A new week.
This week was also the last week of September.
Monday.
Up to today, Bai Qiu had also been lucky enough not to catch a cold or fever.
It seemed his constitution and luck were perfectly at play.
Everyone in Bocchi the Rock! Band was also almost completely recovered.
In the morning, he came to school.
When Bai Qiu saw that flash of bright red.
Suddenly, he remembered he'd forgotten something.
Kita Kita!
Last week, he'd been completely preoccupied with Crychic.
He was surprised that Hikari had actually been the lead singer of a band.
Hard to believe, really hard to believe.
But, he was still part of Bocchi the Rock! Band!
The most pressing matter was to find his own lead singer first.
After all, the lead singer was the soul of the band.
And, this is a mission entrusted by Nijika-mama, so it must be perfectly completed!
Just then, a pink, hunched-over figure appeared in Bai Qiu's field of vision.
Bai Qiu was delighted and immediately chased after them.
He gently patted Bocchi-chan's shoulder and greeted her enthusiastically,
"Good morning, Bocchi-chan."
"Ah! G-g-g-good m-m-morning!!!"
Gotoh Hitori reacted violently; she was contemplating life!
Someone actually said good morning to her at school.
This was her first time!
"Hitori, you don't need to be so excited. It's me."
Bai Qiu held back a laugh as he spoke.
After catching her breath and seeing that it was Bai Qiu, Gotoh Hitori calmed down a bit.
"I…I thought I'd be forgotten after a week."
Hitori said sadly, with tears welling up in her eyes.
Because of a fever and to avoid exams, she had taken a full week off!
How bold!
Although she really didn't want to go to school, if she stayed away for too long, her classmates and teachers might completely forget about her!
In any case, this wasn't something Hitori wanted.
Bai Qiu wiped the non-existent sweat from his forehead and then comforted her with a smile,
"Don't worry, I probably won't forget you for the rest of my life."
"Really?!"
Gotoh Hitori was both surprised and delighted.
"Mmhmm!"
Bai Qiu nodded very affirmatively, adding in his heart, I knew you in my previous life.
[Gained Gotoh Hitori's emotional resonance, Notes +300]
"I, I'll never forget Akikun either!"
Gotoh Hitori glanced at Bai Qiu and said something that could easily be misinterpreted.
But it seemed she forgot to be shy, likely due to excitement.
"Let's go find Kita now."
Bai Qiu said directly.
"Eh?!"
"N-now?"
Gotoh Hitori tensed up again. Was she really going to have to do something so nerve-wracking first thing in the morning?
She didn't want to see two suns first thing!
"Yeah!" Bai Qiu explained. "Everyone was sick last week, so we can't put it off any longer this week."
His goal was the Budokan! He couldn't just say it.
Bai Qiu didn't think it would be difficult to get Kita back.
Just talk therapy would do the trick.
As long as he explained that Nijika wasn't mad at her, and that Kuzu Ryou was around, Kita would be a piece of cake.
"Ah, yes!"
"Kita-chan, someone's looking for you at the door!"
In Kita's class, Class 1.
A female classmate spoke to Kita; she was relaying a message from Bai Qiu.
As expected of Kita, a handsome guy from the neighboring class was looking for her. Could it be a confession? Hehe!
"Eh? Okay."
Kita raised her head in confusion, looking towards the figure outside the classroom.
It was Bai Qiu, from the neighboring class. But it didn't seem like they had much interaction.
But since someone came looking for her, she should probably go out and see.
"Sorry, everyone, I'll go out for a bit."
Kita smiled at the many female classmates around her who were chatting with her.
"It's okay, it's okay, go ahead!"
"Eh—could it be a confession?"
"How many is this since the start of the semester?"
"Everyone, count!"
The female classmates near Kita were constantly winking and teasing her with mischievous smiles.
"Go for it!"
"Don't keep the results from us, okay, Kita?"
Kita's face flushed red at their teasing.
"It's not like that! Definitely not!"
"I'm leaving now, I'll tell you when I get back!"
Kita quickly ran out of the classroom.
Seriously, those guys.
She went out of the classroom.
Kita flashed a sunny smile.
"Good morning, Bai Qiu-kun."
"What's up?"
Kita looked at Bai Qiu with a puzzled expression.
"Morning, Kita-san."
Bai Qiu began to explain, "Sorry to bother you suddenly..."
Nearby,
Because Kita was approaching, Gotoh Hitori trembled and secretly retreated behind Bai Qiu.
"Gotoh...san?"
Kita blinked, looking at Gotoh Hitori, who was dressed strangely.
As a popular girl in the grade, Kita knew the names of all the students in the grade who had a bit of a quirk.
That was a required course.
"Yes, sir!"
Gotoh Hitori immediately stood at attention.
"Say it properly, Bocchi-chan."
Bai Qiu reminded.
"Ah, yes! Good morning!"
Gotoh Hitori answered mechanically, like a robot.
"Bocchi-chan?"
Kita repeated the name, sounding a bit puzzled.
"How about we go to the rooftop to talk? Is that okay?"
Bai Qiu thought for a moment, then suggested.
There were quite a few students in the hallway, and many of them were looking over at them.
It would be better to have the next part of the conversation privately.
The key was that Bocchi-chan beside him was already on the verge of collapsing from the pressure.
Kita nodded in agreement.
The rooftop?!
Hearing this, Gotoh Hitori trembled even more violently.
Could she, a creature like herself, really go to a place like the rooftop, a place for the popular crowd?!
The rooftop.
Gotoh Hitori was curiously peeking at the surroundings, this was the first time she had ever been to the rooftop.
I never thought she'd get a chance to step into this mysterious area!
Ehehehehe... Bai Qiu is so great.
