Loneliness and Rock and Roll with Band Observer

Everyone moved with their salads to a shop selling fried food. After placing their orders, they sat around the table and started eating and chatting.

"So, what exactly does a happy family mean?" Goto Ichiri asked first.

Although Akie said so, she didn't think the Togawa family was really as "happy" as described.

"My father and mother. Although I don't want to admit it, they are actually very outstanding people." Qiu Hui held her chin and looked at the food in front of her with a lack of interest. She said slowly, "... so outstanding that I doubt whether I can still be considered their descendant."

"I see. So... you feel a lot of pressure, or something like that?" Ichiri asked tentatively.

Kita looked at Akie's expression and seemed to have noticed something.

"Do Akie's parents know?" she asked, "about writing the novel."

"Of course they know... I'm afraid there is nothing in this world that they don't know?" Qiu Hui said sarcastically in a tone that could almost be considered harsh.

Goto Ichiri felt as if her heart was pounding. Ever since she first met Akie in Starry, she had never seen Akie show such a scary expression as this one.

However, this hideous look only lasted for a moment.

"…Sorry, did I lose control of myself just now?" Qiu Hui seemed to realize that her behavior was inappropriate, and she quickly restrained her previous expression and showed her usual gentle smile.

She smiled bitterly and shook her head, and continued, "But having said that, they always respected my wishes. I told them, 'I hope you won't interfere with my choices from now on'... and they did it."

She picked up some purple cabbage with a plastic fork and put it in her mouth, feeling the bitterness without salad dressing.

"They are very understanding parents... Even now, I have to admit it."

"So, what does 'don't interfere' mean exactly?" Goto Ichiri felt something was wrong. She couldn't help but ask out of worry, "What exactly..."

"This topic is over... I don't have anything else to say." Qiu Hui shook her head and looked at the two of them apologetically, "Sorry, let's change the subject."

Kita nodded in understanding.

To be honest, the atmosphere has become extremely bad. If we continue talking, it will definitely not be pleasant.

"Well... speaking of which, we are going to go clothes shopping together later, right?" She quickly changed the subject, "Speaking of clothes, I actually know..."

Kita Ikuyo started discussing issues surrounding clothing stores, and Akie quickly got into the mood and started chatting about some fashion topics. Of course, it was mainly Akie who asked questions and Kita who answered them.

But this time, Goto Ichiri had no urge to join in their conversation.

Her thoughts were still on Togawa Aie's previous reaction.

Come to think of it, Qiu Hui has already come to my house once.

But, I haven't been to Qiuhui's house yet.

What are very good parents like?

Could it be that they are better than my parents?

It was hard for Goto Ichiri to imagine what that state was like.

Moreover, they were so outstanding that Qiu Hui felt that she couldn't even hold her head up in front of them...

…Akihime is obviously a very impressive person, right? She has 30,000 followers on Facebook, her writing skills are so high that she can publish books and sell them, she can interact with people calmly, and she is also a very gentle person.

If I appeared in front of them, would I be evaporated in an instant?

Goto Ichiri looked at Akie's face. She was chatting with Kita about fashion and accessories, and her expression was as calm as ever, as if what happened just now had never happened.

...Maybe she was trying to comfort me in this way? So that I wouldn't have to feel guilty about bringing up an unpleasant topic? Goto Ichiri guessed.

But in fact, she would rather the other party behave a little more harshly and be more hurt.

Now, this kind of indifference, not knowing whether it is true or not, only makes Goto Ichiri feel terrified.

"Ah, come to think of it, Pochi, what do you think? You usually only wear sportswear, but I'd like to hear your opinion..."

As usual, Qiu Hui turned the topic over to Yili.

Yili responded hesitantly and basically did not offer any valuable opinions.

She looked at Qiu Hui and nodded with a smile, but in her heart she felt that the distance between her and Qiu Hui might be much greater than she had imagined before...

Much farther.

……

After finishing their meal, the three of them headed towards the clothing store as planned.

Kita noticed that Goto seemed a little strange, so she lowered her voice and asked, "Akie, I feel like there's something wrong with Koichi."

"what happened?"

"It feels like she's deliberately keeping a distance from us?" Kita whispered.

"If you put it that way, it seems to be true...but why?" Akie was a little confused.

Did my behavior just now make her feel uncomfortable?

"Ichiri-chan!" Kita shouted, "Can you please catch up a little? There are so many people here, it will be terrible if you fall behind by accident!"

"Huh? Ah! I see! I'll follow you right away!"

Yili, who was called, immediately ran after him.

No matter what she thought, the fact that she would agree if asked did not change.

Taking advantage of the three of them being reunited, Akie observed Goto's condition with a sense of guilt.

...I always feel that the atmosphere has become very bad.

It was probably my fault, wasn't it? I was just asking about my family situation, so a proper reply would have been enough.

But in the end, he just spoke a bunch of strange things in a pretentious tone, which disrupted the atmosphere.

Why am I doing this?

Qiu Hui sighed, feeling very disappointed.

As expected. Actually, I have been looking forward to the opportunity to talk about these things, right?

Just like a bad boy who hasn't graduated from junior high school showing off to others that he had been in a fight and was injured, he pretends to be nonchalant and tells people these things in exchange for some bland attention and sympathy.

If this selfish and childish interest causes discomfort to others, then the responsibility lies entirely with me.

But the problem is, even if I want to apologize, I don’t know how to say it…

Qiu Hui was struggling internally, but her face remained as calm as ever.

