Episode 12: The Complex

Development: Autumn Continued

            Isabelle was the only one who wasn't cheering or applauding. She listened as Cera explained how in love they were and couldn't wait any longer. The whole night Isabelle had been feeling uncomfortable for some reason. From the moment she saw Cera throw herself into Jay, she felt her heart drop.

"Why am I like this?" she whispered under her breath.

"What's up?" Loq asked, hearing her say something.

"Oh, nothing. I'm just really tired. I think I'm going to head back now." she stood up off the couch.

"Do you want me to walk back with you?" Loq asked, remaining seated on the couch, not actually wanting to leave.

"Oh no it's fine. It's literally just a couple blocks away." Isabelle said goodbye to everyone and made her way out of the room and building.

            As she walked down the busy street, cars honking and zooming by, the night air gave her time to think. "Why do I care so much about Jay and what he does?" she thought, feeling more confused than she had ever felt before. "I should care about Li Qiang right?" She tried to reason.

            She reached the large apartment complex in no time and walked through the glass doors. As soon as the doors opened, she heard the music. She saw the side door leading to the concert hall across from the elevators was wide open. She began walking towards it when she stopped dead in her tracks. "This song...it's..." her eyes grew wide in shock, she stopped breathing, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "It's Jilong!" she knew it, she had no doubt in her mind. She remembered the night she had first heard it many years ago as if it was just yesterday.

            She began running towards the door, heart pounding, "It's Jilong! He's here! He found me!" some part of her soared with happiness, but before she reached the door, she stopped again. She felt afraid. Afraid of seeing him again all these years. Looking at the ground, she slowly walked through the door, thinking frantically, "Jilong, I'm here! I'm here!" She forced herself to breathe a deep breath, and  looked up.

            Her jaw dropped. Her heart stopped. Her eyes could not believe it. Up on that stage, sat Jay, playing the piano as if he had been playing it all his life, playing the music that Jilong had written, drawing back memories that had been buried for a decade.

            All of a sudden the music stopped and Isabelle watched Jay stand up from the piano, sighing. She tried to move, she tried to run away, but she was frozen. She stood there as Jay turned around and watched as his eyes found hers. His face was full of shock as well. Isabelle was finally able to move. She never broke eye contact once as she walked towards the stage. "His eyes are so familiar." she thought, "his smile, I knew I've seen it somewhere." She felt tears come to her eyes. "Does he know it's me? He has to know it's me. How could he not have told me!" She stood right in front of him now, less than two feet away. Jay's eyes were searching hers, trying to figure out what she was thinking. Isabelle spoke first.

"You...you're..." she stammered.

"Yeah. It's me. " Was all Jay said, dropping his gaze to the floor.

"I'm...I am..." Isabelle could barely restrain the tears now. 

"Yeah. I know." he answered. A stream of tears ran down Isabelle's cheeks and a hot burst of anger ran through her body.

"Isabelle, look, I wanted to tell you..." Jay started. But Isabelle couldn't help it, she mustered up her strength and slapped him right across the face. She was sure that it hurt her own hand more than it did him, but at least she got the message across she thought as she rubbed her hand. Jay was silent for a second, a little shocked, and then sighed,

"Ok, I know I deserved that, but just listen to me for a second..." he started again, but Isabelle threw her arms around him, hugging him as tightly as she could. Jay stood there, even more shocked now, not knowing what to do as Isabelle sniffled into his shoulder,

"I'm...I'm sorry. I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye."  She managed to say coherently. Jay felt himself tearing up a little, but refused to let himself cry. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in closer,

"No, don't be. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you needed it." He remembered the anger and frustration he felt towards himself for not following her and being there for her all those years ago. They stood there together on the stage, lost in each other's embrace, unaware that the world outside still existed. As they pulled away slightly and Jay looked down into Isabelle's eyes. Without saying a single word, they both knew that things were going to change, that their world would never be the same again.

            Cera clasped her hands over her mouth, her eyes wide in disbelief. She had left only a couple minutes after Isabelle and had seen her walk into the concert hall. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Did she just slap my Jay?!! What's going on? I can't hear what they're saying!" her mind raced, her face heating up with anger. "What is she doing?!!! Is he hugging her back! No!!" She backed away from the door and as quietly as she could ran out of the building. As soon as she was outside she whipped out her cell phone and pressed the speed  dial button for her manager.

"It's me." She said urgently, " I want you to call Jay's manager tomorrow and make an official public announcement that we're dating. Do you hear me? Do it now! I don't care if it's late, make it happen by tomorrow morning!" With that she hung up. "I won't let you have him." She said out loud, scowling at the memory of Isabelle throwing her arms around her boyfriend. "He's mine."

_____

Evie fumbled with her room keys that got tangled in the attached lanyard as she walked toward the elevator. She saw the door about to close and ran towards it shouting,

"Wait! Hold the door!" The door opened again and Evie ran into it. "Thanks!" She said, slightly breathless. "First floor please." She looked up at who was in the elevator with her and saw Raj. "Oh hey Raj! You going somewhere?" She noticed that instead of the usual black sweatshirt, jeans, and tennis shoes he wore, he was wearing a nice button up shirt, black slacks, and black shiny dress shoes. "Woah! Where are YOU going?" she said,  for the first time she felt as though she was the underdressed one, wearing her usual sport capris, t-shirt with random writing, and chunky running shoes.

"Out." He said quietly. Evie was used to his short, quiet responses. He rarely ever said more than a few words at a time.

"Out where? Can I come? I was just going to go buy some food, so I'm not really in a hurry." She was honestly very curious as to what in the world could have possibly gotten Raj to dress up. Raj just sighed and rolled his eyes. Evie took that as a yes and when the elevator opened on the first floor, she hopped out after Raj, excited to see where he was going, and in all honesty, to just get out of the apartment.

            They walked down the street in silence for ten minutes when Evie decided to ask again,

"Where are we going?" Raj stopped all of a sudden and pulled open his old looking messenger bag. He pulled out a crinkled paper and handed it to Evie. He swung his messenger bag back and continued walking. Evie read the paper as she followed him. It was a program sheet, listing Raj's name as the guest speaker to present his research on the reduction of cancer through the use of a psychedelic plant.

"Holy crap! Did you just develop a cure for cancer?!!!" Evie could not believe what she was reading. Raj sighed and rolled his eyes again.

"Not quite." Was all he said.

"But this...this says you...oh my god is this what you've been leaving to do every morning? If you're so good at this, why are you even pursuing music? You should just be a scientist!"

"It's a hobby." Came the short response.

"But you're helping save people from cancer! How could that just be a hobby?!"

"Back up plan?" He said, raising his eyebrows, actually contemplating the idea.

"You mean as a back up career? That doesn't even make sense! How could you think like that?" Raj was silent for a few seconds, thinking about it.

"What would you do if you couldn't play viola anymore?" That was the longest sentence Evie had ever heard Raj say, and that one sentence really stuck with her.

"Well...I'd..."she thought really hard. "I don't know...I don't really know what'd I do. I guess I don't really have that many interests, and I'm not really good at anything else..." Evie frowned, this really bothered her that she had just now realized that she was such a one dimensional person. Raj looked like he was about to say something, but decided not to. They walked for another twenty minutes in silence, and then Raj suddenly turned and walked into the front doors of a tall skyscraper.

"Woah...where are we?" Evie whispered as she walked in, seeing the enormous building.

"Welcome Mr. Patel, right this way." A tall Chinese lady led them through the lobby and into a large room filled with people, all dressed in business attire. Evie immediately felt self conscious that she was very underdressed.

"Maybe I shouldn't be here..." Evie whispered quietly to Raj, starting to slink away. Without saying anything, Raj lifted his messenger bag off his shoulder and handed it to Evie. Confused, Evie took it from him, and as soon as she did, Raj turned and took off toward the stage.

"Wait! What are you..." Evie tried following after him but was stopped by the voice of another Chinese lady standing on stage.

"Ladies and gentleman, thank you for coming here today. I am very excited to present to you Raj Patel who will briefly present to you his research on the medical plant, ayahuasca, in reducing the presence of cancer in patients" The audience applauded as Raj stepped onto the stage behind a podium and adjusted the microphone attached to it. Evie quickly made her way to stand in the back of the room, unable to find an empty chair, and not wanting to be noticed.

"The ayahuasca is an ancient psychedelic plant medicine that has been used by shamans in South America..." Raj began.  Evie stood at the back of the room in awe. She had never heard Raj speak so much before, but what shocked her even more was how intelligent he actually was and how much he inspired her to do something more with her life than just sit in her room and play the viola.

