It's a romantic comedy for everyone, so why am I the only one single?

"What's the deal?"

"Play the drums."

"what!?"

Mashiro continued eating her beef bowl at a leisurely pace, seemingly oblivious to everything else.

The other three were all stunned, a big question mark appearing on their foreheads.

"What did you say? You want us to help play the drums?"

"Yes, Yoshikawa, you help with the drums, and Hori, you help with the keyboard—"

Before she could finish speaking, Yoshikawa Yuki and Hori Kyoko's eyes widened again, their faces showing a bewildered expression.

They do like listening to music, and they occasionally go to karaoke to sing, but asking them to play drums and keyboards is asking too much of them.

"Don't worry, it's very simple," Iura Hide explained.

"Playing the drums is all about counting the beats and striking the same spot."

"Playing the piano only requires playing a few keys like this."

"Simply put, it's just to make up the number of people and enrich the timbre a bit. The specific accompaniment was recorded in the arrangement keyboard when we played it yesterday."

After hearing this, Yoshikawa Yuki and Hori Kyoko suddenly understood, but then new questions arose.

Why do we need to help?

"Because the Light Music Club needs to apply for club activity funding, the student council will come to the site to review the club activities during the review process."

"Then you and that Goto junior could form a band, right?"

"It's possible, but when it comes to allocating funds, the more people there are, the more funds can be allocated. Don't worry, I asked Kono, and it's all in accordance with regulations."

This answer was clearly unexpected by Ishikawa and the other two.

But thinking about it carefully, it doesn't seem like there's any problem. After all, the Light Music Club is now able to organize club activities, so isn't it reasonable for them to apply for more club activity funding?

"Wouldn't it be better to have Kono-kun come over for review after school this afternoon? That way we'll have more time to prepare," Yoshikawa Yuki couldn't help but ask.

Suddenly being forced into this situation, especially since it concerned whether the Light Music Club could apply for club activity funding, made her, who was somewhat timid, very nervous.

"Idiot! Have you forgotten that Hori-san needs to go home early after school to do her homework?"

Hori Kyoko, who was also a little nervous, was taken aback when she heard this. She hadn't expected Iura Hide to have thought of this so thoughtfully, and a feeling of being touched immediately arose in her heart.

"Besides, I have other things to do after school this afternoon."

Yuki Yoshikawa, who had been called an idiot, glared at him angrily, then asked curiously, "What else could it be? Are you going to participate in the soccer club's intra-club match?"

"No, I've arranged to meet with an editor at a publishing house to discuss submitting my novel."

Hideaki Iura offered a casual explanation, but before he could finish speaking, Yuki Yoshikawa and Kyoko Hori exclaimed in surprise once again.

"what!?"

"Submitting a novel?"

"Is it the novel you said you wanted to write last time?"

“Yeah, do you guys have to react so strongly?” Iura Hide looked at the two of them strangely.

However, he was unaware that although Hori Kyoko and the other two had heard about his novel writing before, they thought he was just writing for fun.

Who would have thought that this would suddenly be submitted for publication?

Even if submitting it for publication doesn't guarantee it will be published, and even if it is published, the sales may not be very high, it will still give them a very impressive feeling.

At least in the eyes of ordinary high school girls like them who don't have any special talents, this is already very impressive!

What's more, Iura Hide had never shown his writing talent before, which made them even more surprised, unexpected, and curious.

"This guy is amazing, writing both songs and novels!"

Looking at Iura Hide who calmly continued eating, both Yoshikawa Yuki and Hori Kyoko couldn't help but gleam with admiration deep in their eyes.

At the same time, a thought unconsciously popped into my mind.

"Could this guy have some talent we don't know about?"

Chapter 68 Pochi-chan's Ahoge (cowlick)

In the quiet afternoon, with a clumsy unlocking sound, time began to flow again in the light music club activity room, which had seemed to be frozen in time.

Immediately afterwards, a slender figure with long pink hair, carrying a large guitar case, pushed open the slightly worn wooden door and walked in.

"Great! My senior hasn't arrived yet, so I can practice a few more times by myself."

Little Lonely breathed a sigh of relief and a happy smile appeared on his face.

Although she had practiced it hundreds of times by herself in the closet after school yesterday, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that she could recite it backwards.

But she also knows that she is extremely socially anxious and will be very nervous when performing in front of others. If she can only give 10% of her full strength, it would be a blessing from the gods.

The different environment and venue also have a significant impact on her.

That's why she wanted to come to the activity room early to familiarize herself with the space and warm up.

"That way I shouldn't be so nervous when my senior comes over, right?"

