Am I being simulated by their love affair.

Chapter 291 So-called happiness is nothing but unnecessary worries

After finishing another song, Aya Miyamura took a sip of water and looked at the entire room reflected in the mirror.

"Having a microphone helps me figure out how loud to sing; it definitely feels better to practice outside of school~"

“That’s no excuse for you to sing into the microphone and torture our ears.” Jun Matsueda put down his drumsticks and swung his arms to relax.

They had been in the practice room all morning. The girl had been running around the room during practice, trying to simulate interacting with the audience on stage, which caused the speakers to squeal several times.

"Let's take a break," Izumi Mizuki said, putting down her guitar. "The facilities here are really good. Shall we have lunch and then come back to continue?"

“I’m fine.” Jun Matsue nodded, and Sachi raised her hand.

"Um, is it okay if I don't have lunch with everyone? My boyfriend is coming to visit."

After thinking for a while, the minister, who was in charge of the team, said, "It's 11 o'clock now. We can have free time during lunch and then meet up again at 1:30."

"Thank you, Minister~" Xiaoxing called out sweetly. She only used the title "Minister" at times like this. "Then I'll be going now?"

"Let's go." Izumi Mizuki waved her hand. "Remember the rules of the Light Music Club: don't bring your lover into the band."

"See you this afternoon, Minister~" The girl skipped out the door, leaving the three people in the room behind.

"So the Light Music Club has such rules?" Jun Matsueda stood up and stretched. The chair next to him was empty.

Yamami Maki left after the band practiced a few songs. It seemed that the girl also had to go to school on Sunday. She sent a message to Matsueda Jun, saying that she would come over again after class.

"This is a rule I set after I became the department head." Izumi Mizuki had the bitter and resentful expression that only a beautiful girl would have. "The first band I joined in school disbanded because of a relationship between a boy and a girl."

“I understand.” Jun Matsueda nodded. When he was in the band, he focused on playing, so that everyone could relax a bit.

"I'd like to wander around the neighborhood and grab some lunch. Would you like to come along?" The girl pulled out a pick necklace from her collar, and Aya Miyamura walked up to her.

"I'm with my senior!"

"My words," Jun Matsue glanced at his phone. His senior had just sent him a message; she was on her way after class.

"I'll wander around the studio first, then I'll see you in the practice room."

"Remember to lock the door. I don't want to come back and find my guitar gone." The girl left with Aya.

Matsueda Jun stayed in the room for a while before locking the door and leaving the practice room. The design of this floor was somewhat similar to the building where Kiyoshi had taken him to record songs. The corridor was on the outer edge of the floor, and you could see the sunlight streaming through the entire corridor as soon as you opened the door.

The studio has six floors in total. The practice room that the light music club used today is on the fifth floor, which offers a slight view of the nearby streets. Jun Matsueda watched as Mizuki Izumi and Aya Miyamura walked out of the music store across the street and disappeared into the dead corner of the building.

He observed the neighborhood near the Mingda Station and found that, just as Senior Yamami had said, it was full of places closely related to music. The signs on the exterior walls of the buildings were mostly decorated with various musical notes or instrument symbols. There was a record store at the end of the street, and a stray cat was lying in the sun outside.

The midday sun was too strong, making the streets bright white, like an overexposed photograph taken by a photographer by mistake.

Jun Matsueda's phone vibrated again, the yellow parrot icon flashing; it was a message from Maki Yami.

"Matsueda-kun, I'm back~" After replying to the message, Matsueda Jun looked up and waited for a while. As expected, he saw the girl walking slowly towards him at the end of the street.

Yamami Maki wore a blue floral print long dress. The buildings of varying heights were backlit, casting irregular shadows on the street. The midday light made the colors lose their intensity, leaving only black and white. The girl stepped through the light and shadow in front of her, like a miniature fairy stepping on the black and white keys of a piano.

Jun Matsue watched as her skirt swayed all the way to the studio entrance. It was time to go downstairs, so he walked towards the stairwell.

As Yamami Maki stepped out of the elevator on the fifth floor, she stopped, looked herself up and down at her dress, fiddled with her bangs in front of her phone screen, and took out her lipstick to open it when Matsueda Jun suddenly walked over from the stairwell.

Startled, the girl quickly put her hands behind her back, hiding the lipstick in her hand. "What are you doing here, Pine-E?"

"I went upstairs for a walk. The others went to have lunch and won't be back until 1:30." Jun Matsue looked at her slightly unnatural expression with some curiosity.

"Are you feeling unwell, senior?"

"No, no." Yamami Maki waved her hand, having secretly slipped the lipstick into her small handbag. "It's just that the weather is a bit hot."

"Didn't Matsueda go out with the others?"

The girl suddenly realized that only the two of them were left in the space—although she hadn't started to exert her power yet, the opportunity to be alone had already appeared.

"Because senior said she was coming, right?" The boy's matter-of-fact tone made Yamami Maki's heart race.

"The senior provided a practice space and even came to see us after class. It would definitely feel bad if we came back and found that no one was there."

"It's not you guys, it's you!" the girl corrected him in her mind. Although it was different from the reason she had expected, she was already very satisfied with the two of them being alone together.

Happiness shouldn't come rushing at you all at once, Maki Yami thought. It's enough to get a little bit every day, so that there will be something to look forward to in the future, right?
"So, Matsueda-kun hasn't had lunch yet?" The girl cautiously began searching for something more enjoyable. "Would you like to eat with me?"

“That’s what I was planning to do too.” Jun Matsue laughed. “It can be a bit difficult to choose when eating out alone. I think you know this area well, so I feel like you can take me to eat some good food.”

When it comes to finding restaurants, his tendency to seek things without effort has likely spoiled him, perhaps due to the indulgences he receives from those around him.

So the girl who had just stepped out of the elevator returned to the small, enclosed space, only this time she had someone with her, someone who made her care about her hairstyle and lips.

"Where should we go for lunch?" Yami Maki muttered to herself. "There are quite a few nice restaurants nearby."

“Then let’s browse and pick things out as we go. We have plenty of time, no need to rush.” Jun Matsuoka also joined in, talking to himself.

"Okay~" The girl smiled and squinted her eyes. The elevator doors opened, and the two walked into the street, which looked like an overexposed film.

"The sun is so strong," Yami Maki thought to herself. She hadn't thought this way when she walked by a few minutes ago, but now she was worried that the intense sunlight might make her sweat too much.

Although somewhat troubled, the girl's smile became even brighter.

Because there is another person by your side, even unnecessary worries become happiness.

(End of this chapter)