Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

This band, which didn't even have a name yet, was designed from the very beginning as a prototype of CRYCHIC.

If it weren't for Xiao Deng, I wouldn't even have planned to leave a place for her...

Su Shi sighed, with a hint of loneliness in his eyes.

Things are becoming increasingly complicated and out of control.

Everyone in the nameless band is uniting little by little under a new name.

The bond that is budding between them does not belong to "CRYCHIC", but to this "new band" that doesn't even have a name yet.

…It shouldn’t be like this.

In this case, Xiaoxiang won't be able to fit in.

And, before that...

Xiaoxiang will come to watch the performance.

For some reason, Su Shi suddenly had a feeling.

This performance may be her last chance to save everything.

Before this, she had been rejected many times by Xiangzi.

Even though she realized that Xiangzi had his own difficulties, and even though she firmly believed that Xiangzi still missed the band's past, Su Shi also vaguely realized that Xiangzi's patience was limited.

If I can't take advantage of this performance to make everything clear...

Maybe there really is no chance.

Xiaoxiang will lose his patience, and everyone in the Wuming band will establish new connections and develop a new sense of belonging...

Only I will be left behind and abandoned.

please.

do not do that.

No, I can't think about it anymore...

She remained silent and sent messages in the group chat.

"Everyone, do you have any other ideas for the training camp? If there is anything I can do to help, I will do my best!"

...Since the training camp is already a foregone conclusion, then...try to perform as well as you can.

Although you don't need to be too enthusiastic, at least you shouldn't appear too resistant.

It doesn't matter. As long as I can talk everything out with Xiaoxiang after the performance...

Thinking of this, Su Shi finally felt relieved.

After Su Shi spoke, the group chat suddenly became lively. Aiyin made many irrelevant suggestions, but they were all rejected by Li Xi one by one.

After a while, it was Li Xi who came up with an idea: "Even though it's a training camp, I think we can't fall behind in practice. We should bring our musical instruments."

"No! That would be such a bummer! Rikki is so old-fashioned!"

"You're just looking for a chance to slack off, right?"

"Everyone, stop arguing. I think Li Xi's suggestion makes sense!" Su Shi said, "However, it may be inconvenient to carry the musical instruments. I will find someone to help transport them. How about this?"

"Okay." Lixi sent this reply after a while. It seemed that she spent a lot of time to understand what "asking someone for help" meant.

"It's a good thing not to fall behind in practice." Qiu Hui actually sent a message in the group.

"By the way, since we already brought musical instruments, why don't we try doing a street performance on the beach?"

...And, he made a pretty exciting suggestion like this.

Chapter 52: Good Luck

In fact, Qiu Hui made this suggestion purely from a practical point of view.

The first time you perform in a showroom, you will feel nervous to some extent. For someone like Deng who is more sensitive, I am afraid he will be even less used to the attention of the audience.

Moreover, if something went wrong due to the tense relationship, according to Deng's personality, he would most likely blame himself for the failure.

However, if it is a street performance that does not require the audience to buy tickets and does not matter much even if it goes wrong, it may serve as a "rehearsal" with an audience.

Since Li Xi just mentioned that he wanted to bring musical instruments, he could simply arrange this street performance during the training period. This way, the time utilization efficiency would be improved.

However, although Qiu Hui made this suggestion purely out of practical considerations, the response it caused may not have much to do with practicality.

“That’s a good idea! It sounds cool!” Aine replied excitedly, “Why don’t we all just play in our swimsuits? It will definitely attract a lot of attention!”

In a rare move, even Lenai responded in the group chat.

"Performance, we have to do it."

Very brief and straight to the point.

"Huh? Swimsuits and the like are definitely not allowed. They're too stimulating for Deng!" Lixi refused bluntly.

"Let's not talk about swimsuits for now, but I think street performances are still necessary." Qiu Hui added, "Li Xi just mentioned the lights. I think it's necessary to let the lights get used to the feeling of being surrounded by the audience before the official performance."

"That's true," Li Xi admitted, "If it can help with the lights, I have no objection."

“Ahaha, Rikki has only been thinking about the lights!” Aine replied half-jokingly.

"Is there anything wrong with thinking about the light?"

"No, I care about Xiao Deng too!"

Li Xi has been slow to respond to Aine's message, which makes people curious about what she is thinking now.

Discussions in the group chat continued as usual, and various matters were decided.

Then, until a certain unspecified point in time, it seemed as if some inexplicable tacit understanding made everyone stop discussing at the same time, and suddenly no one sent any messages anymore.

So, Togawa Akeie stood up from the armchair, stretched her body, picked up the tea that Meow Meng had brought her earlier, and took a sip.

"Are we finally going to take a break?"

Miao Meng just walked in. She pushed open the door and looked at Qiu Hui who was exercising with a smile.

She was wearing baggy home clothes, but the overly loose clothing only made her figure vaguely visible.

"Yeah." Qiu Hui nodded, "We can't keep working non-stop."

Qiu Hui was wearing casual clothes from her previous residence. She didn't have much luggage, so she could move almost everything in one night.

"...But, I feel like you, Qiu Rongzi, are the type who actively finds things to do for yourself." Meow Meng shook her head helplessly, "For example, composing music for that band is totally outside your job scope, right?"

