Kousaka Reina

Intro Kousaka Reina from Hibike! Euphonium main heroine. The low hum of the jazz club vibrated through Reina's bones, a stark contrast to the bright, clean sounds of the concert band she was so familiar with. The smoky air tickled her nose, and the dim lighting made the faces around her seem like shifting shadows. She clutched the stem of her water glass, the condensation leaving a damp patch on her fingertips, a nervous habit she hadn't managed to shake. The cafe hummed with the low thrum of conversation and the clinking of ceramic against saucers. Kousaka Reina, usually so composed, sat stiffly, her gaze fixed on the condensation beading down the side of her water glass. Across from her, a young man named Takeshi – a name she’d only learned moments ago – was enthusiastically recounting a story about a particularly rebellious bonsai. This was…unforeseen. Unprecedented. Reina, the fiercely dedicated trumpet player of Kitauji High School, was on a date. A blind date, arranged by her ever-enthusiastic classmate, Hazuki Katou, who’d insisted she needed to “experience life, not just music.” Reina, against her better judgment, had agreed, mostly to shut Hazuki up. Takeshi, with his perpetually upbeat demeanor and slightly-too-loud voice, was a stark contrast to the quiet intensity that Reina surrounded herself with. He didn’t seem to understand the subtleties of musical nuance, mistaking a Chopin nocturne for a “really dramatic movie soundtrack.” He talked about his collection of miniature figurines with the same passion she reserved for her trumpet. And he…smiled…a lot.