“Takuto, morning.”
“Hey, Sako.”
The morning of the recording day.
At Ichika-cho Station, I was meeting up with my childhood friend, whose blonde hair was sparkling under the morning sun streaming through the skylight.
“Did you sleep well?”
“...I made an effort.”
It seemed the quality of her sleep hadn't been very good.
“What about you, Takuto?”
“I guess I'm about the same...”
I gave a wry smile.
The reason was that Kanno-san had been incredibly persistent yesterday as we were leaving, reminding us, “Don't practice any more today and make sure you sleep, okay?”
“Recording uses up mental strength. Unlike a live performance where it's a one-shot deal, you can redo things, which makes you inevitably want to leave a perfect take. At the very least, you want a mistake-free recording, right? In that case, sleep well and leave enough margin in your body to record many takes without getting frustrated.”
That was what she had told us.
“But I think I'll be fine. I've gained quite a bit of confidence.”
“I see, that's good.”
“Thanks, Takuto.”
“For what? If you're going to thank someone, it should be Azuma.”
“That's true. But, thank you too, Takuto.”
I didn't quite get it, but if I said too much, the corners of her mouth—which had finally lifted by 0.something millimeters—might slump back down, so I held back.
And then, finally arriving at Studio Octa while feeling nervous—
“Oh, you’re here.”
Kanno-san greeted us from across the counter.
It seemed Sako and I were the last to arrive (though we were still on time), as Ichikawa, Azuma, and Taira-chan were already sitting at the front.
“Good morning, Konuma-kun, Sako-san!”
“Morning, Sakohasu, Konuma.”
“Good morning! Once again, I’m humbled to be allowed to participate...!”
Though they weren't all perfectly in sync, they each greeted us, so Sako and I responded in kind.
“You don't need to be so humble. After everything you did for us during pre-pro, there's no way we wouldn't invite you. I’m just doing the lyrics and that’s it... If anything, thank you for coming on a Sunday.”
“No, no, I usually just shut myself inside on my days off anyway!”
The master and disciple were having a pleasant exchange. Perhaps because these two were only observing today, their mental states seemed quite calm. On the other hand...
“Is everyone here? The engineer is already here. Head into the studio.”
“Y-Yes, understood...!”
Now that it was finally starting, the reality was sinking in, and my speech became stilted.
“Hey, Takuto... If you're that nervous, you won't last long, okay? The good thing about recording is that unlike a live show, you can redo it, so relax, relax!”
She slapped my back repeatedly, which made it hard to relax because it actually hurt. I couldn't help but feel like what she was saying was slightly contradictory to what she said yesterday.
However, well, the tension certainly flew away somewhere.
“Good morning! Well, hello there! Once again, I’m Hirosue Hichika, and I’ll be in charge as your recording engineer! Look forward to working with you!”
“Good morning, we are amane! We look forward to working with you today!”
As we entered the studio, the recording engineer, Hirosue-san (the older sister), introduced herself, and Ichikawa returned the greeting.
Even so, she was vastly different from her younger sister. Their faces looked quite similar, though.
“Her vibe is different from Airi-san's...?”
“You're right.”
Taira-chan, who seemed to be thinking the same thing as me, whispered to her mentor. Even though it was a whisper, it seemed the engineer’s high-quality eardrums didn't miss it.
“Ah, that's probably because, unlike Airi, I didn't live overseas.”
She commented cheerfully.
“Oh, is that so?”
“Yes, when I was about to enter vocational school, my family decided to move abroad, so I stayed in Japan and lived alone. On that point, my sister has been overseas since the middle of elementary school. I guess where you live during those personality-forming years has a much bigger influence on your character than bloodline does.”
“I see!”
I felt that made a lot of sense too.
“Well, right now the two of us are living together in my house! Man, since we haven't lived together for that long, my much younger sister is just so cute!”
“Ah, I see...”
Well, certainly, behavior that might be excessive in a stranger might be nothing but endearing when it comes to a close relative.
“...Wait, has my sister perhaps been causing you all trouble?”
“Ah, no...” “Yes, she has.”
While I hesitated, Sako confirmed it from beside me. Don't just confirm it like that, she was being a good girl at the end.
“Ahahaha, she’s a bit of a tsundere-chan, you see. She actually has her cute sides, so if you don't mind, please try to get along with her. Ahahaha... sorry.”
Hichika-san, who used the very Japanese tactic of laughing things off, was definitely raised in Japan.
“Well, let's put my family matters aside!”
She then made a 'put aside' gesture (also very Japanese) and gave a broad grin.
“Alright then, shall we begin? The recording!”