Sayonara Piano Sonata Vol 4 Chapter 8

Before my eyes stood a large gate with spikes, several conifers, and tall metal railings that stretched to the sides. A large and elegant mansion, surrounded by a courtyard full of flowerbeds, stood deep inside the gated area.

I checked the time on my handphone. Four in the afternoon. Exactly our agreed time.

The last time I had visited the Ebisawa household was in the middle of summer. And the courtyard back then looked vastly different from what it looked like now. "I guess the flowers aren't around since it's December"—I thought to myself, as I stared at the lonely grassland. The two sharp dobermans lying down on the turf suddenly sat up, and came dashing in my direction just as I was about to reach for the intercom on the pillar. I retreated in fear.

The two dogs lay down on the other side of the gate and stared at me intently. They didn't bark or flash their teeth. Do they actually remember me?

I timidly walked forward with that thought in mind, but they stood up again.

"U-Urm, I'm not a strange person." For some reason, I began explaining myself to the dogs. "I'm just here to celebrate her birthday. Honest."

The dog on the right cocked its head suspiciously—do they somehow understand what I'm saying? It looked like the dog on the left was observing me. Do I really look that suspicious? It was an incredibly grand mansion; and I heard that Mafuyu typically dressed like a real lady at home, so I came in my suit to match myself to her. I took two steps towards the gate and squat down before the dogs as they continued to watch me.

"Do I look weird in this?"

"Your clothes, no. But your actions, yes."

"Whoa!"

I sprang up in response to the sudden voice beside me.

Standing next to me was a lady in a fitting light-beige pantsuit. She had come through the side door without me realizing. I hadn't even heard the sound of her footsteps.

Short hair, crisp facial contours, and an icy gaze. The cute pair of dolphin earrings on her ears felt out of place, and did nothing to tone down her sharpness. She was Matsumura Hitomi, the butler of the Ebisawa family that oversaw everything.

"Artur and Fricsay are pretty smart. They can distinguish the different attires worn by you and me," said Miss Matsumura, as she looked at the two dogs. "But sadly, they cannot comprehend human speech. It is pointless to seek their opinions."

"Ah, no, it's nothing......" Someone saw that. She saw me. That was really embarrassing. "S-Sorry, I didn't know you would be receiving me."

"No, I came out because I saw a suspicious person at the side of the gate."

She was as straightforward as ever.

"Ah, urm, it's been a while."

I couldn't think of anything to say, so I stood up, dusted my knees and bowed. "Pardon me," said Miss Matsumura, as she walked swiftly towards me, stretching her arms out towards the collar of my coat. She adjusted my tie as I stood there flustered.

"Welcome. My mistress has been waiting for you."

Miss Matsumura opened the side door and walked into the courtyard while I was still rooted to the ground. She then patted the two dobermans on the head and said a few brief words, and the dogs obediently moved to the side of the flowerbed. After that, she finally granted me entry into the courtyard. That sequence of events seemed really abrupt. How very horrifying.

"Mistress is still in an exhausted state. She practiced the piano for a long time right after returning home from the audition yesterday,"

Said Miss Matsumura, who was walking three steps ahead of me. That statement made me flinch. I continued walking as I fixed my gaze on my palms.

The audition yesterday. The burning sensation of the bass was still stuck to my hands, and was enough to make my body tremble. The metallic smell of the microphones, and the damp atmosphere that had been created by our breaths, still lingered around me. We had separated after giving it our all in that short period of time—yet, she continued practicing the piano even after reaching home?

"I hope Mr. Hikawa will offer your assistance in getting her to rest—"

"Naomi!"

A clear voice, one that sounded like the melting of the morning snow of winter, came towards me. I lifted my head.

It was a dazzling sight, be it the warm, golden hair or the pure white dress. Even her sapphire-blue eyes were sparkling. Mafuyu's body was bathed in light as she came flying towards me.

But she stopped in her tracks when she noticed my unreserved gaze.

"...... What is wrong?"

She tilted her head and looked at herself shyly.

"Eh, ah, no......"

I couldn't possibly tell her I had been bewitched by her looks.

"...... I don't get to see you in this type of attire that often."

I hastily said those untruthful words. I had already seen Mafuyu in such elegant attire several times—on CD covers, in magazines and on TV. It was nothing new.

"Naomi is the one that is not in your typical attire."

Mafuyu tilted her head and took a good look at me from head to toe.

"It does not really suit you."

That was a huge blow. I almost slumped down onto the grass.

"Ah, s-sorry. Urm, you look much better than you did the time you attended Papa's concert."

"Mistress, you are not making it any better by saying that."

Miss Matsumura's words dealt the depressed me the critical blow.

"Mistress, it would be better if you were more careful with your words."

You're in no position to say that!

