Tokyo, there are too many beautiful girls imitating me

"Your mother is the love of my life. My love for her is probably twice as strong as my love for you."

"Only twice as much? It seems I'm incredibly important to Qianhua's mother. My daughter has no regrets in her life and is very satisfied! I'm so touched! Thank you so much!"

As usual, she was witty and eccentric. After asking several people about their relationship with Chika Tachibana, Aino brought you out to make fun of you as well.

The mother and daughter praised you to the highest level in their questions and answers, and even said that you liked her half as much as you did, which moved Aihua to tears on the spot. She clasped her hands together on her head and thanked her mother Qianhua for her great kindness and was extremely happy.

An ordinary woman, say any one of the three people with Matsunami Miki, was sitting in your current position. She would have felt an immense sense of superiority and satisfaction for having defeated the others and obtained the perfect trophy of Chika Tachibana. She would also have felt extremely happy about the harmonious interaction between the mother and daughter.

But you only feel panic, guilt, and a sense of being on edge, as if you are falling into an icy cave.

You know clearly what despicable means you used to tie Chika Tachibana down, and you know even more clearly what you have caused Chika Tachibana to lose.

Miki Matsuzue, who waited for them at the music university in vain, has now become an international piano master, and Marin Mizuki and Yui Hanasaka, who were betrayed by Chika Tachibana, did not give up music.

After dropping out of high school, the two re-formed the band ihua and have been working hard for more than 20 years. They are now very popular, having performed at the Budokan and the Tokyo Dome. They also performed at the Red and White Songs Festival (Japan's Spring Festival Gala) last year.

If Chika Tachibana hadn't taken the wrong path in life because of you, would she have been successful now?

It must be possible. You clearly saw that future in the first simulation.

In just a few years, Chika Tachibana, who was with everyone, was almost on the stage of the Budokan and realized her lifelong dream.

Even though he was eventually forced to stop due to the self-destruction of his bassist, he still burned his youth and left behind commendable works that are still remembered by people decades later.

And you, do you really love her?

Or is it just the selfish self who loves the one who can gain Chika Tachibana's love and companionship?

If he truly loved her and knew that future, shouldn't he have warned Chika Tachibana, tried to change the future, and helped her truly realize her dream and live a brilliant and regret-free life?

Now, compared to the achievements of the other three people, you have basically destroyed Chika Tachibana's life.

"enough!"

Inner inferiority, inner anxiety and shame accumulate wantonly and manifest themselves as impotent anger.

Seeing that the mother and daughter were about to continue chatting and having fun on this topic, you slammed the bowl on the table and said angrily.

"......Mother?"

When you heard your daughter's frightened voice and looked up to see her frozen smile, you suddenly woke up from your dream and realized what you had done. You hurriedly comforted her softly, your voice almost pleading.

"I'm sorry, I got a little excited, but let's not continue talking about this topic."

If your psychological problems are not completely cured, your emotions may be unstable at times. Usually at this time, Chika Tachibana will hold your head in her arms and comfort you gently, while flashing her daughter's big eyes to force her to quickly evacuate from your space.

But this time, she just glanced at you lightly and changed the subject, then Chika Tachibana continued to talk to her daughter about some interesting things that happened in school that year. No matter how Aihua winked at her or how she hinted to her to comfort you, she remained indifferent.

You are not the only one who gets angry. Now, because of your daughter, music, dreams, and everyone's life are put on the table. Is Chika Tachibana also angry because of your incompetent and angry performance, and your reaction that shows no sign of repentance?

This is the first time you have encountered such a situation in nearly twenty years of marriage. You are panicked and don’t know how to deal with it. You silently eat rice, and your heart is full of various emotions collapsing. You can’t bear the horrible imagination that your Chika Tachibana will abandon you because of this.

At night, in an attempt to save the relationship, you put on the most embarrassing clothes and flattered Chika Tachibana, but she had no reaction and lay down with her back to you without saying a word.

Your whole body was cold, and you didn't know how you managed to get through that night. Fortunately, when you woke up the next day and saw your swollen eyes, Tachibana Chika couldn't bear it anymore. She sighed helplessly and held you in her arms to comfort you a little, giving you a little more courage to live.

But even so, after sending your daughter off to school and going to the store, Chika Tachibana stayed at home alone, rubbing the knife on the chopping board with her fingers, and a bit of self-destructive tendencies still arose in your heart.

If she wasn't afraid that you would commit suicide, Chika Tachibana would never have chosen you.

No matter how much Chika Tachibana has loved you, expressed her feelings, and confessed her love for you over the past twenty years, such thoughts in your heart have never ceased, but have become more and more intense as time goes by.

Chika Tachibana must hate you deep down in her heart, and soon even her daughter will start to hate you.

Even if Chika Tachibana did not tell the story of that year at the dinner table, with her daughter Aika's intelligence, it would probably not take her long to piece together the original events of that year.

