The musician hasn't even walked on stage but even so the crowd was roaring with admiration and praise. The stage lights were dim and the people fell to a hushed silence when the boy finally paces his way to the stage. The boy watching from the behind the curtain held his breath and thought for maybe one second his heart stopped beating from all the intensity in the air.

The musician looked pretty young but he had a very mature atmosphere. The way he stepped over to the piano chair with his head held high made the boy jealous. How could he be so cocky without even saying anything? His hair was charcoal coloured and his grey eyes pierced through the souls of the audience when he looked their way. His hair was cut into an undercut with his front hair swept back to give that kind of confident look. He didn't appear to be nervous at all.

He finally sat down with his hands poised to attack the piano keys. Without a moment of hesitation, his hands rested upon the white keys and he started to play the piece. The score was called 'Op 25 No.11 Winter wind in A minor' by Frédéric François Chopin. He began slowly and gently with natural E's as if afraid he might break the piano. He was playing mezzo piano dynamics at that moment; he was playing so softly that it almost like small wind chimes in a soft breeze. He continued like that and then immediately paused.

The boy behind the boy jumped when he started to play notes way above the bar with shark, natural and flat notes. He was now playing loudly, his fingers skimming over the keys and aggressively smashing them with the tips of his graceful, pale finger tips.

He was shaking his head and his eyes were closed as if stuck inside his own small world of fantasy and imagination.

Everyone in the crowd looked fearful and amazed. He was playing up and down the scale over and over again but even so the boy watching was hypnotized by the way his fingers pressed the keys. He was playing at such incredible speed that he seemed like he was in a video being fast forwarded.

Some people in the crowd had tears rolling down their cheeks, completely mesmerized by the young musician. It was like time stopped and despite the boy not knowing how to play the piano, he knew he was playing the correct dynamics by the way the judges nodded in approval.

When he finish, his hands stopped abruptly and he opened his eyes. The crowd did not applause right away and during the silence the room was filled with hushed whispers and murmurs.

They then clapped as hard as they could and at that moment the boy behind the curtain, Eren Jaeger, knew he finally found someone better than him.

---

The announcer was on stage and the musicians were patiently waiting on stage quietly. Eren was shaking; nothing was announced but he knew he didn't get first place. He played Rhapsody in B minor Op 79 no. 1 well but not well enough. He was trying not to show his anger but his fists shook violently.

"First place," the man's voice echoed, "goes to ( ) for his wonderful performance of Chopin Op 25 No.11."

Eren's nails buried into his palms and he couldn't even hear who had won first place, he was too mad to even listen.

"Second place goes to the brilliant eight year old Eren Jaeger for his beautiful playing of Rhapsody in B minor Op 79 no.1."

Eren was never going to forget how he felt that day and held a very bad grudge against this Ackerman kid. He swore that he would never admit defeat to anyone ever again.

---

Ten years later...

"Armin, you're playing too slow," Eren told his friend with a small sigh. "They're eighths note not sixth notes."

"Oh, man, sorry," he apologized and bowed his head. "This is a little tricky and it's hurting my fingers."

"It's fine. Just bring a guitar pick next time," Eren said with a grin. "We all started out this way so I don't blame you."

"Okay first, why can't I just borrow one of yours and second, how should you know if you were born to play music?"

"Because my picks are precious to me and I wasn't born this way, you moron," he said with a laugh.

Eren lied; he had way too many guitar picks so it didn't matter if he gave them away or not but he felt the need to be responsible for every single one. It was a dim friday evening and even though Armin came over to finish some kind of stupid science project, they procrastinated and ended up playing some easy guitar music sheets because Armin thought it would be fun to learn.

"I started playing when I was four with the piano," he said and cringed. "I will never touch one ever again as long as I live."

"Why not? It's such a beautiful instrument," Armin asked curiously.

"It's...it's nothing. I just lost interest," he lied again.

"Whatever."

In the end, they did end up finishing their project but it was pretty much half-assed. They put effort in doing it; they just didn't have enough motivation. Nothing else but music really mattered to Eren; as long as he had sheet music for any song, he would be entertained for hours even if he would just read it over and over again, doing nothing else but figuring out how it would sound if he actually played it.

