The First Note of an Unfinished Song

It was an extremely hot summer day. The scorching sun burned our skin the moment it touched us, making us sweat as if trying to drain every drop of water from our bodies.

 Going outside on a day like this was a huge mistake. Normally, if it weren’t for my friends, I would’ve preferred to stay home and spend my time alone.

Oh, right—I should introduce myself. I’m Yuta, an 18-year-old who just started university. My summer vacation began right after my first school term ended. I suppose there’s no harm in saying that I’m just an ordinary guy.

Although my friends were the main reason for today’s outing, there was actually another reason I wanted to go outside—Lyola. She’s a singer who hides her identity from the public by using silhouette lighting and blackout techniques on stage. Despite this secrecy, she has a massive fanbase, including my friends and me, who enjoy her music regardless. Personally, I don’t usually idolize singers or compare them, but she’s the one artist who makes me question that stance…

Whenever she has a concert in our city, we make sure to attend. Today was one of those days. My friend Ray (whose real name is actually Rei, but we call him Ray) wanted to meet up a bit earlier, so a few hours before the concert, I met with Ray and Yasu (a fellow university clubmate) in the city square.

After spending some time playing arcade games and grabbing a bite to eat, we decided to kill time until the concert by strolling around the streets near the venue.

“Hey, Yasu, how’s your summer vacation going?” Ray was the first to break the silence that had settled between us.

“Well… it’s only been two weeks. Honestly, I couldn’t really get into vacation mode until yesterday since I had assignments to finish.”

“What?! You already finished your assignments?” 

“Yeah.”

“For real?” Ray looked at Yasu with admiration.

“I just said yes, didn’t I?” Yasu gave Ray a puzzled look and little annoyed.

“Help me out with mine too!” Ray looked at Yasu with puppy-dog eyes.

“How am I supposed to do that? Aren’t you still a freshman?”

“Oh, right!” Ray slumped in disappointment, hanging his head. I couldn’t help but smirk at the sight.

“Wait! Yuta, you’ve done yours, haven’t you?!” Ray’s eyes lit up as he turned to me with excitement.

 Dude, stop looking at me like a cat staring at fish—it’s creepy.

“No way.” I answered in a flat tone.

“Why not?!” Ray furrowed his brows and turned toward me in frustration.

“These assignments are meant for you to do on your own. Besides, I couldn’t solve all of them myself either.”

“Still, just let me—” Ray quickly switched from anger to another round of puppy-dog eyes.

“I said no.” I cut him off.

“Ugh, come on!” He pouted and slumped forward again, looking dejected.

It was obvious he was sulking, but I wasn’t about to just hand over my work to him. If he needed help with specific questions, I’d assist him, but otherwise, no. Not telling him that was probably for the best—otherwise, he’d bombard me with questions for every little thing. (It’s happened before…)

“Whatever, I’ll just ask the club members about the ones I couldn’t figure out.” Ray muttered, sulking.

“Do whatever you want. That has nothing to do with us,” Yasu said with a smirk. Ray shot him a glare.

After walking for a while longer, Ray suddenly spotted a convenience store. His eyes widened like he had just made an important discovery.

“Oh! Let’s grab some cold water before heading to the concert!”

“The venue will be air-conditioned anyway,” Yasu replied flatly.

“Then let’s drink it now!” Ray looked at Yasu in distress. He wasn’t wrong—we were walking in this hellish heat like idiots, and I was already sweating.

“I agree with Ray. At the very least, we’ll cool down a bit inside the store,” I said. Both of them turned to look at me. Ray, in particular, gave me those same puppy-dog eyes again—but this time, radiating joy. This guy is seriously creepy…

Yasu sighed, seemingly realizing that we had a point. “Fine, whatever. We can grab some ice cream too.”

“That’s my boy!” Ray clapped Yasu on the back before sprinting toward the store. It was obvious he was dying from the heat.

“What do you mean, ‘your boy’?!” Yasu looked annoyed. Despite their differences, their back-and-forths were always the funniest part of our group. In fact, I had met Yasu through a similar interaction between them, and we’d been hanging out together ever since. Ray, on the other hand, was my close friend from high school. We had the same goals, and although we went separate ways in our final year, we stayed in touch and ended up in the same university program.

As we stepped into the store, the blast of cold air from the AC immediately chilled my sweaty skin, making me shiver. That odd mix of relief and cold—it was a feeling I knew all too well.

As we browsed the shelves, Ray and I ended up near the magazine rack. Our eyes landed on a music magazine featuring interviews with various singers. Meanwhile, Yasu was by the refrigerators, trying to pick a drink.

“Hey, Yuta.” Ray spoke in a quiet tone, aware of how silent the store was.

“What is it?”

“You know I always ask this, but what do you think were the weak points in Lyola’s last concert?” Ray picked up the magazine and flipped through it as he spoke.

“Weak points, huh…?” 

I thought for a moment, trying to recall the details. “Do you remember the first song she performed?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

“In her studio recordings, she sings more from the throat, but during the live performance, she used diaphragmatic breathing to create a stronger, deeper sound. However, she struggled a bit with breath control during the transition, causing slight breaks in her voice on certain notes.”

“A-and what effect did that have?”

“For instance, in the fast-paced sections, it caused slight rhythm inconsistencies.”

“W-wait, now that I think about it… yeah, it did sound different from the music video…” Ray looked at me in surprise.

One thing I unknowingly became good at was analyzing music in real-time. My friends often asked for my opinions on these things because of it. Honestly, it’s the main reason I grew close with the music club that Ray practically begged me to join. It’s also how I met Yasu, and why they keep inviting me to their practice sessions. 

By the way, I don’t play any instruments, nor can I sing well. It’s not that I haven’t tried—I genuinely just suck at it. Still, I love listening to music, so I consider it a hobby.

“What else?” Ray asked curiously.

“For one of her songs, she executed the belting technique masterfully, but it felt like she was straining her throat. That might have caused her voice to sound a bit rough—though it’s hard to tell if that was because of the microphone.”

“H-huh…” Ray looked at me blankly. It was amusing how someone who plays electric guitar could be so oblivious about vocal techniques…

“Anyway, she’s amazing overall. You don’t need to overthink it,” I said nonchalantly. My analysis was pretty detailed, but overall, Lyola was a masterpiece. That’s why I liked her music…

As I turned to walk toward Yasu, I suddenly heard a voice beside me.

“Excuse me?”

It was directed at me. I turned my head.

A girl with short black hair, partially dyed green, wearing a mask and a hat, was looking at me. She had a trendy, casual outfit and was holding a bottle of orange juice. Beside her, another girl—probably her friend—stared at her friend with puzzled eyes.

“Y-yes?” I asked, surprised.

“I overheard what you said just now… Do you really think that? What parts do you think could’ve been better?”

She asked in a polite yet friendly tone.

This… is exactly why I hate discussing these things in public...

Who is this girl? And why is she so interested?