Just before entering the studio, Jun took a deep breath, fixed his jacket, and pretended to act natural.
"I'm here."
Kenji, who was already setting up the instruments, pulled a crumpled sheet from his pocket and waved it in the air, all excited.
"C'mon Jun, let's rehearse a new song."
Confused and surprised, he reacted:
"A new song? Since when do we have a new song?"
"Since you wrote it," Kenji replied, smiling.
"I wrote it?" Jun let out a laugh. "I don't remember that."
Without saying anything else, Kenji handed him the paper. Jun took it, quickly scanned the lines, and his expression immediately changed.
"Man, where did you find this?" he said, handing it back, trying to act indifferent. "This isn't a song. I was just… I don't know, scribbling nonsense."
"Nonsense?" Kenji raised an eyebrow. "This has rhyme, it has feeling. It's exactly the kind of ballad we've been looking for."
"I don't want to play this song."
"Stop it," Kenji cut in firmly. "This song is great. Come on, let's work on it."
He grabbed his guitar and sat beside him.
"I was thinking about this progression here…"
The notes began to fill the room. Jun watched for a moment, then leaned in, joining the rhythm and picking up his guitar.
"Hmm… what if it's like this?"
He adjusted the melody, making the sound deeper, more emotional. Kenji watched him. He knew that deep, melancholic melody was exactly what his friend's heart wanted to say—but he was hiding it.
Little by little, the two of them began building something together.
"It's getting perfect," Kenji said, glancing sideways. "Where did this inspiration come from?"
The question wasn't innocent; he already knew exactly where it came from.
Uncomfortable, Jun stood up, walked to the mini fridge, grabbed a beer, opened it with a sharp crack, and took a sip before answering:
"I don't know. I already told you… it was just scribbles to pass time."
He sat back down, uneasy and avoiding any eye contact.
"Let's stop for today. My throat's getting scratchy."
Kenji knew exactly the reason for his friend's discomfort.
"Sure. We'll continue tomorrow. I'm sure this song is going to be special. What should we call it?"
Jun looked out the window and answered:
"Cherry Blossom."
"I like it…"
The silence in the studio made space for thoughts they had been avoiding earlier. Kenji leaned his elbows on his knees and asked his friend:
"So, have you seen Sayuri since what happened at the party?"
Jun didn't even look at him.
"You know I haven't."
"Don't you think you should talk to her? Apologize, or even explain why you kissed her? By the way… why did you kiss her?"
"I ask myself the same question every night…"
"Maybe you like her…" Kenji whispered.
Jun let out an irritated sigh, cutting him off:
"I don't know what you're trying to do. It was just a kiss, and I kiss girls all the time."
He turned his face away, his gaze cold, but Kenji didn't back down.
"You know that's not true. And it looked like you were jealous of her at the party."
Jun rolled his eyes, grabbing another beer.
"There's no jealousy," he tried to deny. "I just stopped that man from taking advantage of her. She's very naive… and it was that naivety that made her believe a kiss meant something more."
Knowing his friend was lying, Kenji provoked him:
"So, if it's not mutual… you wouldn't mind…" he tilted his head. "…if I went after her?"
He paused.
"Because let's be honest… she's beautiful and intelligent…"
Jun stood up before his friend could finish:
"I'm leaving. I can't stand this conversation."
Kenji laughed.
"You think she wouldn't fall for me?"
"Ha…" Jun let out a dry laugh.
Jun grabbed his jacket, already walking away.
"You act like this is a game, and you don't even like her. She's not your type, so why would you do that?"
Kenji shrugged.
"She might not be my type, but I'd win easily. Especially if you don't want her, I'd be doing you a favor. I'd help her forget you."
Jun got on his bike and revved it.
"Good luck…"
Kenji burst out laughing.
"Sure…" he murmured. "Let's see how long you can keep this up."
His expression changed.
"And me… I'm going to have a lot of fun."
