Home visit - 1

Chapter 5

Home visit - 1

***

Hirato ,an ex Otaku was a bit nervous around new people, especially around girls he didn't know, and though he didn't show it outright, he was very anxious around the guitarist that Ayaka brought, who knew the time would come where he would bring a girl he didn't even know into his room

{ I'll have to get use to this, some social lessons from Ayaka might be needed later }

He thought to himself as Naru and Ayaka followed him inside his room upstairs, he cleared his throat

"Uh, make yourselves comfortable, my room's a bit messy, though"

Ayaka smiled bitterly

"When is it not??"

They stepped inside, and Naru immediately noticed the state of the room, cables snaking across the floor, an open laptop (it's his dad's) displaying multiple audio tracks, stacks of music sheets scribbled over in red ink, and a whiteboard filled with notes, reminders, and music theory scrawled across it, and on the drawers were anime figurines and the complete Naruto Manga volumes showing that the guy was indeed both an otaku and a music fan

This was the room of someone serious about music and anime

Hirato moved to the center and stretched, still recovering from his practice session

"Alright, let's get straight to it"

"W...wait, hold on,"

Naru interjected, crossing her arms

"Y..Yamashita kun you're just gonna throw me in like that?? No warm-up or anything??"

Hirato blinked

"Well I thought you were a serious guitarist, so I figured you would be busy, are you not?"

"W...well ,I am but if this is a serious project, shouldn't we at least talk about what we're going for?"

Hirato tilted his head slightly, then shrugged

" Fair point, aright then, let's talk"

He sat down on the chair near his desk while Naru and Ayaka took seats on the two zabutons on the floor, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees

"So, you know the song Jam by Michael Jackson, right?"

Naru nodded repeatedly

"Yeah, not that well yesterday since I checked it last night, it's funky, complex, and needs a tight rhythm section to really shine, if you're planning a cover, I assume you've got more people lined up?"

Hirato plainly shook his head

"Nope, just me, and... hopefully, you"

Naru blinked and even Ayaka was visible surprised

"Wait, What?"

Ayaka leaned forward, equally confused

"You're saying you don't have a full band Hirato?? Are you gonna premade track then and add Naru's guitar?"

Hirato smirked

"No ,I don't need a full live band and Hell frekin no, I don't plan on using some one else's premade track"

He spun in his chair and tapped a few keys on his laptop

"I can produce my own tracks you see "

A moment later, all of a sudden the room erupted with the sound of Jam's DJ scratch Intro ,followed by the brand new full track

The Jam cover track erupted from his speakers: sharp, layered, and unbelievably precise, the bass thumped with an infectious groove, the drums hit with precision, and every instrument blended seamlessly to produce an energising, electrifying raw track that was perfectly controlled

"Y-You made this cover track by yourself??"

Naru asked in astonishment, forgetting her anxiety as she suddenly stood up and cornered Hirato, her face just inches from his.

Hirato instinctively leaned back, eyes wide

{W-Woah, what the hell—?! }

" Uhh umm Mi-"

She grabbed his shoulders

"You really MADE this?! By yourself Yamashita Kum?! Since when? How?!"

Ayaka, equally shocked, was about to comment, until she realized Naru was practically pinning Hirato against his chair and when she saw Hirato's face turning red

Ayaka's brow twitched

"Ahem"

Ayaka cleared her throat

Naru didn't respond

"OII! NARU! "

Naru finally blinked and turned her head

"What?"

Ayaka pointed at her

"You're, uh… a little too close"

Naru glanced down at her hands, still gripping Hirato's shoulders, she looked at Hirato, his face flustered, his body stiff as they made eye contact

Realization struck

Her eyes widened, and her face turned bright red

"A.....AAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"

She leaped backward like a startled cat, waving her hands frantically

"I-I-I didn't mean to! I just!...I wasn't thinking! ...I-I'M SORRY!!"

Ayaka sighed, rubbing her temples

"Jeez, Naru, calm down, you're acting like you just confessed or something"

"I DIDN'T!!"

"I know, I was just messing with you"

Ayaka responded with a cold tone which rather unusual for her

And Naru at her friend's sudden cold tone, groaned in embarrassment, flopping onto the zabuton

Meanwhile, Hirato was still recovering, sitting in his chair, trying to process what had just happened.

Ayaka crossed her arms

"But seriously, Hirato, since when the hell were you making full-on studio-quality tracks?! We've known each other since we were kids, and you never once told me about this!"

