Practice Room Mix-Up [Tenten/Shino][Log]
Who: Shino and Tenten
When: After Tenten's performance of Caprice No. 24
Where: 201 Practice Room
Notes: LOL, Backdated like whoa.
Shino paused, pulling his coat more fully around himself, adjusting the cello case strapped to his back in the process. It wasn't a long walk from his dorm room to the practice rooms, and so he had decided to opt for the soft case instead of the harder one. It was early enough to where he didn't have to worry about someone running into his instrument. Not that they would have come close, of course. Though the brunette wasn't necessarily intimidating by any right, he still exuded an odd kind of aura that kept others at arms-length away. Perhaps it was the shades? Just the fact that he wore them constantly - in public or in private, indoors or out -, was probably enough to ignite a curious flame in any passerby.
His booted feet tapped quietly against the tiled floor, making the softest of sounds as he picked his way through the various practice rooms. Only the faint hum of dissonant noise greeted his senses, his footsteps a gentle staccato to the underlying sound. For the most part, the practice rooms were sound proof, though that didn't keep a stray stream of music from escaping through some uncovered crevice or hole. It was difficult to keep music out of everything - it always had a way of coming back up, louder than before, as if spiteful for having been suppressed in the first place.
Shaded eyes followed the doors as he passed by them, searching out numbers, trying to find the one he had been assigned for that day. There had been a mix up in schedules not too long ago, and so he had been asked to take on an earlier time than before, in a different practice room. It didn't matter much to him - 6 A.M. on a Wednesday morning wasn't exactly ideal, but it didn't clash with any of his classes, so it was easily doable.
Room 201. There it was. Without much thought, Shino gripped the handle lightly and pushed forward, his eyes already straying to his cello as he shrugged the soft case off one shoulder. What he didn't expect, though, was for the door to stop moving abruptly when it was about halfway open. Giving a slight "oomph" as the door knob was thrust unceremoniously into his abdomen, Shino glanced up to find someone else in the room. Shaded eyes locked onto this new person, a moment of confused astonishment flitting across his face before realization set in.
Of course. The schedules had been mixed up.
Tenten looked up from where she'd nearly eaten her bow. "Oh, man, I'm so sorry!" she moved her cello and stood up and pulled her chair away from where it had been blocking the door. Boy, was she glad she had opted out of her ritual morning coffee for practice this go around. She was just about to apologize and be on her way when she remembered she'd booked this room over a week ago, at this godawful hour for the express purpose of practicing in peace and quiet.
So, why didn't anything go as planned for her? The young woman did want to practice but didn't want to come off as a total tool. "Um, so..." Tenten shifted and sat back down, unable to find a point in standing around. "I think there's been a mistake." Right to business then, Cool McShades here would just have to appreciate it.
He took another moment or two to collect himself, calming his face into a look of passive disinterest. Shino was an attentive man, despite the sunglasses blocking his view of the world and turning everything two shades darker. It was obvious in this girl's posture and body language that she wasn't too keen on the thought of giving up this practice room to a complete stranger. For a moment, he considered the possibility of finding another room he might be able to use, but a backwards glance into the hall just outside was enough to prove that none were available.
Which was exactly why he had signed up on the roster in the first place.
"I believe you're right."
A solid look, his motions paused. It couldn't be helped.
Tenten wondered if he was underestimating her. He was just... standing there, like the statues in Central Park. She shifted in her chair and lowered her bow. The last thing she wanted was to seem threatening (though, really, what was a girl to do with a cello between her legs?), and she really did want to figure this whole mess out so that the both of them could get on with their practices.
"So, what should we do about this, um, situation, then? I mean, I'm willing to share practice space with you, but..." she trailed off. Okay, Cool McShades, ball's in your court. If he didn't want to take up the offer, fine, but if he did, they'd have to figure out how not to elbow each other and fit two cellos neatly. "I don't want you to be uncomfortable, either," she motioned between his cello and hers.
"You know?"
He nodded, glancing around the room to gauge just how big it was. Shino already knew these rooms were fairly small, enough to accommodate a single bassist, maybe a few flautists... but two cellos? It would definitely be a stretch. He needed to practice - he had a gig coming up in a month or so, and he still hadn't glanced at the music -, but squeezing in two people to this room would probably not be inductive to doing so.
There was only one thing he could do, really.
"I'll... leave, then."
It would be impolite, otherwise.
"Wait, wait," Tenten held up her hands. "I'm sure we can find a way to situate ourselves that'll be good for the both of us," maybe, she added to herself, trying to accurately judge his size, and his cello's size and jesusfuck he had long legs. He was at least as big as Lee and Kiba. Well, it was a good thing she was so small then, wasn't it?
The sunglasses bothered her. It was six in the morning, after all, and not even the sun had decided to come out and bother them, so what was he doing with them on so early? What was he, one of those Club guys that thought the world was some kind of dark and evil place? Tenten stood up and pulled her chair all the way to the wall, and then settled her cello back between her legs. "We can share the room, if that's okay."
He didn't really know what to say to that suggestion. The practice rooms were tiny, yes, but it wasn't completely unheard of to fit a few people into one of them (For trio practice, or duets.). Then again, those were usually wind players, or violin players... or pretty much anyone with a smaller instrument than a cello.
Shino paused, considering this for a moment. He supposed it could be done... but would it really be all that effective? Wouldn't the playing of one cello drown out the other? Still, he needed that practice time... He had promised Kiba a while ago that he would manage his time better, and make room for socializing (Which, in Shino's mind, directly translated to, "make room for being the designated driver to whatever parties Kiba might drag him to".)
"... Are you sure?" He was still considering the option himself, but it wouldn't hurt to have her opinion.
"Sure, I don't mind listening to another cellist - it'll be beneficial to both of us, you know?" Probably wouldn't hurt that Sunglasses Guy played her instrument too. He had to know how difficult it could be (especially when it was bigger than you, in her case). "And if it doesn't work, and we're totally stepping on each other's musical toes, I'll get out of your hair." After all, she could always find a nice spot upstairs to wake everyone up, bitches practice. Suddenly, she realized that she couldn't keep thinking of him as 'Sunglasses Guy', and had totally forgotten her manners.
"Oh, and I'm Tenten Hsiao, nice meeting you." Tenten half-saluted him and smiled brightly.
He watched her for a moment, perplexed by her easy manner. Had his sunglasses been off, she would have seen the intrigued confusion in his eyes. Shino didn't wear them for nothing - it was hard to be a stoic, composed businessman (for the family company, of course) when every thought or emotion that flit through his head was easily read in his eyes. He had perfected the unaffected voice, and was very good at controlling his facial expression, unless something truly drastic surprised him, but it was those damned eyes that had made him an open book.
He tilted his head, turning his sunglass-clad face towards the far wall so he wouldn't disturb her with the blank, glossy lenses staring her way.
