Want to be human, but cube-like

"That's it..."

Aine didn't seem to dislike it either; she ate the matcha sundae quite enthusiastically in the afternoon. However, Alex herself didn't really like the slightly bitter taste.

"dislike?"

Noticing her seemingly disapproving response, Lena asked in return.

"do not like."

Alex answered bluntly.

"Um……?"

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Le Nai paused for a moment, then quickly resumed eating.

She quickly finished her matcha parfait and looked at Alex with expectant eyes.

"Ok?"

But Alex clearly didn't understand what Lena's look meant; she just glanced at her and remained unmoved.

So, Lena, who had finished her parfait early, could only pout and lie on the table, pitifully watching Alex eat her parfait.

"Why did you just say that I was untouchable before?"

As she calmed down and ate, Alex suddenly remembered the conversation the two of them had just had at the alley entrance.

Or rather, the words that Renai said when she struck up a conversation with her.

"It feels like air."

Lenai simply replied with this nonsensical remark.

"Can't catch it."

She herself seemed distressed, unable to articulate what she was feeling, and simply stared at Alex in confusion.

"Today is different, why?"

Then, the question was asked again.

"do not know."

This time, Alex replied to her with the same sentence.

Alex put down her spoon, savoring the last bite of matcha pudding mixed with cream, savoring the subtle bitterness on her tongue and the smoothness of the cream.

Does she really not know why?

Actually, she knew.

But Alex was still a little unsure.

She can still recall how she felt after leaving home that day, how she felt after playing in the music store, and how she felt while accompanying Ai Yin.

From suffocating confusion to the relief after breaking free from it, and finally to the satisfaction of being filled with a sense of security.

What Renai meant by "different" was perhaps the sense of fulfillment she gained from Aine.

The real feeling that I am living in this world.

"Play it on a guitar?"

Lena was clearly dissatisfied with Alex's answer. She thought for a moment and her gaze fell on the guitar case on the chair next to Alex.

"……Guitar?"

Following Lena's gaze, Alex also looked over.

She hesitated for a moment, realizing that neither the occasion nor the time was quite right.

But for some reason, she couldn't bring herself to refuse the offer.

Alex herself was also a little curious as to why Ronna was able to sense feelings that even Shoko and Aine couldn't perceive, feelings that were deeply hidden in her heart.

Do you really want to hear it?

After thinking for a moment, Alex asked softly.

"Ah."

Lenai's eyes showed obvious confusion, as if she felt that even if her request was not fulfilled today, she would be pestered again later.

"call……"

Alex slowly exhaled, took out her phone to pay, and glanced at the time.

They chatted for a short time and ate quickly; less than fifteen minutes had passed since they hung up the phone with Xiangzi.

It's not too late.

"Then come with me."

Alex picked up her guitar bag and put it back on her back, then said to Lenore.

"You can't play it here."

Lena narrowed her eyes slightly and pursed her lips like a cat. She seemed to smile, but it was very faint and hard to see clearly.

"To a livehouse?"

Once on the ground, Lena quickly caught up with Alex, following closely behind her like a little white tail.

"What is a livehouse?"

Alex blinked gently and turned back to ask a question in confusion.

"A place to hold live performances."

Following behind Alex, Lena answered softly.

"What is 'live'...?"

Unexpectedly, Alex raised another question.

"Gu..."

Lenai didn't know how to answer her this time. She puffed out her cheeks and began to think hard with her head down, looking somewhat troubled.

"...Never mind, we're going to my house, to a burger joint nearby."

Seeing her troubled little expression, Alex couldn't help but chuckle, interrupting Lena's thoughts.

"A hamburger...! I want one!"

"You can eat as much of this as you like."

Rather than spending money to buy matcha parfaits outside, Alex would clearly prefer to treat Lenai to her own home-cooked food that requires no resources.

Volume 1: Chapter 78 Playing for You

When I returned to the hamburger shop, I looked through the glass window and saw that the first floor was completely dark, but I could see the light shining from the window of Xiangzi's room on the second floor.

