Chapter 207

Nijika wasn't stupid; she quickly came up with a solution.

"Does Hayato-kun mean to make a reservation first?"

Ishikawa Hayato confirmed her idea.

"Yes, just like pre-selling tickets in a store, we can open a pre-paid product page first. We don't need to offer anything free, just prioritize delivery so that later customers don't feel disappointed."

"We'll customize CDs based on the pre-order quantity, either 1.5 times or 2 times."

Nijika thought about it and felt there was no problem. She smiled happily, a smile that was extremely sunny and lovely.

"Let's do it Hayato-kun's way, what do you all think?"

She smiled and confirmed with the others.

No one else had any objections.

Looking at Nijika's expression, Hitori understood how Ishikawa Hayato had won Nijika over.

As one of the few people who knew Nijika's dream, she could sense Nijika's yearning for her dream and her compromise with reality, and then she met a very charming person who gave her advice on the path to her dream.

Her liking for him came about as easily as water flowing into a channel.

However, Nijika doesn't seem like the type of person who would easily give up on her dreams.

But Hitori wasn't too worried about her feelings, because Nijika seemed genuinely happy to be talking about serious matters with Ishikawa Hayato.

Meanwhile, Ishikawa Hayato was setting up an online store while also assigning tasks.

Do we know anyone at the relevant workshop?

The girls naturally wouldn't know anyone in that field.

Nijika said, "My sister and PA should know each other. I'll go ask them later."

As Ishikawa Hayato typed on the keyboard, he spoke to the group.

"Hmm, that's not in a rush. We haven't even finished the cover yet."

Nijika's voice suddenly turned cold at this moment.

I did it.

Her tone was as if to say, "I'm different from you guys; I don't just play around every day."

Ishikawa Hayato paused, but pretended not to feel any remorse as he spoke.

"Then everyone, please take a look."

Nijika sent the CD cover she made in her spare time while working, doing housework, and practicing to Ishikawa Hayato's computer and projected it onto the big TV.

The image appeared, showing a CD cover with a very nice design, along with an illustration of the outer packaging. Kita n't help but exclaim in surprise.

"That's amazing, Ijichi-senpai, you're incredible!"

If she made a CD like that, she could proudly take it to her friends to sell and show off.

"Mmm! Nijika-chan is really good at design..."

Hitori looked at Nijika with admiration, and a hint of envy.

Nijika's ahoge (cowlick) twirled happily under their praise.

"I'm a little sorry to interrupt your fun, but we have limited resources, and this is just a collection of our current tracks, not a formal album."

Ishikawa Hayato said helplessly to the three excited women, who were taken aback.

Nijika looked at Ishikawa Hayato suspiciously and asked.

"Hayato-kun, weren't you just talking about the cover...?"

Ishikawa Hayato reminded the few silly girls.

"At most, I'll make a CD cover."

They breathed a sigh of relief, Kita muttered, "Hayato-kun, don't dampen my spirits when you're getting excited."

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled and spoke like an elementary school boy.

"It's so fun to bully girls!"

His words drew several indifferent glances, but he didn't seem to care and continued speaking.

"I think everyone agrees on the cover design now. My online store is up and running, so I can release the video now."

"Um."

Hitori, Kita nodded, and Nijika only responded after everyone else had agreed.

But Nijika overlooked the coolness on her other side.

I object.

The four of them were startled and turned to look at her.

"Cold?"

Nijika exclaimed in surprise, with a hint of confusion.

Liang frowned and looked disgusted.

"I think we should turn off the comments section, otherwise, given the style of our music, it will definitely become a message board for heartbroken girls."

What was said without malice may have been taken to heart by the listener.

Nijika's expression froze, while Hitori gripped her hand tightly with a heavy heart, and Kita felt a tightness in his chest.

Liang's words completely shattered the spirits of these three girls.

A moment later, Hitori said in a tearful and fearful voice.

"Then... then, I think that should be turned off too."

She had just imagined what it would be like if she saw comments like that in the comments section of their music video; she would be consumed by the fear of being dumped by Ishikawa Hayato for a whole month.

Nijika, the only normal person who would have stopped the two of them, also began to think that if she still made up her mind to refuse to be with Ishikawa Hayato, then she would be considered heartbroken.

Every time she checks the MV's view count and comments, she'll be hurt every day. Over time, this will break her.

And as for Kita, who is still his ex-girlfriend, there's no need to say more.

At this moment, it was actually Ishikawa Hayato, the abnormal one, who sighed.

"There aren't many people who would post comments like that. If you can't stand it, you can just delete it."

The girls looked at him in horror. Did this man have no heart?