            Soon Raj was done talking and the audience began asking questions. It was obvious Raj wasn't comfortable speaking in front of an audience in the first place, and now that he had to interact with them, he seemed even more nervous. Evie stood in the back and gave him a thumbs up or nodded her head to try and encourage him, sometimes even acting out something he could say, like a game of charades.  Raj would look at Evie every time he started having a hard time talking, and she tried to help him through it. 

            After everyone had asked their questions and Raj finally pulled himself out from the crowd, Evie ran up to him with a big smile on her face.

"You were amazing! I still can't believe you do this in your free time!"

Raj just shrugged his shoulders and took his bag back from Evie. They began walking out of the building and back onto the street.

"You know, my older brother is into computers and stuff, "Evie started jabbering, "Maybe you guys could get together and talk about some cancer screening technology or something. I don't know if that would help...but then again my brother can be kind of lazy you know..." Raj fumbled in his bag for something as they walked along. Evie kept jabbering, "I've never heard you talk so much before. Did my little charades in the back help? It seemed to help. Should I come with you to future speeches and stuff you have to give?"  Raj seemed to feel awkward hearing those questions,

"Uh...yeah it helped." was all he answered.

"Is that it? Do you want me to come with you next time?" Evie threw more questions at him. He all of a sudden pulled out his black beats head phones and put them on over his ears, the long cord spiraling down into the depths of his bag.

"Hey!" Evie protested. She was used to being around Raj and having him not say a word and just listen to his music. She usually just kept talking anyway, as if he was actually listening.

"Well, anyway I have to go to the grocery store to get food. You're coming with me right? Good. I have to buy rice, again! Why do you have to buy rice for the second time this week,  you ask? Well because Isabelle and Karin sit around eating all the time and don't bother to do any grocery shopping so I have to. I don't even have time to take care of my little plant, I'm always busy looking out for them!" They walked together until they came across a large grocery store and walked in.

            Raj wordlessly followed Evie around the store, listening to his music, and Evie kept jabbering on about whatever she thought of, not expecting him to answer.

"Oh look at these!" Evie found a table with pretty hair accessories laid out. She picked up a black silk headband and put it on. "I always want to wear things like this, but I don't think I'm really girly enough to pull that off. Haha. Oh look at this silver one! Which one looks better? Oh well, I wouldn't ever really have a reason to wear it anyway." She set down the headbands and sauntered off, Raj following. This went on for half an hour when they finally left the store, a big bag of rice in tow.

"Let's take the bus back, I don't want carry this huge bag back." Evie dragged the bag out of the cart and tried to carry it to the bus that just pulled up. Raj sighed and lifted it up with one hand and carried it up onto the bus. Evie ran onto the bus after him, scanning her card as she got on. She searched the bus and found Raj sitting near the back. She made her way over and slid into the seat next to him. He had leaned his head back against the window and had his eyes closed.

"Thanks." Evie said,  looking at him, hoping for an answer, but there wasn't one. After only a couple minutes Evie heard a quiet snoring coming from Raj. "Really? You fall asleep that fast?" She sighed and rolled her eyes. "And you're listening to that music every day. What do you even listen to? Depressing, heavy metal?" She leaned closer to his headphones but couldn't hear anything. She reached over and tugged on the cord that was inside his bag, trying to pull out his iPod. But there was no iPod, there was nothing attached, just the end of the cord. Evie looked at the cord, "So...he wasn't listening to anything?" Raj moved a little all of a sudden and Evie hurriedly put the cord back into his bag and sat back in her seat, thinking about what was going on with Raj. "Does he think that I'm just so annoying that he puts on his headphones so maybe I'd stop talking?" She started feeling upset. "I guess I do talk a lot." She decided to try and talk less and be less annoying.

            Their stop came up and Evie gently shook Raj's shoulder. He slowly opened his eyes and stood up as the bus came to a stop. Evie grabbed a hold of the bag of rice, but Raj picked it up before she could lift, his hand brushing against hers for a moment. He stepped off the bus and Evie followed. They walked a few feet and entered the building. Evie remained silent all the while. The elevator ride up to the 8th floor was silent as well. They walked into their hallway and Raj set the bag of rice down in front of Evie's door.

"Thanks." Evie said quietly, and fumbled around with her keys. Raj still stood there. Evie looked up at him as he pulled his headphones off his head and set them around his neck. He reached into his bag and pulled out a little paper brown bag.

"Here." He said quietly, handing the bag over to her. Evie slowly took the paper bag and opened it. Her eyes grew wide in surprise,

"When did you...?" She pulled out the silver headband she had seen earlier at the store. Raj looked away at the ground,

"It...it looks good with your hair." He managed to say. Evie couldn't help but smile up at him.

"I didn't know you actually listened to me talk." she said, her eyes shining. Raj's olive tan skin had a hint of pink. He fumbled with his bag for a second and hurriedly put his headphones back on. He waved goodbye real quickly and turned around and walked down the hall to his room, quickly closing the door behind him. Evie looked down at this silver headband in her hand and smiled, knowing that there wasn't actually any music on the other side of the headphones. "He actually listens to me talk." With a smile still on her lips, she opened her door and dragged the bag of rice inside.

____

            Isabelle sat on her bed hugging her pillow and staring at the magazine on her desk. She reached over and picked it up again. It was Beijing's most popular gossip magazine, and right on the front cover were two pictures, one of "Chinese Princess Cera Chan" and one of "Hot rock star Jay-dragon". The large Chinese characters seem to scream at Isabelle from the cover, "Hottest new couple, talk of the entire entertainment industry!" Isabelle threw the magazine across her room, watching it hit the other wall and fall to the ground. It was only just yesterday that everything had happened, and yet the news was out this morning.

            Isabelle sighed, not knowing why she felt the way she did. She heard a knock on her door and got up to unlock it.

"Hey! Can I talk to you?" Evie came into her room and took a seat on the chair at Isabelle's desk. Isabelle sat on her bed and picked up her pillow again.

"What's up?" Isabelle asked, looking intently at Evie, who seemed to have something serious on her mind.

"Well, Raj asked me something today. And it kind of bothered me, you know?"

"Wait...Raj asked you something?" Isabelle asked, surprised that Raj could actually ask a question.

"Yeah, it's a long story. But anyway, he asked me, what would I do if I couldn't play the viola anymore? And when I thought about it, I realized that I'm not really good at anything else! I'm not smart, or talented really. I don't have many other interests. Isabelle, what would you do if you somehow couldn't play the piano anymore?" Evie looked really serious, worried almost. Isabelle thought about it, and realized what Evie was talking about it.  She remember that time on the beach where she was able to imagine all her friends doing something other than music except her.

"I see what you mean," Isabelle said softly, "I guess I wouldn't really know what to do either." This thought started to bother her, even more than it did before. But her train of thought was interrupted by another knock on the door. The door opened and Jay poked his head in,

"You ready?" he asked. Isabelle realized that they had made plans last night to hang out today.

"Oh yeah! Sorry, Evie, I kind of made plans to do stuff."

"It's fine. I just wanted to ask you that. We can talk later. Have fun!" Evie walked past Jay and disappeared.

            Jay walked into her room and looked around as Isabelle grabbed her purse and looked for her keys. He walked over to the magazine that lay splayed open on the floor next to the wall. He picked it up and flipped to the front page. As he saw the cover he sneered and scoffed at it.

"What are you doing reading magazines like these?" He scolded.

"Oh...I just saw it on the stand in the lobby..." Isabelle took the magazine from him, avoiding his eye contact. Jay snatched the magazine back from her.

"Well, don't read these." He looked around and found the trash can and tossed it in. "Let's go." Isabelle followed him down the  hall, her mind a tornado of confusion and uncertainty. Jay's new girlfriend, and her own identity complex clouded her mind. She didn't realize where they were going until Jay finally spoke again.

"Here we are."

            Isabelle looked up at where they stopped. It was a little coffee shop on a quiet street. They walked in and Jay looked around.

"There they are." Sitting at a table near the back, was Da-ge, Lao Hu, and Taiyo. Isabelle stood still, staring at them, unsure of what was going on.

"It's fine. I told them." Jay gently took her arm and tugged her along. They stopped in front of the table and Jay sat down. Isabelle remained standing as the guys turned their heads to look at her. Da-ge sat in the chair closest to her, and he stood up. He wasn't as tall as Jay, but still a good couple inches taller than her. Isabelle looked up at him, seeing his small crescent eyes and large nose, she smiled, remembering Dasun. Seeing her smile, he burst out in a huge smile too and jumped toward her and gave her a big hug.

"Fenghuang!!" he shouted as he hung onto her. Isabelle's eyes grew wide. It was the first time in a long time she had heard herself called that. Someone pulled Da-ge off her, and she looked up to see Lao-Hu, his flirty smile and twinkle in his eyes still there, he laughed and gave her a hug too,

"You never fooled me. I knew it was you all along. I'd never forget those pretty eyes." Isabelle laughed and play pushed him.

