[Somehow... this feels unreal.]
"That band's stage presence is so mature!"
After the show ended, Chihaya Anon said with a look of admiration.
"Should I learn to walk around all over the place like their guitarist?"
"That's not just 'walking around,' it's interacting with the other musicians... And I suggest you don't just randomly imitate it. It would look really weird for a rhythm guitarist to be wandering all over the place."
Shiina Taki said with a frown.
"If you're really going to add more interaction, it should be the vocalist and the lead guitarist."
"Ugh, I can't order Raana around, and as for Tomori... Tomori, do you want to consider learning that kind of performance style in the future?"
"Eh?"
Takamatsu Tomori was stunned for a moment, then she hurriedly shook her head.
"N-No way. If I walk around like that, I'll definitely be too conspicuous and get so nervous I forget the lyrics."
"The moment you became the vocalist, you were already the most conspicuous person on the entire stage, you know."
"I know, so... I'll try my best not to look at the audience!"
"That's also a problem, isn't it..."
[What is it that I've been chasing all this time?]
"Um... I'm really happy that Mutsumi could come with us today."
Then, Takamatsu Tomori said to Wakaba Mutsumi with a nervous expression.
"If we get the chance next time... it would be nice if we could invite Sakiko, too."
"..."
Wakaba Mutsumi hesitated for a long moment before replying in a flat voice:
"It'll be difficult, but I'll try to invite her."
"..."
Shiina Taki subconsciously frowned upon hearing this, but when she saw the look of anticipation on Tomori's face, she ultimately just averted her gaze and said nothing more.
[Even if we're not CRYCHIC anymore, does this mean our relationship won't just become that of strangers?]
"Say, this Wakaba-san, she was the guitarist for [CRYCHIC] before, right?"
Chihaya Anon moved closer to the expressionless Wakaba Mutsumi with great interest.
"Wow, you're really cute up close! Hmm... can a band have three guitarists at the same time?"
"...That's impossible."
Wakaba Mutsumi calmly shook her head.
"Very few songs require three guitar parts. For a band, two guitarists are more than enough."
Chihaya Anon showed a thoughtful expression upon hearing this.
"Hmm... That may be so, but you were all bandmates before. Wouldn't it be a shame to be separated like this?"
"..."
This thoughtless remark caused everyone present to subconsciously fall into a moment of silence.
However, Chihaya Anon's very next sentence immediately dispelled the indescribably awkward atmosphere—
"Well, even if we're not in the same band, we can still hang out in the future! Just like today!"
"!"
The first to react to these words was Takamatsu Tomori.
"That's right, we... can still go out and shop together, just like today..."
As she said this, a smile appeared on her face.
"Even if we're not [CRYCHIC] anymore... we'll always be friends."
[...]
"It might be different from the [CRYCHIC] you imagined, but looking at the result... this scene should be pretty close to what you envisioned, right?"
Chihaya Tetsuya, who had been walking at the very back of the group, said to Nagasaki Soyo.
"It's just a shame that Togawa still has important work to do, otherwise this would probably be a complete recreation of the scene you've been dreaming of for the past year."
"...Don't go around guessing what other people are thinking."
Nagasaki Soyo retorted with a deadpan expression.
"Besides, your sister Chihaya Anon is not in my imagination at all."
"Then just add her in starting today."
As if he completely missed the rejection in Soyo's tone, Tetsuya continued to speak in an incredibly calm voice.
"At least from my perspective, if Anon wasn't here, the atmosphere between them would definitely not be this harmonious... To put it more bluntly, leaving it to just you kids who aren't honest with your feelings would only make the atmosphere worse."
"...I wouldn't let that happen."
Soyo said with a frown.
"Before Chihaya Anon, I was always the one who managed the atmosphere in [CRYCHIC]. It would be perfectly fine without her."
"Is that so?"
Tetsuya raised an eyebrow, then he immediately called out to the large group ahead:
"Hey, Anon."
"Hm?"
Hearing her brother's voice, Chihaya Anon immediately stopped, then she bounced over to Tetsuya's side with incredibly light steps.
"What's up, Nii-san?"
"Nothing, I just wanted to discuss your stage outfit with you."
As he spoke, he gestured forward towards the group with a slightly smiling gaze at Soyo, as if he wanted her to try and fulfill her past "duty."
Faced with Tetsuya's provocation, although Soyo was quite displeased, when she saw that everyone seemed to have subconsciously slowed their pace, she had no choice but to quicken her steps to prove herself, rejoining the group in front as if nothing had happened.
"Um... everyone, now that we're done with the show, do we have any other plans?"
"Eh? That..."
Takamatsu Tomori showed a hesitant expression.
"Actually, we didn't have any plans before this. We were just following Anon..."
"Yeah. From the clothing store to the dessert shop, and then to the live house, that person is completely impulsive."
Shiina Taki pouted.
"I'm exhausted just from keeping an eye on her. As for where to go next... I really don't have the energy to think about it."
"..."
After hearing Tomori's and Taki's replies, Soyo subconsciously looked towards Wakaba Mutsumi. However, when she saw Mutsumi also looking at her quietly, the events that had just happened in the café instantly flashed through her mind—
"..."
She really wanted to ask for Mutsumi's opinion, but the heartlessness and disappointment she had just shown towards her made it impossible for her to be the one to speak up—
"How about the music store?"
However, Wakaba Mutsumi, who was usually silent and stingy with her words, suddenly spoke up with her own idea.
"I kind of want to look at new guitars..."
"...!"
Hearing Mutsumi's proactive reply, a trace of obvious shock and wavering flashed across Soyo's face. But in order not to arouse Tomori's and Taki's suspicion, she quickly composed her unnatural expression and said to them:
"Since Mutsumi said so, let's go to the music store next."
"Got it."
"Okay."
And just like that, after so long, Nagasaki Soyo and the members of [CRYCHIC] she had longed for finally reached a consensus once again.
However, the next second, when she subconsciously turned her head, wanting to show off her achievement to Chihaya Tetsuya, she was startled to find that he was still looking at her with that same slightly smiling gaze.
That leisurely appearance of his was as if he had anticipated this scene all along... would... happ...
...
["But regarding what you just said... there's one point I must correct. The part about 'having nothing'."]
"..."
As expected, both Chihaya Anon and Chihaya Tetsuya only do unnecessary things to mess with my thoughts.
Especially Chihaya Tetsuya. She had finally steeled her heart to say those words, only for him to inexplicably resolve it all with a single "we didn't hear anything."
Tomori became braver than before because of his encouragement. Sakiko got back on the right track in life because of his help.
Even Mutsumi, who had never been good at expressing her thoughts, under his guidance... had begun to try and proactively state her own opinions.
And yet, even after doing so many unnecessary things, he had no intention of stopping.
Whether it was the forcefulness of dragging her away from the overpass, or the calmness of quietly watching over them from behind like an unrelated party, it was really... It was really..!
"...I hate you the most."
After fiercely mouthing the words at the man behind her, Nagasaki Soyo quickened her pace again, once more walking to the very front of everyone.