"Shino Aburame," he offered, turning his head back just a fraction so it was easier to tell he was looking at her. Shino had learned long ago how to manipulate the small, seemingly insignificant turns of the head that would speak volumes more than the cool stare of his black shades. His sunglasses were his eyes, to most. People got used to it after a while... usually.
"What are you working on?" he asked, settling into a spare chair in the room, deciding to make the best of this situation. If push came to shove, he would leave himself - it was rude otherwise, wasn't it?
"Caprice 24, Paganini," Tenten replied, flexing her fingers. "I performed it a little while ago, but, I feel like I could've done it better." It didn't matter how good it sounded, she wanted it perfected. Story of her life, right? For a moment, Tenten righted her cello and settled the neck of the instrument properly. She filed his name away and tried to not watch him as she prepared. "I know you from the journals, I think. Kiba's friend?"
She had liked his stonewalling of the big, Kiba-shaped nerd when he got... well, when Kiba was Kiba. She was sure that being childhood friends had given him the same advantage Tenten herself had over Lee (or was that the other way around?). She set her bow across the strings and started back from where she'd been looking at her sheet music.
He nodded once at her question, and realized that he recognized her from the journals, too. Good. At least he wasn't stuck in a tiny room with a complete stranger. Shino unpacked his instrument, pushing the case into some unused corner and making all the tiny adjustments before settling the cello comfortably along his chest. He paused a moment, listening to her practice - she was really quite good - before settling his bow along the strings of his instrument, and pulling it along the wrapped metal, playing a single open "G". He did this a few times, watching how his right arm moved, focusing entirely on it for a moment before pecking out some incomprehensible warm up with his left hand.
Every now and then, he would glance up to peer at Tenten through his shades, watching to make sure he wasn't disturbing her in any way.
Shino was lucky; the discord one heard coming out of the Hsiaos' Music Room at any point during Tenten's childhood was more than enough to learn that one had to "close one ear and open another" as her father would say. Her fingers danced about the strings, teasing them as each sequence of notes became more and more difficult to play.
Oh, Paganini, you were a mean bastard to your string players. Tenten monitored the song quietly, (here, cresendo, there, decresendo...) and paused in the middle to pull a pencil from one of her buns to make a notation. Mindlessly, the girl tapped her foot in time with Shino's warm-up. She looked up for just a second when she felt eyes on her and blinked at him.
Dammit, he'd been caught. Instead of affecting the innocent face that was just itching to make itself known (It would only make him look guilty if he did something like that, after all), the Aburame merely tilted his head towards her in an affirmative gesture.
"You're doing very well," he offered, nodding once towards her left hand, then paused after a moment, wondering if he was in a position to offer constructive criticism. One glance at her face proved that she would undoubtedly be able to handle something so small as that, but still...
"Might I suggest something?"
It was always better to ask beforehand, if all else failed.
"No." Tenten said simply, trying to keep her face firm, though the edges of her lips kept trying to turn upwards.
He blinked once, twice, then slowly averted his gaze to the far wall.
"Oh," he stated simply, truly surprised with her answer. Yes, he had asked a question, and yes, it was he prerogative to answer that question in any way she pleased, but still... He leaned back slightly, letting his shoulders bump along the back of the seat he sat in. It was entirely inadvertent, but for some odd reason his entire demeanor projected a 'wounded puppy' look. Which, honestly, was definitely not what he was going for. In fact, if Shino could have seen himself at that very moment, he would have mentally scoffed, then straightened his shoulders and slid on that cool, collected mask he wore most of the time.
It was early, though. Later, he would blame the time for his reaction.
"I'm kidding; I don't mind hearing crit, especially if it helps me improve - you can only hear yourself so many times before you start missing things, you know?" Tenten sat back in her chair, and watched him, amused and a little ashamed of herself for sending a grown man in to kicked puppy mode.
Though, a small part of her admitted that it was a kind of amusing power, and definitely increased his cuteness score --- not that he'd hear that. Ever. "Go for it."
He blinked again, turning his shaded gaze towards her relaxed form. Teasing, then? Shino wasn't too fond of it - he was a straightforward kind of person - but wasn't completely alien to the idea. He messed with Kiba's head enough, though he'd never admit it openly (It was fun, oddly enough.), but other than that, he'd never had much experience with doing it with other people.
"Mm." The sound was soft, almost question-like, but not quite. Shino had perfected the ambiguous phrase.
"Your right arm. It's not leading your left arm."
He left that at that, a hint of playfulness twisting his lips upwards in the smallest of smirks. Two could play her game.
"...Eh?" Tenten cocked her head to one side and gave him a thousand-yard stare. "What do you mean?" Now she was curious, she thought she'd been doing perfectly fine! Tenten crossed her arms and turned her head to the other side, still regarding Shino like he just spat out a sentence in perfect Mandarin. Or grown a second head.
"Your right arm." This time he repeated it more slowly, drawing his right arm along the open "G" string again to emphasize his point. "It needs to be in charge of your left arm. If your left hand is having trouble playing a passage, it's because your right arm is locking up."
It was something he had learned from a previous teacher, and it had taken him a while to truly understand what it meant. Honestly, he didn't expect Tenten to get it with him simply talking about it... but a man could hope. Shino wasn't too fond of violating people's personal space, after all.
Funny, it hadn't felt like it was. Still, Tenten mimed his movement as best she could, drawing her bow across the open "G" just like he had, "Like this, then?" Hmm, wait, maybe that wasn't right.
...She totally should've just left it at "no."
He wasn't frustrated - he was too patient for that - but he did realize how frustrating it could be to be told something, and not to understand it immediately. He knew that if she pulled her arm outwards more, like a billow, then breathed out as she did an upbow, then the motions of her bow would be much, much smoother. And when she no longer had to worry about the tonal quality produce as a result of her bow arm, then her left hand would be free to relax and play those difficult passages.
Still. It was hard to just explain it.
Sighing softly - he wasn't agitated, it was just something he did - the Aburame settled his cello along the floor beside his seat, then lifted up from his chair, inadvertently towering over the other occupant of the room. (Sometimes he forgot just how tall he was in relation to other people.)
He paused, hesitating, then leaned forward.
"May I?" The motion of his hand indicated that he wanted to touch her arms to show her the motion of what he was talking about. He wouldn't touch her without permission, though.
"Mm..." It was Tenten's turn to make a thinking noise, and she cocked her head to the side again, in consideration. Well, if it would help, it would help, and if he was like Kiba, and tried to cop a feel in the middle of this lesson, she would elbow him in the nose. "Okay." He seemed like a pretty stand-up guy. So.
So. So, maybe she wouldn't have to.
He nodded once, then sidled up behind her, standing a little to her right.
"Like this," he said, then leaned down slightly, wrapping long fingers of one hand around the forearm of her right arm. He manhandled her arm into pulling a down bow, though instead of bringing the arm back, he pulled it more towards the right, outwards, then made a small circling motion, adjusting her elbow slightly so she could do an up bow on the same string, with the same feeling.
