Wakamino played through their set and then left the stage amid cheers and applause. Loudly an encore was demanded, which they brought after a few minutes. This time it was served with 'It's Not Over' by Chris Daughtry. When the song was over, Wataru shouted, "Well, and now your schoolmate Mizuki Sasaki has something else to say." He stepped back and the purple-haired girl stood in front of the microphone.
"That was a great show. We thank you." Slowly, Wataru went to where Mizuki usually stood. "For today's concert we rehearsed a very special song. Just for you." She gave the audience some time to express their enthusiasm. "There are certainly some anime fans among you, right?" She waited a moment before continuing. "Do you know 'The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi'?"
While the students were still screaming, Nobu counted in the song and they played 'God Knows' by Aya Hirano. The song reached by the mentioned series great notoriety. And indeed, Mizuki sang.
She had been preparing for this gig almost continuously for the past two weeks. She had already practiced the song for herself at home because he just liked it. When Wakamino was asked to play at the school festival, she suggested to her band members that they play this song. At first, the others hadn't been sure, but after playing her part and singing to them, they were excited about the idea. Wataru had given her a few more tips for singing and they had also trained Mizuki's vocals a couple of times, so she would be up to the task. And now it was time to reap the benefits of her work. Many students sang along loudly and the whole assembly hall simmered and boiled.
When they came to an end, Mizuki stood up there staring at the students who were cheering at her. She looked over at Wataru and said, "It's very different when you sing."
He nodded. "I know."
"Thank you, my friends!" she called into the microphone. "You are fantastic! I love you!" She looked at her boyfriend, who gave her a big grin. "I hope we'll see each other again soon. Good night to all of you!" They finally left the stage and gathered behind the curtain. Mizuki wiped sweat from her forehead several times. "I think that was my most intense show."
"You did really well, Mizuki-chan," Nobu assured her. She nodded, but then she began to cry. Distraught, the other band members looked at each other.
"Are you okay, babe?" Kaito grabbed her by the hands and she smiled at him.
"Yes. I'm just so relieved that everything worked out." She wiped away the tears and kissed her boyfriend stormily on the mouth. "I'm so happy."
Nobu pulled Wataru with him so that the other two would have some space. "What happened to you at the beginning of the show?"
"I was looking for Yuna-chan but couldn't find her." Embarrassed, he grinned.
"All right. I can understand that. It's her school after all. Still, that was very unprofessional."
"I know. I'm sorry."
"Now you know what you can work on. That will not happen to you any more."
Wataru nodded. "I think so too. Still, I should check on her."
"Wait a minute. You want to go out there now? There are dozens of pubescent girls out there longing after you. Is that clear to you?"
"Somehow not," the singer admitted.
"Call her and order her here." Nobu took off his glasses and cleaned them with his sweaty T-shirt, causing even more stains. "I'm going to wash my glasses. Don't go out there, understood?"
"I understand." Wataru pulled his phone out of his pocket.
No credit. And no money.
***
"Wow. What a show," Gorou marveled.
"Really." Yuna had only seen the band for the second time, but this gig here was much more energetic than the one at the club back then. The reinterpretation of 'Sakura Sayonara' was less depressing than the premiere. And the second encore. Even Yuna sang loud, as she knew the song and had heard it many times.
The first students left the hall to go home. The murmur of the students was constantly getting louder. In a corner, someone spotted a stack of fliers and picked it up. More students became aware of it and the fliers moved through the hands of those present. The conversations became even louder. "Do you know what's going on?" Gorou asked, looking around.
"No idea." Yuna noticed that more and more looks were hanging on her. Before she could get restless, her power lay protectively around her. She looked at Nisha, who was staring at something in her hands with Rin. She looked up and stared wide-eyed at Yuna.
What the hell is going on here?
"Typical." - "Wasn't that already a rumor?" - "I've never liked her."
"What's going on?" Gorou asked someone next to him. When he didn't get an answer, he squeezed through a few students until he spotted someone with a flier in his hand. He snatched the paper and studied it. "Impossible." He looked up and at Yuna with the same gaze as some others.
She could only stare at him. "What?" He lifted the flier so she could read it.
Yuna Masuda and Wataru Shimada are a couple. The story of the year.
Below followed in smaller writing a whole text. For a moment, her heartbeat stopped. That couldn't be true. Why now? She peered forward, where she suspected Hikari. Maybe she could still reach and warn her best friend before she saw the flier. Maybe she still had a chance for damage control. Under a few venomous looks, she pushed forward to the stage.
"He's way too good for her." - "She just gets everything." - "What does she have that I don't?"
Yuna tried to ignore the other students. She recognized Akemi. Certainly Yui would be with her, and Megumi, and possibly also Hikari. "Excuse me. I have to go through." She looked around again, and on her left she saw another collection of fliers spreading. More glances hit her. "Make room!" She pushed between other students to the stage. Instinctively she looked to the right - more fliers. This action was planned. She stopped and turned to the exit. Yukiko's eyes lit up between a few students. She watched Yuna spitting out a, "shit." Faster than before, she fought her way forward.
Please...
At last she spotted Hikari. As fast as she could, she went to her best friend. "Hikari-chan!"
"That's impossible," Hikari whispered, reading a flier as Yuna came within earshot. "They can't even stand each other."
