Phenomenon

Chapter 45: Culture Festival

As soon as I stepped onto the stage, all of my nerves were washed away in the face of the exhilarating feeling of excitement and anticipation which swelled in my heart and burst in the form of a smile. Kacchan was right when he said that I would be fine as soon as I got in front of the crowd.

As I stepped up onto the raised platform on the stage which was positioned behind the dancers and picked up my guitar, a feeling of tranquillity washed over me. Just staring out into the ocean of unfamiliar faces was enough to make my heart pound with anticipation. I scoured the crowd as we settled into our places, desperately looking for a cluster of familiar faces. Soon enough, I caught sight of Dad, Papa, Auntie Nemuri, Auntie Joke, Mirio and Eri within the crowd. Just seeing the little family which I had constructed for myself over the years was enough to make pride rear its head in my chest upon the sight of them. I was determined to do my best and show not just the random people in the crowd, but also my family just how good I was.

"Hello, UA!" Kyoka shouted into the microphone. Her amethyst eyes were wide with exhilaration and sparkled with excitement. "We are The Juveniles from Class 1A! Get ready to have your world turned upside down!" Kyoka riled the crowd up. Whoops of joy echoed around the hall. I could distinctly hear Papa and Auntie Joke shouting out encouragement, making the people around them either laugh or turn to scowl at them. You either loved them or hated them when it came to my Papa and Emi.

Kyoka looked around at Kacchan, Tokoyami and I, silently asking if we were ready to start. The three of us nodded firmly. Kyoka nodded in return and turned back to the audience. Kacchan threw his head back and raised his drumsticks in the air. "Let's do this shit!" Kacchan shouted, "We're gonna murder all UA students with music!" Kacchan's drumsticks came down with an explosion. This was our signal to start playing.

"Thank you for coming out today!" Kyoka shouted over the explosion of music.

"What am I to be?
What is my calling?
I gave up giving up, I'm ready to go!"

I plucked at the strings of the guitar and focused solely on my playing and keeping in time with everyone else. The crowd and their cheering were washed away. The dancers faded into the background. All that existed at that moment was me, the band and the music which carried me away into a different realm.

We rocketed into the chorus, the energy in the hall was dialled up several notches. People were jumping and dancing around, the dancers went through the steps of Mina's choreography. Everything was perfect.

"Hero too, I am a hero too
My heart is set, and I won't back down!
Hero too, strength doesn't make a hero

True heroes stand up for what they believe!
So wait and see!"

We played through the rest of the song with the crowd's cheers accompanying us. The song was played perfectly to completion. By the end, the crowd was cheering for more. We waved as we briefly walked off of the stage to get a drink and wipe the sweat off of our faces.

"Well done," Shinso muttered as he walked up to us. He handed each of us a water bottle and towel, "Quick, you're due back on in 33 seconds." All four of us quickly did what we needed before stepping back onto the stage to the cheers of the audience.

"Thank you! Here's another original song. This song is called 'Check Yes Juliet!'" Kyoka shouted into the microphone.

Tokoyami and I started up on our guitars for the intro to the song before Kacchan and Kyoka joined in and started playing along. The crowd before us bopped their heads along to the music and cheered their enthusiasm for the song. Most of the people within the crowd hadn't heard our band play before, but even so, they already seemed to be enamoured with our music. Few things could bring me such joy. In a time when I had been surrounded by darkness and misfortune, standing up on the stage to play for the masses was exhilarating. Their chants the fuel which stoked my fire and warmed my soul.