*time skip to Oct 20th (changed the timeline since I don't remember the dates so I made up, but I cover the important contents)

POV: Torikachi

We have finished our short test. To be honest, it's easier than I thought, since, with this, Ike might have scored above 60.

This, perhaps baiting the students to get bad pairings.

However, Horikita's plan is currently in action.

I don't know about Kushida, but for my guess at the moment, I could somehow score at least for me to pair with Kushida, since if her final resolve is to drag someone with her, then I could pair up with her and get the perfect score in order to not get myself expelled.

However, Kushida will try to take a bet with Horikita again, and I could wipe it up by expelling her. She's useless because all of her secrets have been leaked.

After our lessons, Sae-sensei walks into the classroom with a scroll of paper in her hand.

"I am here to announce to you all that the pairing results have been finalized, and there is no way for you to change your partner."

She said as she displays the paper scroll to the board that determines the pairings.

Well, as much as it seems, all the pairings are completely normal to the plot.

Kiyotaka paired up with Satou, Horikita paired up with Sudou (coincidence), .etc

Everyone is filled with joy when they got the exact pairings they wanted.

Then I avert my eyes to my name on the board to see the person who will be paired with me.

It is Kushida.

I wonder how Kushida actually ended up pairing with me, I do not know if this is Author-sama's decision for me to pair up with her in this exam.

But it does not matter now, since I could get her to drop out from this school once and for all.

However, if she manages to change herself, then I might change my mind. After all, I have the power to control the class after sending those videos about Kushida.

But for now, I should act against her, since she assumed that everyone in the school saw the forum post.

As I continue my monologue, Sae-sensei continues.

"Don't act too confident now, the exam questions will be from other classes, so keep yourself up." She said to scare the class but to no avail.

"Oh, yes. I want to notify the class that today the school will have a musical contest at the school's auditorium at 5:00 PM. You can show up to enjoy the contest if you wanted to, and it's free for everyone to come. But if you want the best experience, there are the best seats for 25.000 private points for each. There are only 9 seats left for you guys, so if you wanted to, go fast. And the class is dismissed." She finishes her announcement as she left the room.

I guess it's time for me to head out first since I need to meet up with Ryuko for the final practice before the real play. It did not take too much time at all, since we nailed it perfectly on our fourth attempt.

"Where are you going, Torikachi-kun?" Horikita asks me when I immediately trying to leave the room.

"You know that I will be busy with the contest, aren't you?" I answer her without looking at her.

I then avert my eyes at her with a grin.

"Your brother's also there, at the special seat #6. If you want, you could go to see your brother. You could at least buy seat #4 just to look at him you know?" I say as I move to her and grab her shoulder.

"I'm not interested in such a matter." She replied. "I need to discuss the strategy with the class at the moment."

"Alright. Suit yourself then." I replied as I actually leave the classroom, leaving everyone else behind.

Except for one. To be honest, I am not surprised if she suddenly approach me after the pairings had been finalized.

"T-Torikachi-kun...?" The girl calls out to me. "Then what are we going to do in this exam?"

"Oh, hey, Kushida." I pretend that I just recognize her. "How've you been? Since I don't get to see your cheerful self anymore. What happened to you?"

As I ask the question, Kushida flinched, perhaps assuming every student body know about her secrets was a bad idea.

"N-no no. Have you heard the rumors about me on the forums?" She asks. Good. She's starting to be comfortable with me.

"No. I haven't. What were the rumors?" I shake my head as an indicator to her.

"Well, it's nothing much." She replied. "But it spreads across the whole school, every student should have known about it right now."

"I don't have any recollection of any rumors that appeared to me for the past few months, and if it is, I would not believe it, since there is no evidence to claim that you are the target of the rumors." It was indeed a lie, but I have to do it since I need to fake it out.

"Well, I guess it's true..." she replied while could not get a hold of herself mentally. "So, what are we going to do in the exam?"

"To be honest, I don't want to discuss it at the moment since I have a contest that I need to do now, so I guess we should discuss it tomorrow. It's a day off, so come to my room and we could talk about it."

"Oh... okay... Good luck with your contest then, Torikachi-kun." She replies as she waves for a goodbye. "I will see you tomorrow then, Torikachi-kun."

