area51novel Page 32
Page 32
She seemed to be thinking about something, not blowing, just staring blankly at the floor. Her only movement was to put her fingertips into the slightly shifted black sock on her calf and gently pull it up.
"Minister Yukawa," Kitahara Hakuba called softly from the doorway.
Sakura's gaze immediately shifted to that direction, but the moment her eyes met Kitahara Hakuma's, she timidly looked away.
Kitahara Hakuba didn't pay much attention and went straight in to hand her all the rearranged sheet music:
"This is the revised sheet music. Distribute it to the section leaders, and we'll play it together next Monday."
Sakurako Kawakita took the sheet music with one hand, and when she saw that it was indeed an arrangement of "RYDEEN," she asked in astonishment:
"Teacher Kitahara...you...you changed all of these?"
"I revised it together with Shinomiya-sensei," Kitahara Hakuba said.
"Ah—?" Sakurako Yukawa's surprised voice was drawn out for a very long time.
Only one day? How is that possible? The main melody was changed, and so many parts of the score were also altered?
“After all, time was too tight.” Kitahara Hakuba unconsciously smoothed his bangs and smiled slightly.
It was just a simple gesture that made Yukawa Sakura blush and her heart race, but when she thought about what he had said yesterday that "the club president is also terrible," she felt very depressed.
Rather than feeling depressed, I felt more frustrated, frustrated with my own uselessness.
"I will tell everyone, we must not let our teacher down." The girl with the three-stranded whip pursed her lips, a burning heat rising in her throat.
"But it seems like not many people came at noon today," Kitahara Hakuba said with a wry smile.
It would be a lie to say I don't care. What teacher wouldn't care about students' evaluations? Especially when it's a group of girls I'll be spending more and more time with.
A silence fell over the classroom, and then the girl spoke, like a bubble rising from the seabed.
"...The reason it turned out this way is because we relied too much on Tsukiyo-san—"
Standing there, Yukawa Sakurako muttered to herself, then turned her face away in embarrassment, saying...
"Everyone felt uneasy because she wasn't there. Forget about going to the national competition, we were even worried about whether we could win an award at the national competition. It felt like no matter how much we practiced, it was useless."
After hearing her words, Kitahara Hakuba suddenly felt enlightened, as if a green sprout had finally emerged from the soil.
Chapter 37. How can there be such a big difference between three years and one year?
"After the seniors left, I knew that the only choice for department head was Tsukiyo, whom everyone relied on more. But Haruno and Tsukiyo supported me in becoming department head. With their support, I can try anything..."
These words made Yukawa Sakurako lower her head in embarrassment, looking at the gentle sunlight filling the slightly cracked gaps in the floor.
"But...."
As she said this, she took a deep breath, and her voice came out in a muffled tone.
"As the club president, I haven't been able to get anything done, whether it's the moonlit night or creating a good atmosphere for everyone. I can even sense that Eri is thinking of leaving the club."
Why... can't I ever do anything right? If I could do better, maybe everything would be different...
Sakurako Yukawa's sobbing and sadness seemed genuine, and Kitahara Hakuba could even sense her regret in them.
He watched as the girl raised the back of her hand to wipe the corner of her eye, and said with a troubled expression:
"You've only been a minister for less than six months, right? Don't underestimate yourself. There's a long road ahead. Just prove yourself."
“But enough has already happened, and I haven’t handled any of it well,” Yukawa Sakurako said somberly.
"........"
—I can't stand it anymore, at least give me a way out!
Kitahara Hakuba brushed his bangs back, revealing a resolute expression on his face:
"President Yukawa, we need to think about Nagase. The brass band is a large club, and we can't put all the responsibility on her or you. We should support each other. As for the club atmosphere, I, as the teacher, have a lot of problems. As for Kanzaki, let's not assume that she will leave, okay? As the president, cheer up."
"teacher......."
Sakura slowly raised her head, her eyes red and swollen, with traces of vigorous rubbing and wiping around her eyes, and the tip of her nose as red as a strawberry.
Kitahara Hakuba certainly wouldn't dare say, "Please focus all your attention on me; that's the fastest way to improve," as that would be too misleading.
"Nase-san is a very smart person. Maybe if you perform well at the music festival, she will consider coming back? Haven't you thought about this possibility? Why do you always think the worst?"
Perhaps awakened by Kitahara Hakuba's words, Yukawa Sakurako's delicate white throat moved, and the tense atmosphere finally relaxed.
"I'm sorry, teacher, it's quite embarrassing to say this."
"It's alright. The music festival is less than three weeks away, so try not to worry about anything other than the performance."
After Kitahara Hakuma finished speaking, he comforted her for a while. He really couldn't handle matters mixed with personal feelings. Any sadness or joy could only be digested by her alone.
◇
The sound of pages turning kicked up a few pale white eraser shavings, and the 0.5mm pen lead left neat and clean marks on the paper.
