“Something about you seems sleepy, Takt-kun? Are you okay?”
“Uh, no, not really...?”
In the breakfast hall, Erina-san’s questioning made my eyes swim instinctively.
I mean, part of the reason I couldn’t sleep was because of you, Erina-san...!
“By the way, Ichikawa-san, you went somewhere this morning, didn’t you?”
“Uh, well, I wonder what you’re talking about...?”
Man, this Angel-sama is a terrible liar.
“Oh? Amane-chan, a morning return?”
Erina-san asked with a grin.
“Morning return?! Th-there’s nothing of the sort... right?”
Hey, Ichikawa-san, don’t keep glancing at me at a time like this. What do you mean, ‘right?’
Then, Sako started pulling Ichikawa’s cheek.
“Hwait, Hako-han, i-huht, i-huht...! (Wait, Sako-san, it hurts, it hurts...!)”
Finding that amusing, Erina-san grinned and pulled both of my cheeks.
“Takt-kun, try saying ‘Class Library’~?”
“No, I’m eahing! (No, I’m eating!)”
Also, because you’re pinching both my cheeks, you’re standing right in front of me and you’re way too close!
“Is everyone from the Rock Club here?”
“““Yeah!”””
“Is everyone from the Instrumental Music Club here?”
“““Yes!!”””
All the training camp participants were gathered in the hall the Instrumental Music Club had been using for practice. Both Presidents nodded with satisfaction.
“Time flies, and our fun training camp is finally nearing its end. It all concludes with this performance session!”
“““Ehh?!!”””
That’s like the ‘this is our last song’ bit at a live show... Everyone’s really getting into the mood, huh?
“Instrumental Music Club, treat this performance like the actual School Festival and give it your all!”
“““Yes!!”””
It’s really something that these two contrasting clubs still come to this training camp together every year.
And so, the Rock Club’s performances began.
First, the members of the Cherry Boys took the stage.
“Morning, everyone! We’re gonna kick things off with a bang, so get hyped!”
“““Yeaaaaaah!!”””
The Instrumental Music Club joined in the cheering.
Wait, are these guys actually popular?
Looking to the side, I saw a girl looking down sadly. I wonder if she’s the one Hazama rejected yesterday...
“We’re only doing one song, so listen up!”
Could that one song be...? (Just in case.)
“‘Cherry’ by Spitz.”
I knew it!
The intro started with the drums.
Erina-san was apparently sticking to her manager role and didn't join in on the keyboard after all.
Because she was listening to the performance right next to me.
“Hey, hey, Takt-kun, look~”
Erina-san tugged at my sleeve to get my attention.
“I am looking, but...”
If anything, I was getting distracted because of her...
“Kenji is holding the guitar Erina borrowed from the front desk~”
“I see...”
Yeah, yeah, I know because I went with you to borrow it.
Also, Hazama, you aren't playing it at all. You’re just holding it.
“He’s so cool...”
“Is he...? Is that so?”
Well, if Erina-san thinks so, then fine, but... if it's just about holding it, even I could do that.
“Yeah, he’s cool...”
Is Erina-san the type to be unexpectedly devoted...?
This time, there was no public confession, and the performance ended with scattered applause.
Hazama seriously didn’t play the guitar until the very end...
After a few more Rock Club bands performed, our turn came.
“Uh, next up, the last for the Rock Club is amane!”
Ichikawa spoke through the vocal mic.
I quietly sat down at the drums on stage, while Sako adjusted the sound of her bass.
“We want to play an original song today! This is a song Konuma-kun said he wanted to do, so we decided to do it! Right, Konuma-kun?”
Ichikawa looked back at me and smiled.
Wait, why are you suddenly throwing the ball to me?!
“A-ah, a-ah, aah...”
Unable to speak in front of people, I turned into No-Face. I felt like gold was about to come out of my mouth.