"It should feel like you're making a circle." He repeated the motion, leaning down a bit so he was more on her level. "You never push the bow. You pull it both ways - up, and down." His mouth was close to her ear when he said this. Shino hadn't realized how close he had gotten until his left shoulder accidentally bumped along her back. The slight touch jarred him back into reality, and without a second word the brunette dropped her arm and took a quick step back. He mumbled some kind of apology before turning his head to the side to gaze at the far wall as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.
Well... well then! Tenten had been paying attention to his lesson; she honestly, truly had. At least, until there had been breath in her ear and Tenten's brain dirty, dirty, little brain that it was had sent the Danger signal down her spine. Within in the space of a few seconds, there was a bump, and then the scurrying to get back from one another.
While the air was still uncomfortable, Tenten ahemed and turned her head down towards the strings of her cello. "So, ah, a circle, and pull?" she asked, trying to clear the air between them. It felt like her head was on fire from root to neck. "Basically, right?"
Smooth, Hsiao, smooth.
Shino, too, cleared his throat, hoping the simple act would make it easier to breathe in that suddenly stuffy space. His eyes were still averted to the far wall, but her comment drew his gaze back to her smaller form - And no! He most certainly was not checking her out! He was just... making sure she got the movements right, and understood what he was talking about.
"Ah, yes," he offered, rubbing the back of his neck in an offhand gesture. "Pretty much." No more elaboration for him. Elaboration, it seemed, meant an abundance of awkward moments.
He was still standing behind her, and eyed the tiny space he would have to maneuver through to get back to his cello. The chances of him touching her again were pretty high in that small area, and he wasn't too keen on finding out what sort of punishment she could dish out were he to dare do something like that again - accident or no.
Shino quite liked his ability to reproduce, thank you very much.
Well, this was getting the both of them nowhere fast, wasn't it? They weren't looking at each other, and Shino still definitely needed to practice, too, right? That's why they were sharing the room (though, she totally wouldn't blame him if he bolted - he had the longer legs, he'd get 'round the corner and up the stairs faster than she would!) and remembered that her woebegone coffee was still under her chair, somehow safe from their scuffling movements.
Jackpot! Tenten leaned down to grab the cup, and moved to the side to offer him a little leeway back to his cello, and thus, safety. Crisis of uncomfortable air averted! Her hand grasped the styrofoam cup from the top, and Tenten hoped that Shino would hurry. She couldn't keep this pose forever - she left that to the dance kids.
He saw what she was doing, and might have applauded her for that clever little move had he been the type to do something like that. Since he wasn't, he opted to shift around her as quickly as possible instead. Funny, how a minute ago he hadn't even noticed how close he had to come to her just to shift around her seat and help her with her bow arm. Now, he felt entirely too claustrophobic.
He was just sidling around her, his front facing her bent-over form, when the hoody he most usually wore got caught up on something behind him. A slight frown twisted Shino's lips, his shaded eyes slitting slightly as he tilted his head to try and find the source of this little hang up. He felt way too close to the other already - almost scandalously so - and would have liked nothing more than to just pack up his cello and flee the room.
Tenten turned her head to tell him to move, when she came face-to... Well, that wasn't a face, was it? She was millimeters, mere millimeters, from touching her nose to his denim-clad crotch. Though, she was mostly thankful this wasn't Kiba. Somehow, Tenten guessed that would have made it even worse. She made a noise of horror, but it came out weakly in an breathy sigh, and tried jerking her head away before he noticed.
Oh god. Please don't let him notice.
He glanced down at the noise just in time to see Tenten's head whipped off to the side, a look of complete shock lighting her features. It didn't take a genius to come to a conclusion on what had just happened. Had Shino had the presence of mind to blush, he would have done so then and there. Instead, he opted to ignore that that ever happened, and fiddled with his hoodie until he was finally loose from the wall's devilish hold.
And now for the awkward silence.
It was choreographed so perfectly, Shino wondered if he had somehow stumbled into a sick kind of play. If Tenten randomly broke out singing about her woe, he would have his answer.
Tenten wisely kept her mouth shut and sipped her coffee, feeling her ears burn like two little peices of coal attached to her head. He totally noticed. Fuck me running. She avoided his gaze (was he looking at her? She couldn't tell, not with those freaking sunglasses) and tapped her fingers along the neck of her cello, hugging it as if it might save her life.
Maybe this would be totally hilarious in hindsight - because, considering the fact she was probably the same color as a cherry tomato sauteed in butter, it had better damn well be. "Um, any-anyway, I'll keep what you said in mind."
"Mm." He nodded once, a motion entirely ineffective considering the fact that she wasn't looking at him at the moment, then decided the best course of action to take would be that of complete and utter denial.
"Have you ever heard the song 'Julie-O', by Mark Summer?"
Random topic change time. Those most usually followed awkward silences, right? Shino settled back down in his chair, picking up his cello again and resting it against his chest. He leaned towards it, a natural motion, then started playing a few lines of the song he had just mentioned, as an example for the girl sitting across from him.
He was lucky she was instantly distracted by music (oh, what a wonderful Achilles' Heel), and nodded. "Someone played that at my competition a little while back, but, I've never played it myself." She was lucky she'd managed to pay attention to anyone else, seeing as she'd been sick with nerves at the time.
"I remember liking it, though." It was an honest answer as any. Unfortunately, with so many instruments on her plate, Tenten wasn't able to devote herself to any one instrument, and thus, had to skip over things. She fiddled with her coffee cup lid nervously and turned her eyes to his hands, admiring them a moment before stopping herself. They were nice-looking - long and a bit thin, obviously bigger and longer than hers, though.
Why did boys always get the nicest hands? Or hair? Or eyelashes (God, that rankled)? That was damned unfair, if you asked Tenten.
"Would you like to see the music?" He was oblivious to the way she was looking at him, and leaned over to the side to snatch something out of the case he had laid beside him. "I could teach it to you, if you'd like."
It was a fun piece to play. Not too horribly difficult, but it was the rhythms that were tricky, and if you played it well, it was a song most anyone enjoyed listening to. He wouldn't mind teaching her, if she wanted. As long as he didn't have to... ah... get that close again.
A repeat of the last few minutes was not something he would like to experience.
"Sure!" Tenten responded instantly. Paganini could wait, that sadistic bastard, at least for a little while. Besides, it was already six-thirty; it wasn't like she had much longer in the room. "Is that what you're working on now?" she asked, curiously, watching him like a kitten with a shiny ball of aluminum foil.
Certainly, Tenten's parents must have been relieved that she hadn't been kidnapped by mindlessly following one cellist or another (and that Jacqueline du Pré was a whole ocean away).
"For now, yes." To be truly honest, he was actually focusing more on an original composition of his at the moment, but the taller man was oddly protective of the fact. He kept most things he wrote to himself, and was only just now in the process of breaking out and showing people (Besides Kiba, of course, when he wanted to listen) the things he had written.
