Chapter 150: Afternoon (Part 2)
The next day, even without going to STARRY, Ishikawa Hayato subconsciously found himself in Shimokitazawa.
He hadn't originally planned to come today, but he only realized this on the train.
Coming to Shimokitazawa every day recently had made it a stronger habit than going to school.
But there was nothing to do here today.
STARRY didn't open this early, and the three people in Shimokitazawa probably couldn't be reached.
Nijika was probably busy with family matters, Ryo should still be sleeping at this time, and Kita was definitely checking in and taking photos with her friends in various places.
But Ishikawa Hayato wasn't someone who had nothing to do except hang out with girls.
The band's development and his money-making tasks all needed his immediate attention.
However, there was one more thing he needed to do now that he was in Shimokitazawa.
He had previously agreed with Hitori to rent a place here, so he planned to first understand the situation and select some potential rental houses.
This way, it would be easier when he brought Hitori to choose a place to rent.
Although he didn't know Hitori's current tolerance level, the thought of dragging her around the streets of Shimokitazawa made Ishikawa Hayato imagine her swaying, with her brain shut down.
At the real estate agency, Ishikawa Hayato first confirmed the renovation style of the house, preferably traditional Japanese, since Hitori's room was like that, but other houses could also be considered.
However, more importantly, the sound insulation needed to be good, as it wouldn't be good to disturb neighbors by occasionally playing instruments at home.
And there needed to be three bedrooms, to prevent not having a place to sleep if they suddenly had a training camp here.
Ishikawa Hayato is a very upright person.
He absolutely isn’t entertaining any wild or unrealistic notions.
But with he had money now, he naturally looked for the best options.
With no shortage of money and only considering the environment, houses were easy to choose.
After spending an afternoon with the agent looking at a few houses, Ishikawa Hayato quickly made his decision.
He planned to bring Hitori to see it then, and if she was satisfied, it would be settled.
With the housing situation settled, he decided to reflect on their band's matters again.
Ishikawa Hayato went into a coffee shop, ordered a cup of coffee, and sat by the window, pulling out a pen and paper to think.
Objectively speaking, their band was not inferior to other bands of the same era, referring to their musical skill, of course.
He was well aware that their performances were not yet mature.
This situation only required more stage time and more care on their musical expression.
This kind of thing depends on the emotions during live performance—it’s not something you can pull off just by imitating others.
In other words, they needed more stage time that could increase their confidence.
Ishikawa Hayato circled 'performance opportunities' on the paper.
There were many music festivals in the summer.
Why not participate in a few more?
However, he then worried if Hitori could handle it and if Kita could keep up.
Speaking of which, Kita was currently only singing based on her natural vocal abilities.
If they were to go to bigger stages, she would need to learn a more scientific way of vocalizing.
Thinking about it, Ishikawa Hayato felt there were so many things to worry about for the band.
He also knew the reasons why others didn't touch on this kind of topic: Nijika was afraid of pushing people too hard, Ryo didn't care and just wanted to play music, and Hitori and Kita were even more out of the question.
However, if this performance went without a hitch, they would undergo their transformation.
Ishikawa Hayato thought, searching online for some information for Kita.
Just as he was about to finish his search, a familiar figure suddenly appeared out of the corner of his eye.
A blue-haired passerby was unhurriedly passing by from another street.
Seeing that leisurely figure, who even stopped in front of a newly opened shop on the other side and peered inside, Ishikawa Hayato checked his phone.
It was almost noon, no wonder he saw this street loafer.
He took another sip of coffee, hunched over, and half-hid behind the shop's advertising sticker, peeking at Ryo.
Ryo hesitated for a moment at the shop entrance, touched her stomach, and quickly tapped on her phone.
After waiting a while, as if checking messages, she calmly tapped her phone again, this time putting it to her ear.
Ishikawa Hayato pricked up his ears.
"Nijika~~"
Ryo called out playfully, but her face showed no change in expression.
It seemed she was very skilled at this kind of coaxing.
"I don't care about you!"
With Nijika's angry shout, the call ended.
Ishikawa Hayato watched her tap her phone again.
He quickly pulled out his phone and messaged Hitori.
"Bocchi, Ryo might ask you to borrow money later. Don't lend it to her, no matter what."
Hitori replied after a long while.
"Okay."
Ishikawa Hayato guessed she was probably agonizing again.
He sent another message.
"Bocchi, you're not forcing yourself, are you?"
This time, Hitori replied very quickly.
"Hayato, I'm sorry! I don't have the courage to refuse people."
"Then how about this? When Ryo messages you, screenshot it for me and forward my message to her."
"Okay... Also, Ryo-san has already messaged me."
Ishikawa Hayato saw Hitori's message, then secretly glanced at Ryo, who was waiting at the shop entrance, and sneered.
He carefully crafted the language from Hitori's perspective, refusing Ryo's request for money.
With Ryo rejected by Hitori, Ryo looked at the shop door for a long time.
She silently wiped away a tear and then turned to walk forward.
Seeing her reaction, Ishikawa Hayato felt a little uneasy.
However, thinking of her not repaying borrowed money and her trickery towards Hitori, he felt no guilt whatsoever.
Seeing her leave, Ishikawa Hayato quickly packed up his things, gulped down his coffee, and went to the counter to pay.
He clearly remembered that Ryo had tacitly allowed him to follow her.
Now, it was time for the pervert to act.
Ishikawa Hayato was on the move!
On the other side, Hitori was very confused about what was going on with these two.
However, after thinking for a long time, she couldn't understand the situation from their Line messages.
She could only vaguely guess.
"Hayato and Ryo-san are together..."
She sighed deeply, looked at the guitar she had just put down, and then stood up to look at the calendar.
On the calendar, tomorrow's date was circled prominently, and 'Rehearsal' was written in the corner.
...
Ishikawa Hayato's pervert level was the legendary MAX, and his trailing skills were naturally godlike.
Not to mention Ryo, even the passersby around didn't notice he was following her.
He watched Ryo leisurely wander around.
Surprisingly, she, like a normal girl, would enter clothing stores to try on clothes and browse secondhand clothing stores.
Except she was doing it on an empty stomach.
But she didn't look for long before leaving.
Her shopping so far was very casual, as if she was just checking if those shops had any new arrivals, looking around and then leaving.
Until she reached a shop, she turned and entered without even looking, as if she was going home.
Ishikawa Hayato looked around the vicinity, then revealed an unsurprised expression.
This was a slightly old-fashioned CD store. From its weathered yet timeless storefront, it was clear that this shop must have been extremely trendy a few years, or even a decade or more, ago.
Half-glass walls ensured light and showcased part of the interior space.
The naturally aged yet clean walls, combined with the shop's contents, gave it a unique charm.
Inside, countless CDs and even cassette tapes were placed on antique wooden shelves.
Beside the shelves, there were players and headphones for listening to samples.
Ryo was diligently sifting through the CD racks.
She looked as if she knew exactly which CD she wanted to listen to.
Soon, she took out a CD and walked to the player, inserting it.
Ishikawa Hayato somewhat suspected she was continuing from where she last left off listening here.
After watching her for a while, Ishikawa Hayato averted his gaze and went about his own business.
A beautiful girl with a handsome charm was hard to look away from, but he thought there was still plenty of time, and a transaction he had was almost due today.
He pulled out his phone and started operating it.
Thus, one person listened to music in the CD store, and the other tapped on his phone in the alley.
Comments (0)
Please login or sign up to post a comment.