"Well then, the weather is also nice today..."
Nijika told Kita not to worry, then smiled and stood up, just about to suggest going outside to take photos when...
Hayato extended his hand.
"Wait!"
"Hayato-kun, what is it again...?" Nijika sighed slightly.
"Last time the photos were too ordinary. This time, let's add some impact!"
"I refuse!"
Nijika rejected his suggestion without a second thought.
Kita also objected.
"Weren't Hayato-kun's impromptu photos from last time unusable anyway?"
She wasn't saying this because Hayato had just played a trick on her.
Kita's current understanding of Hayato was that when the Band faced an obstacle, Hayato would step up.
But when the Band had no obstacles, Hayato was the biggest obstacle.
"Impromptu photos?" Bocchi-chan repeated in a surprised whisper.
"Do you want to see them?"
Noticing her expression, Ryo-senpai unhurriedly tapped her phone a few times and showed it to Bocchi-chan.
Bocchi-chan looked at the phone Ryo-senpai displayed, saw Hayato hanging upside down in the picture, and her eyes widened in surprise.
So cool!
How was it taken!?
I really want to collect it!
But Ryo-senpai, as if oblivious, took her phone back after showing it to her.
Unlike the peaceful atmosphere on this side, the other side had already reached the climax of their battle.
"Nijika~"
Hayato dragged out his plea, "Please."
Nijika looked at him with a headache, feeling like the activity couldn't continue. She looked at the others, seeking their opinions.
She first looked at Ryo-senpai.
Ryo-senpai propped her chin with her hand and said nonchalantly,
"One or two photos are fine, as long as it makes Hayato-kun settle down."
As soon as she finished speaking, Hayato immediately raised his hand and swore,
"I promise, I'll cooperate obediently with the photos afterward!"
Kita and Nijika's ominous premonitions grew stronger.
Kita looked at Ryo-senpai, then at Hayato, and said hesitantly,
"If Ryo-senpai says so..."
Seeing that both of them agreed, Nijika then asked Bocchi-chan, who had been looking around at them and hadn't spoken.
"What about Bocchi-chan?"
"I... I'm fine."
"Alright!" Hayato slapped the table and stood up, his momentum soaring to the sky.
"Everyone, wait for me."
After he finished speaking, he walked towards the performance preparation room under their gaze.
Nijika looked at Hayato's disappearing figure in confusion. What was he going to do at her house?
Soon, Hayato emerged from the performance preparation room with a European-style chair. It had intricate patterns, was upholstered in genuine leather, and looked quite expensive.
Nijika was startled.
Where did he get that from!?
Afterward, Hayato quickly placed the chair in front of the stage, confirmed its position, then went to Nijika to get the camera and tripod, setting them up in front of the chair.
He carefully checked the lens and distance.
Once everything was ready, he walked over and pulled Nijika and Ryo-senpai.
"Nijika and Ryo-senpai, come and stand here."
"Wait..."
Nijika called out, concerned, while Ryo-senpai seemed to sense something, her expression becoming more serious.
But they didn't resist being directed by him, despite being older than Hayato, and followed him over.
After arranging Nijika and Ryo-senpai behind the chair, Hayato went back to pull Kita and Bocchi-chan.
"Then Bocchi-chan and Kita, lean against the chair legs diagonally."
The two walked over. Although Bocchi-chan's face showed some unease about being photographed, she obediently complied.
And Kita, after hesitating and looking at the other three, also obediently sat on the ground and leaned against the chair's leg.
Hayato quickly set up the camera before they could react.
Then he scurried back.
He sat on the chair, crossed his legs, rested his hand on the armrest, propping up his cheek.
With a smile that was three parts arrogant, three parts dashing, three parts uninhibited, and one part imperious, he reminded them,
"3."
"2."
"1."
Although the girls all felt that something was off, they didn't want to be photographed looking strange, so they said nothing.
Click.
Nijika quickly walked over, took the camera, and looked at the results.
In the photo, the four of them surrounded Hayato, who sat on the chair like stars orbiting the moon, and he was beaming with pride, looking extremely smug.
Anyone looking at it would feel it was a photo of a harem king with his harem.
"Excellent! It would be even better if everyone could change into gowns," Hayato exclaimed.
Nijika glanced at him, holding the camera, her eyes blank. Her finger moved lightly, and she calmly tapped delete.
Hayato was savoring the beauty of the photo when he suddenly saw a "delete confirmation" pop up on the screen, and then Nijika, seemingly slowly but actually quickly, tapped delete.
