Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

"Sorry, Chuhua. Not all the staff are here right now, and I just happen to have other things to do..."

"I know." Chuhua replied with a bitter smile, "Is it about Qiu Hui? She does look very worrying. After all, she is a newcomer who has just entered the industry, and she is very enthusiastic about her work. I guess she must be under a lot of pressure, right?"

"……may be."

For some reason, Xiangzi felt a chill on his back.

Chuhua is clearly caring and considerate of his juniors, and is also encouraging me to do the same...

But why do I always feel that the atmosphere seems a little weird?

"...Hatsuka."

At this time Mu suddenly spoke.

"After this, there are some things I want to talk about."

"Xiao Mu?" Chu Hua was a little surprised, as if she didn't expect Mu to take the initiative to invite her. "What's the matter?"

"Chuhua, you can play the guitar, right?" Mu whispered, "Since you're going to form a band, I want to talk about playing."

"Oh, I see. Then after we disperse, let's meet up somewhere?"

"You can come to my house." Muzhi said.

"Huh? Is it really okay?" Chu Hua was shocked.

"Mom and Dad are usually not around," Mu said, "It should be fine."

Judging from the results, Chuhua's attention seemed to be drawn elsewhere.

This is all thanks to Mu, Xiangzi thought. Did she do this on purpose?

She wanted to give Mu a look to express her gratitude, but their eyes met at the same time.

"..."

Mu's expression didn't change, he just nodded slightly.

After that, everyone temporarily dispersed peacefully.

Chuhua and Mu left together, but Hailing had no intention of parting ways for some reason.

"Hachiman-san, you..."

Just as Xiangzi was about to ask a question, his cell phone rang.

The caller is Chihaya Aine.

Chapter 40: We'll be at your door soon

"Please answer the phone first."

Hai Ling folded her hands in front of her, her face calm, indicating to Xiangzi not to worry about her for the time being.

"Sorry, that's rude."

After saying that, Xiangzi quickly answered the phone.

As for the content of the subsequent conversation, she actually already had some idea in her mind.

Aine and I met once because of our previous band formation.

She would probably come to me on her own initiative only because it’s about Qiu Hui, right?

"Hello." She answered the phone, "What's going on..."

Before she could finish, Aine spoke hastily.

"Let's find a place to talk in person!"

“Eh?” Shoko was startled by Aine’s overly direct response, “If we meet right away, then what should we talk about…”

However, Aine seemed to feel that she was not straightforward enough.

As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately made a further proposal.

“No, if we just chat, it will not lead to any results… Now that we can’t contact our senior, we should go to her house and look for her!”

Aine’s tone sounded very firm.

"Just go, to her house? Is this... appropriate?"

The continuous increase in the offer made Xiangzi even stutter. A hint of red appeared on his round face, which looked a little pale due to poor nutrition, and his beautiful amber eyes became a little evasive, even though he knew that the other party was not in front of him.

Although I have been to Qiu Hui's residence before...but each time there were reasons, and Qiu Hui's consent was also obtained.

Wouldn't it be too rude to just go there without the other party's consent?

When he thought of this, Xiangzi suddenly reacted.

Unexpectedly, I now have the time to consider whether it is impolite or not.

She gave a barely perceptible smile.

"Hmm...there's nothing inappropriate about it!"

At this moment, Chihaya Aine on the other end of the phone was eager to try and had already started looking for clothes to wear when she visited.

My senior and I have... well, we have done all the things we should and shouldn't do, so there is nothing inappropriate about it now!

Of course, besides this pure confidence, Aine also had other considerations.

"Besides, how should I put it, Senpai is actually a very rigid person. I know her very well."

"Many times, she would suppress her true thoughts for various reasons and tell everyone 'I think this is fine'."

Senior, why you think this way... Is it related to the situations mentioned earlier?

Whether that is the case or not, at least one thing is certain.

If the senior can't do it herself, I will help her.

If I can't do it alone, then everyone should do it together.

