I Just Want A Single Ending!

"Oh, and for fairness, could you send me your track? We won't tell Tomori which one is yours and which one was done by 'my friend.'"

Seeing that she'd agreed to this "game," Kamigawa Saku continued.

"Alright."

Shiina Taki agreed.

Even though anyone could easily tell the two tracks apart, fairness was important.

"Alright, then, shall we head over?"

Once Saku received her song, he started walking.

At first, he'd thought about heading to the practice room separately, just to avoid any awkward misunderstandings. But now, with a clear reason for being together, he didn't feel the need.

"Yeah."

Taki put away her phone and walked with him toward RiNG.

"A few days ago, I had a dream."

After a short silence, she began, looking thoughtful.

It was a vivid sense of déjà vu that had brought it to mind.

Saku played along, "What kind of dream?"

"In it, we both composed a song for Tomori's lyrics and let everyone choose the best one. In the end, everyone chose yours."

She described her dream simply.

"That's almost exactly what we're about to do," Saku couldn't help but laugh.

"Yeah, pretty much. The only difference is that you didn't compose the song—your friend did. And instead of everyone picking, Tomori will be the one choosing."

Taki pointed out the subtle differences.

"No, there's also the result."

Saku shook his head, denying it firmly.

To be honest, her dream was a little creepy.

Because his so-called "friend" was really himself, so it was almost like she'd predicted the whole thing.

"…"

Taki didn't reply, simply thinking back on her recently composed track.

Would the result really be different?

Could she actually win?

Even though he believed in her, her confidence was still shaky.

She'd promised herself she wouldn't betray his trust, but all she could really do now was face whatever happened.

The song was already finished—there was no changing it now.

Trying to give her a boost, Saku added, "Did you know? Dreams are the opposite of reality."

"The opposite?"

Taki looked up at him.

Saku nodded confidently, "So, in reality, you'll win!"

"Got it."

There was no turning back now.

Whether she won or lost would be up to Tomori's choice.

---

Inside RiNG's practice room.

"Saku, you're here… Eh?"

Seeing the door open and Saku walk in, Soyo Nagasaki smiled, about to greet him—until she saw Taki following behind him.

What was this about?

Why were they together?

Could it be that Saku's "errand" had been meeting with Taki?

But from her observations, those two weren't even friends.

They barely even spoke. It wouldn't be a stretch to call them strangers within the same band.

They had no reason to be hanging out.

Was it just a coincidence that they'd run into each other at RiNG?

Or was there some connection she didn't know about?

In that brief moment, Soyo's mind was racing, but she kept her face neutral.

"How come you two came here together?"

Chihaya Anon, who had been scrolling through her phone, voiced the question on everyone's mind when she saw them.

Saku and Soyo were neighbors, so it made sense for them to show up together.

But Taki wasn't their neighbor.

So why were they together?

"Taki finished composing the track but wasn't sure how it turned out, so she invited me to listen beforehand."

Saku gave a quick explanation, handing a bag of snacks to Raana, who was eyeing him expectantly.

"Oh, I see."

Anon nodded, understanding.

Saku was the band manager and had recently started learning to compose himself.

If she was uncertain about her work, asking him for early feedback made sense.

"Did Rikki finish the song so quickly?"

Soyo accepted the explanation, picking up on the key detail.

As long as there was a legitimate reason, there was no need to worry.

She wasn't that petty.

"Yep."

Saku responded, then turned his attention to Tomori.

"Tomori, I have two versions of Ichishizuku Sora for you to listen to. Can you tell me which one sounds better?"

"…Sure."

Caught off guard, Tomori didn't fully understand the situation, but she nodded in agreement.

"What about me?" Anon pointed to herself, sounding a little hurt. "Why ask Tomori and not me? I can help, too."

The feeling of being left out was not her favorite.

"You can all give your opinions. But since Tomori wrote the lyrics, hers is a bit more important," Saku explained.

"No problem."

Anon, satisfied that she hadn't been excluded, agreed with a smile.

The fact that Tomori's opinion mattered more didn't bother her.

Tomori was the lyricist, after all. A little extra consideration was only fair.

"Rikki, did you make two versions?"

Soyo, eyeing Taki, who was standing tensely beside Saku and hadn't said a word, couldn't help but ask.

They were acting oddly secretive.

"I'll explain everything after you listen to both tracks."

Saku chose to keep things under wraps.

"Alright."

At his words, Soyo put her curiosity aside for now.

"I'm about to play it."

With a final glance around the room, Saku gave a heads-up and then hit play on the study-mode version of Ichishizuku Sora.

From the opening notes, everyone's eyes widened in surprise.

Not a single person spoke, as if afraid to interrupt the music's beauty.

Even Raana, who had been munching on snacks, paused, transfixed, her mismatched eyes gleaming.

When the song ended, the room remained in stunned silence.

Raana set her snacks down and picked up her guitar, ready to play along.