It was his own type of shyness, he supposed.
He passed her the music, unseen eyes watching her through his shades, his head tilted to the side in curiosity. She seemed genuinely excited to be given the prospect to learn a new piece. Seemed this girl truly loved her instrument, or maybe just music in general. It was refreshing, really, to see someone with that much spirit in them. Especially when they played the same instrument as he. Inspiring, in a way.
His long, smooth fingers brushed along her hand as he gave her the music, another accident from which he pulled back quickly. It wouldn't do to make either of them remember the awkwardness of before.
Tenten hardly felt the touch it seemed, or at least, she hadn't focused immediately on it while her eyes soaked up the notes greedily. It seemed like a fun piece to play, anyway. "It must be nice, to focus on one or two pieces," she murmured and looked at him over the sheet music with a little smile. Tenten always had so many things going on at once, it was a wonder she didn't drop dead.
But, on the other hand, if she had all the free time to devote to one instrument it would feel like she was cheating on whatever force had granted her the enviable ability to multitask. "I like it, can I hear more of it?" She could sight-read perfectly fine, but that wasn't the same feeling as listening to it was. Besides, she'd already liked what she heard; surely Shino wouldn't be so mean as to give her a little taste and deny her more.
He blinked, then settled his cello back against his chest, hesitant at first.
"Ah... sure."
He wasn't majoring in music performance, so he didn't particularly like playing in front of people - music was an intense, living entity, and to perform was to bear your soul to whoever heard you. Shino was more reserved than that. It was one reason why he had decided to go with music composition instead of performance, or education. He still got his ideas down on paper, and people still were witness to a piece of him that was irrevocable, yet it wasn't as raw a passion as performing live. It was simpler. Just as intense, only...
He shook his mind from these winding thoughts, focusing instead on the girl in front of him. Shino watched her for a moment, shaded eyes gauging whether or not she was simply trying to be polite, then set his bow down on his lap when he realized she was being genuine. Without another word, he began the song, plucking out the first few chords, playing by memory. It took him longer than he would have liked, but soon enough he was immersed entirely in the music, and completely forgot about his listener, instead putting his all into what he played. Cello was his primary instrument. He knew the logistics of most every other instrument out there, but cello - and a little bit of plunking piano - was all he played.
If someone had a lot of outlets for their emotions, they had a lot of resources to work with, and a lot of way to express how they felt. Shino had two - writing, and cello. His emotions were usually bland in person, stoic and composed, but on paper and while ghosting through the notes of a song, more of his soul was revealed. It was more potent, tangible, and when the last notes of the pizzicato part rang out, Shino was drowning in the music he made, oblivious to the world around him.
It was pure. And that was the easiest way to describe it.
The arco lines came up, double stops and several tricky rhythms, but nothing too difficult. When the song mellowed out more, the shaded brunette set his bow down again, then began a series of rhythms and drum beats by plucking and hitting the fingerboard of the cello. It was an exciting song, creative, inventive, and interesting to play. It ended on an arco passage, and when Shino was done he let the instrument ring a little while longer before opening his eyes - not that Tenten could tell they were closed in the first place.
Ah... he had company.
The awkwardness returned.
Tenten sucked in a surprised breath, privately and pleasantly surprised. She'd watched his hands, jealous of how nicely they appealed to aesthetics. He was good, he was very good, and she wanted to play with him and see just how interesting a dynamic they could make. There was something about his performance, that felt a little strangely intimate. As opposed to her playing - carousing, and drawing in the eye and ear, hoping that somehow they'd hear the little touches of her infused in the notes - this was a little more like slipping into bed wi--
Tenten shook her head, fully unwilling to fall into the trap she'd made for herself.
Still, her own curiosity wondered just how much of that was Julie-O and how much of it was Shino. Where had the music and the cellist blended and where was it solely the song or solely him? There was only one way to find out, of course, and she'd have to be a sneaky ninja about it.
Especially since that weird, sort of stuffy air had returned with the death of the last note. Tenten looked down for a moment, at her own cello and back at his, "Mm, I'm jealous," she announced. "And I want to learn it."
Jealous? He wouldn't have imagined it. Shino blinked once at her - the shades darkened those kinds of actions, of course - and tilted his head to the side. He was silently pleased she did like the song. Not in an arrogant, 'Oh I played so well' kind of way, but the kind of satisfaction that came when you realized someone else loved the same band you loved, or had a record that you'd just bought the other day. There was a connection to it, a likeness, and it made him feel less alone, if fleetingly.
Fickle emotions, truly.
He nodded at her declaration, then shifted his head to where it looked like he was looking at the music in her hands.
"Are you busy today?" He had a hunch that she would be able to learn something like this quickly, but wanted to make sure playing with him wouldn't take away from anything she had planned.
Tenten's mind flicked through her mental agenda. There were her classes in the afternoon, and work all evening (sob, no rest for the wicked!). But other than that, she was free. Rad.
"Not until, like, one," she concluded after a moment and flashed him a smile. "What about you?" Tenten sat back in her chair and regarded him thoughtfully. Her forearm still felt like it'd been touched (no, not touched. Manhandled. Wait, did she like that kind of thing? That was a scary thought.) though the feeling was slowly fading.
Shino paused, considering. He could only think of one class he needed to go to today (The other was canceled for some reason or other.), and after that he was planning on working on a composition for a few hours or so. Aka, hole up in his room and not come out or speak to anybody until he'd gotten all his ideas on paper.
So, no. Shino actually wasn't busy until two.
"I'm fine," he answered, sounding a little surprised himself at this fact.
"Awesome!" Tenten flashed him another smile, and looked up at the clock that quietly minded the hour left. The smile turned into a disapproving frown. "...If we're going to do anything, though, we might have to go somewhere else. My time's running out here." Stupid time, getting in her way when she had something new and shiny to learn.
She handed back the sheet music with a little wistful sigh.
His face stayed tilted in her direction, but his eyes shifted up towards the clock in question, taking note of the time as well. A few more minutes, and someone else would be there to take their place - the practice rooms ran on a pretty tight schedule, most days - yet he had told this new acquaintance that he would teach her 'Julie-O', and wasn't about to go back on his word. Not when they both still had time to spare.
Shino leaned forward, gripping the sheet music and turning back to tuck it into his open case. After a few moments hunched over like that while he took his time to consider what to do next, the brunette turned back to Tenten and gaze her a steady look through the shades.
"We could check to see if the main stage is open?" It was a long-shot, but sometimes, when the concert hall was empty, devoid of any acts performed on it, Shino liked to sit down in the larger auditorium and practice his cello there. The acoustics were heavenly, and a part of him was curious to see just what two dueling cellos might sound like echoing through that room.
Tenten blinked at him, never having considered using the main stage before. "That... yeah, we can do that," she agreed and grinned, relieved that her ears didn't feel like coal attached to the sides of her head anymore. "I mean, what're the chances it'll be used right now?" There was optimism in her voice and a merry, if mischievous, twinkle in her eyes.
