"Kyo won't suddenly disappear, will she?"
Soyo's voice was so quiet it was almost a whisper, carrying a distant, wistful air—like she was lost in reminiscence.
It was obvious who she was thinking about. Even though they had said their goodbyes, Sakiko had vanished without a trace afterward.
Taki immediately understood who Soyo was referring to. Crossing her arms, she let out an annoyed eye roll. As far as she was concerned, everything was Sakiko's fault. It was hard to have any kind of good opinion about her, especially with how Soyo still kept trying to defend her.
Anon, though a bit slow on the uptake, had learned quite a bit about CRYCHIC by now. More importantly, she had seen Sakiko at Haneoka. She also knew that Sakiko was the one who had left the band.
Which was why she found this whole conversation strange.
Sakiko was right there at Haneoka. Why did they talk like she had disappeared? Anon had run into her on campus before. Sure, she was as cold and distant as ever, but she would at least give Anon and Tomori a small nod. And honestly, that alone was enough to make Tomori happy.
"I once promised you that I would stay by your side."
Kyo's voice remained even, but when she said once, there was the slightest emphasis—though it went unnoticed by everyone else.
"I understand," Soyo responded, her voice returning to its usual volume. "If Kyo doesn't want to join the band right now, that's okay."
For now, at least, Kyo wasn't interested in forming a band. But she had promised to support them in other ways.
As long as she stayed close, as long as she had the chance to remember the joy of being in a band—Soyo was sure she could bring her back.
Then all that was left was to bring back Mutsu and Sakiko, one by one…
Kyo wasn't a mind reader, but she knew for a fact that Soyo wasn't letting go of this so easily.
She needed to make her move soon.
Just like how her obsession with "movement" came from her deep hatred of her stagnant past, she needed to figure out exactly why Soyo was so fixated on this.
"So, when do we start band activities?" Taki asked.
As always, she was completely serious. If anything, she had been waiting for the chance to play in a band with Tomori again for a long time.
"Let's exchange LINE IDs first!" Anon suggested hastily, not having planned that far ahead. Panic started creeping in as she realized she had been putting off practicing her guitar. I really should've picked it up again sooner… If possible, she definitely wanted to push back their first practice session.
"And even if we do start practicing, we should have at least one or two meetings first—to decide what kind of songs we'll be playing and come up with a band name, right?"
"I agree on choosing songs, but a band name? That's just a waste of time. And why are you the one making all the decisions?" Taki shot her down mercilessly.
"Kyo just said I'm really important to this band!" Anon puffed up with pride, hands on her hips, standing tall like an overexcited dog wagging its tail. "And band names are important! What are we supposed to say during live introductions? 'Hi, we're Unnamed Band'? That's so lame!"
"Tch."
"Come on, come on, don't fight over something like this," Soyo interjected gently.
Since Taki still had work to do and had already spent quite a bit of time with them, they decided to wrap things up after adding each other on LINE. Anon quickly made a group chat and added everyone in.
"Taki, don't just stare at Tomori's name in the chat like that. You're gonna get distracted from work."
Kyo, noticing how intently Taki was holding her phone, let out an exaggerated sigh. "Besides, you kind of look like someone I should be calling the cops on. Seriously."
"Wha—!? I'm not doing that!" Taki's face instantly turned red. Hastily, she tried to change the subject. "What's with you today? You've barely reacted to anything—it's like talking to Mutsumi."
"Is that so?"
Kyo lifted a hand and touched the corner of her mouth. Now that Taki mentioned it, her face did feel stiff.
But right now, she simply didn't have the energy to maintain that usual, easygoing Sakiko-like smile.
Kyo lowered her head, quickly typing something on her phone, as if she were chatting with someone.
Taki hadn't really wanted to know why—she was just trying to cover up her own awkwardness. Without another word, she turned away and disappeared into the back room.
"Kyo, are you heading home now? Want to go somewhere first?"
Anon extended an invitation. She did plan to go home and finally dust off her neglected guitar, but wasn't this the perfect chance to hang out with Kyo one-on-one?
"Ah, sorry, Anon. You go on ahead—I still have something to do."
"Oh, okay. Well, see you later, Kyo! Bye, Soyo!"
Anon waved with her usual enthusiasm before leaving the café. Since Kyo turned her down, she might as well go home and get some practice in.
"Kyo, do you have something else to do?"
Now, only Kyo and Soyo remained.
Soyo idly played with her nails, rubbing her thumb and forefinger together as she asked softly.
"Soyo, can I stay over at your place tonight?"
"…Huh?"
"No one's home tonight, and I forgot my keys."
Kyo lied without a single change in expression—not that it was difficult for her. If she simply did nothing, her face remained unreadable by default.
As she spoke, she tilted her phone toward Soyo, as if to show proof. In reality, it was just a message to her sister saying she wouldn't be coming home. But Soyo, unable to see the details from that distance, assumed it was some last-minute notice from Kyo's family.
"Would you take me in? Otherwise, I might have nowhere to go tonight."
The words sounded like a stray animal pleading for shelter, but Kyo's tone was purely factual—simply informing Soyo of her predicament.
This… might be an opportunity.
Soyo's mind raced. Pressing her hands together, she smiled, her expression bright and confident.
"Of course! You're always welcome at my house, Kyo. And you look exhausted… You're not your usual self today. Why don't we go now?"
"…Yeah, I guess I'm not really in the best shape."
Kyo didn't deny it. She forced out a small smile.
"Thanks, Soyo."
Unlike when they arrived as a group of three, now only Kyo and Soyo remained.
But just like before, both of them harbored their own thoughts—each planning something entirely different.
---
T/N: ???? HELLOOOO
bonus chaps
100 stones -> 1 chapter
200 stones -> 2 chapters
300 stones -> 3 chapters
and so on
discord.gg/wisetl
patreon.com/wisetl