Later on when it was starting to get very dark outside, Armin said his fair well's and went home for the night, leaving Eren alone with no one else because everyone else in his family were not home yet. He decided to sleep early since he was going to an open mic at the most popular café in his town. It was a big event since they only had it a few times a year and Eren never missed one so he wanted all of his performances to be absolutely flawless or at least somewhat close.

He then fell asleep with his fingers gently wrapped around the neck of his favourite guitar and many sheet music papers flung around his room. The moonlight was glistening through his window curtains as the haze of dreams took over his mind, giving him a peaceful sleep before the day tomorrow.

---

He basically when out in what he was wearing the day before, the same clothes he also wore when he fell asleep. He was wearing a grey Black Veil Brides tank with worn out, ripped black jeans along with no other than black flannel. Shades were pretty the only thing he wanted to wear and he wasn't so serious about appearance anyways.

He accidentally slept in for three more hours than he would usually sleep when it was the weekends but that didn't bother him much since it started at noon and ended in late evening. There was no need to rush.

Everyone in his household were either at work or still sleeping and knowing Mikasa, she was probably sleeping since she always worked so hard at her job which was working at the front desk at the bank and Eren could imagine how exhausting that was; talking and trying to figure out the problems of strangers was tiring.

He slipped on his black pair of Chuck Taylors as he flung his guitar bag over his shoulder after brushing his teeth and off he went. He didn't bother eating breakfast since it was already afternoon, so he decided he was going to eat something at the café while he watched the other performances.

He took the bus and listened to some music of a band he recently discovered called Pierce the Veil. He gave them a try and he had to admit that he liked the way their music sounded, he also loved the lyrics for their song 'Bulletproof love'.

He had the song on repeat and it played three times before he arrived at his destination which was just across the café. He was a distance away from it but he could tell it was going to be even more packed hours later. He could hear music from inside, he didn't listen to them much but he recognized then song which was Payphone by Maroon 5.

He pushed his way through the small crowd at the door and ordered a blueberry and lemon muffin as he leaned against a wall, listening to the music. The café had that kind of atmosphere that gave you the feeling when you were at home. That gentle feeling whenever you came home from school despite the place looking a little too... interesting.

The walls were brick and had black and detailed spray paint of musicians and band members; they ranged from Fall out boy to Beethoven because all music was accepted here. The place was filled with colourful love seats and vintage looking wire chairs and different varieties of hot drinks.

The girl singing had such a strong voice yet it sounded so soft and gentle all at once; kind of like water flowing down a river or stream. Some people greeted him because he was a regular at this shop and everyone seemed to enjoy his performances. He rarely sung anything of his own work at this place because he liked saving his own songs for special occasions. He recognized a few people who were from his school; he knew they didn't perform but they enjoyed listening to the music too and he was quite fond of them because they would often cheer him on whenever he performed.

Of course there was also unskilled performers but Eren was already used to it. He would try his best not to cringe but he couldn't blame them; he believed that in the world of music, there was no such thing as being untalented or terrible in general, it was lack of experience of practice. Some singers would sing off tune and a little too shrill and some saxophone players would play F natural instead of a F sharp. He hasn't played tenor, alto or baritone saxophone for long, but his brain was still trained to tell what was incorrect and what was not.

He finished his muffin and patiently waited until someone called him up on stage. There was no particular order and they would just call random names from the crowd since everyone there was basically like family. No one was ever left out and people still cheered even if someone wasn't so good at a certain instrument.

"Oh, how 'bout we get have Eren Jaeger get up here!" the spokesperson exclaimed.

The room bursted into loud applause as Eren walked on stage with his guitar case. He was one of the shop's favourites and everyone recognized him because he was one of the best musicians in town. He walked up to the mic and smiled brightly at the crowd of people gaping up at him.

"Hi," he said awkwardly as people around him laughed. He unpacked his guitar and attached the strap that came with in and soon put it on. He slumped on the stool and gave it a sound test by strumming it. "How is everyone doing?"

Everyone irrupted with many responses and some even shouted his name.

"Alright, well I'm gonna guess that hopefully everyone enjoys My Chemical Romance," he added as he strummed a few cords.

The room was silent and soon we opened his mouth to say the first words of the song. Everyone had their eyes on him and only him and some of them trembled as he began to sing in a beautiful and enchanting voice that would hypnotize anyone.

Turn away,

If you could get me a drink

of water 'cause my lips are chapped and faded

call my aunt Marie

help her gather all my things

and bury me in all my favourite colours,

my sisters and my brothers, still,

I will not kiss you,

'cause the hardest part of this is leaving you.

