Thanks for waiting!
Sorry I'm late—

Oh, Saki!

Saki, there you are!

Did you see my message?

Your message...?
You said you're gonna start eating without me...

That's not important.
I mean the one after that about Mr. Shindo.

Mr. Shindo...?
Wait, does that mean...?

Yeah, we just received word.
So...

He wants to meet with us about making our debut!

What...?

I did get a little worried there for a second, but actually hearing back... My jaw was on the floor!

This means we have a real chance at going pro, right...?!

It's so nice to see someone finally recognizing our music...

W-We did it...!

It's really happening! We're going pro!

We should reply as soon as we can.
As for when we're going to meet him...

(I'm still really scared...)

(Even though I couldn't wait to hear back from Mr. Shindo... I should be happy that his company wants to sign us...)

(We even decided as a group that we're going to deal with our fears...)

(What am I supposed to do...?)

Anyway, nice work today.
See you all tomorrow.

Okay, bye bye!

(We're meeting about our deal this weekend...)

(Am I really gonna be okay...?
Will I stop feeling scared by then...?)

(I mean, the others said they're scared too.
I was hoping that these feelings would go away after a while...)

(But I guess that's just not gonna happen...)

(I'm really worried...
But I just have to be brave and move for—)

Hm...?
Ms. Tenma, is that you?

Huh...?

What a coincidence.
Are you on your way home from that rehearsal studio?

M-Mr. Shindo...!

Yes, we just finished practicing there. We also saw the message you sent us this afternoon...

The others couldn't believe that we're actually gonna get signed to a label! Everyone felt more motivated than usual during practice today!

Oh, is that so?
I'm glad you're all enthusiastic about our proposed deal.

Yes, we're very enthusiastic! I mean, it's been our dream to go pro together!

The others said that they're looking forward to our meeting...

So, Ms. Tenma, how about you?

What...?

You said that “the others” are looking forward to it...

But how do you feel?

I...

I-I'm really happy...!
Because we've all been pursuing the same dream...

For so...very long...we've wanted to become professional musicians... So, um...

In order to get more and more people to listen to our music...

...

Would you mind if we talked for a bit...?

What?

It's not too late for you to be out yet, so how about I buy you a drink?

What?!
But I'm a minor!

Hahaha. I didn't mean anything alcoholic.
Just a cup of tea.

B-But...
I feel bad about you paying for me...

Don't worry, this one's on my company. Also...

I may be able to help if there's something weighing on your mind.

Oh...

(Yeah, Mr. Shindo's probably met tons of people like me until now. He might be able to tell me what I should do in this situation...)

(But what if he thinks, “What a downer! Maybe we shouldn't sign her”...?!)

Alright, let's go.

Huh...?!

W-Wait for me...!

I see.

You feel stronger about continuing to make music with your friends than you do about having your music heard by others...

And you're worried if it's okay to feel that way, and afraid about the prospect of signing with a label.

Y-Yes...

(Geez, I didn't feel like I could hide anything from him and ended up telling him everything...)

Well, if I'm going to be honest...

I agree with Ms. Hinomori.
There's nothing wrong with wanting to stay together.

Oh...

O-Okay...

But hearing that didn't really make you feel any better, right?

...!
I mean...

Would you mind if I told you a little story?

A story?

Yes.

It's about a band you'd find anywhere else that became the talk of the town for a while some time back...