I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

The cheerful clarinet brought the piece to a climax, while the addition of brass made the sound richer and more resonant, with the familiar melody echoing throughout the hall.

As the conductor clenched his fist, the band stopped abruptly, and everyone stood up and bowed to the audience.

What seemed like an ordinary performance was actually quite thrilling, only Kiyoshi knew how dangerous it was. She belatedly felt her heart pounding uncontrollably, and after the performance, Kiyoshi was still stunned, clutching her chest and panting.

"What are you doing?"

Reina stepped forward and tugged at Kiyoyori's sleeve.

"fine……"

Kiyoshi didn't dare ask Reina for her thoughts, nor did she know what the selected pieces were like. She nervously followed Reina out of the concert hall.

"Let's wait for the results."

Reina gave Kiyoshi a deep look, without saying anything else, but her hand, which was tightly holding Kiyoshi's, was still trembling.

“Reina…” Kiyoyori squeezed her hand back, “Would you like some cola?”

Reina paused, turned to look at Kiyoyori, and said firmly, "Drink!"

Although the waiting time is always long, Beizhong's ranking was relatively low this time, and soon they returned to the concert hall and squatted on the steps to wait for the results.

The emcee on stage announced in a drawn-out tone:

"Number four, Shangjing Middle School, GOLD Gold Award."

Kiyoshi felt a sharp pain in her hand. She looked at Reina, who was holding her hand, and saw that Reina had almost bitten her lip until it bled.

……

"Number 10, Dajishan North Middle School, GOLD Award."

There were scattered applause and cheers, but what followed was the main event.

"Next, we will announce the schools that will represent Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai Tournament."

Kiyoyori heard the sound of synchronized deep breathing around him, while Reina's breathing seemed to freeze at that moment. As the emcee announced the school's name, cheers would erupt from different sections of the audience, but such cheers did not appear at Daikichiyama Kita Junior High School.

Ahh...

The emcee left with the list, and unlike the cheers, a deathly silence fell over the corner belonging to Beizhong.

Reina released Kiyoshi's hand at some point, hugged her knees tightly, and buried her face in them. Her shoulders trembled incessantly. Kiyoshi opened his mouth, but could not utter a single word.

"A gold medal... even though it's worthless gold..."

Kiyoshi heard the girl next to Reina say softly.

That's... Huang Qian, the euphonium player?

Unlike Reina and Kiyoyori, she genuinely smiled when she saw the gold medal, while Reina, whose emotions were completely opposite to hers, caught her attention.

"Kousaka-kun, you're so happy you're crying?" Huang Qian raised his voice slightly. "That's great, it's the gold medal."

Amidst the whispers of his classmates, Kiyoyori also overheard Huang Qian's astonishing statement.

No, it's not surprising. Many people think this way, and most of them wear satisfied smiles. Kiyoyori and Reina are like outliers among this group.

Lina suppressed her sobs, raised her head, and pulled her school uniform tighter.

"I'm not reconciled! I'm so unwilling to accept this that I want to die!" Reina stomped her foot in frustration. "Why is everyone so happy about winning a useless gold medal? Isn't our goal the national championship?"

Huang Qian turned around in surprise, looking at the unwilling Reina, "Do you really think we can participate in the national competition?"

Huang Qian's question made Qing Lai's breath catch in his throat.

Having faced the problem head-on, Reina forgot to cry and glared at the outspoken girl.

Aren't you resentful?

Reina stood up angrily, glaring at Huang Qian who was still squatting on the ground, tears streaming down her cheeks and falling to the floor.

"I'm not reconciled! I'm so unwilling to accept this!"

After shouting, Reina rushed out.

"Rina!"

Upon seeing this, Qinglai immediately rushed out, until he reached the lawn where people were coming and going.

"what--!"

Ignoring the surprised looks of passersby, Reina vented her dissatisfaction. Kiyoshi stepped forward, hugged Reina, and patted her head without saying a word.

"Tachibana-san."

Suddenly, Kiyotomi heard a very familiar voice. She looked up and around, but there were only people coming and going, and no one was the owner of the voice.

"Tachibana-san."

Kiyoshi released Reina, hurriedly apologized, and then followed the sound through the crowd.

"Tachibana-san."

"Senior?" Kiyotaka pushed through the crowd, the noise making her want to escape. "Senior! Where are you?"

"Tachibana-san."

"Yukinoshita-senpai!"

“I am here, Qinglai.”

Chapter 46 If We Could Meet

The voice seemed to come from a distant other side of the world, piercing through the crowded and noisy throng and echoing in Kiyoyori's mind. Kiyoyori stood in the crowd, anxiously looking around. Everyone was going about their own business, and no one paid attention to the girl with her brows furrowed, as if she were searching for something.