"Song Lin, you're still the same flirt." She laughed.

            Taiyo didn't stand up, but raised his hand up. Isabelle turned a little and clasped his hand. He held her hand tightly and looked into her eyes with a smile, he nodded his head as if to say "welcome back".

            Isabelle looked around her at all her childhood friends that she had held dearly, that she had missed every day of every year, that she hadn't noticed when they were right under her nose. She felt her eyes grow hot, but she wouldn't let herself cry. Despite all the confusion and doubt she had going on in her head that plagued her life, seeing all of them together again was the happiest day she remembered having in a long time.

            She took a seat and they ordered coffee. They talked the afternoon away, laughing and joking every minute. Isabelle looked around at all the smiles on her friends faces and sighed a sigh of relief. She had her family back. She wouldn't have to face anything alone again. 

Episode 11: A Bigger Mess

Development: Autumn Continued

            Jay sat there, trembling. "What's wrong with me?" He thought. Just say it! He stared into Isabelle's eyes and took a deep breath,

"I...love..." He started. Then somehow out of nowhere an idea popped up in his head.

"Karaoke!" He blurted out. Isabelle looked at him oddly,

"Karaoke?" She asked, raising her eyebrows. Jay was silent, still somewhat distraught over his realization.  After another moment of silence Isabelle started to smile, and then burst out laughing. Jay just stared at her, dumfounded. "Man, she looks really cute when she laughs." He thought to himself, starting to smile a little too, "Even her eyes look like they're smiling." He could help but start laughing at himself too.

"I never thought someone like you would like karaoke." Isabelle said, laughter finally calming down. "I mean you're so..." she gestured to his all black outfit and rock star look, "you're so...you." She was going to say cool, but decided she probably shouldn't flatter his ego.

"What about me?" Jay asked, trying to put on his serious face and act offended. "Just because I'm so handsome and awesome doesn't mean I can't like karaoke."

"Well you said you loved it." Isabelle answered back, smiling at the poor job Jay was doing at trying to keep his cool.

"Right...." Jay ran his hand through his hair, "Well anyway, we're going to karaoke tonight...so I just thought..." He looked around the little room, trying to avoid her eye contact.

"Are you saying that you want me to go?" Isabelle raised an eyebrow, unable to stop smiling. Jay grew even pinker than he already was.

"Don't make it sound like I'm the one who wants you to go." Jay said, trying his best to keep his face calm and collected even though he was a mess of emotions inside. "It was Lao Hu's idea. I'm just passing on the message." He fiddled with the guitar strap over his shoulder, not knowing what to do with his hands. Isabelle rolled her eyes,

"I thought you were trying to avoid me." She pointed out.

"How..." Jay started.

"It's been obvious. How you get up and leave every time I walk in a room. How you glare at me every time we can't help but be in the same room at the same time." Isabelle could remember many more examples but Jay jumped in,

"Yeah, ok fine. So does that mean you're not going to go?" Jay was frustrated with himself for being so stupid. Isabelle scoffed,

"I'll save you the trouble and stay away. Actually, I'll do you a favor now and leave so you don't have to."She stood up from the piano bench and grabbed her sheet music.

"No!" Jay jumped up and grabbed her wrist. She turned and looked up at him, scowling. He tried to beg her to stay with his eyes. "Please don't go" he thought. He let go of her wrist and took the music out of her hands, setting it back on the piano. He took a couple steps back and took off the guitar on his back, setting it aside. Sitting back down on the bench, he signaled to her with his head to sit back down.

           Isabelle looked up into Jay's eyes. "Why does he look so familiar?" She thought as she searched his dark eyes. "Does he really want me to stay? No, I should leave." Isabelle broke eye contact first, deciding to leave, but still a part of her really wanted to stay. But Jay took her music from her hands and set it back on the piano. "What is he...doing?" He pulled on her arm, causing her to sit back down.

            Jay took a deep breath. "You can do this." he thought.  He slowly placed his hands on the piano keys, and turned to look back at Isabelle.

"Teach me."

Isabelle couldn't help but smile. "How can I be angry with him?" she thought. She turned and put her right hand on the keys to play a chord.

"C major chord" she said. Jay positioned his fingers on the same keys but an octave lower, and purposely flattening his fingers, he played the chord as well.

"Curl your fingers up. Don't flatten them." Isabelle instructed. She then began playing each note of the chord one at a time in a triplet rhythm. Jay followed her lead, but purposely did it terribly.

"I said not to play with your fingers flat." Isabelle put her left hand over Jay's right hand and pulled his fingers in and held them in a curved position. "Like that" she said.

            Jay's breath caught in his throat as he felt Isabelle's hand cover his. Then all of a sudden he felt something odd on her fingertips. He slowly pulled his right hand out and took Isabelle's left hand in his and turned it over. He ran his thumb across the palm of her hand and down her fingers and stopped at her fingertips. He saw a little white spot on the tips of three of the fingers and felt them with his thumb, feeling the lightly callused skin. He brought up his own left hand and looked at his own callused fingertips, only his were much more hardened and on every finger.

"Oh, yeah." Isabelle said quietly, "Li Qiang's been teaching me to play the bass." She avoided looking at him. Jay looked at Isabelle, her face slightly pink, avoiding his gaze. "Why do you spend so much time with Loq?" he silently asked her. He let go of her hand and placed his fingers back on the piano and played the chord again, this time perfectly, just like Isabelle had showed him. Isabelle looked up at him in surprise,

"You learn fast." She said. It was Jay's turn to avoid her gaze, "You're not supposed to know how to play the piano remember?" he scolded himself in his head. Isabelle showed him some more chords and rhythms to play, and Jay purposely struggled to play them, but after a while, he let himself "improve".

            Isabelle and Jay spent an hour playing the piano together, laughing and play-fighting the whole time, enjoying each other's company every minute that passed.  Jay would watch Isabelle and how she would smile and laugh with him, the way her laughter reached her eyes and rang throughout the little room, the way her hair would fall like a waterfall around her face, the way she would tuck it back behind her ear, Jay felt his heart jump.  Jay always thought that the way to make a girl fall in love with him was to make her laugh, but he found that the more she laughed, that he was the one to fall more and more in love with her.

"Jay. About earlier..." Isabelle started. Jay just stared at her, eyes wide with surprise. Isabelle noticed. "What?" she asked with a questioning look. Jay looked down, a little embarrassed.

"Well it's just..." he felt a lot more comfortable talking with her now, "It's just that, I've never heard you say my name before."  He lifted his eyes a little to meet hers, a small smile tugging at his lips. Isabelle smiled a little, trying not to look affected by his words, so she continued.

"About earlier, who was that? That girl looking for you."

            Jay's smile disappeared as the giggling image of Cera popped up in his head. He sighed and rolled his eyes.

"Some fan that's obsessed with me. Don't worry, I'm used to it." He tried to play it off. "I'm not exactly lying am I?" he thought. "I just kind of left out the details that this obsessed fan happens to be a popular actress and all my friends are trying to hook us up. That's not important right?" He scratched the back of his head, playing it cool. Isabelle laughed again, not wanting to admit that she was becoming his fan too.

            All of a sudden a buzzing noise sounded on the piano. Isabelle jumped a little at the sound but then realized it was her phone. She answered it,

"Hello? It's rehearsal time already? Oh my gosh, sorry! I guess I just lost track of time. I'll be right there!" She hung up the phone and grabbed her music and her bag. She looked back at Jay and explained, "We're having a rehearsal for our concert next weekend. I was supposed to be there fifteen minutes ago. I have to go." She turned to leave but Jay called her back,

"Isabelle!"

She turned around, looking at him with her large brown eyes and her eyebrows raised in surprise.

"So, you are going to go to karaoke tonight, right?" He asked, hoping with all his might that she would go, because at that moment, he wanted nothing more than to just spend time with her. Isabelle smiled and bit her lip again, and did something strange, she giggled quietly. This was a different kind of giggle Jay noticed, different than the annoying one Cera had, it was adorable, and Jay wanted to hear it again.

"What's so funny?" he asked, trying not to show just how much he loved her giggle. She looked away at the ground,

"That's just the first time I've heard you say my name." Her smiling eyes looked back at him.

"So I'll take that as a yes?" Jay couldn't help but smile now. Isabelle opened the door and took a step out before turning around,

"I'll be there." And with that, she left.

            Jay sat alone now on the piano bench, memories of the past flooding back. All those times they had gone on adventures together, laughed together, talked about the future,  had all came back with the short hour they had just spent in the little music room.  

            Jay lifted his hands to the piano again, placing them correctly on the keys.  Recalling the piece that Isabelle had played earlier, the notes of Chopin's nocturne came to his fingers. He played the same arpeggios with his left hand, and the same melody with his right. He played with just as much skill and talent, but not the same emotion and meaning. He stopped in the middle of the piece, slamming his hands down on the piano, a dissonant clang of frustration roared from the strings.