In fact, she's piecing together the events much faster than you might imagine.

She was talking about re-establishing the light music club, but that afternoon after school, Aihua returned home early and went straight into her room and didn't come out for a long time. Realizing that something was wrong, you pretended to serve her tea and stepped into her room.

Aihua, who was wearing headphones and didn't notice you enter, was staring at the flashing figures on the screen. At a glance, you could tell that it was the performance of the light music club at the Changsheng Affiliated Middle School campus festival twenty years ago. Your heart was in a panic, and the tray in your hand was unstable, and the tea and snacks all spilled to the ground with a loud noise.

Hearing the sound, Aihua took off her headphones belatedly, and the sound turned up to the maximum volume immediately came out.

That was the high-pitched roar of Chika Tachibana as she played to the climax of her performance.

"I like K-on the most!"

Text: Chapter 64. This is the bond between mother and daughter!

[The time goes back two days, to the second day when your daughter Tachibana Aihua entered school, which was also the day of the 80th anniversary celebration of Changsheng Affiliated High School and the welcome ceremony for new students.

Sitting in the audience, Tachibana Aihua heard the solo performance by honorary alumnus Miki Matsuo and the passionate rock music of the ihua band.

In comparison, Miki Matsuoka, whose aura and the core of her music were filled with loneliness and fatigue, was deeply moved when she heard the passionate guitar sound of Mizuki Maru, the exciting and shocking drum sound of Hanasaka Yui, and felt the warm atmosphere of the scene.

After the memorial meeting, Tachibana Aika, who wanted to go home quickly to share the touching moments she had gained today with her mothers, was stopped by Reimiya Asuka and invited to have a parfait with three former members of the K-ON club: Matsunaga Miki, Mizuki Marin, and Hanasaka Yui.

They could all tell at a glance whose daughter Aihua was, and they were very enthusiastic and fond of this "uninvited guest" brought by Reimiya Asuka.

Although they did not bring up the past, the three of them gave her autographs and lots of encouragement, which ignited her desire to embark on the road of music from the bottom of her heart.

You can easily gain the love of people around you and achieve results in everything you do.

The overly smooth life path from childhood to adulthood has made Tachibana Aihua lose interest in many things, confused, and not knowing how to go on in the future.

Now, having inherited the undying passion for music left in her by Chika Tachibana, she has finally found something she is willing to devote her life to.

She excitedly announced it to you, but fell into deeper confusion because of your answers and reactions.

Feeling puzzled, she asked her teacher Reimiya Asuka, who obviously knew something, and easily obtained a burned CD from her collection.

"After reading this, you will understand everything."

Thus, things have evolved to what they are today.

[I learned that my ordinary mother was not ordinary. I learned that Chika Tachibana was once a member of the light music club, and she had also burned her youth wantonly. She was the absolute core of the group including the now successful Miki Matsuoka.

Being able to more or less sense the passionate feelings they had for their mother, Tachibana Aihua's curiosity about the past events grew stronger, and at the same time, a strong sense of regret lingered in her heart.

"We must go to the Budokan!"

The overly passionate rock music also ignited the emotions of the audience, and such a sentence came from the headphones.

Biting her lower lip and revealing a look of regret and pain, Tachibana Aika asked you.

"Why did Chika's mother give up in the end? She was so happy on the stage! It was like she was..."

"not me!"

He was forced to step back repeatedly by the soft question, his back hitting the wall, and his feet were pierced by the glass fragments on the ground, bleeding.

But you ignored it, fell to the ground and waved your hands frantically as if trying to push something away, shouting that it was not your fault.

But who could you possibly fool? Not even yourself. After yelling, all your strength was gone, and you covered your face with your hands, weeping sadly and absentmindedly.

"It was me. It was me who made Qianhua give up everything. It was me who shamelessly tied her up to my side. It was me who ruined her life. It was me, it was me..."

"mom!"

Your crazy and delirious appearance frightened your daughter Aihua, who quickly pulled the quilt from the bed to cover the glass fragments to prevent you from getting hurt again.

She comforted you not to be afraid, saying she was there, and immediately called Chika Tachibana to ask her to come back and keep the call going so that she could know the situation here.

Next, she quickly got the medicine box to remove the fragments and bandage your wound.

However, after responding lightly with "I'll be back soon", Chika Tachibana, who Aihua placed the greatest hope in, did not offer much comfort to you who kept sighing, but remained silent, which made you even more desperate.

Your mentality is completely unbalanced. You grab the hem of your daughter Aihua's dress and confess to her. You also confess to Tachibana Chika on the other end of the phone and tell the truth about everything that happened back then.

You told them how you used tricks step by step to make Chika Tachibana feel your dependence on her, and how you used your life to threaten Chika Tachibana with submission.

