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A feeling of shame washed over Aine, and she said in annoyance, "No one ever said that, but that's cheating, that's being a womanizer. Why would Miss Xiangzi tolerate such a thing...?"
The next moment, a bucket of water was poured over Aine's head, and the girl screamed.
"Syorin, what did you do all of a sudden? You startled me."
Su Shi threw the basin on the ground and said, "Xi has never changed. He was the one who found me when I ran away from home, he was the one who fought against school bullying with you, he was the one who stood on the stage with Ave Mujica, and he was the one who kissed Xiao Mu just now."
Banami Yuu is Banami Yuu; she has never changed.
The ones who changed were me, and Aine, and us—those who couldn't accept that we weren't the only person he loved.
Ai Yin's eyes widened slightly as she said, "Why would you say such a thing, Su Shi?"
A moment later, the two of them, soaking in the bathtub, faced each other. Su Shi said softly, "Xiao Mu has never experienced normal family affection. It was Banami who saved her when she was losing consciousness."
Now, Hanami has become the pillar of Mutsu's life.
He did everything he could to help Xiaomu, just as he had done to help me and you back then.
As Ai listened to Suze explain the matter between Banami and Wakaba Mutsu, she fell silent for a moment, unsure of what to say.
"Furthermore, I also really like Yu and Saki's ideal of creating a world where everyone can live happily. Isn't that wonderful?"
Aine quickly retorted, "But...but doesn't that mean..."
Su Shi looked at Aine and said, "Yes, to put it another way, if Xi can't accept the idea of building close relationships with girls, she'll end up like you, Aine."
"Why, Su Shi, can you accept this?" Aine asked, puzzled.
"Perhaps it's because... I don't want to be alone." Su Shi gave a slightly melancholy smile.
Just as she wanted to make Xiangzi realize that becoming a god also comes at a price.
Su Shi will pay the same price. Even if she feels sad when she sees Mu and Banai kissing, she will not object.
Because when Bana meets her, Shoko won't object.
At this moment, Aine was no longer astonished and fearful as before. After hearing Sose's explanation, she was able to understand Banami's behavior.
But, a boy with several girls...
"So, it's because I'm just an ordinary person?" Aine said sadly.
Su Shi raised her head slightly, looking somewhat surprised.
"I can't make such a grand wish as Miss Xiangzi, wanting to become a god."
"Unlike Wakaba Mutsu, who had an unhappy childhood, allowing her to be true to her inner feelings."
"Unlike you, Su Shi, who can tolerate everything."
And then there's Xiaodeng, Lixi, Hatsune Miku... they're all like that, they all have experiences and thoughts that are different from ordinary people.
Tick-tock...tick-tock...
Aine's tears fell onto the water's surface again, creating a ripple.
"Kuyashi... Suyo, I really, really can't accept this..."
Why is she so ordinary? If she could become a little stranger, would she be able to understand the meaning of "feeling pain" that Wakaba Mutsumi spoke of, and be able to play such a moving guitar?
If she could be as tolerant as Su Shi, understand everyone's difficulties, and consider things from everyone's perspective, she could overcome her jealousy and become a part of a world where everyone can be happy.
But she couldn't do any of these things; she couldn't do anything at all.
She was just an ordinary child who grew up bathed in the love of her parents. Even if she experienced some setbacks, they were just setbacks that a "normal life" would experience.
They are far inferior to Xiao Mu and the others, and they have no way of understanding their feelings and thoughts.
Aine's happy past, which fostered a healthy personality, ironically became an obstacle to her understanding of her companions, which is undeniably a darkly humorous situation.
Su Shi gently embraced the somewhat agitated Aine, then whispered in her ear, "Anon-chan, have you been thinking about... quitting the band lately?"
Aine's body seemed to freeze, as if harboring thoughts hidden deep within her heart, thoughts she dared not voice in her subconscious.
Should we run away?
Chapter Thirty-One: Su Shi: I Want to Correct You!
"Anon-chan, have you been thinking about... quitting the band lately?"
When Su Shi asked, Aine instinctively wanted to deny it. After all, just having that thought would bring to mind Xiao Deng's innocent face.
"Anon-chan, let's be a band for life!"
Back then, she thought she could be with everyone in this group forever, but now...
"SOYORIN, what's wrong with me? I've never felt happy about being in a band."
I can no longer feel the ease and joy of practicing with everyone, the excitement of performing live, or the anticipation of seeing everyone praising me in the comments.
The joy of forming a band in the past is completely lost in Ai Yin now.
Su Shi looked at the girl who was holding her arms to her chest in great pain and found it hard to believe that this was the silly Anon-chan she knew.
She was very glad that she had noticed the other person's abnormality yesterday and secretly followed her. Otherwise, she didn't know how long Aine would have had to bear this trouble alone.
"Stop crossing your arms, you don't have anything on your chest anyway," Su Shi retorted.
Ai Yin was slightly taken aback. Her previously serious demeanor suddenly became tense. She glanced at her chest, then at Su Shi sitting opposite her, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Soyorin, what are you saying!"
Waaah, it's not like I wanted to be this flat. I've been trying so hard to drink milk.
Su Shi couldn't help but laugh and said, "Alright, let's go out, otherwise Aunt Chihaya will worry again. I'll sleep with you tonight."
Aine seemed a little surprised, but quickly said, "Thank you, soyorin."
Although she was still very sad, having someone to confide in made Aine feel a little better.
Suze borrowed a set of pajamas from Aine to wear, but said with some annoyance, "Anon-chan, don't you have any pajamas in a larger size? Or, Chihaya-san's clothes would be fine too."
Ai Yin, as if she had swallowed a fly, said, "This topic is over."