Stepping into the Ebisawa mansion for the very first time, I noticed that the interior design of the house wasn't as impressive as the outside of the house had suggested. I had expected the house to be covered with woolen carpets, fur as deep as the ankles, chandeliers larger than a table, or Victorian vases big enough for a child to hide inside. But the corridors and stairs were a huge letdown compared to what I had imagined in my mind. It felt like I was in a brand new art museum—a vast whiteness filled my eyes, and made me more and more restless. Additionally, the temperature indoors was almost as cold as the temperature outside.

Finally, I was led to a room that was about twice the size of a classroom, and filled with curtains and woolen carpets in warm colors. To my left was a grand piano with its lid raised, and on the walls was a classy sound system that would make even Tetsurou envious. The heater in the room had already been switched on, so I could finally remove my coat.

"...... Is this a music salon? Does your family frequently hold family concerts?"

"No, this is my practice room."

I almost dropped the present in my hands. That room alone was almost as big as my house.

While I was looking around the room in a fluster, Miss Matsumura swiftly took my coat from my hands and hung it on the wall. She then led me to a chair and motioned for me to sit. Next to the small, single-legged round desk was a stylish cream-colored tea table.

After Miss Matsumura left the room, Mafuyu sat down in the chair diagonally in front of me and said softly,

"...... Thank you...... for coming over today......"

"M-Mmm."

I wanted to say something cool, but I couldn't think of anything to say despite having contemplated my words for a solid five seconds with my fingers crossed.

It can't be helped. I brought up an uninteresting topic: yesterday's event.

"Were you okay yesterday? You couldn't even stand properly after the audition."

The audition was held at the scheduled venue, a club house; but unlike Bright, there was no smell of sweat. It was an avant-garde place, and was so spacious that my legs were wobbling slightly just from standing on the stage. The other bands leaned more towards disco-style music; and there were even dance groups auditioning as well. Naturally, we were one of the youngest groups there. As we were scheduled to hit the stage last, we had to listen to the high quality performances of the other groups as we trembled behind the stage.

Senpai, however, was completely unfazed. "We'll score a landslide victory if they factor in looks as well," said Senpai. How very confident of her. But when I saw how exhausted Mafuyu was at the end of our performance, my worry about whether we had passed the audition or not was thrown out the window.

"Urm, is the solo for <happy> too long? Mafuyu was playing by yourself for a full minute, and it looked like you were breathless at the end of that......"</happy>

Mafuyu took a deep breath and shook her head immediately.

"...... I will work hard to last through the whole song."

No, please don't. A chill went down my spine as I recalled what Furukawa had said—the thing about the burden on her wrist, and how it was inconceivable for her to last through the whole performance.

"And I heard you practiced the piano after you returned home? Miss Matsumura—"

"That's because!" Mafuyu raised her voice to prevent me from saying anything further. "...... Because you were coming today. I would not skip my practice just because I was tired from the audition."

Me? What did she mean when she said it was because I was coming?

"Whatever! It is my birthday today, so stop talking about things like that!"

"Ah, s-sorry."

Right. Celebrating her birthday alone by ourselves is a rare occasion, so I'll have to get back on topic.

"Urm, congratulations...... How old are you?"

"Sixteen, of course."

Right. What sort of idiotic question am I asking her? Mafuyu quickly continued on, perhaps because she noticed how depressed I was.

"When is Naomi's birthday?"

"Fourth of April." I couldn't recall ever celebrating it together with anyone. In fact, there were even times I had forgotten my own birthday. After all, it did take place during the spring holidays.

"No one celebrates it together with you?"

"Hmm. Maybe when I was still little. My parents might've bought me a cake or something. But they split up before I was in elementary school."

"Ah...... s-sorry."

Mafuyu covered her mouth, and her expression became sullen. I quickly shook my hands.

"It's nothing, I don't mind. That's the way Tetsurou is anyway—it's like a joke to me now."

"Let's also celebrate Naomi's birthday together then."

"What are we celebrating here? A birthday that's eight months late......?" I laughed. Then again, I said something similar to Chiaki as well, and was scolded by her for that.

"...... We will celebrate Naomi being the same age as I am. Naomi was already sixteen when we first met, right?"

I shut my mouth and looked at Mafuyu's face.

The day we first met. Does she remember even the date? The spring holidays marked our beginning. And at the junkyard hidden between the mountains next to the sea, where time ground to a halt, Ravel's piano concerto had brought us together. And here we are now, with time flying by.

Our hearts were stirred up by the memories. As we lowered our heads shyly after briefly exchanging a glance, we were suddenly interrupted by knocks on the door.

"I am here with some snacks and tea."

It was Miss Matsumura. She pushed a tall, sculptured, two-level metal trolley into the room, and on the trolley, was a long teapot, a basket full of freshly baked madeleines and an overflowing amount of soufflés.

"Wow...... smells great."

"The slightly deformed madeleines on this side were made by Mistress."

"Hitomi!"