            The sound rang through the small room until Jay finally let his hands up. He scratched the back of his head, irritated at himself. He jumped up and grabbed his guitar, swinging it around his shoulder. Without looking back, he burst out of the room and slammed the door closed behind him. He shook his head, trying to get the memories out of his head.

            He flashbacked to his nine year old self, sitting at the piano, his father standing over his shoulder.

"Again!"  He shouted. The little boy started playing the passage again but tripped up on the run.

"Again!" His father shouted. And again, he would play that one passage, and again he would trip up.

"Again! What's wrong with you?!" His father slapped the back of his head. "Do it right!" The boy jumped a little, and scratched the back of his head so it would stop hurting.  This went on for another hour until he finally got it right, and his father left him alone to practice for yet another hour.

            Jay scratched the back of his head, as if to scratch away the memories of his past. He couldn't stand playing the piano anymore. He hated it. Except when he was with Isabelle. "For some reason..." he thought, "she makes it alright."

____

            Jay sat on the couch in the dark room, flashing lights everywhere and music blasting out of the speakers. He laughed slightly as Da-ge and Taiyo had a rap battle on the karaoke machine, but Jay was too busy waiting for someone else to arrive to pay any more attention.

"Hey! Look who's here!" Lao Hu shouted above the music all of a sudden.

            Jay snapped to attention, his head whipping around to look at the door. There stood Karin in a sparkly silver, knee high dress, Hendrick in his usual nerdy attire, Evie in her usual sport wear, Raj in the same black sweatshirt and jeans he wore daily, and in the middle stood Isabelle. She wore a simple, form-fitting light pink dress that cut off just above her knees paired with a pair of black pumps. Her dark brown hair was pulled back in a loose bun, uncovering her large eyes and beautifully structured face. Simple, yet stunning.

            Lao Hu, Loq, and Jay all stood up off the couch and walked over to where they stood. Da-ge and Taiyo paused the song and walked over too. Karin tossed her long, curled blonde hair over her should and sauntered over to Lao Hu, who put his arm around her and led her over to his spot on the couch. Jay couldn't keep his eyes off Isabelle as he took a step toward her, but out of nowhere a squealing scream stopped him.

"Ahhh!!! Everyone's here already!! So sorry I'm late!" Dressed in the shortest black cocktail dress and hot pink platform litas, Cera burst into the room and all but threw herself into Jay.

"Oh Jay!" She whined, "I'm so glad I get to see you now. Where did you go earlier today when I was looking for you?" She pouted her lips as she looked up at Jay who stood a little less than a foot taller than her, despite the high heels she wore. Jay looked down at her, dumfounded, not believing what she was doing. 

"Yeah Jay," Da-ge elbowed him, "she came to us complaining about how you ran away from her earlier. That's no way to treat the Chinese Princess." 

"Chinese Princess?"  Evie asked from next to Isabelle, whose eyes were fixed on Cera.

"She's only the most popular actress in Chinese dramas! Every one she's been in has been a top hit!" Da-ge mooned over her. Cera just flicked her short bouncy hair with her hand, a "I'm totally a big deal" look on her face.

"Never mind Chinese Princess." Lao Hu added from his place on the couch, "That's no way to treat your girlfriend!" He added a wink at him. Jay's eyes were burning with anger now. Cera, on the other hand, was jumping with delight.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Jay shouted.

"You're not fooling anybody." Taiyo patted his shoulder and lifted an eyebrow. Jay shrugged his hand off violently, glaring as he did. Then he realized it, Isabelle was still standing there, watching him. His eyes darted up to look at her. She was eyeing Cera, but looked up suddenly to meet his eyes. Just as suddenly she looked away, clearly avoiding his gaze. She took a deep breath and looked up again, this time at Loq. She smiled a weak smile and walked over to him, letting him put his arm around her shoulder and lead her to the couch to sit next to Karin and Lao Hu.

            Evie followed Raj, looking over his shoulder at the manga he was reading. They sat in a far off corner, silently flipping through the pages, where Evie would stop Raj from flipping the page every once in a while and he would roll his eyes impatiently, but never said anything. Hendrick, feeling awkward, adjusted his bowtie and seated himself on the couch, deciding to clean his large rimmed glasses. Da-ge and Taiyo picked the microphones up and began "singing" again, giving their audience a hilarious show. 

            The couch was a square shape but with an open end, covered in some kind of fake purple leather. Jay slowly dragged his feet to the couch, Cera clinging onto his arm. He sat down on the left part of the couch, directly across from Hendrick on the right side. He cast a quick glance to his left to look at Isabelle. Seeing her sitting under Loq's arm and laughing happily made Jay angry, if not...jealous.

            The night went on exactly like this. Evie and Raj didn't budge from the corner. After  finishing one manga, Raj would magically pull out another from his old torn up messenger bag that was bulging (undoubtedly with all the manga). Da-ge, Taiyo, and Lao Hu all took turns on the karaoke machine, entertaining everyone.  Cera spent the whole time snuggling up to Jay, and Jay spent the whole time stealing glances at Isabelle. All of a sudden Cera jumped up from the couch.

"I have a song I want to sing." She declared and skipped over to take the microphone from Da-ge. "It's a special song that's close to my heart, that I'm going to sing for a special someone who is also close to my heart." She made her googly eyes at Jay and did her annoying giggle. She turned around and scrolled through the songs on the machine for a second and selected a romantic sounding song.  She began swaying back and forth with the music.

"We were both young, when I first saw you...." She held the microphone in both hands and stared at Jay.

            Jay rolled his eyes and looked away. "I can't believe this is happening." He thought to himself. He sat back and tried to tune out the sound of her voice as he looked over at Isabelle for the millionth time. She was smiling like she had been all night, but her smile didn't reach her eyes and her mind didn't really seem to be paying attention to what was going on.

"It's a love story, baby just say, yes..." Cera sang, or in Jay's opinion yelled, into the microphone.

            Jay sighed and let his mind wander, trying to forget the mess he had made. He happened to look up straight in front of him, at Hendrick sitting on the side of the couch directly across from him.   "Who is he looking...at?" Jay followed Hendrick's gaze and found himself looking at Isabelle. "Why is he staring at her?! What's his problem?" Jay's eyes darted back and forth between Isabelle and Hendrick. Hendrick was stealing glances and staring any moment he could, a sad look in his eyes, just like Jay had been doing all night. "He couldn't possibly..." Jay sat up straight on the couch, observing Hendrick intensely now. Sure enough, Isabelle noticed something and turned her head toward Hendrick, who immediately whipped his head around to look in the other direction, but Jay could see, even in the dim light, that his face was turning red.

            Cera had stopped singing and everyone clapped, except Jay. He stood up and turned his back to her as he all but flew out of the room. He opened the door and escaped into the brightly lit hallway, feeling the cool air rush at him and the noise of the room fade, he let out a sigh of relief. He couldn't stand to be in that hot, dark, loud room anymore. He started walking down the hallway when he heard a voice shout at him.

"Wait!" Cera came running after him, her heels clicking on the floor loudly. "Why are you being like this? I just sang my heart out to you, and now you run away?!" She looked like she had tears in her eyes.

"I'm going home." Jay said curtly and turned around to leave again, but she caught onto his arm.

"Why do you have to be like this? I know you like me just as much as I like you! Just listen to me! We would make a great couple! I'm a famous actress, you're a rock star, what wouldn't be perfect for us?" Little tears began to trickle out of her eyes. Jay turned around and looked down at her, feeling a little sorry.

"Look, I don't know if a relationship is what I really want right now..." he started, trying to explain as nicely as he could, not wanting to make a bigger mess of things. But Cera just burst into tears and started ranting about how it was the perfect time! How they were the perfect couple! How there could be no more perfect situation! Jay couldn't take listening to her ranting, and happened to look over her head into the window of the room they had just left. There was a little crack in the curtain that covered the window from the inside. Right through that crack, Jay could see the back of Isabelle's head and the side of Loq's face. Playing the entire night through his head again, seeing how they laughed together and had enjoyed each other's company, he felt himself getting angry again.

"And...and that's why we shouldn't wait! We should just start dating now, it would be really beneficial for both our careers and..."Cera continued to jabber on, endlessly. Jay wanted to get out of there, and without thinking,

"FINE!" He shouted at her. "Fine. Whatever you want. I'm going home." He turned around and stormed out of the building. "So much for not making a bigger mess" he thought to himself.

Cera stood there alone in the hallway, frozen in shock.

"Oh my god." she whispered. All of a sudden a huge smile grew on her face and she ran as fast as she could back into the little karaoke room.

