"So, Alia..." Eva began the conversation, her voice soft yet possessing a magnetic pull for attention. "What were your impressions of seeing us on stage earlier? Honestly, I want to hear the opinion of someone with your level of guitar technique."
Alia fell silent for a moment. She stared at her own palms, which were still trembling slightly, a lingering trace of the adrenaline she had felt while watching them.
"Everything..." Alia paused, searching for the right words. "...looked alive."
Just then, their order arrived. The waiter placed three steaming cups on the table. Eva thanked him with a polite smile, then immediately refocused her full attention on Alia.
"Alive?" Eva repeated, prompting Alia to continue.
Alia nodded slowly. "All this time, I've only played correctly. I chased precision, I chased speed, and I thought that was music. But seeing you two earlier... especially Eillya," Alia glanced briefly at the vocalist, who was calmly sipping her drink.
"I realized there's something beyond the sheet music. That voice isn't just a set of notes; it's like a heartbeat. That's what made my chest feel tight while watching, because I realized how 'empty' my own playing has been all this time."
Alia explained everything from her perspective as a guitarist trapped in a technical cage. She spoke of her frustration under the shower spray, her failure to understand Eris's beat, and the painful epiphany she reached while hearing Seele's Aria. To her, "Nameless" wasn't just performing; they were breathing through their instruments.
Eva listened with an ever-widening smile. She felt that the seed she had planted at the music store the other day was finally starting to sprout. She leaned forward, resting both hands on the table, meeting Alia's eyes with a look that was serious yet inviting.
"In that case, what about the offer I made a few days ago at Loralei?" Eva asked. "Want to join us?"
Alia startled slightly. She hadn't expected the invitation to come this quickly, right after she had admitted her own weakness.
"We know what you're feeling, Alia," Eva continued, her voice lowering with conviction.
"That emptiness isn't because you aren't talented. You just need a place to pour those 'feelings' into. We can guide you. We can find a way to bring your guitar to life together. Me with my bass, and Eillya with her voice... we can make something truly whole."
After saying this, Eva glanced toward Eillya sitting beside her. She wanted to ensure this decision wouldn't burden her friend. After all, the identity of "Nameless" belonged to the two of them, and any new member had to be someone Eillya's "heart" could accept.
Eillya set down her cup. She gazed at Alia with her deep sea-blue eyes, as if weighing whether the girl before her possessed enough courage to face the emotional storms they would create in the future. After a long silence, Eillya gave a tiny, almost invisible, yet significant nod.
"I don't mind," Eillya said shortly. "Besides... a melody needs the harmony of a guitar to truly pierce the sky."
Eva smiled with satisfaction, then turned back to Alia, waiting for an answer from the girl currently at the crossroads between lonely technical comfort and a wild emotional adventure.
Hearing Eillya's statement, Alia fell silent for a moment. The vocalist's words about "piercing the sky" seemed to tear away the last shred of doubt clogging her chest. Slowly, Alia rose from her wooden chair. In the middle of the quiet cafe, she bowed deeply toward Eva and Eillya, a formal gesture typical of a Westeria student, showing immense respect and sincerity.
"Please..." Alia's voice trembled but remained steady, "please guide me. Teach me how to make my guitar speak like your voices do."
Eva was taken aback. she quickly stood up and grabbed Alia's shoulders, forcing the girl back upright.
"Oh, goodness! Alia, don't do that!" Eva exclaimed, sounding panicked yet amused. "Gestures like that are way too much for us. We're bandmates-to-be now, not standing in front of the principal. Come on, sit down, sit!"
Eva guided Alia back to her chair with a cheerful movement, thawing the stiff atmosphere. Once Alia sat down, her face slightly flushed with embarrassment, the topic shifted. There was no more emotional pressure, just light chatter about their daily lives, the differences between Rosendale and Westeria, and trivial things like the taste of the coffee they were drinking.
Amidst Eva's soft laughter as she told a funny story about her class, a short vibration hummed from the table. Eva's phone lit up.
Eva glanced at the screen. The contact name consisted of only two letters: A.E.
Eillya, sitting beside her, caught the flash of light from the screen but immediately shifted her gaze to the cafe window, sipping her drink in silence. To her, Eva's privacy was a territory she wouldn't enter unless Eva opened it herself.
Eva opened the message.
"Hey, I heard you're in Keiya, is that true?"
Seeing those lines, Eva's smile changed. It was no longer the cheerful smile she showed Alia, but a deeper, softer smile that held layers of warm secrets. Her fingers moved nimbly across the screen, typing a quick reply.
"Yes, I'm in Keiya. I'll contact you again later when I get home, don't worry."
Eva put her phone back into her bag with a calm movement, as if the message were just a casual greeting, though the sparkle in her eyes suggested that the person with the initials A.E. held a significant position in her plans, or her past.