But there was something beyond provocation. Kenji loved games, and he had already thought of a plan—not to hurt, but to prove how hypocritical Jun was being by denying what he felt.
He would get close to Sayuri not out of cruelty, but because someone needed to make Jun stop running from his feelings.
Even if, for that, he had to push his friend to the limit.
"What does he think I was going to say? No? That he can't be with her?" Jun muttered to himself while entering his house. "No way… everything turns into a competition for him…"
"Are you okay, Jun?" his grandmother asked, her voice worried.
"I'm fine, grandma. I'm going to bed… good night."
"Good night, dear."
The sound of the door closing echoed through the hallway. He threw his jacket onto the chair and went straight to the bathroom.
The hot water ran over his body, but it wasn't enough to calm the storm building inside him. His mind was in chaos: denial, jealousy, anger—all at once. Jun ran his hand through his wet hair.
"Damn it…" he murmured, closing his eyes.
Her image appeared again: her smile, her eyes, that innocent, gentle look.
"Since she appeared… my life turned into a mess."
The water kept falling, but the chaos inside him only grew.
"Damn it… I should've avoided it. I need to stay focused on my goals… damn it…" he repeated, softer.
On the other side, Kenji already knew exactly what to do, and before sleeping, he sent Jun a message:
"Tomorrow, rehearsal. Same time — 5 PM."
Jun read it, but didn't reply. He didn't want to deal with anything at that moment. He just closed his eyes and let exhaustion take over.
The next day, Kenji woke up in a great mood, confident, and during breakfast sent another message:
"Rehearsal today. New song. I'll pick you up at 4 — bring Sayuri. Kisses, Kenji."
"Hmm… new song? Interesting…" Yume murmured.
All morning, she tried to convince Sayuri:
"Come on, girl… Kenji wants our opinion, it's a new song."
"Yume, you know I can't…"
"Can't… or don't want to?" she teased, narrowing her eyes. "Because of Jun? I thought that was already in the past."
Sayuri looked coldly at her friend.
"It is in the past, he doesn't interest me anymore."
"Then why avoid it? Unless you still feel something…"
"Okay! I'll go!" she interrupted quickly. "Now can you pay attention in class?"
"Great…" Yume celebrated quietly.
At four in the afternoon, they waited in front of the college. Finally, at 4:20, Kenji's car appeared in the distance, and when he got out, he was well-dressed, handsome, and smelling good.
"Finally," Yume complained, getting in. "I was freezing."
Kenji didn't care, his eyes went straight to Sayuri.
"Hey, cutie… how are you?" He opened the door for her. "You smell… really good today."
Sayuri found the comment strange.
"Thank you… I'm fine."
When they arrived, Kenji, noticing Jun was already inside, walked closer to Sayuri and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.
"Come on, I'm sure you'll have fun."
She, confused by his behavior, only smiled.
When they entered, Jun immediately muttered, seeing his friend with his arm around her:
"This must be a joke…"
"Hey, Jun," Kenji said casually. "Brought the girls to hear our new song."
"I'm not playing that," he answered immediately.
"You will. The song is good."
"That's nonsense."
"Come on, Jun…" Yume joined in. "We want to hear it, right Say? Stop being annoying."
Jun looked at Sayuri, as if searching for approval, but she avoided his gaze.
Tired of the teasing, Jun grabbed Kenji's arm and pulled him aside forcefully.
"What the hell are you doing?" he whispered, irritated. "I'm not playing that!!"
Kenji, calm and provoking:
"Why?" he said quietly. "Is there something special about her?" he was enjoying it.
"You… you don't understand," Jun whispered.
"I'd like to hear it," Sayuri said almost in a whisper.
So, with no way out, he picked up the microphone, exhaled slowly, trying to steady himself. Then Kenji began the first chords.
Jun's heart raced like never before. There was the muse and the music face to face, an apology turned into a song, a silent declaration of love. So what else could happen?
With every verse, every note, he fought himself—but it was useless. His traitorous eyes kept searching for her.