When: After Tenten's performance of Caprice No. 24
Where: 201 Practice Room
Notes: LOL, Backdated like whoa.
Shino paused, pulling his coat more fully around himself, adjusting the cello case strapped to his back in the process. It wasn't a long walk from his dorm room to the practice rooms, and so he had decided to opt for the soft case instead of the harder one. It was early enough to where he didn't have to worry about someone running into his instrument. Not that they would have come close, of course. Though the brunette wasn't necessarily intimidating by any right, he still exuded an odd kind of aura that kept others at arms-length away. Perhaps it was the shades? Just the fact that he wore them constantly - in public or in private, indoors or out -, was probably enough to ignite a curious flame in any passerby.
His booted feet tapped quietly against the tiled floor, making the softest of sounds as he picked his way through the various practice rooms. Only the faint hum of dissonant noise greeted his senses, his footsteps a gentle staccato to the underlying sound. For the most part, the practice rooms were sound proof, though that didn't keep a stray stream of music from escaping through some uncovered crevice or hole. It was difficult to keep music out of everything - it always had a way of coming back up, louder than before, as if spiteful for having been suppressed in the first place.
Shaded eyes followed the doors as he passed by them, searching out numbers, trying to find the one he had been assigned for that day. There had been a mix up in schedules not too long ago, and so he had been asked to take on an earlier time than before, in a different practice room. It didn't matter much to him - 6 A.M. on a Wednesday morning wasn't exactly ideal, but it didn't clash with any of his classes, so it was easily doable.
Room 201. There it was. Without much thought, Shino gripped the handle lightly and pushed forward, his eyes already straying to his cello as he shrugged the soft case off one shoulder. What he didn't expect, though, was for the door to stop moving abruptly when it was about halfway open. Giving a slight "oomph" as the door knob was thrust unceremoniously into his abdomen, Shino glanced up to find someone else in the room. Shaded eyes locked onto this new person, a moment of confused astonishment flitting across his face before realization set in.
Of course. The schedules had been mixed up.
Tenten looked up from where she'd nearly eaten her bow. "Oh, man, I'm so sorry!" she moved her cello and stood up and pulled her chair away from where it had been blocking the door. Boy, was she glad she had opted out of her ritual morning coffee for practice this go around. She was just about to apologize and be on her way when she remembered she'd booked this room over a week ago, at this godawful hour for the express purpose of practicing in peace and quiet.
So, why didn't anything go as planned for her? The young woman did want to practice but didn't want to come off as a total tool. "Um, so..." Tenten shifted and sat back down, unable to find a point in standing around. "I think there's been a mistake." Right to business then, Cool McShades here would just have to appreciate it.
He took another moment or two to collect himself, calming his face into a look of passive disinterest. Shino was an attentive man, despite the sunglasses blocking his view of the world and turning everything two shades darker. It was obvious in this girl's posture and body language that she wasn't too keen on the thought of giving up this practice room to a complete stranger. For a moment, he considered the possibility of finding another room he might be able to use, but a backwards glance into the hall just outside was enough to prove that none were available.
Which was exactly why he had signed up on the roster in the first place.
"I believe you're right."
A solid look, his motions paused. It couldn't be helped.
Tenten wondered if he was underestimating her. He was just... standing there, like the statues in Central Park. She shifted in her chair and lowered her bow. The last thing she wanted was to seem threatening (though, really, what was a girl to do with a cello between her legs?), and she really did want to figure this whole mess out so that the both of them could get on with their practices.
"So, what should we do about this, um, situation, then? I mean, I'm willing to share practice space with you, but..." she trailed off. Okay, Cool McShades, ball's in your court. If he didn't want to take up the offer, fine, but if he did, they'd have to figure out how not to elbow each other and fit two cellos neatly. "I don't want you to be uncomfortable, either," she motioned between his cello and hers.
"You know?"
He nodded, glancing around the room to gauge just how big it was. Shino already knew these rooms were fairly small, enough to accommodate a single bassist, maybe a few flautists... but two cellos? It would definitely be a stretch. He needed to practice - he had a gig coming up in a month or so, and he still hadn't glanced at the music -, but squeezing in two people to this room would probably not be inductive to doing so.
There was only one thing he could do, really.
"I'll... leave, then."
It would be impolite, otherwise.
"Wait, wait," Tenten held up her hands. "I'm sure we can find a way to situate ourselves that'll be good for the both of us," maybe, she added to herself, trying to accurately judge his size, and his cello's size and jesusfuck he had long legs. He was at least as big as Lee and Kiba. Well, it was a good thing she was so small then, wasn't it?
The sunglasses bothered her. It was six in the morning, after all, and not even the sun had decided to come out and bother them, so what was he doing with them on so early? What was he, one of those Club guys that thought the world was some kind of dark and evil place? Tenten stood up and pulled her chair all the way to the wall, and then settled her cello back between her legs. "We can share the room, if that's okay."
He didn't really know what to say to that suggestion. The practice rooms were tiny, yes, but it wasn't completely unheard of to fit a few people into one of them (For trio practice, or duets.). Then again, those were usually wind players, or violin players... or pretty much anyone with a smaller instrument than a cello.
Shino paused, considering this for a moment. He supposed it could be done... but would it really be all that effective? Wouldn't the playing of one cello drown out the other? Still, he needed that practice time... He had promised Kiba a while ago that he would manage his time better, and make room for socializing (Which, in Shino's mind, directly translated to, "make room for being the designated driver to whatever parties Kiba might drag him to".)
"... Are you sure?" He was still considering the option himself, but it wouldn't hurt to have her opinion.
"Sure, I don't mind listening to another cellist - it'll be beneficial to both of us, you know?" Probably wouldn't hurt that Sunglasses Guy played her instrument too. He had to know how difficult it could be (especially when it was bigger than you, in her case). "And if it doesn't work, and we're totally stepping on each other's musical toes, I'll get out of your hair." After all, she could always find a nice spot upstairs to wake everyone up, bitches practice. Suddenly, she realized that she couldn't keep thinking of him as 'Sunglasses Guy', and had totally forgotten her manners.
"Oh, and I'm Tenten Hsiao, nice meeting you." Tenten half-saluted him and smiled brightly.
He watched her for a moment, perplexed by her easy manner. Had his sunglasses been off, she would have seen the intrigued confusion in his eyes. Shino didn't wear them for nothing - it was hard to be a stoic, composed businessman (for the family company, of course) when every thought or emotion that flit through his head was easily read in his eyes. He had perfected the unaffected voice, and was very good at controlling his facial expression, unless something truly drastic surprised him, but it was those damned eyes that had made him an open book.
He tilted his head, turning his sunglass-clad face towards the far wall so he wouldn't disturb her with the blank, glossy lenses staring her way.
"Shino Aburame," he offered, turning his head back just a fraction so it was easier to tell he was looking at her. Shino had learned long ago how to manipulate the small, seemingly insignificant turns of the head that would speak volumes more than the cool stare of his black shades. His sunglasses were his eyes, to most. People got used to it after a while... usually.
