Two or three days had passed since the first day of school, and by the second day, Haneoka had already settled into a serious learning atmosphere.
But Kikukawa Kyo wasn't the type to take classes seriously—Sakiko had confirmed that much.
Even though Sakiko was attentive in class, Kikukawa Kyo sat right in front of her. So every time she shifted her gaze from the blackboard, her eyes would inevitably pass by Kyo's seat.
Over the course of a 45-minute lesson, Sakiko found herself glancing at Kyo more than a dozen times. And each time—without exception—Kyo had not been paying attention.
She was either gulping down water, slumping over her desk (not sleeping, just resting her head), staring out the window, or secretly reading a book unrelated to class.
Ding, ling, ling—
Another class had ended. Sakiko lowered her head to check the notes she had taken, making it a habit to quickly review the lesson's key points right after class. This was her little trick for retaining knowledge.
One of the biggest reasons Sakiko had chosen to attend Haneoka, a school known for its strong academic focus, was the scholarship program designed to motivate students. The scholarship was quite generous—it not only covered a full semester's tuition but even left a little extra. To Sakiko, it was an extremely attractive opportunity.
Because of this, she spent most of her time at school studying. She barely interacted with her classmates, and the only person in class who exchanged more than a dozen sentences with her in a day was probably Kikukawa Kyo.
But today, after finishing her notes, Sakiko didn't immediately dive into her next study session. Instead, she turned her gaze to Kyo's seat in front of her, as if she wanted to ask her something.
However, the moment the bell rang, Kyo sprang to her feet and dashed out of the classroom in a flash.
Sakiko wasn't in a hurry. She had already anticipated Kyo would leave as soon as class ended—this was a routine by now.
She also knew exactly where Kyo had gone. After all, where else could she be? Drinking so much water every day, naturally, she had run off to the restroom.
Honestly, given how much Kyo drank, it was a miracle that she had never once raised her hand in class to ask for a bathroom break. Even in just a single lesson, she could sip away at that huge water bottle of hers and finish more than half of it.
It felt as though Kyo had mastered her body's limits—figuring out exactly how much she could drink and for how long she could hold it before it became an emergency…
Sakiko found herself silently speculating in amusement. Had Kyo ever been caught in an embarrassing situation before? It was hard to imagine her ever looking flustered over something as mundane as that.
Despite all the water she drank, Kyo never spent much time in the restroom. Unlike other girls who enjoyed going in groups, Kyo preferred to go alone.
Not that she had never been invited—she had. But even though she carefully managed her water intake, she still pushed her limits. If she went with others and took her time chatting, she might have to drink even less during class.
So it didn't take long before Kyo returned to the classroom.
Once she was back in her seat, Sakiko finally spoke.
"You, Tomori, and Anon… Did you form a band?"
"Huh? How did you know about that?"
"Actually, yesterday, I happened to run into Anon. She asked me if I wanted to join her band," Sakiko explained. "And on the first day of school, didn't you say you'd talk to Anon about CRYCHIC? Since you brought that up, I figured the topic of bands must have come up as well."
"Hmm." Kikukawa Kyo made no effort to deny or conceal anything. "Anon really wants to be in the spotlight. She just wants to follow the trend and form a band like everyone else at school. As for Tomori, I think giving her the chance to stand on stage and sing again would be really good for her. She wants to be in a band more than anyone."
Forming a band just for fun, huh… Kyo thought to herself. That's a pretty heavy sentiment—talking about it like it's a lifelong commitment.
"Forming a band just for fun, huh…" Sakiko murmured, falling silent for a moment. "That sounds nice."
"I actually thought you'd find Anon's reasoning a bit shallow. Even in the past, you never saw CRYCHIC as just a band—you saw it as something deeper, a shared destiny."
Kyo's expression was completely serious as she recalled the words Sakiko had once spoken so earnestly. Seeing her take it so seriously only made Sakiko feel even more embarrassed, giving her the urge to cover her face.
"Can we not talk about the past?"
"Heh, treating your old, cringeworthy statements as black history? Congrats, Sakiko—you're finally graduating from your chūnibyō phase."
Sakiko shot Kyo a sharp glare, but Kyo just chuckled to herself, unfazed.
"Alright, that's enough," Sakiko muttered, slightly annoyed. "So then, why do you want to be in a band?"
"That, huh…" Kyo scratched her cheek. "I didn't join their band."
Sakiko raised an eyebrow, surprised. "I mean, I couldn't really picture you joining a band, but… wouldn't Tomori want you to? She relies on others a lot. With just Anon, I doubt she'd be able to take that step forward."
"Didn't you help her with that the other day? That one thing you said to her—it made a big difference. Even if you were, well… awkward about it."
"Don't try to shift the focus onto me. I asked about your thoughts."
"Why are you so curious about what I think?"
To understand you better. And maybe, one day… to ask you to join me again.
Though it was only a vague idea, not yet a concrete plan, Sakiko kept her thoughts to herself and simply stared at Kyo in silence.
"You're really hard to deal with," Kyo sighed. "If it were Tomori, she'd already be stammering, not knowing how to answer."
She made no effort to hide that she was trying to deflect the conversation. Having spent enough time around Sakiko to understand what kind of dynamic wouldn't offend her, Kyo had become more at ease in how she spoke.
With a small shrug, Kyo raised her hands in mock surrender. "Alright, fine. This might sound arrogant, but… one reason is that if I joined, Tomori wouldn't really get the chance to grow."
Sakiko nodded. She could easily imagine that. If Kyo were around, Tomori would definitely rely on her.
But that alone wasn't enough of a reason. Even if Kyo were in the band, she could always choose to step back and let Tomori handle things herself. Whether she joined or not had nothing to do with that.
Sakiko caught on to this right away. That was why she didn't look away, still waiting for Kyo to give her a real answer.
Kyo sighed, finally giving in. "The second reason—Tomori and I just aren't compatible. The kind of forever she longs for… it makes me feel like I can't move forward. And that unsettles me."
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T/N: author skipers next chapter