Kanzaki Eri, her tie neatly tied, stood by the table, watching Nagase Tsukiyo intently working on her red homework.
During lunch break, the students were either sleeping or huddled together playing on their phones, occasionally letting out excited shouts.
With a snap, Nagase Tsukiyo's pen refill suddenly broke.
She reached out her fingers to try and pinch it, but she couldn't manage it and left light gray marks on the smooth paper.
Nagase Tsukiyo's beautiful brows furrowed into a V-shape as she put down the mechanical pencil in her hand and looked at the girl who had been standing next to her for two minutes, saying:
"what happened?"
Eri Kanzaki instinctively tensed up and opened her mouth to say:
"...Let's go to the restroom together."
Nagase Tsukiyo turned her small, delicate face toward her and said:
"Can't you see I'm very busy? Why don't you go find her?"
“........” Kanzaki Eri suddenly fell silent.
"Hey, I really can't do anything about you."
Nagase Tsukiyo stood up and straightened her skirt. Her legs were beautifully shaped, and her white stockings were spotless.
The two walked one after the other, and when they arrived at the central pool, they found that Saito Haruka was standing there facing the mirror, with the faucet still running.
When she saw the two approaching, she quickly turned around and went forward, and she could still hear the sound of water flowing into the pipe.
"Moonlit Night—"
Saito Haruka placed one hand on her chest.
"It's great that you're here. Don't be angry with Eri, I'm the one who made her do it."
Saito Haruka's gaze immediately fell on Kanzaki Eri. The moment their eyes met, Eri's fingers gripped the hem of her skirt tightly, and she looked silently at the ever-open faucet.
"I'm sorry, I've thought about it for a long time, and we were wrong. I want to apologize to you sincerely."
Saito Harutori's chest rose slightly as she spoke with utmost sincerity.
"We've been trying our best, Yuka practices diligently every day. Since you left, I feel so empty inside, and everyone is sad too... That's true, you were such a good person, and our lack of ambition must have hurt you. It's understandable that you can't forgive us, because you led us to expand this brass band, so—"
"Stop acting like you're always thinking of others."
Nagase Tsukiyo said with a cool expression,
"I've said it before, it's up to you how the band wants to develop in the future, please do as you please."
Saito Haruka placed her hands flat on her chest and said with slight excitement:
"However, our two years in the wind band—"
"It's really unacceptable to still be clinging to the past. You should probably start thinking about the future more seriously."
"Why... what do you mean by thinking about the future? Isn't the future of the brass band the future? Everyone joined the brass band because they wanted to be together every day, towards... Anyway, now you're saying you're leaving the band, isn't that strange? Everyone standing on the stage together to perform, isn't that what you said, Tsukiyo?"
"stage......"
Nagase Tsukiyo's eyebrows twitched, and she said with a stern expression,
"Then what about what you and Yuchuan told me back then, 'Always keep the number one spot for me'? I'm not important to you at all, and I only started working hard after I left. What does that mean? Are you here to laugh at me?"
"No! You've misunderstood! It was Mr. Kitahara who took it upon himself—!"
"Stop talking, I'm not going back, and don't use Kitahara-sensei as a shield."
Nagase Tsukiyo's gaze suddenly swept coldly over Kanzaki Eri.
“Huili, this is a warning to you. If you approach me with this purpose in the future, I will not forgive you.”
"I......."
Eri Kanzaki's body trembled, and the voice that squeezed out from her vocal cords sounded very aggrieved.
"Don't look for me anymore, I'm very busy." Nagase Tsukiyo said and turned to leave.
"Wait a moment--"
These words suddenly made Saito Haruka's legs move. Unable to hide her inner fear, she reached out and grabbed Nagase Tsukiyo's arm, bowing down without a word, her voice trembling as she spoke.
"That's not how it is. If you weren't here, Tsukiyo, I—!"
"Let go of me." Nagase Tsukiyo gently shook her hand, but found that she couldn't shake it off.
"What do I have to do to get you back? I'll do anything I can!" Saito Harutori's trembling legs gave way, and she collapsed to her knees.
Nagase Tsukiyo looked down at her from his elevated position, clenched his fists, and frowned as he said:
"I'm willing to do anything... Don't just talk the talk. If I don't get into Tokyo, can you take responsibility?"
Saito Harutori, panting heavily, said:
"But I—!"
Nagase Tsukiyo raised her hand, her expression calm and indifferent, and said:
"You're the kind of person who only thinks about yourself. I've had enough of you."
Saito Harutori's pupils contracted. The stern, pale face staring at her, along with the arrogant, slender throat, made her feel suffocated.
A sticky, annoying, unscrupulous, despicable, cowardly, and putrid stench seemed to be spreading from within my body.
Nagase Tsukiyo took a shallow breath and walked straight out, only to bump into someone who looked flustered and turned to leave.
"Tai... Kitahara-sensei?"