The Emotionless Composer (Utapri)

Camus- Aurora

Narrator's POV:

As Haruka was walking back to her room, she was suddenly attacked with Shining bursting through the window and landing in front of her. 

"What is it Shining-san?" She asked, unfazed by his surprise entrance. 

"Mizzzzzzzzzz Nanamiiiii~! I'll have you make a LOVE! AI! RABU! Song for all Quaruuuuutttetttttttoo Niiiiggghhhhtttttt!" He yelled, a long paper with the kanji 'ai' (愛) falling down from the ceiling. 

"Love...?" Haruka cocked her head to the side. Now this caught her off-guard. 

"But Shining, I don't understand what love is-" trying to convince him to change the theme to something other than 'love.' 

"Mmmmmm... It can be ANYYYY kind of LOVE! Plusssss, think of it as a lesssssooooon of some sort~! YOU! MIZZZZZ Nanamiiii will compose a LOVE SONG and that is FINAL!" With that, Shining exited out of the hallways, leaving Haruka dumbfounded before her system snapped back. 

"Love... Song?" 

Haruka's POV:

I sat in front of the piano, listening to love songs I could find. That included Shining's song, 'Owing to Love.' But my system could not process the meaning of 'love.' 

Basically, it was about a heart pounding experience. Flowers and pink and hearts. But not all of them is all rainbows. According to my research, 'broken-hearted' is a common thing, usually when the male and female is in a relationship or a crush of some sort. 

Sure, love. Blushing, exciting, happy. 

I continued researching. Some things I wrote down on a piece of white paper were:

Mysterious

Happy

Exciting

Bad endings

Happy endings

Illogical

Never-ending (most likely)

Destiny(?)

Beautiful

Feelings.........

"Haa..." I sighed and folded the paper into a origami paper heart. This wasn't helping.

"Love... What is it?" talking to myself, I started to pack up.

"Eh? Kouhai-chan!" I heard I voice shout out to me. It was Kotobuki Reiji according to my data. When I turned around, he was standing in the doorway, twirling his black fedora around his fingers. 

"Kotobuki-san?" I called out softly, dumbly holding the paper heart in my hand. His brown eyes flickered between my face and my hand, which was mid-way between my upper body and my bag I had placed next to me. 

"Kouhai-chan, are you having trouble composing for Myu-chan?" he asked, putting the hat on his wavy brown hair. 

"Mm.. Not quite..." trailing off, I looked down at the carpeted floor, avoiding his gaze. 

"Do you have a theme of some sort?" walking closer to me, he asked. Was he trying to help me compose?

"Shining-san told me to compose a love song for all four of Quartet Night. But I don't know, nor understand what love is. I tried researching, listening to love songs, anything, but it didn't help," I sighed and fiddled with the paper heart.

"You don't know what love is? You never had a crush? Ever?" he asked in a ridiculed tone. It was expected though. I only spent all my life as an android, void of feelings and human. No family, no relatives. Even the professor who created me passed away when I was 3. That's when I started learning how to play piano. 

Professor loved to play the piano. So since I was created, he would always play the piano, and it would intrigue me. I was very fascinated by how the melodies came together. It sounded.. 'beautiful.' Thinking about the professor made me think back to my past.

One day, when the professor did not return from his experiment, I started to get worried. I wanted to see him and listen to the new song he told me he finished a few weeks ago. Today was when he told me he would play it for me. 

But time passed and passed and passed but he still didn't come back. Pacing around, I looked at the clock. 3:09 P.M. It was way past my bed time, but I couldn't sleep. Thinking he would be back by the next day, I went to bed, charging my system. 

But he didn't return the next day either. That's when the piano captured my attention. When I looked at the piano, images of professor playing the piano flashed from my system and as if on instinct, I sat on the piano stool and pressed a key. 

It made a sound. Loud and clear. Echoing off the empty and lonely walls of the house. But even that one note was a melody to my ears. 

I continued pressing this and that, combining two notes together, different keys, different notes, different sounds. It was wonderful. According to my data, it was since then that I started playing the piano. Since I was 4 to I was 7, I have mastered how to play the piano by myself. I could read notes, write notes, and play Beethoven by then. 

Playing and playing and playing until my fingers bled... wiping my own blood from the smooth, white piano keys made me feel weird. I had blood... I thought I was made of wires and all. Guess I was somehow human. 

I kept playing. To show professor when he finally returned home. Hours, days, weeks, months, years passed. 

Still standing in the house by myself. Nothing changed. Even after 10 years. I realized that he was never coming back. I would never be able to listen to him play the piano again. I would never hear 'Moonlight Sonata' he always played. 

While cleaning out the house, I saw a piece of note stuck in middle of music sheets. I picked it up. Somehow, being the same height as the piano made me feel weird. Of course, I was 13 and all, but I didn't know I could grow. 

The note was short. I read it over and over again, feeling water trickle down my cheeks. I ripped the note in half. Again and again. I ripped it. I crumpled it. I opened the window and let the wind carry away the remains of the note. Closing the window, I leaned against the cold glass and cried. Crying and crying. 

I couldn't forgive myself for ripping the note. Making it disappear. I could never forgive myself for that. Not ever. 

However, to this day, the contents of the note was still in my memory file. I would never forget it. Even if I wanted to, I woul- no, I couldn't. Without reading the note, I would've never attended Saotome Gakuen. I wouldn't have gotten to this point. 

But I ripped it. And threw it out the window. Last words my professor ever wrote to me. 

I hated myself. 

"Kouhai-chan?" Reiji's voice brought me back to present.

"Yes, Kotobuki-san?" I replied, looking at him.

"Nothing. I should go back now. I really hope you finish your composition for Myu-chan! Come by anytime for help," he left with these words, leaving me sitting in the piano room by myself.

I was alone with the piano once again.

Because music would never leave me.

'Love..'= 'Professor?'

The more I chase after him, the more he runs away. And the more he runs, the more I run. It was never ending anyways. Mystifying. Strange. My Future, My Dreams. 

Professor made it come true. With his note. With his words. With his love.

That's it!