Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

"It's okay, I can practice alone first..."

Goto Ichiri nodded and played the guitar alone.

After saying that, Kita turned around and looked at Akie.

She smiled gently and said, "Xiao Yili is a child who gets lonely easily. I think he often has negative thoughts."

"Yes." Akie agreed, "Humans are actually very fragile creatures."

"As for me, I may be seen as a cheerful type, so I don't really understand the inner world of people like Koichi." Kita smiled, "After getting to know her, I feel that my horizons have broadened a lot."

As she spoke, she took out a few sheets of printed paper from a folder from her schoolbag.

"Here are the lyrics that Ryo-senpai sent me. They're all here for both songs."

Kita took out another black signing pen and handed it to Akie.

"Akie, just mark the part you want to sing with a black pen."

"Hmm. Well, I'll start from here... from 'I can't answer that either'... to 'Come on, answer it'. Then..."

After dividing up the parts she wanted to sing on paper, Qiu Hui turned the folder to the next page.

"As for the original song... it starts from 'It rained suddenly' and ends with 'The mood of the sky'." Akie made a mark on the paper, "The rest from 'When the seasons change' to 'Where did you go' will be left to Kita-san. I feel like Kita-san is the type who would worry about what to wear during the season change."

"That's right!" Kita said with a smile, "Then let me make a guess. Next, Akie will choose "Pressure in the Information Age" and "Dizzy Spiral"! "

"...You actually guessed it right." Akie exclaimed, "Kita surprisingly understands me quite well."

"What do you mean by 'accident'?" Kita said angrily, "From my intuition, I think these two sentences are more suitable."

Soon, the singing parts of the two songs were divided up.

"Okay, let's call it a day!" Kita put away the paper and pen, "I should go practice guitar too!"

"Well, see you at the gathering later..."

"Oh, right!" Kita suddenly stopped, "Speaking of which, Akiie, do you want to go shopping with me this weekend? You said before that you need to change your image when you go on stage, right? I just happened to find a store yesterday that sells those breathable masks that are specially used for dressing up. How about we go and have a look together?"

"Ah... Sorry, actually my schedule is full this weekend." Qiu Hui shook her head, "I am free tonight... How about we go together after practice?"

"Okay, let's talk about it later. See you later!" Kita turned around and walked towards Ichiri while muttering to himself, "Hehe... I must conquer the F chord today!"

After a while, Hongxia and Liang finally arrived.

"Sorry, sorry!" Hong Xia put her hands together and raised them above her head, "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting!"

"I'm sorry." Liang also followed suit, "Because I'm busy with something..."

"I think Hongxia is the only one who is busy." Qiuhui shook her head.

"Hongxia's business is my business." Liang said sternly.

"Stop saying nonsense and start practicing!" Hong Xia trotted to her position, "Let's work hard together to pass the audio review as soon as possible!"

"Oh!" Kita on the side responded excitedly.

Everyone returned to their respective seats and began the ensemble practice that had been repeated many times in recent days.

After practicing for a period of time, Qiu Hui gradually regained her touch for playing the piano, so she gradually became adept at the passages she currently needed to play.

The coordination with the lead guitar and other instruments has gradually become more and more tacit through repeated practice.

Although Qiu Hui has not yet mastered many advanced playing techniques, with the help of the flexible timbre of the electronic keyboard, she has been able to complete her tasks of filling in the music and setting off the main sound relatively well.

Experiencing this feeling of making little progress, Qiu Hui felt somewhat delighted.

As long as I keep improving little by little like this, I will definitely be able to develop a passion for music, right?

Chapter 86: Trip to Shibuya

After this period of practice, everyone in the band has a basic grasp of the cover song they started practicing earlier. The attempt to add vocals also went quite smoothly.

Although it became more difficult for Kita and Akie who had to sing and play the guitar at the same time, fortunately, the two of them were able to cope with it as they gradually grew up.

Because composing and arranging music takes time, the time for practicing original songs is shorter. But even so, the mastery of original songs by the band members is gradually increasing over time.

"I feel like, if we all keep working hard like this for another week or so, maybe we can try to find my sister to do a sound source review, right?" Hong Xia expressed an optimistic expectation.

"…Is it really possible? Maybe it would be better if it were a little longer?" Ichiri had a pessimistic view.

"If you don't pass the review, just keep practicing until you pass." Akie showed a pragmatic attitude.

"Why don't you give it a try next week? Maybe you can pass it in one try!" Kita suggested excitedly.

"Well, who knows." Liang said he didn't care, "Anyway, there will always be a day when I can pass it, right?"

"Indeed, we should think more open-mindedly!" Kita nodded.

We talked about the issue of audio source review for a while, which served as a break between the practice sessions.

"... Talking about this all the time won't help you pass the censorship, right?"

After a while, Hongxia tapped the drumsticks.

"There's not much time left today, so let's practice hard!"

"Oh oh oh oh!" Everyone responded in a sparse and orderly manner.

"Really..." Hong Xia said with a wry smile, "There's no sense of teamwork at all."

"That kind of thing will grow naturally along with the musicality, right?" Liang didn't care about it.

After finishing the band, everyone started practicing again.

Today's practice time ends when the sun sets.

After leaving the musical instrument in the store and saying goodbye to the rest of the people, Akie found Kita.

"We're going to buy some props for our costumes, right?" Akie asked. "Besides, I've been wanting to buy some new clothes for the first time in a while. Can Kita help me with some advice?"

"Okay!" Kita's eyes lit up, "I invited Goto-san to go shopping with me before, but she refused no matter what! She said she couldn't stand the overly fashionable atmosphere..."