"What are you working on?" he asked, settling into a spare chair in the room, deciding to make the best of this situation. If push came to shove, he would leave himself - it was rude otherwise, wasn't it?
"Caprice 24, Paganini," Tenten replied, flexing her fingers. "I performed it a little while ago, but, I feel like I could've done it better." It didn't matter how good it sounded, she wanted it perfected. Story of her life, right? For a moment, Tenten righted her cello and settled the neck of the instrument properly. She filed his name away and tried to not watch him as she prepared. "I know you from the journals, I think. Kiba's friend?"
She had liked his stonewalling of the big, Kiba-shaped nerd when he got... well, when Kiba was Kiba. She was sure that being childhood friends had given him the same advantage Tenten herself had over Lee (or was that the other way around?). She set her bow across the strings and started back from where she'd been looking at her sheet music.
He nodded once at her question, and realized that he recognized her from the journals, too. Good. At least he wasn't stuck in a tiny room with a complete stranger. Shino unpacked his instrument, pushing the case into some unused corner and making all the tiny adjustments before settling the cello comfortably along his chest. He paused a moment, listening to her practice - she was really quite good - before settling his bow along the strings of his instrument, and pulling it along the wrapped metal, playing a single open "G". He did this a few times, watching how his right arm moved, focusing entirely on it for a moment before pecking out some incomprehensible warm up with his left hand.
Every now and then, he would glance up to peer at Tenten through his shades, watching to make sure he wasn't disturbing her in any way.
Shino was lucky; the discord one heard coming out of the Hsiaos' Music Room at any point during Tenten's childhood was more than enough to learn that one had to "close one ear and open another" as her father would say. Her fingers danced about the strings, teasing them as each sequence of notes became more and more difficult to play.
Oh, Paganini, you were a mean bastard to your string players. Tenten monitored the song quietly, (here, cresendo, there, decresendo...) and paused in the middle to pull a pencil from one of her buns to make a notation. Mindlessly, the girl tapped her foot in time with Shino's warm-up. She looked up for just a second when she felt eyes on her and blinked at him.
Dammit, he'd been caught. Instead of affecting the innocent face that was just itching to make itself known (It would only make him look guilty if he did something like that, after all), the Aburame merely tilted his head towards her in an affirmative gesture.
"You're doing very well," he offered, nodding once towards her left hand, then paused after a moment, wondering if he was in a position to offer constructive criticism. One glance at her face proved that she would undoubtedly be able to handle something so small as that, but still...
"Might I suggest something?"
It was always better to ask beforehand, if all else failed.
"No." Tenten said simply, trying to keep her face firm, though the edges of her lips kept trying to turn upwards.
He blinked once, twice, then slowly averted his gaze to the far wall.
"Oh," he stated simply, truly surprised with her answer. Yes, he had asked a question, and yes, it was he prerogative to answer that question in any way she pleased, but still... He leaned back slightly, letting his shoulders bump along the back of the seat he sat in. It was entirely inadvertent, but for some odd reason his entire demeanor projected a 'wounded puppy' look. Which, honestly, was definitely not what he was going for. In fact, if Shino could have seen himself at that very moment, he would have mentally scoffed, then straightened his shoulders and slid on that cool, collected mask he wore most of the time.
It was early, though. Later, he would blame the time for his reaction.
"I'm kidding; I don't mind hearing crit, especially if it helps me improve - you can only hear yourself so many times before you start missing things, you know?" Tenten sat back in her chair, and watched him, amused and a little ashamed of herself for sending a grown man in to kicked puppy mode.
Though, a small part of her admitted that it was a kind of amusing power, and definitely increased his cuteness score --- not that he'd hear that. Ever. "Go for it."
He blinked again, turning his shaded gaze towards her relaxed form. Teasing, then? Shino wasn't too fond of it - he was a straightforward kind of person - but wasn't completely alien to the idea. He messed with Kiba's head enough, though he'd never admit it openly (It was fun, oddly enough.), but other than that, he'd never had much experience with doing it with other people.
"Mm." The sound was soft, almost question-like, but not quite. Shino had perfected the ambiguous phrase.
"Your right arm. It's not leading your left arm."
He left that at that, a hint of playfulness twisting his lips upwards in the smallest of smirks. Two could play her game.
"...Eh?" Tenten cocked her head to one side and gave him a thousand-yard stare. "What do you mean?" Now she was curious, she thought she'd been doing perfectly fine! Tenten crossed her arms and turned her head to the other side, still regarding Shino like he just spat out a sentence in perfect Mandarin. Or grown a second head.
"Your right arm." This time he repeated it more slowly, drawing his right arm along the open "G" string again to emphasize his point. "It needs to be in charge of your left arm. If your left hand is having trouble playing a passage, it's because your right arm is locking up."
It was something he had learned from a previous teacher, and it had taken him a while to truly understand what it meant. Honestly, he didn't expect Tenten to get it with him simply talking about it... but a man could hope. Shino wasn't too fond of violating people's personal space, after all.
Funny, it hadn't felt like it was. Still, Tenten mimed his movement as best she could, drawing her bow across the open "G" just like he had, "Like this, then?" Hmm, wait, maybe that wasn't right.
...She totally should've just left it at "no."
He wasn't frustrated - he was too patient for that - but he did realize how frustrating it could be to be told something, and not to understand it immediately. He knew that if she pulled her arm outwards more, like a billow, then breathed out as she did an upbow, then the motions of her bow would be much, much smoother. And when she no longer had to worry about the tonal quality produce as a result of her bow arm, then her left hand would be free to relax and play those difficult passages.
Still. It was hard to just explain it.
Sighing softly - he wasn't agitated, it was just something he did - the Aburame settled his cello along the floor beside his seat, then lifted up from his chair, inadvertently towering over the other occupant of the room. (Sometimes he forgot just how tall he was in relation to other people.)
He paused, hesitating, then leaned forward.
"May I?" The motion of his hand indicated that he wanted to touch her arms to show her the motion of what he was talking about. He wouldn't touch her without permission, though.
"Mm..." It was Tenten's turn to make a thinking noise, and she cocked her head to the side again, in consideration. Well, if it would help, it would help, and if he was like Kiba, and tried to cop a feel in the middle of this lesson, she would elbow him in the nose. "Okay." He seemed like a pretty stand-up guy. So.
So. So, maybe she wouldn't have to.
He nodded once, then sidled up behind her, standing a little to her right.
"Like this," he said, then leaned down slightly, wrapping long fingers of one hand around the forearm of her right arm. He manhandled her arm into pulling a down bow, though instead of bringing the arm back, he pulled it more towards the right, outwards, then made a small circling motion, adjusting her elbow slightly so she could do an up bow on the same string, with the same feeling.