Kita turned his head slightly and silently stared at Akie's somewhat stiff face.

Chapter 90 Kita's Atmosphere Restoration Technique

Kita Ikuyo, for the first time in a long time, was troubled by the problem of atmosphere.

Although it might not be possible to describe it clearly with words, she could "feel" through some innate instinct the bad atmosphere that was currently pervading among the three of them.

It all started with the topic of "family" which was brought up by chance.

Although Qiu Hui seemed to be trying her best to cover it up, the dark aura revealed in her behavior and words was still difficult to completely conceal, and the leaked part was enough to pollute the atmosphere of the entire conversation.

This topic was actually brought up by Xiao Yili. After sensing the dark aura coming from Akie, she probably felt a little guilty for touching Akie's sore spot.

Although these thoughts were not organized into clear language in her mind, she had already reached the final conclusion based on her instinct while interacting with the two of them.

How can we resolve this awkward atmosphere?

Kita thought about this question with the same spirit as if he was challenging a difficult mathematical problem.

As a Yang Jiao, she is used to leading the crowd with her cheerfulness and liveliness.

The current situation can be said to have triggered her stress instinct as a Yang character.

Before her brain could come to a conclusion, her body had already started moving.

"Come to think of it, since Akie is going to perform on stage with her face covered, then she should not only cover her face, but also change the style of her entire outfit, right?" Kita first said to Akie, "Have you thought about what style to change to? Sugar or salt?"

"Huh? Why are you asking this all of a sudden?" Akie was a little surprised. "If I have to choose, I would probably prefer the slightly colder type..."

As soon as the inquiry here came to a conclusion, Kita quickly turned his attention to Goto Ichiri: "Speaking of which, it's a rare occasion for everyone to go shopping together, why don't you try to buy some new clothes, Ichiri?"

"Ah? I, my clothes are usually bought by my mother..." Ichiri shook his head, "So I may not have any idea..."

"Hehe, in that case, let me, Dr. Kita, give you some advice!" Kita said with a smile, "How about Akiie also give some suggestions? I feel like your fashion tastes might be more compatible, right?"

"Even if you ask me..." Qiu Hui frowned, "To be honest, I don't even know what type of clothes are suitable for me, let alone give advice to others."

"If that's the case, why don't we ignore the objective evaluation factors for now and think about the problem purely from a subjective perspective? For example, what kind of clothes would Akie like to see Koichi wear?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Kita turned his head to look at Ichiri and launched a continuous and sustained attack.

"The same goes for Ichiri! What do you want to see Akie wearing?"

"Do I want to..." Goto Ichiri asked anxiously, "I can think of anything?"

Qiu Hui did not respond to Kita's proposal. She just looked at Kita with some confusion, as if he had opened a box of chatterboxes and suddenly started chattering.

Why did Kita suddenly become so positive?

Soon, Akie realized a possibility: she might be trying to use a large number of aggressive questions to forcibly occupy her and Goto's thoughts and divert our attention from the original focus.

Had she noticed the bad vibe between us?

Thinking of this, Akie decided to try to cater to Kita's intentions.

She began to speak out more actively on the topic of style.

On the other hand, she also began to coordinate with Kita's rhythm and launched an offensive against Goto Ichiri.

As the two continued their attack, Goto Ichiri was no longer able to pay attention to trivial matters such as "family topics".

Just dealing with the "excessive demands" of the two made Goto Ichiri so anxious that he felt like he was about to melt.

"...In summary," Akie said in an exaggerated tone, "Pochi should have appeared in a light and fluffy dress with fancy decorations! It would have been even better if she held an umbrella!"

She realized that she must look very funny now. When Kita glanced at her secretly, she noticed that Kita even smiled.

“That’s impossible… How can a water flea like me wear such a cute outfit that exudes super femininity…”

Goto Ichiri, who has been completely immersed in the pink fantasy and the resulting uneasiness, seems to no longer be entangled in the problems that made Akie unhappy before.

“Well, if Koichi really can’t accept it, there’s nothing we can do… But, Akie, look! This is the store I mentioned before, and there are suitable masks for you to use!”

Kita pointed to a shelf inside the store, which was indeed filled with a variety of breathable decorative masks.

“Wow, what an exaggerated pattern…” Akie’s eyes swept across the rows of masks with various cartoon characters drawn on them, “…Just as I was saying that, I noticed there’s a pure black one here, it feels just right.”

She took a mask off the shelf and held it against her face in front of the floor-length mirror. It was just enough to cover the lower half of her face.

"Can I try this on... Uh, I guess you can't try on something so close to your skin."

Qiu Hui simply bought the mask at the front desk and then put it on in front of the floor-length mirror.

"Hmm..." She looked at herself in the mirror.

"Not bad!" Kita praised, "It feels a bit like a landmine!"

"Will landmines...explode?" Goto Ichiri asked in confusion.

"No! What this means is..."

While Kita was giving Ichiri some fashion knowledge, Akie noticed the baseball caps on a nearby shelf.

"Put on a hat and a mask, and take off your glasses..."

Qiu Hui took out a baseball cap, put it on together with the mask, took off her glasses, and faced the floor-length mirror...

"…I can't see clearly after I take off my glasses!"

If you are too close to the mirror, you can still see clearly, but the effect will be different.

She had no choice but to turn around and ask Kita to help identify her current appearance.

Kita stared at Akie's current appearance, as if he was thinking about something.

"...Can you strike a pose?" she suddenly asked, "The kind where you hold down the brim of your baseball cap with your hand."