“Who’s Onuma-senpai?” “The drummer guy, the one who shouted at Rock On...” “Ah, he’s pretty emo, right?” “By the way, he seems to be close with President Azuma too. I saw them talking.” “Hee, so emo.” “Apparently~ at this training camp~ he’s becoming super popular with everyone besides Erina~?” “Hee, so emo... wait, some senior I don't know just joined the conversation!” “Wait, but isn't that senior super cute? She looks like a doll!” “Insane.” “Insane.” “Muffufu~”
The hall was buzzing, in contrast to my No-Face state.
“Ahaha... As you can see, Konuma-kun is a man of few words, but,”
Ichikawa breathed into the microphone as if smiling.
“To make up for it, the ‘sounds’ he creates have a way of truly resonating in your heart.”
At Ichikawa’s words, everyone let out an impressed sigh, “Ooh...”
Please stop, it’s embarrassing...
“So, I hope Konuma-kun’s feelings reach you. This is a song called ‘Boat.’ Please listen.”
After letting out a breath.
I took a deep breath in.
In that moment, I saw Ichikawa and Sako’s shoulders rise at the same time, at the same speed.
I let out a small smile in my heart.
Literally, we’re perfectly in sync.
“One, two, three, four...”
I gave the count.
A tempo like walking beside someone.
A gentle yet resilient song began.
＊ ＊ ＊
『Boat』
For example, even a water bird sliding across the surface with a cool face
Has feet that are struggling frantically
Beneath the surface of your always gentle smile
There must be a ‘truth’ hidden away
For example, in that first moment you row out a boat
The paddle feels the heaviest
No matter how many times you sit down, you stand back up
How much strength are you really putting into it?
That boat famous for breaking up couples who ride it
Every time on the way home, I squeeze my hands together and pray
“I hope that even so, you, who acts tough, will someday be properly rewarded”
The things I really want to say are the ones I can’t
Clenching my teeth, biting my lower lip
If you’re afraid of the emotions that take shape when spoken
Then I’ll keep pretending I don’t know
That your face, when you force a smile, is actually very cool
＊ ＊ ＊
The interlude flowed.
The melody played by the electric guitar in the original song was smoothly spun out by Sako’s bass.
『I think things like looks and personality might make things advantageous or disadvantageous, you know? But, because you can’t give up just for those reasons, I think that’s what loving is.』
I wonder how much resolve lies behind Erina-san’s smile.
『It might be obvious, but it’s not all fun and games, you know, being a President.』
I wonder how much patience lies behind Azuma’s strength.
I struck each beat carefully, as if making a knot, so that each of those efforts would bear fruit.
The interlude ended, and Ichikawa began to sing gently again.
＊ ＊ ＊
That boat famous for breaking up couples who ride it
Every time on the way home, I squeeze my hands together and pray
“I hope that even so, you, who acts tough, can be your true self somewhere”
The harder things are, the more you stand your ground
Letting out a sigh when no one is around
If you’re afraid of the emotions that take shape when spoken
Then I’ll keep pretending I don’t know
That seeing your heart truly smiling makes me feel happy
＊ ＊ ＊
Erina-san’s eyes widened in a daze.
A single droplet traced a line down Azuma’s cheek.
＊ ＊ ＊
Both “Do your best” and “It’s okay” are irresponsible, and there’s little I can say
But if you could just remember that there is at least one ally right here, I’d be happy
＊ ＊ ＊
The outro flowed.
To Ichikawa’s acoustic guitar, which snuggled up to the waves of emotion, Sako’s bass pointed out, “Forward is that way.”
I struck the drums gently but firmly, as if pushing someone’s back.
In the soft space created by the music, the sounds of the three of us overlapped perfectly, and the performance ended.
The hall was enveloped in cheers of “Wow...!” and applause.
Ichikawa smiled gently, and Sako’s lips curled up by a fraction of a millimeter.
“Uh, well then, next is the Instrumental Music Club’s performance, right?”
With the performance of the Instrumental Music Club, who had the baton passed to them by Ichikawa...
I was about to realize that I had still been vastly underestimating Azuma.