"Oh my god guys!" She yelled as loud as she could. Everyone turned to look at her. She ran to stand in front of everyone, and as she wiped her tears away, she laughed and hiccupped as she announced, "Me and Jay are officially dating!!" she jumped up and down squealing and fanning herself with her hands as the room cheered and congratulated her.

­­­____

            Jay threw open the glass door of the large apartment complex. He walked past the empty front desk and stopped in front of the elevators, furiously pressing the up button. The elevator let out a little "ding" as it opened for him. Just before he could step into it, something caught his eye. Directly across from the elevators was a door, slightly open. Jay had never noticed it before since it was usually closed. He slowly walked towards it and opened it wider. He found himself looking at a large concert hall filled with seats facing a large stage where a beautiful, black, grand piano stood. He noticed that he was coming in from a side door, and that the main entrance was on the other side.

"Looks like someone forgot to turn off the stage light."  He thought as he walked toward the brightly lit up stage. Thoughts of Isabelle, Cera, Loq, and Hendrick all swirled in a storm through his head as he walked onto the stage and took a seat at the piano. He didn't know what to do anymore, but all he could do at the moment, was just to place his hands on the piano and play the music he hated but somehow loved at the same time.

            Somehow, and he didn't know how, the notes he played and the sound that came out sounded familiar to him. The more he played, he realized what it was. He remembered the last year he had spent with Fenghuang. They had decided to compose their own piano piece. He had started writing the exposition and performed it for her in the center of a bustling square on a summer's night in Germany. He remembered how Fenghuang was a little upset that he had started composing without her, but she loved what he had written anyway. Jay let himself be lost in the memories and flashbacks of their childhood that the piece brought back to life. But all of a sudden, Jay stopped. He couldn't play anymore. There were no more notes to play. The unwritten music was replaced with silence, and the images of the past disappeared.  Jay stood up from the seat and turned to leave, a sadness hanging over him. As he looked up, he thought he was dreaming, but she was standing there, just as real as he was.

"Isabelle..." He whispered.

Isabelle just stood there. Eyes staring at Jay, mouth slightly open, betrayal written all over her face.

Episode 10: ...you

Development: Autumn

            It has been a couple months since the two groups of musicians have returned from their "bonding" adventure on the beach. Jay has been actively avoiding Isabelle to avoid bringing up any memories of the past. But there's this feeling he just can't shake.

            Jay sat back in his chair and looked at the notebook in his hand. He chewed on the end of the pen he held and nodded his head to the rhythm of the song he had written.  In the background of the small, but cozy music room, Taiyo played a few melodies on the keyboard. All of a sudden Lao Hu drowned it out with the wailing of his electric guitar, and Loq accompanied him with the bass. Just as soon as Da-ge started to go wild on the drum set, Jay jumped up from his chair and threw his notebook on the ground with a shout of frustration.

"It's no use!" He paced back and forth angrily, scratching the back of his head, platinum blond hair ruffling up, revealing the black underneath.  The room was quiet now.

"If we're bothering you just say so..." Da-ge whined quietly. "No need to shout..."  

            Jay let out a frustrated sigh. Kicking the notebook on the ground toward them,  he complained, "The song. It's no use. I can't get it right." Lao Hu bent over and picked it up. Loq looked at it over his shoulder. Handing the notebook over to Loq, Lao Hu positioned his guitar to play it. He played the first several chords and runs written on the paper and then looked back up at Jay.

"It sounds pretty good to me." 

"But what's up with these lyrics?" Taiyo maneuvered himself in between the two, his short stature dwarfed by the tall Loq and Lao Hu.

"You're like cotton candy, melting everyday in my heart. You're like a rainbow that comes dazzling into my heart. Will you whisper to me in your sweet voice? Every day, from the beginning, your heart has been loving me too. I love you, just be my love.*" Lao Hu read out loud. They all burst out laughing. Except for Jay. His usually pale face turned a faint pink.

"What are you laughing at?!" He snapped angrily, snatching the notebook back from them. Lao Hu wiped a tear from his eye as he tried to calm his laughter down.

"You...Jay...you're trying to write a love song. Have you even been in love before? I mean...what is this?!"

Jay threw the notebook on his chair and reached for his electric guitar.

"None of your business" He mumbled, still slightly pink.

"Hey didn't you meet that one actress at that party a couple days ago?" Taiyo said, back at his place behind the keyboard.

"Oh yeah, what's her name again?" Lao Hu wondered, "Oh! Chan, Cera, right?"

"Oh yeah, she's from America isn't she?" Loq chimed in. Jay rolled his eyes.

"But her family's from China right? I forgot where..." Da-ge added.

"Hong Kong. My family's from Hong Kong." A new voice sounded at the door of the practice room.

"Wow, " Lao Hu said with his flashy smile, "You're timing is impeccable."

She smiled and fluttered her eyes, "I've been told that several times."  She had milk chocolate colored hair that fell in a pretty, bouncy wave to the top of her shoulders. Her bangs swept across her forehead, held in place with a white ribbon headband. Wearing a peach colored flowery top, cropped white pants, and white sandals, she was the essence of a piece of  sweet candy that everyone wanted to have.

Da-ge just stared at her through his small crescent eyes, mouth slightly open, as if he had never seen a girl before. Lao Hu blatantly flirted up a storm with his eyes and smile. Loq cast quick, smoldering glances over, trying to look like he was busy tuning his bass. Taiyo didn't look at her at all, pretending to focus on the little tune he was playing on the keyboard, but he made sure to be alert and hear everything said. However, she only had eyes for Jay. Jay stood the furthest away from the door, holding his guitar and the power cord in his hands.

"I said I'd come visit you Jay." Cera started, "Here I am."  All the other members turned to stare at Jay now. He just looked at the ground and shrugged.

"Uh...we were just about to practice...so..." Jay plugged his guitar into the amp and moved the microphone stand into place.

"Oh perfect! I was hoping I could watch you guys practice!" Cera walked further into the room, looking for a place to sit.

"Well...we don't usually let other people..." Jay started, but Lao Hu jumped in before he could finish,

"But you, miss Cera, are more than welcome to stay and listen...and watch." Lao Hu winked at her and turned around to glare at Jay for a second then turned back to Cera with his flashy smile. Jay rolled his eyes at Lao Hu and got ready to play. Cera picked up the notebook from Jay's chair and sat down. Looking over it quickly, she giggled.

"These lyrics are very interesting."  She said, giggling cutely.

"Jay wrote them for the girl he likes!" Da-ge chimed in with a big smile on his face. Jay whipped around to glare at Da-ge. His smiled disappeared in an instant, and he slunk back to sit behind his drums.

"Ah..." Cera looked up through her long lashes at Jay, "Who are these lyrics about?"

            Jay scratched the back of his head nervously, feeling himself turn pink again, "Well...uh...I.." He didn't know what to say, his manager asked him to write a love song but he had no idea what love is. Cera let out a little gasp,

"Oh! It couldn't be about me could it?" She looked at him with as innocent of eyes as she could manage.

"What?!" Jay blurted out, surprised. She only giggled in response,

"Don't worry, I won't question you anymore about it." She looked away shyly. Jay not knowing what to say, Taiyo took over the lead and said,

"Let's practice." 

            Jay shook his head, clearing out the weird thoughts, and lifted the guitar strap over his head. As soon as the music started, Jay's internal conflicts seemed to be lost. The constant beat of the drum in the background helped keep him steady. The fancy technique and runs on the keyboard encouraged him to put his own skills to the test. The bass, as much as he hated to admit, made the song sound full and complete. The other guitar that accompanied him, made it so he didn't feel alone, and helped pick up the mistakes he would sometime make. Only then was he able to approach the microphone and sing the words his heart had put into his head. 

            Cera sat there, legs crossed, hands clutching Jay's notebook. She stared at Jay as he sang and played his guitar, replaying the last few moments in her mind. She visualized the look on his face when she asked him about his song. "He blushed!" she thought to herself. "He totally likes me. He couldn't find the confidence to ask me to stay and watch, he had to tell his friend to tell me to stay!" She sighed and admired the rock star in front of her wearing black skinny jeans,  combat boots, and a large black t-shirt. "Even his style is so handsome!" Cera fan-girled internally. "His roots are showing through his blonde hair and he still looks so cool! Oh look how it gets all messy when he shakes his head!"  Her face glowed with excitement.

            Jay was immersed in his music, but in the split second he looked up he saw a goofy look on Cera's face. She had the widest smile on and she was staring intensely at him. It threw him off for a second and he strummed the wrong chord, but he immediately focused back on the music, rolling his eyes at the stupid situation he was in.

            Cera about jumped out of her chair in happiness. "Oh my god he looked at me!" She fixed her hair quickly. "He even played a wrong note he was so mesmerized by me! He definitely likes me! He's even cooler when he rolls his eyes!"