He told them how he had gradually separated her from the light music club, and how he had appeared to feel sorry for her when he saw her apply to the University of Tokyo, but in reality he was shamefully happy that she could finally separate from Mizuki Marin and the others.

[You also apologized to them, expressing your remorse, revealing that since you married Chika Tachibana, you watched her gradually sink into depravity, step by step giving up the happiness that she should have had for you, and eventually losing everything. You can only look at everyone who is still active in the music scene and has achieved success, and feel the gap, painful guilt and regret.

The guilt and pain that had been deposited in your heart for decades were finally fully expressed at this moment, and both mother and daughter knew what a hateful woman you were.

You think, maybe they will stay away from you who is despicable and shameless.

But you still feel refreshed, because you can finally face the real, disgusting self, and finally pull a little bit of your soul out of the endless abyss of regret, and get a moment of relief.

You admit it.

"It's me who messed up Qianhua's life."

You regret it.

"It would be great if Qianhua hadn't met me."

Can......

"not like this!"

Grabbing your shoulders and forcing you to look up, your daughter Aihua called out loudly with a firm expression, and there was no confusion or trace of deception or lying in her voice.

It's as if she is not trying to comfort you, but really thinks so.

"Ah."

On the other end of the phone, Chika Tachibana let out a slight, relieved, appreciative laugh.

And during the confrontation, you and your daughter didn't care.

You just stared at Aihua's eyes that were sparkling with seriousness and infinite love, feeling incredible and incomprehensible that she could say such words so firmly.

"You used such a shameful trick just to get Qianhua's mother. Mom, you are indeed an uncomfortable otaku and a creepy psychopath.

But I can guarantee that Qianhua’s mother did not choose you because of what you did, and she will definitely not feel unhappy about her current life.

Everything is just your fantasy, Aina Mama, and your unnecessary self-doubt due to your inferiority complex.

We were clearly trying hard to get closer to you, but you just kept talking to yourself and pushed us away. This is the aspect of you that makes people feel unbearable, but also makes people feel so cute."

"how come......"

"Of course! That's Chika's mother.

But it was Chika Tachibana who would shout on the stage that she loved K-ON the most, who could fascinate the great pianist Miki Matsuoka, the big star Marin Mizuki who had appeared on the Red and White Song Festival, and Yui Hanasaka, who was the most persistent in her dreams and had an infinite love for music!

How could such a stupid mother who would stick to something and never let go until her death, give up the music she had been determined to pursue all her life and the promise she had made to her most precious friends just because of the life and death of an insignificant person, a mere cousin?

Because she loves you. In her heart, you are more important than any music, any friends, or any promises. In her heart, you are precious enough to be the only one in her life, enough to sweep away all other important things in her life, so she chooses to be with you.

It’s not because Mother Qianhua realized how important she is to you that she chose you, but because she realized how important you are to her that Mother Qianhua chose you.

If it was someone else who was seeking death, Qianhua's mother wouldn't care. It was only because that person was you that such a childish plan was finally successful.

Mother Qianhua is performing on the stage. The joy and love that emanates from her body can be clearly felt by you every day.

But the smile she shows when she's with you is exactly the same as the one she displays on stage, even more joyful."

[I gently hold your completely stunned and trembling cheeks, and press my forehead against yours.

At a very close distance, Aihua spoke softly with an extremely gentle look on her face.

"I'm not as good at guessing Qianhua's mother's thoughts as my mother is, but I know how to guess Qianhua's mother's thoughts better than my mother.

So, I can say with certainty—"

"She is the happiest person in the world."

"I am the happiest person in the world."

In the room, on the phone, the voices of Aihua and Qianhua, mother and daughter, overlapped for a moment, deepening the depth of emotion in their words, a tacit understanding between them.

Chapter 65: No Grain of Rice Can Be Eaten for Free

[Although dark and twisted, your love still burns, warming the cold heart of Chika Tachibana after she lost her dream, moving her and making her willingly turn into your caged bird, into a bluebird that will never abandon you.

My love for you is not just out of responsibility. It’s better to say that it’s not out of responsibility at all. It is undoubtedly pure. It is the love that grows in Chika Tachibana’s heart because I care about you, because I treasure you, and because I regard you as the only one that surpasses dreams and promises.

Although she lost many things that she should have obtained and that were within her reach, she gained you, the most precious thing in the world. Chika Tachibana has never felt unhappy.

The presence of you and your daughter fills the void of music, and her heart has always been filled with happiness.

In the end, what makes you feel painful is never the guilt for Chika Tachibana's loss of dreams and future, but your own inferiority complex.

You are just using your own thoughts to arbitrarily guess what Chika Tachibana is thinking. Your calculation only includes your debt to her but never includes her love for you and the beauty in her nature.

Why did you fall in love with Chika Tachibana?

At this moment, after being suppressed and tortured by pain for decades, your heart was soothed by your daughter's gentle words and calmed by Chika Tachibana's words of affirmation. Now you finally remember.