Back home, Bai Xian took his phone out of his pocket, ignored the 99+ notifications on Line, found the contact saved as "Little Ryo", and called Yamada Ryo.
Beep, beep, beep...
The call connected on the other end, but was promptly hung up the next moment.
A moment later, a video call came through.
Bai Xian hurriedly checked his face in the reflection to make sure there was nothing strange on it, then reached out with his index finger and pressed accept.
"..."
"How rare, for Xian to call me..."
"Could it be that you missed me?"
On the other end of the video, Yamada Ryo made a rare joke, wanting to see Bai Xian make a fool of himself.
After all, in all the time Yamada Ryo had known Bai Xian, this guy had never once taken the initiative to call her.
"Yeah, I missed you."
Just three simple words slowly brought a question mark to the young girl's face.
(〃?〃)?
Mmm...
Perhaps not expecting Bai Xian to launch such a direct attack, Yamada Ryo's ordinarily cool and pretty face flushed a bright crimson, her eyes darting away, lacking the courage to meet Bai Xian's gaze.
"Ah, don't say weird things like that."
"Can't I?"
"N—no."
"Then there's no problem."
"Suit yourself..."
"Let me tell you, recently I..."
Just as they were deep in conversation, a blonde girl suddenly appeared behind Yamada Ryo and tapped her on the shoulder.
"Ryo, what are you doing here, suddenly saying you had something important..."
Before she could finish, upon seeing that Yamada Ryo was on a video call with an unfamiliar man, the little blonde looked utterly shocked!
The video seemed to have some condensation on the lens; although a bit blurry, the little blonde vaguely made out that it should be a handsome man.
...Ah! So the important matter she meant was chatting with her boyfriend?! How awful!
The blonde looked at Yamada Ryo in utter disbelief. This girl, usually so taciturn and cool, actually had a boyfriend all along, and would hide away from her best friend Ijichi Nijika—which was her—just to chat with him! To think her Yamada Ryo was actually that kind of person in private!
(Do you like my extraordinarily long and complex sentence?)
Bai Xian noticed that this little blonde seemed to have an unusual relationship with Yamada Ryo, but having known Ryo for so long, he had never heard of such a person.
Could it be that Yamada Ryo didn't want him to know? But why would that be?
*Wait, why does he look a bit familiar?* the blonde thought.
Before she could think further, Yamada Ryo bent her arm and delivered a fierce elbow strike straight to the little blonde's stomach, causing Ijichi Nijika to double over in pain and stagger backward, clutching her abdomen.
...Is she really going to be alright like that?
"Never mind her."
"Uh, mmm..." Bai Xian sweatdropped.
"Where were we?"
"Forget about that, is your friend really okay?"
"Don't worry, Nijika has the tenacity of a cockroach."
...Don't compare her to a bug, jeez.
"If you miss me, why don't you come see me?"
"I will, once I'm done with this busy stretch."
"..."
"I'm sorry..."
Though he didn't know what Bai Xian was busy with, Yamada Ryo was already used to waiting.
To her, she had waited three years, so what was a little while longer?
Yes, Bai Xian had left Japan for a full three years. Ever since he started playing in a band, he had been endlessly touring the world.
Though he occasionally returned to Japan to perform—meaning the two hadn't gone without seeing each other entirely over these three years—it was usually only for a very brief period before Bai Xian had to leave again.
There is a famous aesthetic theory that goes, "distance breeds beauty," and sayings like "familiarity breeds contempt" or "he who enters a room of orchids no longer smells their fragrance."
Yet if she could, Yamada Ryo only wanted to grasp the present moment. She wanted the full moon to stay bright, the stars to shine eternally, and a boundless clear light to illuminate her and her alone...
...How greedy of me.
Bai Xian.
This kind of feeling has nothing to do with romance; it is solely about you.
...
Hanging up the video call, Bai Xian approached the massive floor-to-ceiling window once more.
Silence defined Tokyo Bay tonight.
