In music anime, band girls won't be alone.

"Xiangzi, this is the contract that was just signed this afternoon. Take a look."

"The exhibit mentioned inside is this guitar."

Toyokawa Shoko responded, took the file bag, and began to examine the contract.

After reading the contract, she looked up at the boy, her eyes filled with disbelief.

"There's nothing wrong with the contract."

"But, Ze, I always have this feeling that something isn't real..."

Shirakawa Ze, with a serious expression, placed the envelope in front of the recipient.

“The contract is very clear in all its terms. We provide services and then receive payment. This is a very reasonable thing.”

"Moreover, if the account becomes more and more popular, we will actually not benefit from this kind of fixed-compensation contract."

Toyokawa Shoko laughed.

"It seems Ze really has a lot of confidence in this account."

Shirakawa nodded as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Of course, after all, it's Xiangzi who appears on camera and performs."

The girl lowered her gaze gently, her eyes filled with a mixture of shyness and joy.

After confirming that the envelope contained 500,000 yen, she counted out 15 ten-thousand-yen bills and placed them in front of the other party as their share of the profits.

After finishing their conversation, Toyokawa Shoko went home.

Shirakawa took a shower and then prepared to go to sleep.

For the two of them, the night had already returned to normal.

But for Motoyo Nagasaki, this night was just beginning to stir things up.

After returning home, she sat on the sofa for a while, feeling increasingly depressed, before getting up to take a shower.

After taking a shower, she didn't put on her clothes immediately, but stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom, carefully examining herself.

She raised her hand and touched her cheek, which was devoid of any smile, then slowly slid her fingers down her neck.

Her gaze followed her fingertips, across plains, over mountains, and finally settled on the edge of the forest.

Then she looked up until her eyes were aligned with her own in the mirror.

She looked into her dull, lifeless eyes and uttered a single syllable with difficulty.

"I……"

After a while, she took a deep breath and spoke again.

"Am I... really not good enough?"

No one responded.

After a moment of silence, Nagasaki Motoyo put on her clothes, walked out of the bathroom, and went into the small room next to the reception room.

Several wine cabinets were placed in the room, filled with various wines that Nagasaki's mother usually used to entertain guests.

Nagasaki Motoyo's gaze swept directly past the beers and wines, lingering on the various spirits.

She felt she needed to release her emotions.

Since we cannot indulge our bodies, let us indulge our minds.

Perhaps not expecting her sensible and obedient daughter to have a desire to drink, Nagasaki's mother did not lock the liquor cabinets.

In the end, Nagasaki Motoyo chose a bottle of whiskey, opened it, went to the living room, found a glass, and poured some in.

The smell of the wine as it was poured out made her feel slightly uncomfortable.

She picked up the glass and brought it close to her face, finding the smell of alcohol quite unpleasant.

However, she had already made up her mind. With a frown and her eyes closed, she took a sip.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

The intense stimulation immediately caused her physical discomfort, and the smell of alcohol lingering in her nasal cavity and the burning sensation in her throat made her cough incessantly.

She felt tears gradually blurring her vision, unsure whether it was from the pungent alcohol or the sadness in her heart.

She pulled out a tissue and began to wipe her tears.

But the more she wiped away her tears, the more she cried, and the more upset she became.

"Woo..."

She let out a sob involuntarily.

It was as if they had received some kind of signal.

After that sob, her emotions collapsed instantly, and she burst into tears.

As she cried, Nagasaki Motoyo turned on her phone. She realized that she couldn't balance her emotions as easily as she had imagined.

She admitted that she couldn't do it.

While crying and wiping away her tears, Nagasaki Motoyo opened her call log and found Shirakawa Sawa's name.

After hesitating for a moment, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tapped the screen with her finger.

Because her eyes were closed, she didn't see that her own tears fell onto the screen before her fingers could react, dialing another person's number...

After hearing a groggy "hmm" from the other end of the phone, Nagasaki Motoyo immediately spoke up.

“Ze-jun…”

After saying those two words, she felt all the grievances in her heart well up and burst into tears again.

“Ze-jun…”

Nagasaki Motoyo spoke through tears.

"I'm so sorry to bother you so late..."

"But I have some feelings that I really want to tell you, no matter what."

"Please don't speak."

"Please don't hang up yet."

"Let me finish what I have to say."

After wiping away her tears, Nagasaki Motoyo continued speaking.

"I like you, Ze-jun."

"I really like you."

"I know you are Deng Jiang's lover, and I have told myself countless times to keep my distance from you and draw a clear line."

"But I still can't do it."

I know my actions have caused you trouble.

"I know you and Dengjiang have a good relationship, and I have no intention of ruining it."

"To me, Deng Jiang is also an extremely important person."

"I know you've been trying very hard to take care of my feelings and don't want me to be sad because of your rejection."

"But... I'm too selfish, I'm too selfish, Ze-kun."

"I thought I would forget you quickly, I thought this relationship wouldn't take any further..."

"But I...but I..."

"I realized I was wrong."

"I don't know what to do... Ze-kun..."

"I'm sorry……"

At this point, Nagasaki Motoyo broke down in tears and could no longer speak.

After a while, she heard a voice coming from the other end of the microphone.

"Su Shi, I'm sorry this has caused you trouble."

"If it's possible, could we meet and talk tomorrow afternoon after school?"

Upon hearing that voice, Nagasaki Motoyo's mind went blank for a moment, all her emotions vanished, leaving only shock.

【Why is it Dengjiang?】

We're doomed...

Volume 1: Chapter 159 Xiao Mu Quickly Cuts Down Su Shi

Nagasaki Motoyo opened her eyes and was stunned to see that the number she was talking to was Takamatsu Akari's.

【how so?】

She didn't know how she had dialed the wrong number. Even if her finger had slipped, it should have landed on the two call logs before and after Shirakawa Sawa, not on Takamatsu Akira, who was still several lines away...

However, now is not the time to figure out this issue.

She needs to think about how to deal with the situation at hand.

"I'm sorry, Tou-chan..."

Nagasaki Motoyo apologized first, her tone urgent.

"I don't know what happened, it just suddenly..."

Suddenly, she felt at a loss for words.

She didn't know how to explain it.

Silence fell between the two.