He needed to know, needed to see if she understood those words. And then, during one verse, their eyes met.
The world around them disappeared again. No sound, no space, no time.
Just the two of them, and everything he couldn't say was there—in his eyes, in hers.
There was still feeling, and Jun seemed trapped, as if one step away from her, yet unable to reach her. He wanted to give everything up for her, but just as he was about to let go of his pride and goals, Kenji walked over to Sayuri and started singing along softly in her ear, very close, closer and closer.
That was enough for Jun to snap back to reality. He dropped the microphone and stood up, irritated.
"What a joke…"
"What happened?" Yume asked, confused. "The song is good."
"It's not!" his voice came out harsher. "This is ridiculous."
And, looking directly at Kenji, he said:
"If you wanted that badly… you could've done it somewhere else."
He walked toward the street, but Kenji followed.
"Hey, calm down! I didn't mean anything bad. You said it was fine, remember?"
"Go to hell!" Jun interrupted, turning sharply, his breathing heavy.
"I don't care who you want to be with, but have some decency. You looked like a hunter, and she like your prey. Didn't you see how uncomfortable she was?"
"Her, or you?"
Kenji narrowed his eyes.
"Tell me something: I can't be with her in front of you? Is that some rule of yours, Jun? Are you afraid of what? Of finally admitting you like someone other than yourself?"
Jun stepped closer, frustrated.
"I don't care. I don't care what you think, because you're wrong," he tried to deny.
"It's not about you or her… that horrible song."
"So that's it?" Kenji shot back. "Just because of the song? That's it? So everything else is fine? I can kiss her, hug her, take her to my room and you won't care? Or are you going to get mad when she starts liking me and you lose this game?"
"Game? That game only exists for you. I don't play with people's feelings."
"Are you sure?" Kenji asked, staring at him.
"Yes. Let's go back and I'll prove it."
Kenji was confused. He didn't believe his friend would really ignore feelings that easily.
As soon as they went back inside, Yume stood up, worried.
"What happened? Did you fight because of the song?"
"It's fine," Jun replied quickly. "The song isn't good."
"Yeah…" Kenji added, playing along. "We'll fix it later."
Slowly, the mood returned to normal. They sat down, drank a little, and soon were singing other songs—lighter, more upbeat—almost as if trying to forget what had happened.
Lying on the floor, laughing and talking loosely, Jun watched Sayuri through his glass the way he liked, without anyone noticing. She did the same, but unlike him, she watched him through the reflection of the table.
Kenji noticed Sayuri was cold. Without saying anything, he placed a blanket around her, pulling her slightly closer.
At that moment, she looked at Jun. It was automatic, but he pretended not to see. Kenji, not satisfied, hugged her to warm her, running his hand along her arm:
"I'm heading out…" Jun said, standing up. "I've got plans with someone."
He quickly said goodbye to everyone, and as he got on his bike, he finally looked at her before speeding off into the night.
"Wow… I'm exhausted," Yume murmured. "Kenji, I'm staying here, okay?"
"Of course, you already know where the guest room is."
He then looked at Sayuri.
"And you?" he stepped closer. "Do you want to stay too?"
Sayuri blushed slightly. Kenji, not missing the chance, added:
"You can stay in the guest room too… unless you want company. Then you can stay in mine."
"No!" she answered too quickly, blushing even more. "I'm going home, but… I really enjoyed the night."
"I was kidding, but wait, I'll take you."
"You don't have to, really…"
"No discussion," he said, already taking her hand.
On the way, he tried to get closer to her. Kenji was a man, and even though he was doing it to provoke Jun, he couldn't help but enjoy it a little.
He noticed her voice slowly becoming softer… slower… and before she fell asleep, she whispered:
"I liked the song… especially the kiss you gave me under the moonlight…"
Kenji watched her for a few seconds. So calm, delicate… and beautiful.
"Now I understand," his eyes softened. "Why Jun fell in love with you."