When the song finally ended, Cera jumped up clapping. "That was amazing! I was captivated the whole time!" Her eyes still glued to Jay.

"Oh...thanks..." Jay had his eyes on the door, itching to get out. Cera walked closer,

"I actually have tickets to a local band's concert tonight. Their music sound is kind of similar to yours."

"That sounds awesome!!" Da-ge ran up from his spot in the back. "We'd love to!! How many tickets do you have?" Taiyo elbowed him, nodding his head in the direction of Jay.

"Oh...you probably want to go with just Jay..." Da-ge mumbled, clearly disappointed.

"Uh...actually..." Jay stuttered nervously, "Uh, Lao Hu! Didn't we say this morning we were going to karaoke?"

"Well you said it was a stupid idea..." Lao Hu started, but Jay cut him off,

"So sorry Cera. We'd love to go to a concert with you, but you know, I already made some commitments."  Jay unplugged his guitar, rushing to leave the little room that seemed increasingly more claustrophobic. Cera gave him a "seriously" look.

"Karaoke? Over a concert?" She asked, exasperated.

"Yeah." Jay answered. "I know most of the people in the bands around here, so I'm sure I could get tickets some other time." He grabbed his notebook that Cera still clutched in his hands. She held onto it. Jay looked into her eyes, trying to convey how crazy he thought she was through his gaze. Cera looked up at him thinking, "Oh my god, he's trying to seduce me with his eyes! Stay calm." Jay tugged on the notebook a couple times and she let go of it. "Yeah, she's crazy." He confirmed to himself.  

"Fine." She said, trying to sound cool, "I guess karaoke sounds fun too." she said, flipping her hair, "when should I meet you guys?"  Jay looked shocked,

"What? You're coming too?"

"Of course she should come! I invited all the classical musicians, so you should have a friend to hang out with too." Lao Hu said excitedly.

"We'll be at the karaoke place at 7. Please make sure to come." said Da-ge in an almost pleading voice.

"Sounds good." Cera said, trying to sound casual. Jay looked at his friends, trying to ask with his eyes what in the world they were trying to do. They all glared back at him, as if saying "just go along with it."

"Cool. See you there." with that, Jay swung his guitar case over his shoulder  and made his way out of the room, kicking the door open with frustration, leaving it hanging open behind him.

"Don't mind him," Da-ge tried to explain, "He just doesn't know what to say to such a pretty girl like you." He laughed nervously. Cera stared at the open door Jay had just walked through. A little pout on her lips and an eyebrow raised, as she spoke her mind out-loud.

"He totally likes me." With another flip of her hair, she strut out of the room, the little heel on her sandals clicking on the ground. As soon as she was out of ear shot, Lao Hu let out a laugh. Loq chuckled, saying,

"She's a piece of work isn't she?"

"I know right?" Lao Hu laughed, " Did you see the way she was staring at Jay while we were playing?"

"She seems a little full of herself too." Taiyo chimed in.

"Yeah..." Loq smiled a little smirk, "I like it." That stopped Lao Hu's laughing.

"What? You like her? I thought you were all about Isabelle?"

Loq set his bass down and grabbed his bag, swinging it over his shoulder,

"Yeah, she's alright." He lifted his hand to gesture goodbye and left the room as well. Lao Hu, Da-ge, and Taiyo were left alone in the room, looking at each other in confusion.

"But I think Isabelle's really cool." Da-ge looked at the ground, speaking quietly.

"Yeah, Loq just doesn't know what's good for him." Taiyo grabbed his sheet music and signaled to the others with his head, "Come on, let's go."  Da-ge, head still hanging low, followed him, tugging on Lao Hu's arm. Lao Hu just stood there, staring at the spot where Loq was just standing.

"Why...?" He started quietly.

"Why what?" Taiyo asked. Lao Hu snapped out of his trance,

"Huh? Oh nothing..." He turned around and followed them out of the room. As he closed the door behind him, he couldn't help thinking about it, "Why do I feel like I want to protect her?" He thought to himself. He flashbacked to that moment a couple months ago at the summer beach house, where Jay told him in the kitchen that Isabelle was actually their childhood friend Fenghuang. Lao Hu didn't believe it, but the longer he observed her and talked to her, the more he began to feel that connection. "No...it's not her. Loq is no different than you, he just wants to have a little fun." He told himself as he slowly walked down the hallway, looking at the back of Da-ge and Taiyo's heads. "Chang Da Sun. Yang Wen Tai." He thought back to their childhood days, "Do you remember who we were?"

­­______

            Jay strode quickly down the hallway, trying to get away from the practice room as fast as he could. "They're shameless... what do they think they're doing." He mumbled under his breath. Annoyed that they were trying to push him together with Cera. Then he heard the clicking of shoes behind him, and sure enough,

"Oh! Jay! Wait up!"

He didn't look back, but instead started to speed up.

"Wait up!" She called again, her heels clicking a little faster. Jay fast walked, almost jogging, and sped around a corner.  He looked around and found himself in a little hallway of practice rooms.  He tried the first door to his left, but it was locked. Shaking it hurriedly, he let out a shout of frustration. He tried the next one down, but it was locked too. Finally he turned to the door on his right, and the handle turned. He barged in, slamming the door behind him and locking it. He leaned his forehead against the door, letting his heart rate slow down.

"Jay? Where are you?" Came Cera's voice in the hallway. Jay held his breath. Then another voice came out of nowhere, making him jump,

"Uhm...what are you doing?"

Jay whipped around, startled. Isabelle sat at the grand piano positioned in the middle of the little room, hands still on the keys.

"Jay! Where did you go?!" Cera called again, rattling the door handles of the locked practice rooms.

"Uhh...who's..." Isabelle started, but Jay dashed over and covered her mouth with his hand. He knelt in front of her, pleading with his eyes, shaking his head. Isabelle looked down into Jay's dark eyes, then down as his hand across her mouth. She sat still and complied, returning Jay's gaze. The door handle of the practice room rattled and Cera's voice called out Jay's name. The two jumped at the sound. Jay jumped up and slid on the piano bench,  holding onto Isabelle's shoulders as he cowered behind her.

            Isabelle sat still on the piano bench, not knowing what was going on. "Who is he hiding from? Why is he hiding?" She thought to herself. All of a sudden she was startled by the rattling of the door knob. Jay had jumped onto the piano bench behind her, hanging onto her shoulders. "What is he so afraid of?" She could feel the tension in his hands and feel his heart beat beating from his chest, quickening all of a sudden. "Why is he sitting so close?" She frowned, "Why am I not moving away?" She realized. "He smells...nice. I wonder what cologne that is...Wait what am I thinking?!" She shook her head, flipping her long hair over her shoulder and turned around to face him. They heard the footsteps outside the door fade away. Jay was staring at her chin for some odd reason.

            Jay hid behind Isabelle for a couple seconds before realizing he had his hands on her shoulders. He realized just how close he was sitting to her, he felt his heart start racing. Then Isabelle shook her head lightly and brushed her long hair past her shoulder. "Her hair..." Jay stared at the back of her head absentmindedly, "...smells like flowers." He was so entranced with just being near Isabelle, he had completely forgotten about Cera until he heard the loud click of her heels fading away. Finally he realized that Isabelle was looking at him. "Dude, she's looking at you, say something." He found himself staring at her chin. "Snap out of it, snap out of it!" He yelled internally. He lifted his hands off her shoulders and abruptly turned toward the piano, looking up at the sheet music on the stand and nodded towards it.

"You...you were practicing that?" he asked in a low voice.

            Isabelle followed his eyes over to the piano, thinking to herself, "I guess he's not going to tell me what that was about. I don't care anyway." She didn't answer his question, but turned to place her hands on the keys.

            Jay watched as Isabelle slowly began to press the keys. Her left hand maneuvered up and down the octaves, playing a minor arpeggio that cried and sobbed as her right hand sung out a sad story that lamented and longed to be happy again.  He let himself get drawn into the story, visualizing the images that the sounds described, and began attaching memories from his own life to each note. He remembered his childhood and how he could never lose himself in classical music until now when Isabelle's rendition of Chopin's nocturne mesmerized him.  He remembered how he could only concentrate on the piano and what he was playing when Fenghuang was there listening. He remembered how Fenghuang was the first to find out about his dreams of being a rock star, and how she was there to comfort him when he felt like crying. He remembered how every time after that, when he felt like he couldn't be strong anymore, he would think of Fenghuang and it would give him strength to push on.

            Jay slowly looked up from the piano and let his gaze fall upon Fenguang's face. "No..." he thought, "She's Isabelle now. You promised yourself not to get into it." But he couldn't pull his gaze away from her face. Her large, doe eyes followed the movement of her hands, blinking every now and then. For the last couple months he had tried to avoid her, but every time he looked at her, he couldn't look away, as was the case at that very moment.

