Sonata 1: 3rd Movement

Ever since I came across music, people always told me that a musician must be loyal to the piece. It is an unwavering rule that we must play the music piece exactly how the composer performed it. But Ethan's performance tells me otherwise. What he played is not Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata: it's his version. It slightly annoyed me, but reality-check-wise, he captured the audience. Even Zie, who was entirely bored a few minutes earlier, had her eyes focused on the mysterious musician.

The notes he played produced rich and colorful sounds, and his fingers seemed to dance along with the melody. In contrast to the entangled tempo and broken rhythm, his version was in synergy with the composer: a tragic love story under the moonlight. His emotions are so solid that his playing produced a vivid image of a man and woman in a mountain, gazing at the midnight sky in my head. It's like he's screaming the words: 'Hear me, this is my story.'

During the second movement of the piece, he seemed to go back to the original tempo but changed it again on the third. It's like a child is throwing a tantrum because people won't listen to his requests. As he ended the song, a deafening silence lingered across the hall for a few seconds, followed by an uproar from the crowd lasting for a few minutes.

Too bad he won't win with that. I think it's not gold that he's after.

His performance left me baffled, but at the same time, amazed. He delivered an unforgettable performance, but that alone won't let him win. And as if Zie heard my thoughts, she ranted on how he performed well, but he'll still lose the entire competition. She even called him a total whacko even before even knowing the person. I don't blame her, though, since he committed a taboo.

You see, musicians are supposed to be loyal to the piece to the point that the judges will not accept even a slight alteration. I bet Mr. Colbert would deem his actions blasphemous. I can even imagine Mr. Colbert's face during his performance. It's a relief, though he just altered the tempo and rhythm. If he even changed some notes, I'm guessing Mr. Colbert will stop his performance after the first bar.

"I can't believe what a whack he is. He's competing for a National Concours, for Pete's sake."

"Calm down, Zie. At least we witnessed something unique." I tried to calm her down, but Zie is Hitler strict when it comes to music. A scratch or even an uncanny performance during a formal Concours is a big no-no to her. I understand her sentiments because my mother raised me that way.

"Don't even dare encourage him, young lady. You also did the same thing. Ugh, I can't believe I have eccentric musicians as cousins." I just sighed in return.

There's no way I can persuade her at this point, I guess.

Lizzie stomped off her feet until we reached the lobby, angry at the uncanny performance. I'm also annoyed, but I sense some purpose on why he would do that. I did a similar thing at the Tsaichovsky Concours.

Maybe he also wanted to reach someone. Someone dear to him but out of his reach.

To calm Lizzie down, I suggested that we eat at an expensive Japanese restaurant, with a scheme that Jed will pay for it. As if on cue, Jed appeared in front of us with a scowling look on his face.

"No fair, I won the preliminaries. Why must I treat you to an expensive diner? And a Japanese one at that." I rolled my eyes in response.

"You lost to Ethan by a few points. He received a much bigger standing ovation than you." Ethan grumbled as he leads us to his car. Zie and I silently high-fived as we successfully tricked Jed into treating us to dinner. I'm glad that she bounced back because I am running out of options to calm her down.

Whenever Zie's at her erupting rage, flowery words are often out of the question. I remember that Jed had to set up her practice room to calm her down. Thankfully for me, though, a date card or an out-of-country trip is all it takes for her to cool off. I still have to use a large sum of money, though.

"By the way, I want to introduce someone to you. Although I believe you already know his name." A few moments later, Ethan showed up with a flower bouquet in his right hand.

Are you kidding me? What's his deal, and he's introducing him to us?

"So, this is the one I want to introduce. Ladies, meet Ethan Lopez, the eccentric pianist just like me. Ethan, meet the tomboy in pants, Lizzie, and the shorty in the skirt, Ella.

And, the childish remarks commence. What a total nutjob!

"Nice to meet you, Ethan." Flashing my prettiest smile, I shook Ethan's hand while my feet kicked Jed in the shin. Jed tried surpassing the pain, but since even Benkei cried when struck at that place, he yelped, massaging his hurt leg. Before he can even recover from my kick, Zie slapped his back.

I can hear Lizzie snickering behind me as I let out a chuckle. We proceeded to the parking lot as Jed and Zie's at their usual banter again. I shook my head sideways as I heave a deep sigh.

Whatever they're arguing about, it's not even worth mentioning. Jed and Zie mostly argue about petty things like what kind of snacks is better with coke, how to cook this dish, what tie to use, and the list goes on.