You just want to show off how big you are, how disgusting.
Su Shi couldn't help but smile, and the two quickly lay down on the bed.
"Su Shi, is it okay if you don't call Aunt Nagasaki?"
“It’s okay, this isn’t the first time I’ve run away from home,” Su Shi said in a lighthearted tone.
Aine couldn't help but laugh when she remembered that Suze had run away from home with Banami and then lived together.
Is it because of this experience that Suze... was able to tolerate Banami's two-timing?
"Hey, Soyorin, what should I do?"
Even though I had already deserted once and vowed to face whatever bad things might happen, I was determined to do it again.
But now, she really doesn't want to encounter anything related to the band anymore.
Because there, she only faced setbacks.
“Greek milk,” Su Shi answered frankly.
"That's so mean, Su Shi, didn't you come here to comfort me?" Ai Yin said softly.
“My presence here is the greatest comfort to you. Stop being so naive. Only you can figure out the answer to these kinds of life questions,” Su Shi suddenly said earnestly.
Ai Yin shrank her head slightly, but if she could get the answer, why would she be so distressed?
Suddenly, Aine seemed to remember something and said, "Soyorin, could it be that you once thought about... leaving Hachina to see your classmate?"
That's why she could so easily understand her own feelings at that moment, and the serious argument she just made seemed to be something she had thought about before.
"Is it strange? Because, just like Anon-chan right now, my mind is filled with thoughts of that boy." Su Shi turned around gently, and the two looked at each other on the same bed, as if they could feel each other's breath.
Aine blushed slightly.
It turns out that Su Shi had once shared the same troubles as her. Thinking of this, Aine felt a sense of relief that she was not alone.
However, she has already reached her own answer and is striving to move forward, while I remain stuck in the same place, hesitant and unwilling to move forward.
Sure enough, not only Xiaodeng Ruoye Mu and the others, she was even inferior to Su Shi. Although Su Shi did not have such musical talent, she was still a person from that world.
"If I leave the band, Xiaodeng will definitely be very sad," Aine said softly.
"But Little Lamp won't give up. She'll keep holding your hand and trying to pull you back."
But that doesn't matter. The important thing is what you think, Aine.
If staying in the band only brings you torment and pain, then I will stop Xiaodeng.
Even if you leave the band, at least I'd still like to remain friends with you.
Hearing Su Shi's words, Aine's nose tingled with emotion.
Her throat trembled slightly; she didn't know what to say.
"So, don't worry about anything else, just keep asking yourself, Chihaya Aine, what do you really want to do? Do you want to keep running away, or...?"
Su Shi didn't say anything more, because no one knew what the answer was.
Su Shi didn't know, and neither does Aine now.
At least Aine is clear on one thing: with Su Shi by her side, she should be able to get a good night's sleep tonight.
In the still of the night, Su Shi sat by the bed, looking at Ai Yin who was fast asleep. Her brows were furrowed, and she seemed to be in some discomfort.
Su Shi gently smoothed her brow, helping the girl to sleep more peacefully.
She gently poked the other person's chubby cheek with her finger, then whispered with some annoyance, "What am I doing?"
Knowing full well that if she simply ignored it, this fool Anong would most likely escape to another place, then Su Shi would have achieved her goal of successfully blocking the other girls.
But seeing Aine struggling in pain, Su Shi couldn't let go. Although she didn't directly encourage her, she felt a restless urge to help.
She remembered what Maki Shiina had once told her.
It was because of your interference that Chihaya Aine was unable to have more interaction with Hanami and was unable to convey her thoughts to her directly.
You're really only thinking about yourself.
If it's because of her fault that Aine is suffering like this now...
Then she will make amends.
****
The next morning, when Suze left Chihaya's house early, before Aine woke up, she encountered someone who was not particularly unexpected.
"How did you end up here?" Su Shi asked, looking at Banami.
"Um... I was a little worried about Chihaya-san, so I came to check on her," Hanami said, seemingly a little embarrassed.
But Su Shi kept a straight face, showing no sign of being playful or joking. She said to Banami, "Come here."
Hanami slowly walked to the girl's side: "What's wrong? Did something happen to Chihaya-san?"
As a result, Su Shi raised his fist and said, "I'm going to correct you!"
"Huh?"
Chapter Thirty-Two: Aine: Banami, let me feel the pain.
The morning sunlight fell on Aine's eyes, slowly waking her up. It was as if she had a very long dream that didn't belong to her. When she woke up, Aine no longer felt sad or in pain, but just felt a little empty inside.
She subconsciously touched her lips and found that she was drooling in her sleep. The girl quickly looked at the bed next to her, afraid that Su Shi would see it and then laugh at her.
As a result, she found that the seat next to her was now empty, which puzzled her.
"Soyorin, why didn't you tell me you were getting up?"
After saying that, she scratched her head and got out of bed. Perhaps because she had vented her frustrations with Su Shi the night before, she was very calm at this moment.
Have you already found the answer in your heart?
Perhaps so, although the answer is still very vague, as if a piece of the puzzle is missing.
She left the room and went downstairs. Her mother had just finished making breakfast. Ai Yin glanced around and realized that Su Shi was not there, so she asked, "Mom, where is Su Shi?"
"Ah, the child said he had to go back to school first and asked me to let you know," Mrs. Chihaya said softly.
Ai Yin said "Oh," feeling a little disappointed, and complained, "Soyorin, really, why couldn't you ask me to come along?"
“Aine, you’ve made a really good friend since you transferred schools,” Mrs. Chihaya said with a smile.
Immediately, Ai Yin blushed a little: "Oh dear, Mom, please don't say such mushy things."
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