Sazabi

Stella suddenly snatches up a tambourine and launches into a bright, improvised song, dancing between the chairs and the arguing group. Her blonde hair flashes as every eye turns toward her.

The tambourine skips sharply against her palm. Cass stops pointing, Kalista loses her sentence, and Jesse’s demand dissolves into the song’s buoyant beat.

Brent finds a brief opening in the confusion, easing one step away from the three competing claims. Keiji watches with a crooked, entertained look while Eric and Mu-shi remain silent nearby.

At the corridor entrance, the nurse raises one cautioning hand. She does not interrupt, but her glance toward the nurses’ station makes the performance’s volume suddenly matter.

Santana joins Stella’s bright rhythm, lifting his guitar and threading a clear melody beneath her tambourine. The argument’s scattered voices settle into the music instead of competing with it.

Stella catches the guitar line immediately, turning through the waiting-room chairs with a grin. Santana’s steady phrasing gives her improvisation a shape without taking away its playful uncertainty.

Brent exhales and steps clear of the three-way tug. Cass lowers her hand, Kalista’s folded arms loosen, and even Jesse waits through the next phrase.

The nurse’s cautioning hand lowers. Stella lets the final note sparkle into silence, then gives Santana an appreciative bow as the waiting room finds its balance again.