A lot of people began to clap despite the fact that it was only the beginning of the song. Eren's voice had that effect that would catch anyone's attention is a second and he had everyone's attention now. His voice had emotion as if he were really sad and depressed, but music made him happy. That was a cool part of music; your music says something deep and moving but your heart and feelings says something else that could be a little more bewitching and angelic. His fingers were moving slowly, strumming across the guitar strings and making the song sound even more powerful.

Now turn away

'cause I'm awful just to see

'cause all my hair abandoned all my body,

oh, my agony,

know that I'll never marry,

baby, I'm just soggy from the chemo

but counting down the days to go

It just ain't living

and I hope you know

that if you say

goodbye today

I'd ask you to be true

'Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you

'Cause the hardest part of this is leaving you.

The room was silent and the air was as solid and cold as ice. Eren's breathing could be heard through the microphone and it echoed inside the shop. It passed ten seconds and then fifteen and then everyone broke the silence and started clapping and cheering. He was just about to walk off stage when everyone started to clap even louder and started yelling.

"Sing more!"

"Another!"

"Sing, Eren, sing!"

Soon they started to repeat the same three phrases and Eren had no choice but to oblige. He sat back on the stool and mentally revised what song he was going to sing. He smiled at the crowd and as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright." He closed his eyes for a moment and sang the first few lines before opening them, and he spoke the words in a low, seducing voice to match the mood of the song.

Is it still me that makes you sweat?

Am I the one you think in bed?

When the lights are dim and your hands are shaking as you're sliding off that dress

Then think of what you did

and how I hope to God he was worth it

When the lights are dim and your heart is racing as your fingers touch his skin

I've got more wit, a better kiss, a hotter touch, a better fuck

then any boy you'll meet, sweetie, you had me

Girl, I was it, look past the sweat

a better love deserving of

exchanging body heat

in the passenger seat

no, no, no

you know it was always just be me

let's get these teen hearts beating. Faster, faster!

He finished singing the Panic! at the disco song flawlessly and was awarded with squealing girls and many applause. He was asked to do an encore, but he refused because he wanted to let other people have a turn so he could watch them. He packed up his guitar and was once again being clapped at while he was making his way off the stage. He went back to the wall and leaned against it as the spokesperson walked back to the stage to present the next act.

"Oh! We got a new comer. This is going to be interesting," he announced. "Levi Ackerman coming up!"

Eren could have sworn he felt something tug at his heart, not in the good way, but in the bad way like he was getting a bad vibe. That name sounded way too familiar to him but he couldn't put his finger on it. The man who walked up on stage was dressed casually yet sharp looking. He was wearing a black pullover sweater and dark blue jeans with black vans. He had glasses perched on his nose and he looked pretty intimidating. His raven black hair was styled into an undercut which gave him an even scarier look. People in the café were murmuring and whispering and Eren felt as if he knew who he was, but he couldn't remember.

There was a black grand piano on stage and he sat gracefully on the cushioned chair as he adjusted it since he was short for his looks. His pale, long fingers hovered above the piano keys and Eren felt his heart skin a few beats from nervousness. He didn't even know this man but he felt anxious and felt nostalgic by just looking at the man about to play the piano.

Finally his fingers gently played E's with the mezzo piano dynamics and soon it hit Eren square in the chest and soul and his whole body in general.

The man was playing Chopin Opus 25 No. 11, Winter Wind in A Minor.

AN:

its only the first chapter of this new fic but it was very fun to write c:

im a musician myself so im gonna explain a few things just in case some one yall dunno

dynamics refer to the volume of a sound or note. for ex, a crescendo (going quiet, medium then loud)

there are names we use for the volume too:

p =piano - soft

pp =piannissimo - very soft

mp =mezzo piano - slightly soft

f =forte - loud

ff =fortissimo - very loud

mf =mezzo forte - slightly loud

a bar or measure is a segment of time corresponding to a specific number of beats in which beat is represented by a particular note value

if anyone has any questions, please dont hesitate to ask! im not the best alto saxophone player, but i aint half bad :P

i hope yall enjoyed the first chapter! if you did, dont forget to vote and comment! i love feedback!

thank you for reading! <3 also give the video i attached a listen bc its honestly such a beautiful and angry piece

~Your Friend Takeshi