The shouts beneath the snow were sometimes soft, sometimes loud, and Qinglai, clueless, could only anxiously weave through the crowd.

"Excuse me, could you please let me pass?"

Kiyotomi roughly pushed through the crowd, heading towards the direction from which the sound grew louder. She searched for that beautiful figure. Perhaps it was just her imagination, perhaps just a fantasy brought on by the sweltering summer heat, but she wanted to see that person, not through their eyes, but through her own; she wanted to touch them, to connect with them with her fingertips—not that illusory, dreamlike connection, but—

"I'm here, Kiyorai."

Qinglai suddenly stopped, then sprinted towards the roadside outside the venue.

Where? Where?

The sounds of pedestrians talking, car engines, and insects chirping filled Qinglai's ears, yet he could not find the clear, mountain-stream-like sound he was searching for.

"Huff, huff, huff—"

Qinglai leaned against the traffic light pole in front of the zebra crossing, bending over and panting. In the already hot weather, she, a student wearing long sleeves and a jacket, stood out conspicuously among a group of people wearing short sleeves. Sweat dripped down her forehead, and the thin layer of sweat made her shirt stick to her body. She tugged uncomfortably at her collar and casually loosened her bow tie, unbuttoning the buttons that were originally fastened so meticulously.

A cool breeze blew in through his collar, dispelling the heat, and his heart, which had been pounding like a drum, gradually calmed down. Qinglai leaned against the iron bar, a bitter smile on his face.

How could she possibly be here? Just now, she should have been at home watching a documentary.

Kiyoshi hastily wiped the sweat from his face with his sleeve.

Today is destined to end in defeat.

"Tachibana Kiyori."

Kiyoshi, who was about to turn back, suddenly stopped and turned around in disbelief. On the other side of the road, where cars were speeding by, stood a girl in a summer school uniform. Her waist-length black hair danced in the wind, drawing beautiful arcs. Her icy blue eyes looked directly and gently at Kiyoshi, piercing through the crowd. The sunlight shining down on her fair skin made her, who was already like a doll, almost transparent. She was like an elf who had fallen to earth and entered Kiyoshi's world.

"senior……"

Kiyoshi was slightly hunched over. She wanted to rush forward immediately, but the endless stream of cars blocked her way. She could only stand there quietly watching her. Although they were only a dozen steps apart, it felt like there was a Milky Way between them.

"Tachibana-san, that was a wonderful performance. I really wish I could hear you perform live."

Kiyoshi felt her throat was so dry it was practically steaming. She tried to smile, but couldn't manage it. It felt like a heavy stone was pressing on her chest, making it hard for her to breathe.

"But it's still not enough..."

It's worthless gold, worthless gold! What good is a gold medal? If you can't stand on a bigger stage, this gold medal is meaningless.

"I'm not reconciled! I'm so unwilling to accept this, I want to die!"

Do you really think we can go all over the country?

Kiyoshi felt his heart being squeezed tightly by a hand and then torn apart.

Pedestrians glanced at Qinglai with surprise, but their steps wouldn't stop for her, and their eyes wouldn't linger for even a second longer.

“If it were you, you could definitely go to the national competition,” a cool voice said with a hint of a smile. “I’m really looking forward to it.”

At that moment, Kiyoyori saw a smile she had never seen before, a smile that belonged to Yukinoshita.

A large truck carrying a container drove across the road, and a wave of heat hit Qinglai, who instinctively raised her hand to shield herself. The red light turned green, and pedestrians who had been standing on both sides of the road began to cross. Qinglai subconsciously wanted to walk forward, but that graceful figure had already disappeared on the other side.

"Chiang Lai!"

It's Reina.

Kiyoshi turned around blankly and saw Reina, who had already cheered up. Although her eyes were still red like a little rabbit's, she was much more energetic.

"Time to go!"

Rena cupped her hands around her mouth, making a megaphone shape. Her voice, though not completely drowned out by the surrounding noise, was muffled.

"coming!"

Kiyoshi waved to her, indicating that he had received her message.

Looking back at the other end of the road once more, there was no familiar figure standing at the intersection, only countless unfamiliar faces, some with their heads down looking at their phones, others talking to people around them. None of them were the person Qinglai was looking for.

She lost her.

Qinglai had no idea.

No longer lingering on that fleeting glimpse, Qinglai took off running in the opposite direction, step by step.

The moment two straight lines intersect, they are destined to drift further and further apart.

After that, Kiyoyori Tachibana never swapped bodies with Yukino Yukinoshita again.

...............................................................

a month later

Tachibana House at Night

In the pitch-black night, the light in Qinglai's room was still on. She was sitting at her desk, sketching and drawing in her sketchbook.