Noticing her move, Saku quickly stopped her. "Raana, hang on. Let's finish listening to the second track first."

Raana hesitated but eventually put down her guitar, though she still held it, looking ready to play as soon as the second track ended.

"That was amazing."

Anon felt her words fell short, unable to fully capture the song's beauty.

"Otherworldly" was probably the best way to describe it.

"Let's hold off on comments—there's still the second one."

Seeing that Soyo and Tomori looked ready to speak, Saku hurriedly stopped them and played Taki's version of Ichishizuku Sora.

"…"

As the music played, Soyo made up her mind.

Without a doubt, the first song was better.

It was one of those situations where comparison revealed the gap even more.

The second song was very good, but compared to the first, it fell short.

As the second track ended, Raana immediately strummed her guitar, playing the study-mode version of Ichishizuku Sora.

That made it clear Raana found the first version better.

"I think the first one sounds better."

Anon shared her thoughts.

While this might have seemed like a choice, once both versions had been played, it was clear that it wasn't a question so much as stating a simple truth.

Like saying one plus one equals two—there was no other answer.

"If I had to choose, I'd pick the first one."

Unable to lie, Soyo softened her words.

She'd realized the second song was Taki's.

It was obvious because there was no way Taki could have created the first one.

The gap in quality was just too large.

With everyone's thoughts shared, Taki clenched her fists tightly.

As she'd feared, just like in her dream, everyone had chosen the other version.

But none of that mattered.

What mattered was Tomori's opinion.

"Well, Tomori, what do you think?" Saku turned to her with a hint of nerves. "Which one sounds better?"

Taki looked down, afraid to meet Tomori's gaze, waiting silently for the verdict.

"The second one."

Unaware of the tension in the room, Tomori, with Raana still playing the first song in the background, gave her answer.

I won!!!

The moment he heard her response, Saku let out a huge sigh of relief.

He'd gambled and won!

Just as he'd thought.

Tomori liked Taki's version more!

That meant Taki's track had "beaten" the study-mode version of Ichishizuku Sora.

"R-Really? Tomori, you really think the second one's better?"

Taki looked up suddenly, rushing over to Tomori, her hands gripping her shoulders in excitement.

Had she really defeated that masterpiece?

It felt like a dream.

"Yeah."

Tomori replied simply, as if it were obvious.

"Wait, Rikki, why are you so worked up? Was the second one yours?" Anon laughed, catching on and giving her a playful nudge.

"Sorry."

Taki calmed down a little, letting go of Tomori's shoulders.

"Yes, the second one's mine."

At this point, there was no need for secrets.

The answer had already been decided.

"No wonder."

Anon nodded in understanding.

"Tomori, why did you think Rikki's composition was better?"

Soyo asked her question, still puzzled.

Wasn't the first track obviously better?

Why had Tomori chosen differently?

The moment the question was out, everyone looked at Tomori.

Especially Taki, who gazed at her expectantly.

She wanted to know why her song had been the one to resonate with Tomori.

"I don't know."

Tomori didn't know how to explain.

To her, Taki's version simply sounded better.

It was comforting and felt in sync with her emotions.

"Could it be that Tomori figured out the second one was Rikki's, and, hearing everyone else prefer the first one, chose the second one to comfort her?"

Anon couldn't help but guess.

"…"

Taki had no way to refute that.

It was possible.

"No, I didn't know the second one was Rikki's."

Tomori shook her head.

"Tomori…"

Taki's heart filled with emotion.

"Then it just comes down to personal taste." Anon concluded, "Everyone has different tastes in music, after all. Maybe Tomori just likes Rikki's style better."

"It's probably a matter of emotion."

Saku offered his own perspective.

"Emotion?"

They repeated the word in unison.

"Yeah, an emotional difference. The first track lacked feeling, while Taki's was full of it." Saku sighed. "That's probably why Tomori preferred Taki's version."

Before, Yahata Umiri had said she couldn't feel any love from his bass playing, and from his answer, she'd deduced he lacked passion for composing too.

And she'd been right. He had no real love for bass or composing, so it made sense that he had no passion to show.

So, a new question emerged.

If he didn't even like composing, how could he put emotion into Tomori's song?

The answer was clear: he couldn't.

Even in study mode, there was no emotion there.

Study mode improved his learning ability, not his emotional depth.

But songs needed emotion.

Otherwise, love songs wouldn't even exist.

When he'd helped Tomori overcome her writer's block, he'd told her, "Lyrics without emotion are empty."

The same was true for compositions.

The study-mode version of Ichishizuku Sora reached technical perfection but was devoid of feeling.

Or rather, he'd felt nothing from Tomori's lyrics; he'd composed it purely as an exercise.

In a way, Taki's composition did surpass his.

It was simply a matter of emotion.

---

T/N: Bro really said dreams are the opposite of reality WHAT ABOUT YOUR SINGLE DREAM LAST CHAPTER STUPID