"It should feel like you're making a circle." He repeated the motion, leaning down a bit so he was more on her level. "You never push the bow. You pull it both ways - up, and down." His mouth was close to her ear when he said this. Shino hadn't realized how close he had gotten until his left shoulder accidentally bumped along her back. The slight touch jarred him back into reality, and without a second word the brunette dropped her arm and took a quick step back. He mumbled some kind of apology before turning his head to the side to gaze at the far wall as if it was the most interesting thing in the world.
Well... well then! Tenten had been paying attention to his lesson; she honestly, truly had. At least, until there had been breath in her ear and Tenten's brain dirty, dirty, little brain that it was had sent the Danger signal down her spine. Within in the space of a few seconds, there was a bump, and then the scurrying to get back from one another.
While the air was still uncomfortable, Tenten ahemed and turned her head down towards the strings of her cello. "So, ah, a circle, and pull?" she asked, trying to clear the air between them. It felt like her head was on fire from root to neck. "Basically, right?"
Smooth, Hsiao, smooth.
Shino, too, cleared his throat, hoping the simple act would make it easier to breathe in that suddenly stuffy space. His eyes were still averted to the far wall, but her comment drew his gaze back to her smaller form - And no! He most certainly was not checking her out! He was just... making sure she got the movements right, and understood what he was talking about.
"Ah, yes," he offered, rubbing the back of his neck in an offhand gesture. "Pretty much." No more elaboration for him. Elaboration, it seemed, meant an abundance of awkward moments.
He was still standing behind her, and eyed the tiny space he would have to maneuver through to get back to his cello. The chances of him touching her again were pretty high in that small area, and he wasn't too keen on finding out what sort of punishment she could dish out were he to dare do something like that again - accident or no.
Shino quite liked his ability to reproduce, thank you very much.
Well, this was getting the both of them nowhere fast, wasn't it? They weren't looking at each other, and Shino still definitely needed to practice, too, right? That's why they were sharing the room (though, she totally wouldn't blame him if he bolted - he had the longer legs, he'd get 'round the corner and up the stairs faster than she would!) and remembered that her woebegone coffee was still under her chair, somehow safe from their scuffling movements.
Jackpot! Tenten leaned down to grab the cup, and moved to the side to offer him a little leeway back to his cello, and thus, safety. Crisis of uncomfortable air averted! Her hand grasped the styrofoam cup from the top, and Tenten hoped that Shino would hurry. She couldn't keep this pose forever - she left that to the dance kids.
He saw what she was doing, and might have applauded her for that clever little move had he been the type to do something like that. Since he wasn't, he opted to shift around her as quickly as possible instead. Funny, how a minute ago he hadn't even noticed how close he had to come to her just to shift around her seat and help her with her bow arm. Now, he felt entirely too claustrophobic.
He was just sidling around her, his front facing her bent-over form, when the hoody he most usually wore got caught up on something behind him. A slight frown twisted Shino's lips, his shaded eyes slitting slightly as he tilted his head to try and find the source of this little hang up. He felt way too close to the other already - almost scandalously so - and would have liked nothing more than to just pack up his cello and flee the room.
Tenten turned her head to tell him to move, when she came face-to... Well, that wasn't a face, was it? She was millimeters, mere millimeters, from touching her nose to his denim-clad crotch. Though, she was mostly thankful this wasn't Kiba. Somehow, Tenten guessed that would have made it even worse. She made a noise of horror, but it came out weakly in an breathy sigh, and tried jerking her head away before he noticed.
Oh god. Please don't let him notice.
He glanced down at the noise just in time to see Tenten's head whipped off to the side, a look of complete shock lighting her features. It didn't take a genius to come to a conclusion on what had just happened. Had Shino had the presence of mind to blush, he would have done so then and there. Instead, he opted to ignore that that ever happened, and fiddled with his hoodie until he was finally loose from the wall's devilish hold.
And now for the awkward silence.
It was choreographed so perfectly, Shino wondered if he had somehow stumbled into a sick kind of play. If Tenten randomly broke out singing about her woe, he would have his answer.
Tenten wisely kept her mouth shut and sipped her coffee, feeling her ears burn like two little peices of coal attached to her head. He totally noticed. Fuck me running. She avoided his gaze (was he looking at her? She couldn't tell, not with those freaking sunglasses) and tapped her fingers along the neck of her cello, hugging it as if it might save her life.
Maybe this would be totally hilarious in hindsight - because, considering the fact she was probably the same color as a cherry tomato sauteed in butter, it had better damn well be. "Um, any-anyway, I'll keep what you said in mind."
"Mm." He nodded once, a motion entirely ineffective considering the fact that she wasn't looking at him at the moment, then decided the best course of action to take would be that of complete and utter denial.
"Have you ever heard the song 'Julie-O', by Mark Summer?"
Random topic change time. Those most usually followed awkward silences, right? Shino settled back down in his chair, picking up his cello again and resting it against his chest. He leaned towards it, a natural motion, then started playing a few lines of the song he had just mentioned, as an example for the girl sitting across from him.
He was lucky she was instantly distracted by music (oh, what a wonderful Achilles' Heel), and nodded. "Someone played that at my competition a little while back, but, I've never played it myself." She was lucky she'd managed to pay attention to anyone else, seeing as she'd been sick with nerves at the time.
"I remember liking it, though." It was an honest answer as any. Unfortunately, with so many instruments on her plate, Tenten wasn't able to devote herself to any one instrument, and thus, had to skip over things. She fiddled with her coffee cup lid nervously and turned her eyes to his hands, admiring them a moment before stopping herself. They were nice-looking - long and a bit thin, obviously bigger and longer than hers, though.
Why did boys always get the nicest hands? Or hair? Or eyelashes (God, that rankled)? That was damned unfair, if you asked Tenten.
"Would you like to see the music?" He was oblivious to the way she was looking at him, and leaned over to the side to snatch something out of the case he had laid beside him. "I could teach it to you, if you'd like."
It was a fun piece to play. Not too horribly difficult, but it was the rhythms that were tricky, and if you played it well, it was a song most anyone enjoyed listening to. He wouldn't mind teaching her, if she wanted. As long as he didn't have to... ah... get that close again.
A repeat of the last few minutes was not something he would like to experience.
"Sure!" Tenten responded instantly. Paganini could wait, that sadistic bastard, at least for a little while. Besides, it was already six-thirty; it wasn't like she had much longer in the room. "Is that what you're working on now?" she asked, curiously, watching him like a kitten with a shiny ball of aluminum foil.
Certainly, Tenten's parents must have been relieved that she hadn't been kidnapped by mindlessly following one cellist or another (and that Jacqueline du Pré was a whole ocean away).
"For now, yes." To be truly honest, he was actually focusing more on an original composition of his at the moment, but the taller man was oddly protective of the fact. He kept most things he wrote to himself, and was only just now in the process of breaking out and showing people (Besides Kiba, of course, when he wanted to listen) the things he had written.
It was his own type of shyness, he supposed.