Sometimes, I feel old whenever I'm with these two. Gosh!

"So, what do you think of my performance?" That question from Ethan caught me off-guard, unsure whether to answer it or not. He's directly looking at me intently. I cleared my throat before giving him a proper answer.

"How do I put this? You weren't expecting someone to give you a bouquet, am I right? Those girls are unsure if they are going to give someone flowers. But after hearing your performance, they went out immediately and but a big bouquet. That shows how good your performance is." Jed let out a chuckle which rendered me speechless.

"Typical Ella, commenting as vague as possible. And Ethan, what you did was a brave act and a job well done. You have my respect." Ethan sheepishly scratched the back of his neck, smiling widely. Zie suddenly chimed in, claiming she's starving.

I guess she's still upset about his performance, seeing that she immediately changed the subject.

We then decided to head to the car with Ethan. We entered the car one by one, with me riding shotgun, Jed on the driver's seat, and Lizzie and Ethan at the back.

We chose to eat at a fancy Japanese restaurant near Miku Street. Upon Lizzie's insistence, we ordered a platter of sushi, wagyu beef, tonkatsu, chicken teriyaki, and sukiyaki which lead to Jed using his precious black card. She even wanted to order shabu-shabu and ramen, but Jed kept on making pleading gestures to Ethan and me, so we stopped her, using my Saturday date card in the process.

She happily ate her meal, seemingly excited for our next escapade this Saturday. Jed seemed to bounce back after eating a portion of wagyu beef. He even exclaimed that he's so thankful we tricked him into spending a lot for our dinner. We just laughed at his remark.

After filling our bellies, we decided to stroll around, taking a small tour around Miku Street. We explored some shops on the alleys, buying a lot of stuff, and ate some local street delicacies along the way. We parted ways at around four o'clock in the afternoon as Jed has a meeting with his team and Lizzie has rehearsals today.

"As much as I want to explore today, I have to recharge my energy for our band rehearsal. And you, baby boy, are coming with me. Ms. Kath has been calling me ever since we left the restaurant."

"But Lizzie, it's fun here. Can we stay for another hour?"

"No can do, Mister. You already teased her earlier. See you later, El." Zie dragged Jed by his ear as both of them disappeared from our sight. Ethan and I waved our hands in return.

No one can handle Jed's childish antics better than Zie. And to keep him from teasing his producer, Ms. Kath has Zie's number in the pretense that Jed suddenly changed phone numbers. As a result, Zie is the first to know if Jed has a meeting or not. It's what he gets for teasing his producer.

"So, you have anywhere you want to go, Ella? It's still early."

"I want to go back to the bookshop we saw earlier. I saw a rare book that I'm looking for there."

"That sounds like a good plan. I also want to go there. I am also in search of a rare book, you see." We immediately head back to Mei Alley, where countless bookshops welcomed us. I smiled widely at the sight of book paradise as we explored the alley, entering each store one by one. Fortunately, Ethan has a car, and we won't have to worry about carrying all our stuff until we reach the end of the alley.

Upon reaching the end of Mei Alley, Ethan and I decided to head home, as both of us are too exhausted to continue.

"I left you two alone to have fun, but you came home surrounded by boxes of books? Is that your way of having fun?" I just raised an eyebrow at him.

"If you're not helping us carry these boxes, can you please let us through the doorway first before saying anything?" Jed just heaved a sigh, shaking his head as we walked away, which rendered me speechless.

Now, what's eating him?

I immediately head to my room, placing what I bought on my bed, heading back to the kitchen to grab some late-night snacks. I ran out of coke and potato chips, so I just grabbed a bag of Cheetos and a can of sprite. As soon as I opened the door, Jed's at his usual spot in my room, holding a can of beer.

Aish, that selfish adult kid must have lashed out on him again. Seriously, these two childish adults are a headache.

"Shouldn't you report what happened in the Concours at the main house? What are you doing here?"

"I did go there. But it turns out I am not welcome at the moment. The door slammed so hard on my face."

"Are we sulking, then?"

"Oh, please. Let that kid be. In the end, the one who'll be sorry won't be me." There was a hint of hatred in his tone, but I'm not quite sure.

I've known Jed for almost a decade, and honestly, he's too unpredictable to the point of being twisted. Given his deep-set brown-hazel eyes, soft jawline, fair complexion, and thin lips, most people would say he's perfect: That is if they don't know how twisted he can get.