I am different from my predecessors. I don't do things because I "should" or because I "take responsibility", so I don't have any scruples.

I just simply "want to do this"!

"I think, even if she says she doesn't want to see us, we can't just leave her alone!"

Even though Aiyin's voice was distorted by the wireless transmission, it still conveyed a certain wonderful feeling to Xiangzi's heart.

“Aine-san, are you trying to say… Akiie, even though she ‘can’t accept’ it, that doesn’t mean she ‘wants to reject’ it?”

Xiangzi nodded slightly, as if thinking about something.

During this period of time, she became a little thin due to poor diet, and long-term work and mental stress also made her face look haggard.

The reality was like a file, carving many scars of varying sizes on her body.

Although the scars left from that time have not yet faded, Aine's words somehow reminded her of something that happened a long time ago.

Actually... I didn't consider whether it was rude or not.

Xiangzi recalled the day when he first met Gao Songdeng.

Falling petals, blowing breeze, and a beautiful misunderstanding.

It was just a scratch on my leg, but I just followed the light all the way to her house...

...I even took someone else's notebook without permission and looked at it, thinking that it was the lyrics.

Thinking back on it now, it makes me laugh and feel uneasy at the same time.

but.

It was because of this reckless act that everything that happened afterwards happened.

That’s why we have Kasuga Shadow, CRYCHIC with Deng as the main singer, and that show…

...If I hadn't left in disgrace because of those unexpected events.

Lamp, will you thank me for my reckless and rude behavior?

When Shoko Toyokawa opened her eyes, she felt as if she had returned to that sunny and slightly chilly spring.

The two girls on the footpath bridge were discussing a topic as dreamy as the morning dew in the wind.

Now, perhaps I will never be able to continue living so naively.

However, there are some things that, even now, perhaps we can try to grasp again.

Toyokawa Shoko let out a long sigh.

First, just start by...acknowledging something.

"If that's the case... let's meet up at Akie's place."

Xiangzi nodded gently.

Qiu Hui has helped me a lot, although she may not think so.

However, I am not doing this now to repay a favor or out of some kind of legitimate demand.

If I had to give a reason... maybe it's just because I want to.

Just like that spring when I read the lyrics of the song "Light".

Maybe... I can be considered to like Qiu Hui a little, right?

It doesn't matter even if I admit it.

Because she has seen my most embarrassing side.

So, if it’s something related to her... maybe there’s no need to hide it anymore?

"Let's think of something together and see what we can do for Akihime."

“That’s great!” Aine said happily, “Then, there’s only one question left!”

"Any more questions?" Xiangzi's heart, which had just been relieved, began to hang in the air again.

“Uh…how should I put it…”

Aine suddenly started to hesitate.

On the other end of the phone, embarrassment spread in her heart.

Because she just realized that she seemed to have forgotten something...very crucial.

"...I don't think I know where Senpai lives now."

silence.

"…It's amazing that you could make such a proposal without even knowing where Akie lives." Shoko sighed.

“Hehe, maybe I was so excited that I accidentally forgot…” Aine laughed awkwardly.

Aine-san is really...

Fortunately, it doesn’t matter if Aiyin doesn’t know, because Xiangzi knows where she lives and even helped her move.

"It seems that Qiu Hui is sharing a house with someone else now. I'll send you the address via cell phone later." Xiangzi replied with a wry smile.

"Thank you very much. That's a great help."

Aine finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Sure enough, it was the right decision to find a few more people to work together to find a solution!

Chapter 41 It's You

After hanging up the phone, Xiangzi prepared to leave for Qiuhui's current residence.

Qiu Hui had told her before that she was currently sharing a house with someone.

Xiangzi didn't know who his roommate was, so he had to consider the possibility that the other party might not welcome so many friends visiting at the same time.

Should I ask Qiu Hui out by then, or what...

"...Wait, Hai Ling?"

While Xiangzi was thinking, he suddenly realized something.