Mafuyu stood up with a teary expression on her face and quickly turned towards me with her face flushed red.

"I-it is because I have never once stepped into the kitchen!"

Yeah, since she's a professional pianist, it'd be troublesome if anything happened to her fingers.

"I could not stand to watch on any longer, so I made the remaining half of the madeleines and all the soufflés."

"Geez! Just go away, Hitomi! I will brew the tea!"

A blushing Mafuyu stood up and chased Miss Matsumura out of the room.

"Well then, I will be in the office on the first floor. Please scream if anything should happen. Mr. Hikawa is a man after all."

"Whatever! Get out now!"

The two of us were alone again. "Well, urm......" Mafuyu began serving me tea despite how flustered she was. I was incredibly nervous as well. In the basket were what was said to be a few madeleines made by Mafuyu. Indeed. Four out of eight of the madeleines had a rather peculiar shape to them.

"Urm, w-well, uhh, but......"

Mafuyu shook her hands in panic when she saw me grabbing one of the cakes she made.

"You do not have to deliberately choose that! Urm, I do wish for you to try it, but!"

"Don't worry, it's delicious. Really delicious."

Here I was, drinking afternoon tea with a dressed-up Mafuyu, in a rather out-of-this-world room (that was her's to boot)—how could anyone possibly remain calm in that situation? But having suffered that preemptive embarrassment earlier, I somehow managed to do just that. Moreover, I wasn't lying when I said the madeleines were delicious.

"I'm hopeless when it comes to desserts. And no one would eat them anyway, since Tetsurou's boozing all day."

"That is the only thing I know how to do. Hitomi just taught me today."

"The kitchen should be a mess......"

"It is not!"

No, sorry, I was just joking, really! Don't cry!

"You are really good at cooking, so you would never understand the feelings of those that are horrible at it."

Mumbled Mafuyu, as she took a huge bite of the soufflé. What does she mean by that?

"You want to learn how to cook? But nothing good would come of that, you know? All you would get is people ordering you around."

Mafuyu lifted her eyes to look at me. She nodded.

"...... Because Kyouko cannot cook."

"—Eh?"

My heart skipped a beat. Kagurazaka-senpai? Why did she bring her up?

"She can do just about everything, but she cannot cook. There is nothing else I can beat her at."

That means...... Wait, what does she mean by that? Beat her?

"Kyouko......" Mafuyu's face was burning red, and her voice rose all of a sudden. She whimpered and continued, "S-she should not be able to make desserts for you."

Eh? Ah, no, hold on. Mafuyu was staring at me with a serious look in her eyes. I swallowed the words that were at the edge of my mouth. Does Mafuyu know about that? About the things Kagurazaka-senpai had said to me.

If that's the case, I'll have to express myself properly to Mafuyu right now. With Mafuyu around, my feelings for Senpai—no wait, Mafuyu hasn't asked me anything about that yet, so it'd be weird if I just suddenly brought it up.

My brain was about to melt. And the question that came out of my mouth at a time like that, was something so incredibly natural and obvious, it sounded silly.

"...... But Mafuyu still has the piano, no?"

Mafuyu's eyes opened wide. She then directed her gaze at the teacups.

"But, if it is only the piano......"

"As long as I can listen to you play the piano. Ah, no, the madeleines are great too. Mmm."

Mafuyu glared at me as she pouted her lips, causing me to swallow the rest of my words down my throat along with some tea.

Did I say something to upset her? As I was stuffing my fifth madeleine into my mouth while still in a clueless state, Mafuyu stood up all of a sudden.

She wiped her hands carefully with a wet towel, then turned towards me.

"This is my birthday present for you."

"Eh?"

"I will give it to you right now."

I froze on the spot, still holding the half-eaten madeleine in my hand; it looked as though I was posing for a CD cover. Mafuyu's white figure floated away from me. Her pure-white dress, as well as her long maroon hair, could be seen behind the gloomy piano that had its black wings spread out wide. It felt like time would stop forever. Mafuyu's sapphire-blue eyes were fixated on me.

"....... Because we had run out of time back then."

It felt like Mafuyu's voice had woken me up from a long dream.

"I will play anything Naomi wants to hear."

I didn't even notice the madeleine dropping into my teacup.

Mafuyu was about to play the piano for me. For me—and only me.

A present that she couldn't give me if I didn't come to her house—was she referring to this?

Crap. I was clueless about my situation. What expression do I have on my face? Am I about to stand up? Am I wearing a weird smile? A strange, warm sensation came gushing up from beneath my abdomen, making me feel uneasy. Calm down. I tried my hardest to force myself back into my chair.

"And the first piece will be?"

"U-Urm......."

My voice shrunk back inside me, so I cleared my throat. What should I do? Is any piece fine? Really? Then I should choose something she hasn't released in an album. If only an orchestra were here, then I could get her to play all of the Brandenburg concertos. Or perhaps I should have her play Mozart's