Prologue

All were in awe as they watched the brimming talent perform on a stage fit for a noble. The notes would not scatter around, but dance gracefully around the auditorium. Each key she played resonated with the audience. And she kept her composure throughout the whole performance. One could only expect great things from her, no doubt. But I could hear from her playing that this was not what she was meant to be. As grand as the stage might be, a sparrow cannot roam around all her life.

And that's what I saw within the scarlet-haired pianist.

A few days after her performance, I was left in a slump. Since listening to her performance, I could no longer play the piano as gracefully as before. My hands would always shiver, bearing the thought that I would never be as good as the girl on that stage. So much so that it had affected my attention span in class.

"Saginomiya-san!" the teacher scolded as he hit my desk with his textbook.

"Y-yes!"

With a disgusted face, he asked, "Since you look like you've been paying attention, how about you continue the rest of the paragraph."

I could hear my classmates laughing ever so quietly. But I guess it was my fault for losing focus. I grabbed my textbook, but had no idea where the story left off. The teacher took notice and gave me a headstart by giving out the first two characters.

"Beneath the…"

"Beneath the earth where all is black as night, the drenching rain seeps down, and frost descends to chill…"

We were reading the Three-cornered world by Natsume Soseki. The amount of detail he places on his works almost made it feel like I was reading a painting. In fact, it was quite similar with how I saw images in music.

As I completed the task, the teacher asked me to take a seat and continued his lecture.

"From this line, we can see how…"

At that point, I once again spaced out. I couldn't focus on the lecture especially when my self-esteem was at an all-time-low. And I pondered over this until the end of class.

Most students would hang out with their friends and chat during break time. But I was too anxious to speak to anyone. What if they laughed at me? What if they ridiculed me? These were my thoughts every time I tried to socialize. And when I entered high school, those thoughts remained.

So I instead went to the music room, where I knew I would be alone. And because the music room was always open, I spent most of my time there. But today's visit was different. Instead of a quiet sanctuary, I heard from not far away, a piano key. It threw me off guard, but it also piqued my interest. I slowly approached the half-opened door and took a peek inside. And there she was. She played the piano ever so gracefully, as if it she owned the piece. There was so much potential in her playing, and one could only fathom how far her musical talent would go.

As the sakura blossom which bloomed in spring colored the entire room pink, I saw nothing else but her scarlet hair. And from a dark, gray space, I awoke into a brighter world...