            The music slowed down to a finish and Jay knew what he was feeling. He had to admit the truth, to both himself and Isabelle. He couldn't hide from it anymore.

"Hey..." He said all of a sudden. Her head turned to look at him, the last note of the piece echoing as she kept her foot on the pedal.

"I..." he started, faltering as she looked at him intently.

"I...you...I mean..." Jay felt his face grow hotter.

"I...I love..."

*These are the translated lyrics of a song sung by Park Shin Hye in the Kdrama Heartstrings. ;) 

Give a Second: part 2

Final part.

Nara went to work at the café the next 3 days without hearing from him, which didn’t surprise her at all. She hoped his mother was doing well and he wasn’t too stressed out. However, on the 4^th day, she got a text message from him. “Can we meet at your café again tomorrow?”

“Sure,” she texted back. She didn’t have anything planned for tomorrow afternoon, so why not? She also texted him the time when her shift ended.

The next day, after her shift ended, she found him waiting on the bench where she had first approached him. He stood. “Thank you for meeting me,” He said, bowing his head a bit.

“Sure, I wasn’t doing anything else interesting today,” She smiled.

“So, I can’t take my mother to see anything outside of the hospital, but I was wondering if we could go to a few interesting places, and take some pictures? That way I can show her what I can take her to see when she’s well. And I thought you might be able to help me figure out where to go,” He looked hopeful.

Nara nodded, happy to help. “Well there are few places I think we should go that your mother would probably like to see someday.”

Quon He nodded, and they walked over to his car and got in. As they drove, Quon He connected his iPod to his car and the sounds of a cello and violin began to waft over them

Nara had a jolt of recognition, “Passacaglia,” she said, smiling.

Quon He nodded. “You play cello right? Have you ever played it?”

Nara shrugged. “I tried to once, with a friend, a few years ago, but we were too busy and never finished learning it.”

Quon He nodded pensively. They were quiet for a minute or two, as the music continued. Then Quon He looked over, a little bit more seriously this time. “Do you want to play it? The passacaglia? I was thinking maybe we could learn it and play it at the hospital. A lot of the people could use cheering up.”

Nara was a bit startled at this suggestion, learning a piece like that took a bit of dedication. “Well, I would like to, I wouldn’t mind doing it, but I’ll have to practice some. No guarantees.”

He nodded, and smiled widely. “We can practice.”

“Turn right here,” Nara gestured to a road that lead of the main highway. They pulled into a parking lot that was half full. A short walk away was a lighthouse. It was a beautiful day, with the sun beaming on the water, and the lighthouse overlooking the ocean was stunning. They climbed out of the car and walked over to the base of the lighthouse. It was quiet, there were a few groups of people scattered around eating lunch on park benches or taking pictures.

“Want to climb up?” Nara asked with a smile. Quon He nodded and they started around the steps that wrapped around the tower. By the time they reached the top they were a bit out of breath. The wind was stronger up here, whipping around Nara’s hair and causing their eyes to water a bit. The view from the top was spectacular. Quon He pulled out his camera and began to take pictures.

------

A few mornings later, when Nara wasn’t busy, Quon He swung by her apartment and picked her and her cello up. “Where should we practice?” He asked her.

“Drive about a mile north of here. There’s a park where people sometimes play music. I think if we stay in the shade of a tree our instruments will be fine, and it’s not too windy today so hopefully the music won’t blow away.” Quon He nodded and accelerated the car. “I practiced yesterday, so hopefully I’ll be able to keep up a little bit,” Nara smiled, looking out the window and observing the pedestrians on the street. “There it is!” She pointed as they approached the park. She grabbed her cello from the trunk of the car and began to roll it over to a large tree that had a bench underneath it. People were walking along a walking path, and children were playing in a near by park. Quon He followed her over to the tree and they each took out their instruments. Nara had also brought two collapsible music stands that they now set up and used to hold the music.

“Alright, should we just start from the beginning and see how far we get?” asked Quon He. Nara nodded. Quon He raised his violin to his chin and gave a nod, and they started. The notes came out at first a bit stiff sounding, and at first the sounds of the cello and violin did not fit together quite right. Then they picked up on each other’s cues and the subtleties of each other’s musicality, and the music began to flow better. They made it all the way through the piece without having to stop. When they reached the end, They both looked up and grinned a bit. “Okay, I think that was pretty good!” Quon He said enthusiastically.

Nara nodded, “Yeah, although I guess there were a few places we should try and clean up a bit.”

They began to work backwards through the music together, marking places that needed different inflections and expression.

The next time they played the piece through, the people walking past began to slow, and some even stopped. A few children from the park dragged their parents over to listen. The notes came out stronger this time, as Nara leaned over her cello and Quon He pulled the pitches from his violin. By the time they had finished a small crowd had formed. When the last note was drawn, there was applause and children bounced about excitedly.

Quon He drove Nara home, and said he would text her with the best time to come to the hospital. “You’re very good at the cello.”

“You’re not so bad at the violin,” she laughed a bit. “Do you ever play it for acting roles?”

He shook his head, “No one has ever asked me to. I don’t know why, maybe they don’t know I play? But honestly, sometimes it’s hard to watch other actors fake playing an instrument.”

Nara laughed and agreed, waving goodbye as his car pulled away from the curb.

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One week from their rehearsal day, they agreed to perform at the hospital. When they arrived some patients were already gathered in seats around a common area, where two music stands and chairs awaited. Quon He went and spoke briefly with a Chinese lady sitting in a wheel chair who must have been his mother, she smiled a bit, and then Quon He joined Nara in taking out their instruments. Quon He and Nara had agreed on a few solo pieces they could play as well. First Quon He started. A hospital patient who knew how to play the piano would be accompanying them. First Quon He played a Tango that was very virtuosic and upbeat. Then Nara sat down and played a movement of a cello sonata.

Once both had played a solo piece, they each sat and tuned to the piano. Quon He looked up, ready to play, and seeing that Nara was also ready, raised his violin and gave the gesture to start.

The notes came forth, some slower, some faster, dancing around each other. This time they were even better than when they played in the park, and a hospital employee was filming them from the back of the audience. When they finished playing, the patients clapped, and they looked happier than they did at the beginning of the performance. Nara hoped she and Quon He had made the patients' day better.

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Nearly a week later, Nara came into work and one of her coworkers gave her a note, saying someone had left it for her. On the front it said her English name, but the actual note itself started by addressing her by her Chinese name.

“Chun Feng, thank you for helping me show my mother, even just through pictures, some of this area and helping me bring music to the hospital patients. We are heading back to China, but I do not like saying good bye. Instead I want to thank you for being a good friend, and I invite you to contact this number whenever you have time to come to China, I can help arrange it and show you around Fujian.” Attached was a business card with the number she assumed he had referred to. The note made Nara smile a bit, although she was a bit sad he hadn’t come by to say good bye in person. Spending time with Quon He had been interesting. Maybe she would have to take him up on his offer to visit China.

Give a Second: part 1

So this is just a short story in two parts, not really all that interesting, but it helped me practice my writing.

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The café was not too far from a sunny beach, where many tourists roamed and surfed and played. It was busy today, as the weather was good and it was early summer. Tourists came in droves, and nearly all of the tables were full. Nara had her hands full, carrying a tray of food to a waiting table. She smiled politely at them, a family of 5. She turned and almost bumped into another waitress. “Oh! Sorry!” stammered Nara before making her way to another table to refill glasses of water. “Is there anything else I can do for you?” she asked them. Most of the time people answered this question with a no, but occasionally someone would want something else. More bread, a drink, something. This table didn’t though, so Nara turned away. Shela, the hostess, caught Nara’s eye and waved her over.

“Hey Nara, do you mind seating someone?” Nara nodded, grabbing a menu, and looking towards the person Shela was pointing to. There was one small table left at the back, halfway behind a potted plant, so she would have to seat the person at that table.

“Excuse me, sir. Hi, we can seat you now, if you’ll just follow me.” The man, who had been staring at his cell phone, nodded, sticking his phone in his pocket and following Nara between tables. The man piqued Nara’s interest. He wasn’t much older than she was, probably 22 or 23, tall, Asian, and alone. He didn’t seem like he was from around here, or this country. Maybe he was an international? When they reached the table, Nara indicated for him to sit. “Is there anything you would like to drink?” She asked in a bright voice.

“Water is good,” he said, settling into the chair. Definitely had a foreign accent.

“Alright, I’ll be back to take your order soon,” and with that Nara turned away. She was stopped by a few tables asking for one thing or another before she reached the glasses and water pitcher. On her way back to the back table she noticed the man intently staring at the menu, occasionally checking his phone, as if he was waiting for an important phone call. He massaged the back of his neck with a hand, holding the menu with the other. Nara walked over slowly, worried that he still hadn’t decided on what to order. He looked up when he saw her approaching.