Bai Qiu was looking at Kita, organizing his thoughts.
It has to be said, Kita Ikuyo is truly the perfect choice for a lead vocalist.
With her bright red hair, a sunny and cheerful disposition, and a cute, slightly round face...
She's the epitome of a central figure.
She can effortlessly draw everyone's attention.
Once she stands on stage and joins in with the singing, she should easily capture the audience's focus.
However, when Bai Qiu looked over,
he actually made Kita Ikuyo nervous.
Kita's heart inexplicably started racing.
Bai Qiu-san…
He wouldn't… actually be confessing, would he?
No, no! Kita shook her head.
Who confesses while bringing another girl along!
But Kita still couldn't help feeling a bit nervous.
Strange!
This wasn't the first time she'd faced a farewell.
She'd always handled them with ease before.
Would he confess?
Kita glanced at Bai Qiu, and while she was indeed a sucker for looks,
she already had Kuzu Ryou in her heart.
Ryou-senpai came first.
So,
"No way!"
"I, I'm not watching anymore."
Bocchi-chan was startled and hid behind Bai Qiu again.
"Huh?"
Bai Qiu glanced at Bocchi-chan and asked, "What's not okay?"
"Ah, it's nothing, nothing..."
Kita covered her mouth awkwardly; she'd accidentally blurted it out.
Bai Qiu nodded, not paying it any mind.
"Actually, Nijika asked us to come find you."
"Nijika-senpai!"
Kita Ikuyo trembled all over, just like Gotoh Hitori.
"To… to come and interrogate us…"
Kita murmured.
In truth, Kita had been worrying and feeling guilty about running away these past few days…
The dark circles under her eyes were the best proof.
It was just that she'd covered them up with makeup to maintain her image.
"It's not about questioning you!"
Bai Qiu chuckled lightly, speaking directly, "Nijika isn't blaming you either."
"Eh?!"
"Eh eh eh!"
"Not blaming me? How could that be?!"
Kita Ikuyo suddenly became agitated.
Bai Qiu and Gotoh Hitori couldn't help but cover their ears.
She really does have potential as a lead vocalist.
That high note was too sharp!
"Really! I did that!"
Excited, Kita unconsciously walked up to Bai Qiu and looked up at him.
Bai Qiu nodded, then pointed to the ground, where Gotoh Hitori was melting.
"Kita, calm down, or you'll scare Hitori to death."
"I'm sorry, Gotoh-san, are you alright?"
Kita nervously tried to pick up Gotoh Hitori.
However, this accelerated Hitori's melting.
"What! What's going on?"
"It'll be back to normal soon."
Bai Qiu sighed slightly, a bit helpless, and gestured for Kita to relax, then explained,
"The last time you ran…"
"After you left, we met Nijika, and Hitori helped us finish that live."
Bai Qiu thought for a moment and decided not to mention the running away, so as not to upset Kita again.
"So, nothing bad happened."
Hearing this, Kita felt a little relieved, "Thank you both!"
"So, Nijika-senpai…"
"Nijika is really worried something happened to you."
"I… I didn't have any kind of accident…"
Hearing this, Kita's eyes began to well up with tears, her expression despondent, and her red hair seemed to dim in color.
Even with her like this, Nijika-senpai was still worried about her.
Kita looked up at Bai Qiu,
"Could… could I trouble Bai Qiu-san to apologize to Nijika-senpai for me?"
"Just say that I deceived her, that I actually don't know how to play the guitar, that I… shamelessly ran away…"
Bai Qiu shook his head, saying with some regret,
"I'm sorry, Kita."
"I'm not a messenger."
My goal is for you to be the lead vocalist! Not to relay apologies.
"Y-yes, yes, I'm sorry, Bai Qiu-san, for suddenly troubling you with something like this."
Kita's mouth curved into a self-deprecating smile, finally understanding.
She was truly too despicable.
"Apologizing is something you have to do yourself to be sincere."
"But… but I'm too ashamed to face Nijika-senpai…"
Kita lowered her head dejectedly, not knowing what to do.
"That's not how it is, Kita."
Bai Qiu gently supported Kita's shoulders.
"Although I can't help you convey your apologies, I'm here to invite you to be the vocalist for Bocchi the Rock! Band!"
"This is also Nijika's wish."
"Me, Hitori, Nijika, and your Kuzu Ryou-senpai, everyone's here."
Because of the overwhelming amount of information, Kita's CPU overloaded, and her eyes glazed over.
Kuzu Ryou is here too!
And she wants me to be the lead singer!
Someone like her, can she really do it?
"But I ran away!"
Kita's voice was low as she blamed herself.
"Going AWOL was definitely too much."
Bai Qiu thought for a moment,
Kita lowered her head again, feeling guilty.
"But since the person involved isn't blaming you, of course I believe you'll still apologize to Nijika. Besides, you've been reflecting properly, haven't you?"
Bai Qiu countered.
"Me, reflecting?"
Kita barely managed to stop her tears, a look of confusion on her face.
"Your eyes."
Bai Qiu pointed at Kita's now somewhat red and swollen eyes, as well as the dark circles revealed by the tears washing away her makeup.
"And the wounds on your hands, aren't they the best proof?"
Bai Qiu looked at Kita's ten fingers.
"Good grief!"
"Kita-san, how did you even train?"
"All ten of your fingers are covered in bandages."
"Ten fingers connected to the heart!"
"That's so harsh."
"These..."
Kita covered her fingers, wanting to say something self-deprecating.
Bai Qiu cut her off directly,
"So, give yourself a chance."
"Give us a chance too."
"Let's go to Hoshifuru after school!"
"It won't be too late to decide then."
-------------------
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