He passed her the music, unseen eyes watching her through his shades, his head tilted to the side in curiosity. She seemed genuinely excited to be given the prospect to learn a new piece. Seemed this girl truly loved her instrument, or maybe just music in general. It was refreshing, really, to see someone with that much spirit in them. Especially when they played the same instrument as he. Inspiring, in a way.
His long, smooth fingers brushed along her hand as he gave her the music, another accident from which he pulled back quickly. It wouldn't do to make either of them remember the awkwardness of before.
Tenten hardly felt the touch it seemed, or at least, she hadn't focused immediately on it while her eyes soaked up the notes greedily. It seemed like a fun piece to play, anyway. "It must be nice, to focus on one or two pieces," she murmured and looked at him over the sheet music with a little smile. Tenten always had so many things going on at once, it was a wonder she didn't drop dead.
But, on the other hand, if she had all the free time to devote to one instrument it would feel like she was cheating on whatever force had granted her the enviable ability to multitask. "I like it, can I hear more of it?" She could sight-read perfectly fine, but that wasn't the same feeling as listening to it was. Besides, she'd already liked what she heard; surely Shino wouldn't be so mean as to give her a little taste and deny her more.
He blinked, then settled his cello back against his chest, hesitant at first.
"Ah... sure."
He wasn't majoring in music performance, so he didn't particularly like playing in front of people - music was an intense, living entity, and to perform was to bear your soul to whoever heard you. Shino was more reserved than that. It was one reason why he had decided to go with music composition instead of performance, or education. He still got his ideas down on paper, and people still were witness to a piece of him that was irrevocable, yet it wasn't as raw a passion as performing live. It was simpler. Just as intense, only...
He shook his mind from these winding thoughts, focusing instead on the girl in front of him. Shino watched her for a moment, shaded eyes gauging whether or not she was simply trying to be polite, then set his bow down on his lap when he realized she was being genuine. Without another word, he began the song, plucking out the first few chords, playing by memory. It took him longer than he would have liked, but soon enough he was immersed entirely in the music, and completely forgot about his listener, instead putting his all into what he played. Cello was his primary instrument. He knew the logistics of most every other instrument out there, but cello - and a little bit of plunking piano - was all he played.
If someone had a lot of outlets for their emotions, they had a lot of resources to work with, and a lot of way to express how they felt. Shino had two - writing, and cello. His emotions were usually bland in person, stoic and composed, but on paper and while ghosting through the notes of a song, more of his soul was revealed. It was more potent, tangible, and when the last notes of the pizzicato part rang out, Shino was drowning in the music he made, oblivious to the world around him.
It was pure. And that was the easiest way to describe it.
The arco lines came up, double stops and several tricky rhythms, but nothing too difficult. When the song mellowed out more, the shaded brunette set his bow down again, then began a series of rhythms and drum beats by plucking and hitting the fingerboard of the cello. It was an exciting song, creative, inventive, and interesting to play. It ended on an arco passage, and when Shino was done he let the instrument ring a little while longer before opening his eyes - not that Tenten could tell they were closed in the first place.
Ah... he had company.
The awkwardness returned.
Tenten sucked in a surprised breath, privately and pleasantly surprised. She'd watched his hands, jealous of how nicely they appealed to aesthetics. He was good, he was very good, and she wanted to play with him and see just how interesting a dynamic they could make. There was something about his performance, that felt a little strangely intimate. As opposed to her playing - carousing, and drawing in the eye and ear, hoping that somehow they'd hear the little touches of her infused in the notes - this was a little more like slipping into bed wi--
Tenten shook her head, fully unwilling to fall into the trap she'd made for herself.
Still, her own curiosity wondered just how much of that was Julie-O and how much of it was Shino. Where had the music and the cellist blended and where was it solely the song or solely him? There was only one way to find out, of course, and she'd have to be a sneaky ninja about it.
Especially since that weird, sort of stuffy air had returned with the death of the last note. Tenten looked down for a moment, at her own cello and back at his, "Mm, I'm jealous," she announced. "And I want to learn it."
Jealous? He wouldn't have imagined it. Shino blinked once at her - the shades darkened those kinds of actions, of course - and tilted his head to the side. He was silently pleased she did like the song. Not in an arrogant, 'Oh I played so well' kind of way, but the kind of satisfaction that came when you realized someone else loved the same band you loved, or had a record that you'd just bought the other day. There was a connection to it, a likeness, and it made him feel less alone, if fleetingly.
Fickle emotions, truly.
He nodded at her declaration, then shifted his head to where it looked like he was looking at the music in her hands.
"Are you busy today?" He had a hunch that she would be able to learn something like this quickly, but wanted to make sure playing with him wouldn't take away from anything she had planned.
Tenten's mind flicked through her mental agenda. There were her classes in the afternoon, and work all evening (sob, no rest for the wicked!). But other than that, she was free. Rad.
"Not until, like, one," she concluded after a moment and flashed him a smile. "What about you?" Tenten sat back in her chair and regarded him thoughtfully. Her forearm still felt like it'd been touched (no, not touched. Manhandled. Wait, did she like that kind of thing? That was a scary thought.) though the feeling was slowly fading.
Shino paused, considering. He could only think of one class he needed to go to today (The other was canceled for some reason or other.), and after that he was planning on working on a composition for a few hours or so. Aka, hole up in his room and not come out or speak to anybody until he'd gotten all his ideas on paper.
So, no. Shino actually wasn't busy until two.
"I'm fine," he answered, sounding a little surprised himself at this fact.
"Awesome!" Tenten flashed him another smile, and looked up at the clock that quietly minded the hour left. The smile turned into a disapproving frown. "...If we're going to do anything, though, we might have to go somewhere else. My time's running out here." Stupid time, getting in her way when she had something new and shiny to learn.
She handed back the sheet music with a little wistful sigh.
His face stayed tilted in her direction, but his eyes shifted up towards the clock in question, taking note of the time as well. A few more minutes, and someone else would be there to take their place - the practice rooms ran on a pretty tight schedule, most days - yet he had told this new acquaintance that he would teach her 'Julie-O', and wasn't about to go back on his word. Not when they both still had time to spare.
Shino leaned forward, gripping the sheet music and turning back to tuck it into his open case. After a few moments hunched over like that while he took his time to consider what to do next, the brunette turned back to Tenten and gaze her a steady look through the shades.
"We could check to see if the main stage is open?" It was a long-shot, but sometimes, when the concert hall was empty, devoid of any acts performed on it, Shino liked to sit down in the larger auditorium and practice his cello there. The acoustics were heavenly, and a part of him was curious to see just what two dueling cellos might sound like echoing through that room.
Tenten blinked at him, never having considered using the main stage before. "That... yeah, we can do that," she agreed and grinned, relieved that her ears didn't feel like coal attached to the sides of her head anymore. "I mean, what're the chances it'll be used right now?" There was optimism in her voice and a merry, if mischievous, twinkle in her eyes.