"Even I knew that, Wada-san." Megumi glimpsed at the blue-haired girl. "There she is. Just ask her."
Hikari spun around, staring at Yuna with watery eyes. "Say it's not true."
The tall girl stopped and swallowed hard. "So... I..."
"You would have told me. I know that very well. We don't lie to each other," asserted the black-haired girl.
"I'm sorry." Ashamed, Yuna looked down. "I'm really sorry, Hikari-chan." Around her, students gathered to attend the spectacle.
"I'm sorry." Hikari crumpled the sheet of paper in her hands and sobbed. "You're sorry... why?" When her best friend didn't look up, she yelled, "Why didn't you say anything?!"
"I didn't know how."
Hikari exhaled heavily. "How long?"
"Three months."
"Three months? You haven't been able to tell me this in the last three months? Do you have any idea how I feel?" The taller girl stared down at the floor. "Look at me when I talk to you!"
Her lips clenched, and she looked Hikari in the eye. "I didn't want to hurt you."
The paper ball bounced off Yuna, like real bullets would. "Well, guess what?! You did!"
"Hikari-chan," Yui mumbled next to her. "Please calm down."
"No!" After a quick glance, Hikari stamped towards Yuna. "I hate you! I wish you had never returned!"
Yuna's jaws tightened. "I'm really sorry."
Shaking her head, Hikari pushed past her. "I don't know who you are anymore. Just leave me alone."
The blue-haired girl turned to her and shouted, "I'm sorry, Hikari-chan!"
Yui stepped forward. "Hikari-chan. You are friends. Best friends!"
"No. My best friend died with her family. This is just a vile creature. I didn't want to believe Yukiko, but she was right."
Yuna followed the black-haired girl who stormed to the exit. "What does Yukiko have to do with this? Hikari!"
The ice oni pushed between them. "Hey, Masuda. Now look what you just did. You must feel awesome, right?" Mocking, she laughed at her.
"That was you."
"I did nothing. Just enjoyed the concert."
Furiously, Yuna lunged at her opponent, but she moved sideways, knocking two other students to the ground. "Excuse me." She scrambled to her feet and sprinted after Yukiko, who ran to the exit. "I will kill you!"
"First you have to get me," the ice oni laughed. She noticed that Yuna caught up quickly so she dropped all inhibitions and ran at full speed.
Yui and her friends rushed out off the meeting hall. "Yuna-chan!" Next to them Nisha and Rin appeared. The two blue-haired high-school girls were no longer visible.
"Where are they going?" Yui asked and looked at Nisha. "Where could they have run?"
"I don't know." The class representative pulled out her cell phone. "Yuna-chan can take care of herself. We have to worry about Hikari." She dialed her friend's number and waited.
"What has happened back there? Why did they behave like that?" The blonde looked back and forth between Nisha and Rin until Nisha turned away.
Her deputy shrugged and looked around. "We should look for them."
"She choked me off," the cat girl said as she turned back. "Do you have your cell phones with you?" The middle-school girls nodded. "Please try to reach her." She told Hikari's number to the other students.
"Narusegawa-san. We should inform someone. Because of Yuna and Yukiko," Rin advised. "I have a very bad feeling about it."
"You're right. I'll do that immediately. Try to reach Hikari." The class representative marched to the main building, which housed the staff room. As soon as the others couldn't see her, she dialed the next number. "Mother. We have a problem."
"What's going on, darling?"
"Yukiko and Yuna are back to fighting each other."
A sigh sounded. "I instructed both to leave each other alone. What happened?"
"Yukiko provoked Yuna. Again. It will escalate, mother."
"I can't leave here. I'll send you Tanaka."
"He will only make it worse," the cat girl said.
Haruka laughed softly. "And what do you suggest?"
"No idea. Somehow you have to be able to stop them. Could you maybe call Chinatsu..."
"You know that you should never pronounce that name. I will not bother her with such a trifle. I'll let it happen. If they want to go at each other's throats, they should."
Nisha swallowed once. "B-But mother..."
"It was good that you informed me, my child. That was very wise of you. I'm sorry I can't help you."
"What should I do, mother?"
"I forbid you to do anything. Yuna-chan defeated Tirr. I see no reason why she should lose to Yukiko."
"What if she loses?"
"She will not. Trust in your friend. Go home. You can't do anything."
"But..."
"Go home. That's an order!" hissed Haruka into the phone.
"Y-Yes, mother. I'll only say goodbye to my friends."
"Good girl. See you later." The connection was broken.
Nisha looked at her cell phone. She wiped her eyes. "I will not cry." She put her phone in her skirt pocket and hurried back to the spot where she had left the others behind.
Yui saw her and immediately asked, "Could you find someone?"
"Eh, no. Maybe in the assembly hall." Students were still coming out, but apparently only a few had heard the turmoil. "Where is Masatada-san?"
"Who?" the middle-school students wondered.
"My classmate who was here before. Where did she go?"
"No idea. We tried to calm down Yui. She probably left," Akemi explained.
"I have to look for my sister!"
The smallest girl wanted to storm off, but Akemi held her by the collar. "Try calling her. We have no idea where she could be."
"Yes. We should take you home, Yui-chan. Your sister will certainly go home as soon as she has let off some steam," Megumi assured.