For some reason, today Bai Xian wanted to see Yamada Ryo more than ever.
Perhaps it was because of that girl...
Sakiko Toyokawa's stubborn face surfaced in Bai Xian's mind.
Recalling what had happened in the Wind Instrument Club that afternoon, Bai Xian shook his head with an amused smile. In the past, Yamada Ryo would often cling to him like this, acting spoiled and crying her eyes out.
Sometimes it was because she was short on cash and wanted to buy a new bass, and other times it was because she was worried about not having enough money to eat...
...Damn it, isn't it all because she's broke to begin with?!
At this thought, Bai Xian's fists clenched involuntarily.
That Ryo, whose family actually ran a private hospital and who must get a generous allowance every month, had somehow ended up in such a destitute state!
He couldn't keep spoiling her like this anymore!
Bai Xian nodded thoughtfully, then his thoughts drifted back to Sakiko Toyokawa:
...That girl looked like she was on the verge of breaking down.
If he didn't do something, she might just be like a fragile flower swaying in the wind, unable to hold on a moment longer.
Yet what could he do?
He didn't even know what she had been through...
Oh well.
Pushing the thoughts aside, Bai Xian decided to go see Ryo this weekend.
He owed Ryo far, far too much.
Before that, Bai Xian wanted to pay a visit to Tsuzuki Shifune, the teacher who had illuminated his path as a guitarist like a lighthouse—who was also Kaname Rana's grandmother.
(Kaname Rana: Meow?)
Meanwhile, at the Livehouse "RING"...
Two girls were chatting happily when a sudden, harsh burst of guitar strings interrupted their conversation.
*Bzzzt~ Clang~*
"If possible, I want to be the guitarist..."
*Bzzzt~*
"If that really won't work, vocalist is fine too..."
*Bzzzt~ Bzzzt...*
Ah! So noisy!
Chihaya Anon irritably rubbed her hair.
A guitar plugged into an amplifier made a truly deafening sound.
While it was undeniable that Kaname Rana was skilled, having a crucial conversation interrupted like this would annoy anyone.
Perhaps sensing Chihaya Anon's irritation, Nagasaki Soyo tilted her head, looking at her with a seemingly carefree smile as she asked:
"She's amazing, right? Hehe~"
That sweet smile struck straight at Chihaya Anon's heart, washing away half her resentment.
After listening closely to a section of the playing, Chihaya Anon couldn't help but admire the girl's guitar solo on stage.
"She is amazing, that's for sure..."
Then, thinking of her own guitar skills...
...Ugh.
Chihaya Anon lowered her head guiltily, her posture shrinking by half.
...Maybe I should just stick to being the vocalist?
"If we're forming a band, count me in. How about that?"
Nagasaki Soyo intertwined her fingers, casually rubbing them together.
After a moment, she added, "Don't look at me like this, I can actually play a little bit of bass~"
Hearing this, Chihaya Anon was pleasantly surprised.
"Really? Welcome aboard!"
"Yeah, and with Tomori, Sakiko, and Riki... Oh right, let's add Mutsumi too?"
"Mmm, sure."
Though she didn't know who the people Soyo mentioned later were, out of trust for her, Chihaya Anon nodded and agreed with a smile.
"Then let's form a band~"
Looking at Chihaya Anon's naive expression, Nagasaki Soyo smiled as well.
...Sakiko, everyone, I will definitely rebuild CRYCHIC!
As for this person...
Glancing once more at Anon, who was still grinning foolishly, Nagasaki Soyo tightened her fingers, her nails digging slightly into her flesh.
"..."
Well, we can just kick her out later~
...
(Today's victory: Kaname Rana wins!)
(Kaname Rana: Awesome! o(*￣︶￣*)o)
*Mute Singer*
Wild grass misunderstands,
Rushing to sprout in the early autumn warmth at the first touch of spring sun.
From then on, what right does it have,
To blame the sunlight then for being too gentle...