"...Ah, now that you mention it, I have an idea."

Akie took out her cell phone and prepared to call Goto Ichiri.

"I don't know why, but Goto-san seems to get along well with me," Akie said. "If I were there, she might not be so resistant."

"Great, I'll trouble you, Akihime!" Kita's mood became more excited. She seemed to really like this lively occasion.

After dialing the number, Qiu Hui heard a trembling voice coming from the other end of the phone.

"...Akie, um, what do you want to talk to me about?"

"I'm going shopping with Kita in a very fashionable neighborhood." Akie got straight to the point, "Pochi, do you want to come with us?"

“Eh? Huh?”

Pochi on the other end of the phone seemed a little overwhelmed by shock.

"Why did you invite me..."

"You don't need a special reason to invite friends out shopping." Qiu Hui said, "Of course, it's okay to refuse if you feel it's inappropriate..."

“…No! I don’t mean to refuse! Please wait a moment, I’ll be right there!”

"I wouldn't have run away if you hadn't said it so urgently. Anyway, we'll wait for you at the entrance of STARRY. See you later."

Qiu Hui hung up the phone.

"Hey, will Xiao Yili come?" asked Kita.

"She'll be here soon."

"That's great." Kita said with a smile, "It seems that Koichi really likes you."

"How should I put it? Maybe she thinks of me as someone of the same kind, so she feels close to me," Akie responded.

Goto Ichiri is not only a reliable work partner, but also a person who deserves attention.

It would be better to interact with her more in the future, Qiu Hui thought.

"Same kind?" Kita was a little unsure, "Akie and Koichi seem to have a lot in common. Although I can't really explain it..."

As an ordinary fashionable Yokaku high school girl, Kita Ikuyo is actually not that good at describing things.

After thinking for a while, she spoke uncertainly: "How should I put it? If Xiaoyi can learn how to adapt to the surrounding environment and deal with the people around him, maybe he can become someone like Akie."

"Well, becoming someone like me isn't anything to be happy about... Ah, Pochi, you're here."

Akie noticed Goto Ichiri jogging over and turned around to greet him.

"Okay, now we're all here!" Kita clapped his hands, "Let's take the train to Shibuya together, shall we?"

"I don't have any objection to that." Akie nodded.

But Goto Ichiri's reaction was not so calm: "Shibuya? Shibuya? Is that the place where dark-skinned hot girls with exaggerated eyelashes hang out? So scary..."

"...Not really." Kita laughed, "Black gals are a bit outdated. Nowadays, even gals are mostly white."

“Huh? That means we can hardly see Shibuya-kei style in Shibuya anymore?” Akie asked in surprise.

"That's about right." Kita nodded. "Akie isn't very well-informed."

"Well, I don't usually pay much attention to this kind of stuff," Akie admitted.

The three of them chatted with each other and arrived at the tram stop.

We took the train to Shibuya Station and came out of the underground passage, arriving at the famous square with the Hachiko statue.

Kita had already pulled out his phone and started taking pictures of the street scene.

"You seem really interested. I'll take a picture too."

Qiu Hui took out her cell phone and took a picture of the big screen hanging on the building across the street.

"Why did you take that photo specifically?" Kita asked.

“Because it’s the big screen that the Phantom Thieves used to release notices.” Akie explained, “The target is a strong candidate for Prime Minister…”

"Sorry, I still don't quite understand." Kita smiled apologetically.

“Ah, sorry, I was just making a joke that no one understood…”

"It's okay! I think it's not good for people who can't follow the jokes in this kind of situation!" Kita hurriedly tried to smooth things over, "Akie, do you want to take a photo with us... oh, that's right."

She suddenly realized the problem: "It seems that Qiu Hui can't show her face directly in the photo now, right?"

"Yeah." Akie nodded, "Let's take a photo after we buy the right mask... Oh, by the way, Kita, you can take a photo with Pochi first."

"Eh? Me, me?"

Goto Ichiri, who seemed to have been looking at Kita and Akie with subtle eyes since a while ago, was startled by this sudden arrangement.

"Yeah, if it's Xiaoyi, then it's no problem!" Kita invited enthusiastically, "Let's go take a photo next to the Hachiko statue?"

“Um, isn’t that too much of a stretch? If you include me in the picture, the composition will definitely be ruined, right? Someone like me who is totally unphotogenic…”

"That doesn't matter!" Kita almost pulled Goto Ichiri forward, "I just want to take a picture with Ichiri now, okay?"

"Ah, ah wow wow wow..." Goto, who was defeated by Kita's direct attack, seemed to have suffered considerable damage to his language module in the violent impact.

Looking at the two people interacting, Qiu Hui smiled with satisfaction and followed them.

Because I have also experienced being a marginalized person, I can understand.

In a situation like this, if I don't deliberately bring the topic to Goto-san, she will probably be gradually ignored, right?

Chapter 87: Guide Kita

Kita was in high spirits and took Goto to take many photos from various angles next to the Hachiko statue.

She reluctantly gave up when Goto was almost exhausted.

"Kita-san really loves taking photos." Akie exclaimed, "Isn't she the type who will actively promote on social networks?"

"Indeed, you do have this habit. Ah, by the way, does Aki have it? Do you want to pay attention to each other?"

“I do have one…” Akie scratched her head, “but that’s basically a work account. I post new works and event information…”

"It's a work account!" Kita exclaimed, "Is there an officially certified one? That feels awesome!"

"Official account..." Goto Ichiro also took a breath, "Um, excuse me, how many people are following it..."