"So," Eva returned to the conversation, her voice enthusiastic again. "When do the three of us start our first practice?"
"Next week after school?" Alia suggested. "I can clear my schedule at the music store."
"Sounds good. As for the place, I'll find one," Eva added, glancing at Eillya. "The school studio might work for the start, but for the long term, we need a more private place so we can experiment more freely, right?"
Eillya simply nodded slowly in agreement.
The night grew later as they finally decided to head home. At the intersection, they parted ways. Alia walked toward the bus stop with steps that now felt much lighter.
Meanwhile, Eva and Eillya walked side by side toward their residential complex. The atmosphere was silent, only the rhythmic sound of their footsteps on the sidewalk. Eva gazed at the night sky while Eillya maintained her flat stare, but in each of their minds, a new melody was beginning to form.
The identity of "Nameless" was slowly finding its shape, one string at a time.
Those rhythmic footsteps finally stopped in front of the gates of their adjacent houses. Eillya gave only a small nod, a silent farewell that Eva understood perfectly, before disappearing behind her own front door. The silence of the night enveloped the Keiya neighborhood, but in Eva's chest, a secret pulsed loudly, demanding to be released.
Once inside her house, Eva moved with a quiet efficiency. She placed her Crimson Bass very carefully on its stand, as if it were a sacred relic. After cleaning herself of the remnants of stage sweat and road dust, she changed into comfortable pajamas, a pink silk crop top tank top that contrasted with her bright skin.
Eva lay down on her soft bed covered in satin sheets. She took a long breath, staring at the bedroom ceiling for a moment, before finally reaching for the phone that had been vibrating with notifications. Her fingers decisively pressed the video call icon for the contact labeled A.E.
Before ten seconds had passed, the screen flickered to life, showing a visual that would stun anyone who knew Eillya. There, behind the screen, was a girl who visually shared a ninety percent resemblance to Eillya Elciane. However, for Eva, who had known them since childhood, the difference was stark. If Eillya's eyes were a deep, calm sea-blue, then the girl on the screen Amily, possessed a different eye color, reflecting a different "fire" in her soul.
"It's been a long time, Amily~..." Eva opened the conversation with a very familiar tone, followed by a sweet, small giggle. "Well, though technically we haven't met in person again yet, ehehe."
Amily, on the other side, only gave a thin smile, an expression much more alive than the flat face Eillya usually showed. They spent the first few minutes exchanging news about their lives in different cities, small talk to melt the longing that had piled up over the years. However, the atmosphere gradually grew more serious when Amily asked the question she had been keeping on the tip of her tongue.
"So... how is Illya?" Amily's voice trembled slightly; there was a hint of anxiety she hid behind her calm.
Eva adjusted her position, propping her chin on a pillow. "She's doing well, Amily. Very well. In fact..." Eva paused for a second, adding a dramatic effect that made Amily lean closer to the screen. "...she's started singing again. Truly singing with her soul, like she used to."
Amily's eyes widened. A spark of relief mixed with deep sadness appeared there. Eva then began to tell the story in rich detail. She told her how Eillya had become the center of attention at school as the Icy Maiden, how she protected her during the volleyball court incident, and the extraordinary moment on the Live House Horizon stage just hours ago.
Eva explained how formidable Eillya was when arranging her own songs and how she was slowly starting to open up to having new band members. The conversation flowed like a river bursting its banks. Eva shared every small progress Eillya made, every thin smile that appeared, and every high note her friend managed to reach.
Amily listened without interrupting. She seemed to be trying to visualize her younger sister through Eva's words, trying to feel the warmth she couldn't provide directly because of her own walls of trauma and hiding.
However, the immense exhaustion from pouring out her emotions on stage finally began to hit Eva. Her previously enthusiastic voice grew smaller and slower. Her eyelids became heavy, opening and closing in an irregular rhythm.
"She's... really... fighting, Ami..." Eva murmured one last time, before her head slumped to the side and her breathing turned deep and steady. Eva fell fast asleep with the phone still active beside her pillow.
On the other end of the call, Amily was stunned. "Eva? Hey, Eva?" she called softly.
No answer. Only the sound of soft breathing and the rustle of sheets. Amily watched Eva's peaceful sleeping face through the small screen for a few moments.
A sad smile carved itself on her lips. she felt immensely grateful yet felt very small for having to burden her sister's recovery onto Eva's shoulders.
"Thank you for looking after her, Eva," Amily whispered hoarsely, though she knew Eva wouldn't hear it. She took a long breath—a sigh that carried the weight of years of longing.
"Goodnight. Sweet dreams."
Click.
Eva's phone screen went dark. Total silence reigned in the room once more, leaving the two adjacent houses in the dark; one containing a girl rebuilding her memories, and the other containing a girl holding a promise to stay until the dawn finally breaks.