"And that's why the Arden always sends you away. Why not try to be nicer?"

"Seriously, El? You're asking for something impossible. The way I treat Arden is the nicest I can get. And besides, she got her favorite guy beside her. So, why be bothered? When I can enjoy a can of beer?" I raised one of my eyebrows, not buying his statement.

He won't tell it directly, but Jed loves Arden more than anyone. The way he takes care of her is proof. Sure, he's cold to her sometimes, but Jed took her more seriously than anyone. Arden feels the same way, but unlike Jed, she's more straightforward about her feelings.

Arden is the youngest President of Aeries Academy of Arts and a great classical composer. Just by looking at her, Arden is the type of girl you won't want to bully. She has deep-set russet brown eyes and thin rosy lips, which highlighted her strong aura. She doesn't filter her words, but on the contrary, she has a heart like gold.

"By the way, Shaye talked to me earlier. She said Lara wanted to talk to you." And that's Jed, all right. He's changing the subject as soon as you say something he doesn't like. I just heaved a sigh.

"What does she want? I won't go to the Aeries compound unless it's something of importance."

"That's the only thing Lara passed on to Shaye. But knowing Lara, it's probable that she'll meet you somewhere else. You know how much she hated being there."

"Okay, before I forgot, can you come with me there this Saturday? I need a carrier. Mother wanted to get all of my stuff there this Saturday."

"You want me to go there after what happened? Not happening. And besides, the next round will be on that day."

"I'll have them sent here then. No point wasting my precious time going there."

"Why not have Ethan accompany you there? His apartment is in the process of renovation, so he's staying here for the meantime." I almost spat my coke at his sudden announcement. Jed roared in laughter as I grabbed a towel from my desk and wiped my mouth. I gave Jed a big smack, which made him stop laughing.

"Ow! Seriously, you're a shorty, but how come your punches are strong?"

"Why the hell is Ethan going to stay here?"

"He asked me to take him in, okay. As a good friend, it's good that I helped, right?"

"So, you're asking me to bring an outsider there? Might as well go alone."

The Aeries Compound is strict when it comes to bringing outsiders. We have to get permission from Lady Vivienne before that outsider can step foot in the compound.

"I can ask Lady Vivienne for permission if you want." I rolled my eyes in return.

That ends our conversation. I'm still wide awake, so I grabbed some more snacks, leaving the sulking kid-slash-adult in my room. I head back immediately and found that the kid has fallen asleep.

Sleep won't be visiting me anytime soon, so I grabbed a book and read until I felt my eyelids start drooping. A few moments later, I was knocking at the dreamland's door.

The next day, I went out with Zie as per our agreement. Fortunately, we have Jed as our driver, and of course, baggage holder. The reason for that, he lost to us at poker a few days ago, but because of our busy schedules, we put the punishment on hold until today. Unfortunately, Ethan has his errands that he won't be able to help Jed today.

"Aren't you girls tired of shopping for three-day straight? Don't blame me if you suddenly run out of money for your living expenses before the school starts."

"Don't worry too much and carry our bags. We still have lots of money to spend. We still have five alleys to explore." Jed grunted in response while both of us laughed.

That's typical of Zie, shop 'til you drop. This time, we're touring around Heizen City. Heizen City is famous for its large shopping bazaars, and the quality of the goods is top-notch. You can have high-end deals for a fair price. What interests me in this city, though, is the delicacies and massive bookstores. I might be taking the same amount of boxes of books I brought home yesterday.

Jed had this scowling look for the whole duration of our shopping spree. And to give him our sincere gratitude, we treated him to a high-class restaurant at lunch. We couldn't spend the rest of the day in the city since Lizzie has rehearsals at 1 pm today for her band concert this Saturday. The three of us went on our separate ways after lunch as Jed received a call from his producer.

"Are you sure you can drive home, El? I can drive you home if you want, then I'll go to the meeting after."

"No can do, big guy. You're going to tease your producer again. El can handle herself. See you later, El." I waved my hand in response as both of them slowly disappeared from my sight.

With nothing more scheduled for the day, I just went home to read. After a few hours of reading books, listening to music, and cleaning my room, I find myself staring blankly at the ceiling of my room. And before boredom can swallow me whole, I grabbed my guitar and went out.

I'll go to my secret base before this boredom beats me to it. Before I could even step out of the door, a familiar silhouette showed up in front of me.

"Hi, El. Long time no see."

"It's been a while since I last saw you, Lara."

One More Day @2020 by Ryann Taaca