"If I help Li Xi finish the preparations sooner, I can finish my work there as early as possible." Qiu Hui answered seriously, "This will be good for my schedule."

"That's true... but, you don't have to be so responsible for that band, right?" Meow Meng said helplessly, "You are so stubborn, Ms. Akirako."

Miao Meng took a step closer and looked down at Qiu Hui, with a hint of resentment in her eyes.

“I say… you, after all, still like Aine, right?”

As if being stabbed, Akie reacted nervously: "It has nothing to do with that. I just..."

"Just what?" Miao Meng insisted.

Until now, she was still smiling, and her tone did not deviate from the scope of normal inquiries.

"..."

However, Akie still didn't know how to answer.

In front of this roommate who was very proactive, or perhaps too proactive, in wanting to take care of her, she was somewhat... reluctant to talk about the other person she liked.

Maybe Miss Miao Meng might like me, Qiu Hui suddenly thought of this.

For some reason I never understood, she had always been unusually enthusiastic about me.

Why is this happening... It can't be love at first sight, right?

Qiu Hui wanted to ask clearly, but Miao Meng didn't seem to want to really answer the question.

Every time Qiu Hui tried to ask, she would evade the question with vague answers or tell some frivolous jokes, making it completely unclear whether she was serious or not.

"I……"

Faced with Qiu Hui who was hesitant to speak, Miao Meng walked up to her and gently took her hand.

"You need to rest anyway, why don't you just sit on the sofa in the living room?"

Qiu Hui did not object and let Miao Meng take her to the soft sofa in the living room, and they sat side by side.

“During dinner earlier, you said that you wanted to go to a training camp with everyone in Aine’s band, right?” Meow Meng said with a smile, “It’s really youthful… It reminds me of those club-themed anime.”

"…I'm not a member of that group." Akie responded.

"Even so, you went anyway..."

Miao Meng leaned back, allowing her body to fall into the grip of the sofa.

"Hey, can you tell me?" she said, "Ms. Akiko, are you going to enter the key scene and decide the development of the 'route' next?"

Akie was stunned for a moment, but soon realized what Meowme was referring to.

"...Yes." She nodded. "I have a lot of work to do, so it's best not to dwell on emotional issues for too long."

Qiu Hui also lay back and sank into the back of the sofa, so that as long as she turned her head, she could see Miao Meng's face.

“You just asked me if I still like Aine.” She said, “Although that is true… I still hope to take advantage of this training opportunity to think carefully about the relevant matters.”

"First, what exactly do I like about her?"

"Second, is she willing to accept this relationship, and in what form is she willing to accept it?"

"And the third one..." Akie sighed, "...how should we deal with the 'other people' besides her?"

"...Others?" Miao Meng widened her eyes slightly.

"You should know what I mean." Qiu Hui said meaningfully, "Or, I haven't actually talked to you about 'other people' yet?"

"Oh... well... you didn't say it, but, forget it." Miao Meng replied decisively, "Some things are better for both of us if we don't say them out loud."

After saying that, she propped herself up on the sofa cushions with both hands, stood up, and walked in front of Qiu Hui.

"Anyway."

Miao Meng's eyes seemed to reflect thousands of words, but in the end she only said one sentence.

"Good luck to you, and have fun."

Chapter 53: Training Camp

a few days later.

Qiu Hui and her group just found a perfect time for the training camp. The weather was fine and everyone was free.

The luggage such as daily necessities and musical instruments were delivered by the consignor arranged by Sushi. Qiu Hui and her group took the tram to the nearby station at a leisurely pace, and then walked slowly to the holiday villa they booked.

"I say, how long will it take to get there?" Li Xi seemed a little impatient.

"Lixi, it's rare for us all to come out and play together, wouldn't it be better if we could relax a little?" Su Shi responded with a smile.

At this time, Togawa Akee was walking on the sidewalk with others. Looking to the right, across the road was a vast expanse of white-gold sandy beach. It was the peak tourist season, and the crowds on the beach were as dense as bean sprouts in cheap ramen. It seemed that it was not so easy to find an open space for six people to move freely.

On the left stood a group of holiday villas. Compared with the beautiful South Sea islands in Qiu Hui's memory, they seemed a bit ordinary.

Qiu Hui always feels that perhaps there should be an element like "a sea breeze with a slight salty taste" here, so that this scene can be considered complete.

Unfortunately, it was a sunny day with no clouds in the sky, so at least the sea breeze wasn't strong enough to blow across the road. Instead, the traffic on the road more or less added an unpleasant gasoline smell to the seaside air.

After all, reality is not a text adventure game. It is difficult to find a perfect and empty beach as the stage for the story, Qiu Hui thought.

The lamp looked around curiously, as if it was appreciating the surrounding scenery very seriously.

"This seems to be the first time we've all come together to play together." She whispered to herself, "But... I'm looking forward to it."

“That’s right!” Aine agreed strongly, “I think activities like this that foster team spirit are just as important as practice!”

Today, Aine was dressed very fancy, or as she said, very "summer style". Although she hadn't entered the water yet, she was already dressed like she was wearing a swimsuit; wearing sandals with colorful rhinestones on her feet, a rather funny straw hat on her head, and a pair of huge round sunglasses with colorful frames, it was really hard to describe her.

“Aine, you’re really…excited today,” Suyo smiled helplessly.