Hayato froze. The next moment, he tragically fell to his knees, clutching his head and screaming,
"NO!!!"
"Alright, let's go outside for photos now."
Nijika smiled, as if she had forgotten everything that had just happened, and suggested.
Kita, too, as if having lost all memory of the recent events, raised her hand with a sunny smile and chimed in,
"Oh~"
Only Bocchi-chan looked worriedly at Hayato, who was sprawled on the ground, but she didn't dare say anything and also weakly raised her hand with Kita.
"Oh..."
...Emerging from the underground space, the five of them, with their wristbands still on, searched for suitable photo locations on the streets of Shimokitazawa.
From main streets to back alleys, then to parking lots and the Park.
The five of them strolled through the streets, looking for various photo spots and taking numerous pictures.
Along the way.
Nijika and Kita led the way, searching for locations, while Ryo-senpai, Bocchi-chan, and Hayato lagged behind, following slowly.
At first, Kita was worried about the situation behind them, but seeing the three of them chatting casually, and that not only Ryo-senpai and Hayato but also Bocchi-chan had joined the conversation, she relaxed and started looking for recommendations online.
They played and took photos for quite a while.
The five of them stopped by a vending machine and each ordered a drink.
Ryo-senpai, with empty pockets, quietly watched them.
When Nijika ordered a drink, Ryo-senpai's gaze calmly fixed on her hand pressing the vending machine, then glanced at the drinks next to it.
As long-time friends, Nijika knew Ryo-senpai's habit of spending money recklessly on instruments and not repaying borrowed money.
Thinking she shouldn't indulge her, Nijika picked up the drink that dropped from the vending machine as if oblivious, flicked her ponytail slightly, and walked away.
When it came to Hayato.
Ryo-senpai's gaze became even more obvious. She met Hayato's eyes, then glanced at the sports drink in the machine, almost explicitly asking for it.
But Hayato didn't indulge her either. He ordered two bottles of mineral water and handed her one.
Ryo-senpai looked down at the mineral water and took it pitifully.
Nijika noticed this scene and unceremoniously exposed Ryo-senpai's old habits.
"Hayato-kun, if you indulge Ryo-senpai too much, she'll become even more spoiled."
"Nijika... that's mean." Ryo-senpai took a sip of water and said with a mournful tone.
On the other side, Kita watched the interaction between the three, her whole body stiffening. Her mind repeatedly replayed whether Ryo-senpai had given her any eye signals, and she began to regret not ordering a drink for Ryo-senpai.
After a short break, the five of them chatted casually, thinking about what other places in Shimokitazawa they hadn't visited.
Nijika looked at the photos taken with the camera and said,
"Many shops don't allow photography next to them, but we've still taken quite a lot of photos."
Kita stood next to Nijika, looking at the photos they had taken, and after a moment of thought, she said to Bocchi-chan, whose gaze had been directed towards them,
"Speaking of which, we should have brought our instruments out earlier."
Bocchi-chan was slightly startled by being suddenly addressed, but by now she and Kita had known each other for quite some time, so she wasn't as nervous.
She thought for a moment and agreed,
"Ah... indeed... holding our instruments would look cooler."
Meanwhile, Nijika handed the camera to Hayato, her expression serious as she put her hands on her hips and sighed.
"That's how it is for you two."
The two looked at her in surprise, and Nijika continued,
"Only Guitarists and Bassists are suitable for being on camera with their instruments. Drummers and keyboardists would look quite pathetic."
"All they can hold are drumsticks, and Hayato-kun doesn't have a shoulder-strap keyboard..."
As she was speaking, Ryo-senpai next to her nudged her with her elbow.
Nijika followed Ryo-senpai's pointing direction and looked over.
Two steps away, Hayato stood in a horse stance, a long, large keyboard slung over his shoulder, held in one arm, while his other hand formed a peace sign, looking at her with a genuine smile.
Nijika glanced at him, then casually averted her gaze and repeated,
"Then the Drummer would be too pathetic."
Ryo-senpai said in a very calm voice,
"Isn't it cute?"
Feeling the teasing in Ryo-senpai's tone, Nijika's anger meter was completely filled by the two of them.
She smiled sweetly and took out her drumsticks.
"Then let's swap instruments today."
"That's so lame, I don't want to."
The next moment, the fuming Nijika chased Ryo across the parking lot.
After a break, the five of them resumed their playful search for filming locations on the streets of Shimokitazawa.
When Kita spotted a wall covered in many posters and curiously ran over to it, Hayato noticed Bocchi-chan beside him, her head lowered as if she was very tired.
