Gotou Hitori was unexpectedly energetic today.
"I joined a band and got a part-time job, so I'm not a gloomy girl anymore, right?"
Early in the morning.
Hitori opened the door.
The bright sunlight outside the window, for the first time, didn't seem so harsh.
Under its glow.
She felt as if she herself had become radiant.
She slung her Guitar over her back and walked towards school with full confidence.
"If I bring my Guitar one more time, someone will definitely come talk to me!"
At Noon.
Bocchi-chan was eating a rice ball in a gloomy stairwell, tears streaming down her face.
"This is fine, after all."
The girl picked up her water cup and took a sip.
"Speaking of which, it's really quiet here, perfect for eating lunch. It's great to find such a good spot… It's just a bit cold sitting on the floor, I'll bring a mat next time."
"And if I become a popular Guitarist and talk about eating in the stairwell when I'm on a show, it'll definitely create a huge contrast…"
On this day.
Nothing changed in the world.
Everything was as usual.
Except for a small face that suddenly peeked out from the stair railing above.
"Sister Hitori, so you want to become a popular Guitarist? It's very difficult to become famous nationwide, or even worldwide, just by playing the Guitar."
Gotou Hitori heard the familiar voice, her heart instantly skipped a beat, her tongue tied, and she looked up.
Bright eyes, light blue hair hanging down.
Waving little hands.
All proving-
"Gre- Griseo?! What are you doing here?!"
Gotou Hitori looked at the cute loli with eyes as if she had seen a monster.
"This, here, impossible, no, how did you find this place?"
"It's simple."
Griseo hopped down the stairs.
"I went to your classroom, couldn't find you, then looked at the fire escape map on the wall that showed the school's structure."
"And then you found me?"
"Yes, because on the map, this was the smallest enclosed area."
"…"
After Gotou Hitori heard that, she felt her life was bleak.
To be seen through so easily.
And by Griseo, whom she had only known for a short while.
If it were classmates she spent every day with, they would probably have known she always ate lunch here.
They just didn't disturb her out of pity.
Her life was completely a failure.
No wonder no one came to talk to her; had she already been seen through… "Sister Hitori?"
Griseo curiously poked Bocchi-chan, who was about to turn into jelly.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I can't stay in this place anymore. What a shame, it was my secret base that I finally found in school…"
Bocchi-chan stood up and said solemnly.
She wouldn't trigger social anxiety with Griseo, this special friend; she was simply too startled to react just now.
"By the way, Griseo, why did you come here?"
"Does the band have a performance soon?"
Griseo asked.
After returning from Eden, she hadn't found the state Eden spoke of.
And after she became the Kessoku Band's keyboardist, she hadn't performed with everyone either.
So she came to check.
"Hmm, Nijika said our band still needs a lead Guitarist."
Bocchi-chan became much more serious when talking about the band.
"A band definitely can't function without a lead singer. After all, we're a rock band, not an instrumental ensemble… But it's really hard to find an excellent lead singer."
"Griseo, I feel like you can do everything, why don't you be the lead singer?"
"…Do you want me to sing children's songs?"
Griseo responded earnestly.
"My vocal range isn't suitable for rock."
"But when I came, I heard someone talking about a girl named Kita who sings very well. Why don't you try to invite her? I heard she also plays the Guitar."
"Huh? How dare I talk to a stranger…"
Gotou Hitori shrank back again.
"It's already hard enough for me to communicate normally with you and Nijika now."
"But aren't we also strangers to you whom you've only known for a short while?"
Griseo didn't quite understand Bocchi-chan's situation.
In Griseo's view.
Weren't Bocchi-chan and she strangers before she even knew Nijika? Now they can be friends.
"It's different!"
Gotou Hitori shook her head repeatedly.
"How should I put it? Both you and Nijika... are willing to talk to me first. If you two hadn't taken the initiative, we probably wouldn't have had any interaction..."
When she said this, Gotou Hitori's gaze lowered, and her expression was a bit dim.
That's right.
Although she had made friends now, fundamentally, not much had changed.
"But you definitely can't keep going like this."
Griseo pulled Bocchi-chan up.
"You want to become a popular Guitarist, you'll have to face tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of people live, what will you do then?"
"Just, just treat the audience below as radishes and cabbages!"
"What if fans surround you asking for autographs?"
"No way... How could I have fans..."
"You do, Guitar Hero!"
"Don't say it, wuwuwuwu."
Bocchi-chan was dragged by Griseo like a dead fish out of the stairwell.
"Since you have to change eventually, why not start today?"
"No need, right... Actually, I don't want to be a popular Guitarist at all..."
Poke.
Griseo poked Bocchi-chan's left chest with her index finger.
It sank in deeply.
"You're lying to yourself."
"..."
Bocchi-chan lowered her head.
"Well... it's normal that you could find me in the stairwell and see through my lies, hahaha- Wait! What are you doing!"
Gotou Hitori realized Griseo was pulling her forward.
She couldn't resist at all.
So strong??
Griseo didn't say anything, pushing Hitori into Kita's classroom.
There was one good thing about Gotou Hitori.
That was, when pushed to the limit, she could still temporarily stand her ground.
Just like when she was dragged to perform before, she didn't run away in the end.
Now that she was at the door, she took a deep breath.
She pushed open a crack in the door and peered inside.
Amidst the students' chatter, she identified Kita.
After her gaze fell upon her-
"So dazzling!"
Hitori instantly recoiled.
"So cute, definitely a good girl, strong in sports, well-liked, and plays the guitar. If she joins the band, I'll definitely become invisible!"
Bang!
While Hitori was muttering to herself, the door was suddenly pushed open from the inside.
Kita poked her head out in confusion.
She only saw Griseo.
And a rapidly retreating back.
"Ah! So cute!"
Kita didn't focus on the fleeing Hitori instead, she immediately pulled out her phone, moved closer to Griseo, and took a smiling selfie.
This series of actions was smooth and fluid.
It left Griseo stunned.
"It feels like... a completely opposite personality to Hitori-neechan."