This is what Little Lonely was thinking.

However, the poor girl didn't know that those attending the club activity at noon today were not only Mashiro and Ishikawa Toru, whom she had just met yesterday.

There's also Sakura Kono, and Remi Ayasaki, who insisted on coming to join the fun after hearing about the Light Music Club's activities, and Sho Sengoku, who, as her boyfriend, would definitely be by Remi Ayasaki's side.

They also had no idea that the upcoming performance would affect how much club activity funding the Light Music Club could apply for.

If she knew all this, she probably would have already suffered a social anxiety attack and fled in panic.

No, I should say that if she knew all this, she wouldn't even have come. She would have found a secluded corner, or even a cardboard box, to hide in as soon as get out of class was over.

Having guessed her reaction, Iura Shusai deliberately didn't tell her.

So when Iura Hide came to the activity room after lunch and told her about it.

The once confident and lonely girl froze, and it took her a long time to come back to her senses. Then she transformed into an emoji girl, looking at Iura Hide with eyes full of resentment, her fair cheeks puffing up like a wronged pufferfish.

"Stupid tape!"

"With Pochi-chan's skills, her performance later will definitely be no problem!"

"After all, Pochi-chan was the first member to pass the audition and join the Light Music Club."

Iura Hide smiled and patted the little lonely boy's head.

In an instant, the little girl who was originally a bit nervous, scared, and resentful suddenly became like the little match girl in the cold winter who was suddenly thrown into a hot spring, and a silly, blissful smile appeared on her face.

"My senior not only called me Boqi-chan, but he also patted my head!"

"Mmm, so comfortable!"

"I really want my senior to pat my head again!!!"

Little Lonely screamed in her heart, feeling happier and sweeter the more she thought about it. The tuft of hair by her ear wagged happily like a Shiba Inu's tail.

For a moment, even the surrounding air seemed to transform into hot spring steam dyed pink by cherry blossoms, enveloping her entirely, as if she had arrived in paradise.

until

"puff--"

Yoshikawa Yuki, standing to the side, couldn't help but burst out laughing at her ridiculous facial expressions.

She then came to her senses, realized what had just happened, and instantly lowered her head, her face turning bright red. She was so embarrassed that she felt like white smoke was coming out of her ears.

It's just that the closet not far away wasn't big enough, and there weren't many cardboard boxes in the activity room, otherwise she probably would have already hidden inside.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, I'm so sorry."

Yoshikawa Yuki quickly apologized by putting her hands together. She knew it was impolite of her to laugh, but she really couldn't help it!

"Ah ah ah ah ah--"

"How embarrassing!"

"It feels so good to have my head patted by my senior!"

Little Lonely was frantically muttering to himself, his mouth moving as if he wanted to say 'It's okay'.

Unfortunately, her violently beating heart and nearly petrified body had completely robbed her of her ability to speak; she could no longer utter a complete sentence, let alone make a sound.

Fortunately, Iura Hide, who knew her well, immediately noticed her situation and took the initiative to change the subject.

"Alright, alright, let's practice a bit before Kono and the others arrive!"

Upon hearing this, Yoshikawa Yuki immediately showed an excited expression, followed him to the drum set, sat down, and then, under his guidance, began to try playing the drums.

Kyoko Hori, who was standing nearby, walked up to the arranged keyboard and gently stroked the neatly arranged black and white keys. Her mind was filled with the image of Iura Hide patting Kotori's head, and a strange emotion suddenly welled up in her heart.

Just as Iura Hide said during dinner earlier, what Yoshikawa Yuki and Hori Kyoko had to do was really very simple.

Yoshikawa Yuki only needed to strike both drums with the same force and rhythm, simply put, one in each hand.

Kyoko Hori maintained the same rhythm, pressing the piano keys twice with one hand.

Let alone high school students, even first-grade elementary school students, as long as they are not stupid, can easily complete this task.

Although Yoshikawa Yuki and Hori Kyoko were just ordinary high school students with no special talents or skills, they were not stupid and mastered all the essentials in a short time.

"Next, let's go through it all again."

"it is good!"

To be honest, if judged by the standards of a professional band, the four-person performance was really bad.

The addition of Kyoko Hori and Yuki Yoshikawa actually introduced a lot of messy notes into the originally smooth melody, making it sound less impressive than when Hideki Iura played it alone yesterday.

But there's nothing we can do; club activity funds are paid per person.

And just like what Little Lonely said when Ijichi Nijika was fooling him in "Lonely Rock".

Most audience members are not professionals and cannot tell the difference.