“Hi! Are you ready to order?” She smiled, trying to be cheerful. He looked kind of stressed out and grim.

He shrugged a bit and asked her, “What do you recommend?”

Nara pointed to number 17 on the menu. “The ratatouille crepe is good. Or number 6, the paella.”

He nodded, “Those are fine.”

“Both?” asked Nara, a bit confused. He nodded, looking back down at his phone, as if dismissing her. She shrugged, turning and walking over to the kitchen with the order written down.

Nara brought the finished dishes to the man’s table. “Do you need anything else?” She asked politely. He shook his head in response.

As Nara made her way around the room, refilling drinks and taking orders, she kept glancing back at the man. He picked at the food, not eating much. A few times in the next hour she went over to see if he needed anything else, but each time he dismissed her. The café began to quiet down, the lunch rush ending. The Asian man kept sitting in the corner, giving no indication that he was planning on leaving soon. Nara finally walked back over, when only 4 other customers were left in the whole café. “Do you need anything else? A box?” Nara looked at the food, which was only a quarter, at most a half, gone. She set down the bill. He took out a credit card.

“Oh. Yes. Thank you,” He spoke as if distracted, his voice moving with a Chinese accent that was very familiar to Nara. It was a bit like her Mother’s accent, although now that her mother had lived here for a long time the accent wasn’t very prominent. As a matter of fact, he spoke English very well for someone from China. Maybe an international student?

Nara returned with two boxes and the recipet a few minutes later, reluctant to disturb him again. “Here you go, Mr. Quon He. I hope you enjoyed!” He looked up at her, as if a bit startled.

His eyebrows shot up a bit, and he actually looked at her, not as he had looked at her before, not really seeing, but this time actually taking in her appearance. “You speak Chinese?” Nara was surprised, and then she realized he must have been able to tell since she pronounced his name correctly. Even so, she hadn’t used proper form. Mr. Quon He. Quon He would be his first name in Chinese, surname Lee.

“Yes,” she replied. He nodded, then looked back at his phone, as if his curiosity was satisfied and he no longer needed any more information.

20 minutes later, at the end of Nara’s shift, she shrugged on her coat and grabbed her bag before heading outside to catch the bus. It was midday now. She walked towards the bus stop, and then paused. Lee Quon He was sitting on a bench. She was about to walk past, but changed her mind at the last second, approaching slowly. Did he need help with something? He seemed so distracted and almost distraught when he was at the café. “Lee Quon He?” She asked cautiously, not wanting to intrude, but she felt like she should at least see if there was anything she could do for him. He looked up, startled. She switched to Chinese. “I don’t want to bother you, but is there anything you need help with? Is your cell phone not working?” She suggested, noticing that his cell phone was still in his hand. “Or do you want some other food?” She looked at the boxes of leftovers, wondering if he didn’t like them.

He stared at her a moment, as if he didn’t know how to respond. Then the corner of his mouth turned up, just a little bit. “You speak good Chinese,” he said.

This startled Nara a bit, then she smiled a bit too, “You speak good English.”

He shrugged in response, “It’s okay, but tiring. I had to study a lot before I got my first job here. What is your name?”

So he worked here. “Nara. Chun Feng in Chinese.” He nodded.

“My cell phone is okay.” He hesitated a moment before continuing. “But do you know of a good Chinese restaurant around here?”

Nara’s smile grew. “Of course. Close by too. I can show you, I was thinking of eating there actually.” She realized she probably should have been concerned with stranger danger, but he seemed harmless enough, and she figured it would be fine if they stayed in public places. He nodded and stood, and she started heading towards the bus stop, before he stopped her.

“Do you mind if we take my car?” Nara looked where he was pointing, at a black sports car. Nara was a little bit concerned, but she was the one that had asked him to go to the restaurant, and she didn’t want to inconvenience him by making him take the bus back here. Wasn’t it a bit unusual for someone their age to have such a nice car?

“Sure. That’s fine,” She said, and they headed to the parking lot. The day was sunny, and he rolled down the roof. It was a convertible. Nara started directing his driving, and then they were quiet for a minute.

Suddenly he asked, “So you’re parents are from China?”

“Only my mother,” Nara responded. He nodded as if this made sense. “My mother is from Fujian.”

This piece of information seemed to surprise him, and his eyes grew a bit wide. “I am originally from Fujian.”

“What?! Really?” Nara laughed a bit, what were the chances? He nodded, smiling again. Nara pointed to the right, and there was the restaurant. It was not very large, but it was popular among the Chinese population of the city. They had the best noodles and steamed buns.

A waitress led them to a table by a window, handing them two menus. Lee Quon He looked around at the other customers, smiling when he saw the food they were eating. “It smells good,” He said, looking back at the menu. The menu was in Chinese, with bad English translations. “Ah, fótiàoqiáng, is it good here?” He asked Nara. She nodded. “And poh pia. Jiaozi, baozi, Cong you bing. I should get some for my mother.”

The waitress came back, ready to take their orders, but before either Nara or Quon He could speak she exclaimed, “Oh! Oh! Oh my! You’re Lee Quon He! Right?!” Nara looked surprised, Quon He’s mouth parted slightly, as if he wasn’t sure what to say. People from a few of the other tables looked up, saw him, and then began to talk excitedly. Some people got up and walked over to their table.

“Lee Quon He! Can we have your autograph?” seemed to be the question coming from most of the people. Nara was shocked. Was he famous for something? What was happening? Lee Quon He got over his own speechlessness, and smiled and nodded, taking out a pen and signing the napkins and papers handed to him. It took another minute before things had quieted down and they could order.

When the waitress had left, Nara raised an eyebrow questioningly. She wasn’t really sure whether to ask or not. As it turned out, she didn’t have to, Quon He provided the information without being questioned. “I’m an actor in China, although I have had roles here before. I’m not usually recognized here though.” He said it nonchalantly, like he was just observing the weather or telling her he was a plumber.

Nara nodded slowly, “So are you here filming something now?”

His facial expression changed again, back to being concerned, his brow furrowing. “No…” he trailed off for a moment. “I’m here with my mother.” He paused a moment, brushing the hair away from his face with a hand. It was then that Nara noticed the bracelet on his wrist, a bracelet from a hospital.

“Oh,” Nara said softly. She guessed, “Your mother is in the hospital?” He looked up, a bit surprised, and nodded.

“She’s getting surgery. That’s why we’re here, there is a specialist here that was recommended to me. I was hoping I could take her some time, just to be a tourist and see what it’s like, but unfortunately we are here under these circumstances.”

Nara nodded. Then the waitress came back with a tray filled with many different dishes. “Thank you,” Nara said, smiling to the waitress. She smiled at Nara a bit, but her smile was even wider for Quon He. The fame clearly had effect on other people.

When the waitress left, they began to dig into the food with chopsticks, Quon He a bit more gracefully than Nara. Nara used chopsticks, but certainly not as frequently as someone living in China. Nara did love eating good Chinese food though, and she quickly began placing items on her plate.

“So what about you?” Quon He said between bites. “You know things about me now. How about your story?”

Nara shrugged, pulling some noodles onto her plate before speaking. “Well, you know I work at a café, and my mother is from Fujian. I guess I’m also a college student.”

Quon He nodded. “You go to school around here? What are you studying?”

“I go to school north from here a bit, at Stanford. I’m studying microbiology and immunology, also music.”

“Music? What do you play?” Quon He seemed interested in that bit of information.

“I play the cello,” Nara said, she looked up at Quon He for a moment, and noticed the scar on his throat, close to his jaw. “You play violin?”

“Yes,” He smiled and nodded, pointing at his violin scar, noticing that her eyes had gone to his neck.

When they finished eating, Quon He asked for several to go boxes, and packed up the remaining food. “There. I can treat my mother to some good Chinese food, I’m sure it’s better than the hospital food.”

“So it was good?” Nara asked, smiling. Quon He nodded.

“Thank you. It was good to have a distraction. My mother told me to get out the hospital today, but I wasn’t really sure what to do except sit and look at my phone and wait for an update on her health.”

Nara smiled, “No problem.” The doors of the restaurant clinked shut as they left. “Alright, well I hope everything turns out well, but if you need any help or just some distraction for a day, here’s my phone number,” Nara scribbled her number on a scrap paper and handed it to him.

“Thank you,” Quon He nodded an accepted the paper. “Do you need a ride home?”

“Nah, I’ll just take the bus,” She smiled and waved as he left in his sports car.

When Nara got home, she gave into curiosity and googled Quon He. It was true, he was a pretty famous actor in China, and he had even been in a few fairly well known movies in the United States.