but tilted towards the west.
Now there was one last question that popped up. Is music the only way he could be recognized?
'Surely there are other ways I can gain recognition. This is just a fun way to do that along with many others.'
With that final thought, he pushed himself off the ground and took a walk around the house. He wanted to humour some of the ideas he had, because he was basically forced to have such a chance.
Dark blue eyes trailed the figure of a young boy with silver hair, slowly drawn near. They stared directly at the blank, grey eyes that reflected little light. His eyes never stared directly at a person's face.
That was the most confusing part about him. He would usually stare at a person's whole body, but faces are something he hardly keeps track of. His head would be held naturally, but his eyes were never directed where they should be.
"My eyes are up here," Mei simply stated, her expression as empty as her tone.
"I would rather keep the windows closed," he replied, with more emptiness to his tone.
She sighed heavily at that. There was no getting around that. Any more pressure and the boy may just resent her. There were more important things to deal with right now.
"Why were you so harsh with the blonde boy earlier?"
"Why do you think so?" Kaien looked straight to her face this time, then back to their original position.
"Because, you may actually hurt his ego. He was just trying to help out." She folded her arms as she said so.
Hearing her say that, he gazed at her eyes. His pupils were more defined and his hand slipped inside his pockets. The fire within them caught his target off guard.
"His ego and mindset must be broken. He must rebuild those however he likes, my opinion aside."
Mei widened her eyes, her lips parting gently at his words. His grey eyes came into her view, more alive than ever before. His stance was rigid, his head held high. His piercing gaze penetrated her eyes, her very being.
It wasn't anything intimidating, but the calm and defiant glint in his eyes was something new. Nothing she had seen in the past three years since he lost his parents.
'I thought his grief overwhelmed him.'
"Are you happy with your current life?" he asked her gently. Even if he was stoic, he was more of a person than an inanimate puppet. Even the tone of his voice was more vibrant.
Mei had to also ponder on her recent life choices. She had no problems with her life, but it all seemed so mundane. All she had to do was run a lavish hotel all day with nothing else to do. Sure, she was now wealthy, and the fact that she eats whatever is also true.
And yet somehow, her life is still unfulfilled. It's missing something she needed. A reason to keep going. To keep living.
She envied his parents, because they had each other. No, she envied everyone in the hotel. They were blessed with happiness while hers was fleeting. No one wanted to get her hand in marriage, so she was technically alone. Since yesterday, however, she felt content just watching the kids play around.
These moments are what separate her daily life from this one. It's even her goal to get through to Kaien. To leave a lasting, positive impression on his rather bleak existence.
'He doesn't have to end up like me.'
When she finally snapped out of her reverie, she noticed a few things. There was no one in the room—only her. There was a yellow sticky note on the grey tiles, and on it was a message. What caught her attention was the smiling emoji drawn by hand.
She read it out loud.
"Are you truly satisfied?"
She let out a sigh, chuckling a bit at the blatant challenge of her ideals. She was confident in her own evaluation. No matter how many times he tried to bring up these thought-provoking questions, she found her answer.
'Yes, I am satisfied with everything.'