Music for the Silence

Event in Progress

"Ah. Arisa scared Shizuka again," Tae spoke, instantly comforting the mute staff.

"Wha-?! I-! Uh..." As much as Arisa wanted to deny it, she knew she did accidentally spook Shizuka. "... Sorry..."

"Ah! The french fries! Thank you, Shizu-chan~!" Kasumi thanked, she who had ordered for the fries.

Shizuka only nodded, feeling slightly calmer thanks to Tae's petting, and set down the side dish on the table.

"Ah! Now that I think about it, Shizuka-chan, did Marina-san tell you anything regarding the set up for the Girls Band Party?" Saya asked, in which the mute shook her head to. "I see... I kind of wanted to know if it was okay for us to help out with further preparations for the event."

"Ah, that's true. We may be the ones participating in the event, but CiRCLE is the one sponsoring it," Arisa agreed. "We probably shouldn't get too far ahead of ourselves here."

"Really? From what I heard from the girls back at Haneoka, I assumed Marina-san had given you guys permission for helping out," came Guren's voice, in quite an exhausted tone, as Shizuka and PoPiPa turned and saw the girl return with bags full of supplies. She even had a large bag on her back.

"Whoa! Guren-san! When did you come back?!" Kasumi gasped.

"Just now... Can't feel my arms..." Guren answered, her limbs shaking slightly from the weight she was carrying.

"A-Ah! Hurry up and put the bags down!" Rimi exclaimed, as she, Shizuka, and the rest of the band helped the girl set down the stuff.

"Whew... I'm saved... Thanks for that..." Guren thanked them.

"Why were you carrying all that stuff over here? Couldn't you have used a cart or something?" Arisa asked her.

"I would have, except the store I got all these from were using the carts to move some equipments around the place, and they didn't have any to spare. I could've just wait for them to be done, but Marina-san did ask me to bring all these back asap, and I didn't want to keep her waiting. I would've called for a truck or something, but there isn't really a parking spot near here, so that would've been a waste of time and money. Although, I do wish she had told me exactly what she ordered..."

"Wouldn't she be okay waiting just a little longer?" Tae asked.

"Maybe, but even so, the sooner the better. Okay... Now to bring them all in the place."

"Let us help out with that," Saya insisted. As she tried to carry a bag, though, she was taken aback by the weight. "Whoa! Heavy... What's in here?"

"Mics and cables. There are some bags with amps in them, and a few with speakers."

"And you managed to carry all that over here?!" Arisa gasped.

"I work out," Guren simply said.

"I see. Makes sense," Tae accepted.

"Does it?" Rimi wondered.

"Anyway, I appreciate the help, but I can handle the rest from here. Besides, you girls are in the middle of your meal, aren't you? Can't leave your plate half empty," Guren stated.

"Ah! That's true!" Kasumi gasped. "But... are you sure you don't need help?"

"It's fine. Besides, I do some heavy lifting at home. This is just heavier weight."

"I don't know whether to be amazed or frightened after hearing that..." Arisa stated, for there was no way, under any normal circumstances, a teenage girl would be used to handling all that weight.