She probably stayed in the room all day.

"Wow……!"

Lena stood in front of the burger shop, looked up at the giant burger sculpture that looked like it had crashed onto the roof, and let out a sigh.

“Isn’t it handsome?”

Alex said smugly from the side.

"Very handsome!"

Lena nodded her little head, her eyes sparkling.

The two went around to the back door of the alley. Alex opened the door and led Lena inside. She turned on the kitchen light and asked Lena to sit at the counter and wait.

He then carried his guitar upstairs.

As she passed the second floor, Alex glanced at the empty space. After a moment's thought, she placed her guitar case against the wall and took out the keyboard case from her backpack, placing it next to it as well, before continuing upstairs.

She hadn't figured out what to do with this floor before, but now she suddenly had an idea.

However, I'll refine these ideas another day.

"Knock knock."

When Alex reached Xiangzi's door, she knocked twice gently.

"Xiangzi? I'm back."

After a short while, the door opened, and Xiangzi appeared before them.

"Welcome back, Alex."

Compared to before she left home today, Alex noticed that Xiangzi's hair now seemed to have been pressed down, indicating that she had probably been wearing headphones all afternoon.

"Oh, right, I also brought back a girl."

Just as Xiangzi was about to speak, she was stunned when she heard Alex say this.

How come I picked up a girl while I was out?

The thought had barely crossed Xiangzi's mind when he suddenly remembered that he was also picked up by Alex, and he stopped talking abruptly.

"Her name is Yao Lenai. She said she wanted to hear me play the guitar, so she came back with me."

Unaware of Xiangzi's strange thoughts, Alex simply offered a slow explanation.

Knowing that there was another person downstairs, Xiangzi refused to let Alex carry her down. So the two of them could only slowly move down, or rather, Alex accommodated Xiangzi, who could only walk with a walker, as they moved.

"Play guitar?"

As he walked up to the second floor, Xiangzi saw that the empty room now contained a guitar case and a piano case.

"Yes, I bought it this afternoon. I also bought an electronic keyboard."

"Nod," Alex said.

Come to think of it, Xiangzi hadn't asked Alex why she could play the piano before, but now it seems she could also play the guitar?

Recalling the piano music he had heard that day from Alex, Xiangzi frowned slightly, but said nothing.

Xiangzi originally wanted to say that if they wanted to buy a musical instrument, they could ask her first. But after thinking about it carefully, he realized that Alex's playing skills were superb, and she might even be better than him. Perhaps she was quite knowledgeable about this area?

When we got to the first floor, Lenai was still obediently sitting in front of the counter. She was lying on the counter, tilting her head to the side, looking at the brightly lit street outside the window with a bored expression.

"You and Lena wait here for a while, I'll go downstairs to get some ingredients."

She usually follows the principle of killing and eating on the spot, and only prepares ingredients before opening the store. So after using up the store's ingredients at noon today, she just went back to the Sky Island to organize the resources. The refrigerator in the kitchen is still empty.

To make dinner, we need to go to the Sky Island to get some ingredients first.

……

Just as Lena wished, they had hamburgers for dinner tonight, and Alex even made some fries and fried chicken, which made her have a hearty meal.

After dinner, the three went upstairs. Xiangzi was also curious about Alex's guitar skills.

Alex took out her guitar and tuned it.

Then, he gently plucked a string with the pick.

"..."

But the next moment, she stopped moving.

At this moment, Alex remembered something: without sheet music, she couldn't play. At the very least, without the ability to improvise, she needed to have the melody in her mind to play.

"what happened?"

Somewhat puzzled, Xiangzi asked a question.

Alex looked over, and Lena also looked at her with a curious gaze.

"I don't know what to play."

After a moment's hesitation, Alex said.

"I can't play without sheet music."

Looking down at the guitar in her arms, Alex pinched the pick and gently strummed the strings, but then she got stuck.

Her posture was perfect, and you could tell she definitely knew how to play the guitar, but her words sounded rather strange.