"Hayato-kun, isn't this too cruel?"

Kita couldn't help but say.

While it's not good to post disheartening comments in various places, it's even more terrifying to have the ruthlessness to delete them.

Ishikawa Hayato's response was...

"I care more about the feelings of the people I care about than about anyone else."

164. The Performance Under the Rain (The End)

After settling things with the music video and CD, it was already evening.

Because it was still raining heavily outside, Nijika figured that not many people would go to the livehouse in this weather, so she called Seika to explain the situation and planned to go back when she needed more staff at the store.

Hopefully the rain will lessen by then.

On the other end of the phone, Seika didn't care whether Nijika would come back to help; she just asked where she was and who was with her.

Nijika would never tell me that she's currently at Ishikawa Hayato's house, surrounded by the five members of her band.

She had a feeling that if she said that, someone could climb over the exterior wall of this apartment building, which couldn't be entered without a key card, in a matter of seconds.

Nijika didn't have Ishikawa Hayato's skill in lying the truth, so she had to tell a lie out of guilt to fool Seika.

After saying hello, she hung up the phone and went back to the kitchen.

The kitchen was already bustling with Hitori. Although she had to prepare food for five people, she was calmly and methodically cooking.

He seemed quite skilled, which surprised Nijika slightly, as Hitori didn't seem like someone who was good at cooking.

Nijika up her sleeves and walked over.

"Bocchi-chan, I'm here to help you too!"

Although Nijika rarely took care of Hitori because Ishikawa Hayato was always looking after Hitori, she still felt quite sorry for her lonely and timid younger sister.

"Ah, it's okay, I can manage on my own."

Hitori instinctively refused.

This kitchen was the hard-won victory she had achieved; she had successfully repelled Ishikawa Hayato's attempts to gain a foothold here several times, and it had become a habit.

Nijika smiled slightly at Hitori's decisive refusal, but then sighed as she looked at the three people sleeping, playing on their phones, and watching TV in the living room.

"But those three over there exude an aura that only cooking idiots can have, I can't go over there."

She had witnessed Kita's culinary skills during the last seaside retreat, which could be described as "wildly imaginative."

Use boundless imagination to create imaginative color combinations for the food, giving the taster an imaginative range of facial expressions.

The other two.

Ishikawa Hayato, on the other hand, brought his own jar of sugar into the kitchen. He was a skilled cook, but he caused more trouble than he cooked.

If it's cold, all she can think of are cold dishes, lettuce salads, and clear vegetable soup recipes. If she goes into the kitchen, she can only be a taste tester by the pot.

Hitori didn't insist any further and relented, no longer treating Nijika as a guest.

"Hmm, where's the apron...?" Night raid, group 69.49'36135

She turned down the heat, walked to the side, and took her apron from the hook on the side of the refrigerator.

But when she picked up the brown striped apron hanging there, she realized the problem.

"Ah... yes... sorry, I'll go look for it again."

Hitori hurriedly tucked the apron into her arms.

"It doesn't matter..."

Nijika hurriedly waved her hand, trying to calm Hitori down. Seeing the brown stripes on the apron, she understood the situation.

Nijika knew that although Ishikawa Hayato didn't wear brown clothes much, his phone case, backpack, and wallet were all brown.

This is Ishikawa Hayato's apron.

Nijika doesn't want to use it.

At this moment, one hesitated whether to give it or not, while the other dared not accept it, and for a moment they were frozen in place.

The small flame on the gas stove burned silently, and the eggplant in the frying pan sizzled softly as the oil heated it.

In the silence, a drop of juice dripped from the cut surface of the eggplant and landed on the oil.

Snap!

"Ah!"

Nijika and Hitori both heard the popping sound of oil bubbles in the frying pan. Realizing that they were still cooking, the two of them panicked and instinctively rushed to the stove.

Hitori grabbed the pan handle and moved it off the gas stove. Nijika slowed down, but still picked up her chopsticks and moved the eggplant that was being fried.

The two breathed a sigh of relief when they saw that the eggplant hadn't been overcooked.

After adjusting it, Hitori put the pot back on the stove. She glanced at Nijika's clothes, and this time she took out an apron without any hesitation.

"Nijika-chan, this belongs to Hayabusa. If you don't mind, you can try it on first."

If it were anyone else, Hitori definitely wouldn't have lent it to them, but the person in front of her was her friend, and also Ishikawa Hayato's chosen girlfriend, who would likely be someone she would spend the rest of her life with.

Hitori is room to make room.

But Nijika didn't seem inclined to accept it; she shook her head with a smile.

"Didn't Hitori say you had other aprons? I'll take a look at these."