He touched Bocchi-chan's hand.
"What's wrong?"
Bocchi-chan looked up, her face pale, seemingly under a lot of pressure.
"It's my first time being out for so long… I feel…"
As she spoke, her gaze darted left and right, clearly nervous about the surrounding attention.
Hayato looked around; indeed, some people were noticing Bocchi-chan because of her strange outfit—a tracksuit paired with a skirt—and their group was also quite conspicuous.
Aside from the oddly dressed Bocchi-chan, the other three girls were all top-tier beauties, and Hayato was unusually handsome.
The other three members of the Band also noticed them.
"Bocchi-chan, let's go rest for a bit longer over there."
Nijika suggested worriedly, but Hayato shook his head, indicating it wasn't necessary.
He leaned down and said to Bocchi-chan, "Don't overthink it."
After speaking, he ignored the others and directly pulled Bocchi-chan into his arms, resting her head against his chest and gently patting her back.
Bocchi-chan, held by him, trembled slightly, then slowly extended her arms to hug Hayato after a moment of hesitation.
Nijika and Kita, who were initially surprised by Hayato's sudden action, breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Bocchi-chan's outstretched hands, then their expressions turned peculiar.
They all felt a bit of admiration for this guy.
Hayato saw that standing like this wasn't ideal, so he said,
"I'll take Bocchi-chan to rest up ahead. Everyone, call me when you find a good spot for photos."
"Okay, that works."
Nijika nodded. Although she wanted to warn Hayato not to do anything strange, given their situation, it didn't seem appropriate to say so.
Then Hayato reached out and took Bocchi-chan's hand, saying,
"Let's go a bit further ahead."
Bocchi-chan, her head deeply bowed, took small steps back, moving away from Hayato's chest, and nodded.
And the ear peeking out from her pink long hair was vibrantly red… Hayato… Hayato actually hugged her in front of the other members of the Band!
How bold!
After the initial tension, happiness, and relaxation,
Bocchi-chan now walked with Hayato, her head down, lost in thought.
The reason she thought this way was because she remembered Hayato saying he wanted a harem, and such a boy surely couldn't perform particularly intimate acts with one girl within a group of girls.
That would disrupt the balance of their interactions.
And it had indeed been that way before.
When everyone was present, Hayato didn't interact much with her.
Bocchi-chan couldn't imagine the consequences of doing this today.
She started to worry about Hayato's thoughts now.
Because of her mistake, she had caused him such a big problem.
And it was their first time holding hands… Oh no, she was too nervous, her hands felt sweaty, she really wanted to wipe them.
Her mood plummeted from its peak to its lowest point again.
They reached the end of the street and stood in an inconspicuous corner.
Hayato noticed that although Bocchi-chan wasn't as nervous, she still looked deep in thought and gloomy.
He asked,
"Bocchi-chan, what's wrong?"
"Th-that, I'm sorry," Bocchi-chan said hesitantly.
"Hmm?"
"For making Hayato take care of such a troublesome me… Getting so nervous from being watched that I feel like I'm going to throw up." As she spoke, she made a broken-like expression.
"Someone like me really should be burned at the stake, then Nijika and the others won't misunderstand Hayato."
She said, as if intending to go prepare the pyre, but Hayato pulled her back.
Bocchi-chan stiffly turned her head, and what she saw was a slightly displeased Hayato, causing her heart to chill instantly.
"Bocchi-chan forgot our promise, didn't she? Originally, Bocchi-chan wasn't wrong, but now Bocchi-chan is wrong."
Hayato said, pulling Bocchi-chan. Bocchi-chan showed no resistance and was pulled in front of him.
He bent his finger and flicked her lowered head, neither too lightly nor too hard.
"Ow."
Bocchi-chan clutched her head, then heard Hayato complain.
"Honestly, Bocchi-chan didn't even remember what I said."
That's not true!
Bocchi-chan mentally protested, but immediately remembered why Hayato flicked her.
There were only two situations where she should apologize to him… Oh no… Oh no!
Hayato seemed to read her mind and said,
"But the punishment is done, it's fine now."
Yet, even so, Bocchi-chan still couldn't let go of the apprehension in her heart.
Hayato looked at this troublesome little girl, sighed, and hugged her again.
He said in a very drawn-out, yet calm voice,
"It seems we'll have to go on another date, my troublesome little Bocchi-chan."
Bocchi-chan, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by the embrace, heard Hayato's words and sensed that he truly wanted her not to worry, and her heart gradually returned to peace.