Hirato scratched the back of his head

"I've only recently been doing it ,I just never had the chance to talk about it with you"

Ayaka pouted, crossing her arms

"Hiding your talents from your childhood friend… You traitor"

Hirato's jaws dropped at the unreasonable girl's remarks

However, secretly, Ayaka was only slightly annoyed at the fact that he had never told her about this, most of the reason for her displeasure was because he looked way too flustered when Naru got all up in his space

{He's never that flustered with me how come he's like that with other girls? Pervert!}

Meanwhile, Naru, still red-faced, shook her head rapidly, trying to clear her thoughts

Hirato, still rubbing the back of his head, let out a sigh, his face finally cooling down

"Alright, alright, I get it, I should've told you guys, but can we get back on track now?"

Naru, still recovering from her embarrassment, sat back from her seat

"You—you can't just drop a bomb like this and expect me to move on so fast Yamashita kun "

Hirato sighed

"Well, if it helps, that was just the instrumental, the mix still needs some tweaks"

Ayaka gave him a deadpan look

" Only the instrumentals , right?"

Naru exhaled and shook her head

"Even if it was only the instrumental… you don't just casually produce a whole studio-quality track alone, t...that was professional-level work Yamashita Kun"

Hirato blinked in astonishment at her praise, slowly turning back to his laptop ,the excitement in Naru and Ayaka's voices made him hesitate

{Was it really that good?}

He thought, he didn't doubt his skills; he had been working on music production for over a month with his entire dedication , refining his arrangements and learning from the best through endless study and trial and error, but professional-level work? That felt like an exaggeration

To him, the track still had plenty of imperfections, the bassline could have been tighter, the drum samples felt a little off in the transitions, and he wasn't completely satisfied with how the mix sat together, he had spent hours analyzing how Quincy Jones and Teddy Riley layered their sounds in the original after he learned the basics, trying to replicate that same depth, but no matter what, he always felt like he fell short

Ayaka nudged his arm, snapping him out of his thoughts

"Oi, why do you look like someone just insulted your life's work? You do realize what you made was insanely good, right?"

Hirato scratched his cheek, his expression unreadable but focused

"I mean… yeah, I worked hard on it, but I wouldn't say it's that good, there are still a lot of things I need to fix, the drum compression needs work, and—"

Naru groaned and dramatically flopped onto the zabuton

"Y..Yamashita kun you're one of those guys, aren't you?"

Hirato blinked

"...What do you mean?"

Naru sat up, waving her hands in frustration

"The type who makes something amazing but nitpicks the tiniest flaws like it's the end of the world, I swear, you sound like some of my favorite guitarists in interviews, 'Oh, I messed up this one note in the solo,' meanwhile, everyone else thinks it's legendary!"

Ayaka snickered, seeing her friend getting so chatty before joining hee

"So basically, he's a perfectionist"

Hirato sighed, rubbing his forehead

" Hey! It's not about being a perfectionist, it's about improving, if I start thinking this is my peak, then I won't grow as an aspiring performer and musician"

That made Naru pause

There was something about the way he said it; so serious, so certain, like he needed to get better, like he wasn't just chasing some casual hobby, but something far more important

Something real

"...You're really serious about this, aren't you? "

Naru finally asked, watching him closely

Hirato leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling for a moment before nodding

"Yeah, I am"

There was no hesitation in his voice

"I used to just drift through life, not really caring about anything except anime and it's somgs"

He continued, his tone quieter

"But then I saw Michael Jackson perform, and it was like...like something clicked, like I finally found something worth chasing, since then, I've been doing everything I can to get closer to that level"

He exhaled and turned back to face them

"I know I'm not there yet, but I will be"

Silence filled the room

Ayaka was the first to break it, chuckling softly

"...That's so like you haha "

Naru, on the other hand, was staring at him, her fingers absentmindedly tapping against her knee

There was something about the way he spoke that struck a chord in her; the determination in his eyes, the way he carried himself when talking about his goals, it reminded her of how she used to feel about music before everything fell apart, back when she could play wholeheartedly

Before she messed up and lost confidence in herself

Which was probably why she was staring at Hirato so intently ,his visible boldness refusal to back down, even when he thought he wasn't good enough yet, she wondered

Could she do the same?

She swallowed, gripping the hem of her hoodie

"...Alright."

Hirato and Ayaka both turned to he

Naru exhaled, then stood up, adjusting the strap of her guitar case

"Let's do this, then, I'll play"

A grin slowly spread across Hirato's face.

"Alright"

He said, turning to his laptop

"Let's hear what you've got"

Ayaka leaned back with a smirk as she watched the two

End of chapter