Starry, inside the practice room.
"Sigh..."
Gotō Hitori put down her guitar and sighed softly.
"Bocchi-chan isn't in top form today."
Ijichi Nijika looked at her and said, "Is there something bothering her?"
"If you want to ask what's bothering Bocchi-chan lately, it'd be easier to calculate how many happy things she's had in her life."
Yamada Ryo said leisurely.
"Ryo, you're being too rude. Happy things are like bread, how can a person remember how much bread they've eaten?"
Ijichi Nijika narrowed her eyes and looked at Yamada Ryo, saying discontentedly.
"42 slices, I'm a Japanese food-ist."
Gotō Hitori timidly raised her hand and said.
"So few?! That's too tragic for a lifetime... Huh, wait a minute, Bocchi-chan, you're talking about the number of slices of bread, right?"
Ijichi Nijika asked.
The pink-haired girl nodded vigorously, her ahoge also swaying up and down with her movements, looking extremely comical.
"Bocchi-chan is too picky with food..." Yamada Ryo said to Gotō Hitori with the demeanor of a life senior: "You have to eat Japanese food, and Western food too, that's what makes you healthy!"
"Ryo, you're the one who eats wild grass when you're out of money, you're not qualified to say that, are you?"
Nijika retorted.
"You have to eat main meals, and you have to eat wild grass, that's what makes you healthy!"
Yamada Ryo said confidently, without a hint of shame.
"I understand, I'll eat wild grass!"
Gotō Hitori nodded nervously and said.
"No, no, no, don't be fooled by Ryo! Thousands of years of human civilization development weren't for going back to eating wild grass!"
Nijika rubbed her temples, a headache forming.
Although both Yamada Ryo and Gotō Hitori are impeccable in terms of musical instrument technique, and can be considered outstanding among high school students, as human beings, there are indeed subtle deficiencies in other aspects...
At least in Kessoku Band, with only her as the tsukkomi, it was really hard to deal with these two live-wires.
"So, Bocchi-chan, is there anything on your mind? If you don't mind, you can tell me, and I'll help as much as I can."
To prevent Yamada Ryo from rambling on, Nijika quickly asked Gotō Hitori.
After all, Kessoku Band's first truly meaningful Live was coming up soon—their previous Lives were at most a bonus—Nijika was inevitably a little anxious about this and wanted to prepare everything as best as possible.
Currently, the most unstable member of Kessoku Band was Gotō Hitori, and at the same time, Gotō Hitori was also the band's main force. Both her guitar playing and her humming as a substitute for the lead vocalist were quite eye-catching roles. It could be said that Gotō Hitori's performance would determine the upper limit of Kessoku Band on the day of the Live.
"Um... it's actually about the tickets."
Gotō Hitori stammered, her expression very unnatural.
"Didn't you say they were all sold out?"
Nijika asked in confusion.
Although most of the revenue was contributed by the Gotō family—they almost included their dog when buying tickets.
"Actually... there's still one left."
Gotō Hitori said softly.
"One ticket isn't a big problem..."
Nijika began to think about how to sell this last ticket.
"No, it's not like that!"
Gotō Hitori first said loudly, then her voice became very soft: "This ticket... I deliberately left it."
The street performance with Hiroi Kikuri the day before yesterday to attract an audience was unexpectedly smooth, and many people wanted to buy tickets. However, when only one ticket was left, the girl had a little thought and didn't sell it.
"Deliberately..."
Nijika was stunned for a moment, then showed a look of realization, her mouth also forming an ω-shaped cat's mouth: "Oh~"
She dragged out her tone, "I know, it's deliberately left for someone very important to Bocchi-chan, right?"
"Very important or something... Eh hehe..."
Gotō Hitori giggled foolishly, then became too shy to speak.
Yamada Ryo clicked her tongue in annoyance.
"Nijika, did you put too much sugar in the omelet for lunch?"
"Huh, why are you suddenly talking about that? Besides, you're the one who stole my bento, and now you're going to complain about how I made it?!"
"No, I just feel like the cloying sweetness in my mouth hasn't gone away, and my throat feels a bit uncomfortable..."
"It's not that sweet, you must have eaten something strange. Anyway, I'll prepare some barley tea for you later, just bear with it for a while."
Yamada Ryo, who had successfully extorted a drink from her childhood friend, finally nodded in satisfaction and did not interrupt further.
"Um..."
Seeing this, Gotō Hitori hesitated, then asked indecisively: "Nijika-chan... you're so cute and pretty... you must have experience giving tickets to guys... to other people, right?"
Facing Gotō Hitori's hopeful gaze, Ijichi Nijika was a little overwhelmed: "Ahaha, I don't know how Bocchi-chan sees me, but actually I'm not that popular at school, you know? And I also have to take care of this guy Ryo, so I don't have much time to spend on other things... I'm really sorry."
"Instead of saying you take care of me, it's more accurate to say you've spent a lot of effort on the band..." Yamada Ryo on the side solemnly confirmed to Gotō Hitori: "That's right, Bocchi-chan, actually Nijika is still an original..."
"Ryo, what are you talking about, you idiot!"
As a result, before she could finish her sentence, she was cut off by a furious punch from Nijika.
As for whether it was the topic or something else that was cut off, please don't delve into it.
"I see, even Nijika-chan doesn't know..."
Gotō Hitori's expression became even more timid and gloomy.
"Don't be so depressed, Bocchi-chan! If you want to give the ticket to Asakura, I think you can just give it directly!"
Nijika quickly cheered on Gotō Hitori, who was trying to crawl back into the trash can.
"How did you know it was for him...?"
Gotō Hitori looked at Ijichi Nijika with an incredibly shocked expression and murmured, "Detective?"
"No, anyone would usually guess..."
Nijika retorted.
"Because Bocchi-chan doesn't have any other friends."
Yamada Ryo's soul said from her mouth.
"Gulp..."
Gotō Hitori clutched her chest, feeling as if she had taken a critical hit.
Unfortunately, there was too much fat on her chest, so even if she covered it with her hand, it couldn't warm her heart.
However, she quickly recovered: "Then, what exactly should I do…?"
"That's why!"
Ijichi Nijika grabbed the girl's shoulders and said earnestly to Gotō Hitori, word by word: "Just go and give it to her! Bocchi-chan is so cute; when she receives the ticket you gave her, she will definitely jump for joy! I guarantee it!"