The night had fallen. A train sped down the rust-lined tracks, its metallic hum blending into the neon glow that draped the city like a shimmering necklace.
The sidewalks bustled with people, their faces laughing, chattering, each lost in their own nighttime world. Everyone seemed to have found their place under this urban sky.
Everyone, that is, except for the two figures walking across a small, dimly lit pedestrian bridge nestled between high-rises.
A breeze slipped between the buildings, lifting a delicate strand of hair from the girl's forehead.
"...Haru, am I dragging everyone down?"
Takamatsu Tomori clutched the hem of her skirt tightly, her head bowed as her voice came out small and hesitant.
[Even after all the effort today, she still couldn't bring herself to sing. Surely, even you must be disappointed in her.]
She didn't say it aloud. She kept it buried deep inside.
Her voice, low and full of sorrow, sounded like self-blame, afraid that if she said how she really felt, you'd finally give up on her.
Haru had gone to all this trouble, gathered the band for her sake, and she had done nothing but lean on him, failing even to fulfill her own role.
Was she really that hopeless?
Kazami Haru exhaled a breath of white mist, scratching at his dark hair as he took a slow step forward.
A fat raindrop landed on Tomori's nose, and then the sky began to weep, the rain coming down like a soft drumbeat, tearing a transparent veil across the night.
He calmly opened the umbrella in his hand, shielding her just in time. Beneath the gray canopy, they stood together in the rain, facing one another.
For a moment, it was as if the world had vanished around them.
Haru's dark eyes, always half-lidded with lazy calm, rested quietly on Tomori. His gaze was unwavering, untouched by her sadness, and somehow, his smile always gave her strength.
Tomori opened her mouth. Her lips trembled as if she wanted to say something, but before she could speak, Haru beat her to it.
"Tomori, do you trust me?"
No hesitation. She didn't even pause to think. The answer just spilled out, instinctive and clear.
Like a little penguin suddenly realizing the truth—maybe, just maybe, from the very moment she first met him, she already knew.
When he said he wanted to form a band with her for life, not just empty words to casually to please her.
In the next moment, a familiar, confident smile slowly bloomed on the face of the black-haired boy with the neat ponytail across from her.
"In that case, just stick with me."
[Your bond with Takamatsu Tomori has deepened.]
[At this age, you have strong confidence in yourself. Even though this makeshift band could fall apart at any moment, you believe there are still plenty of chances. As long as you're here, Tomori won't have to be heartbroken again.]
[Because you're fearless.]
To be honest, Kazami Haru was now breaking into a bit of a cold sweat.
Even though he had Level 3 music theory skills, his actual piano performance was only at Level 2—probably just slightly better than the beginner guitarist Aine-chan.
If things got even a bit more intense, he'd be struggling to keep up.
This might be acceptable for an amateur, but for someone like Shiina Taki, the ultra-strict demon who held both others and herself to the highest standards, it just wasn't good enough.
And on top of that, he was the keyboardist.
That instantly drew an unfavorable comparison to Shiina Taki's former keyboard partner, Togawa Sakiko.
Let's be real: his amateur-level skills were nowhere near the charismatic leadership of "Saki-chan."
"So in the end... is it just that I'm not good enough?"
Kazami Haru rubbed his temples, sighing quietly to himself.
This was also partly his own fault, he hadn't taken piano that seriously before, and once he got decent, he slacked off. Lately, he hadn't been practicing at all.
If he was going to form a band with Tomori, he'd definitely have to pick up the piano again.
Customers were starting to fill the café. Continuing the simulation now would obviously interfere with his duties, so Kazami Haru decided to stop for now and focus on work.
He glanced at Togawa Sakiko beside him, who was still carefully making latte art. He had just sampled the coffee she brewed, while her technique was still a bit rough, it was definitely up to par.
"Togawa, go ahead and take a break."
"You've made great progress. No need to push too hard. I'll take care of the rest."
"But..." Togawa Sakiko still seemed hesitant.
Seeing the subtle trace of doubt on her face, Kazami Haru could more or less guess what she was thinking.
Come on, nobody needs to take work this seriously. It'll just wear you out.
"If you really don't want to sit still, go check out the light meals section. You'll probably have to start helping there soon, too."
Togawa Sakiko hesitated a bit, then gave a small nod.
While she was practicing coffee brewing earlier, no matter how poorly it turned out, Kazami Haru would always taste it seriously and offer her thoughtful advice.
She'd improved this quickly largely thanks to his generous guidance.
Sakiko wasn't the type to accept kindness easily. Even now, with things being the way they were, she didn't want to justify receiving help with something as vague as "because it's expected."
Taking people's goodwill for granted only weighed her down.
She didn't want anyone's pity.
"Looks like I'll have to find a way to repay him later..."