"Why don't you join the contest, Kushida?" I engage her to do something else. "I'm pretty sure that you are stressing out because of the exam that we are going to have and the rumors those were targeting you, but we should let go of ourselves for once and a whole you know? We rarely have time like this."

"You could at least join as a small treat for yourself, Kushida. It's not normal to see you like this after all." I try to convince her and again, I'm acting to be her friend.

"I guess you're right, Torikachi-kun." She replies with a sigh. "I guess I will see you at the auditorium then."

"That's much better. See you soon, Kushida." I respond as I leave the area to go to the auditorium.

POV: Kushida (yes, I know, another Kushida's revelation, but I mean, why not some character development?)

Somehow, after talking to Torikachi-kun, I feel more comfortable around him. Even though the rumors about me spread across the whole school, I couldn't tell if he's acting or not.

If he did acting, then why would he go for such length to cheer me up?

If he did not, he would not have responded to my callings.

Or maybe he's just genuinely caring for me instead of everyone else...

I do not know what should I do anymore.

I do not know if I should do what I am currently doing...

Even if I expel Horikita Suzune, I do not know if things could change from here on out...

Should I continue to do this?

No no... I should expel her, and work my own way to class A.

No, it would be tough, all the leaders are too far from reach for me.

I mean, my school life is now ruined, and I do not know if I should continue to be like this.

If Torikachi-kun still wanted to be friends with me, then I should comply. He's not aware of my other self, but the class will hate him for accompanying me.

I-I don't know what to do now...

If the class managed to notify him about the rumors, what should I do?

I guess I should leave it for now, and attend the music contest that Torikachi-kun talked about earlier.

(I mean... a bit of Character Development should be fine right?

Right???)

POV: Kiyotaka

It is currently 4:30 PM and I am sitting with Miyake, Hasebe, Yukimura and in the Pallet Cafe for a study session. We talked about how Miyake is a member of the Archery club, and how he became friends with Hasebe during one time in the library.

However, we did cover most of the content of our study session, so I guess I could leave now.

I remembered that I have a special seat bought for free by Torikachi, so I need to head out early. I could already sense many class C's members watching us from the distance.

"Heading back so soon, Kiyopon?" Hasebe calls my name out?

"Kiyopon?" I ask her with curiosity.

"That's right. We have Kiyopon, Miyachi, Yukimu. That will be your nicknames." She replies. I can see why Torikachi warned me to prepare for the name Kiyopon. It is from Haruka.

"Hey, I never agr-..." As soon as Yukimura debuted, Miyake stops him, saying it is better to let her be.

"O-Oh..." Yukimura immediately comply.

"Oh yeah. Since we are in a group right now, why don't we call each other by our first names?" Hasebe asks. "You guys can call me Haruka."

"I have no problem with that," Yukimura replies. "The name is Teruhiko, but call me Keisei instead, because of family reasons."

"Then I shall. Call be Akito."

"Kiyotaka, call me that," I respond as I pack up my things to leave the cafe.

"I'm heading to the school's auditorium. I'm interested in the contest that will be happening soon." I say.

"Wait, the contest?? You interested in that?" Keisei asks me.

"Well, Torikachi invited the class to come, so I guess I could go, and I have to go look for seats soon, or else it will be a pain," I reply.

"Okay, we will go with you, Kiyopon!" Haruka interferes with her fist in the air. "Let us see how Torikachi performs for the contest."

"Then I guess I have to go with you." Akito complies.

"Then I guess I could go. He did help me during the Festival, so I guess I could return the favor this way." Keisei also agrees to come.

"Alright, then let's go," I say.

"Okay."

*time skip to the school's auditorium, 4:45 PM.

I am currently sitting on the seat that Torikachi prepared for me, and I could see many students paid their points just for the special seats that were still available.

Students outside the auditorium are stacking up, perhaps just to witness Torikachi's performance as a prodigy.

The rumors were still there, weren't they?

"W-wow... I did not expect this amount of students wanted to watch the performance." Haruka says. "We are so lucky that we managed to find our seats early."

"I guess the rumors about Torikachi caused this to happen after all," Akito replies.

"Why are you sitting there, Kiyopon? Come sit here with us!" Haruka continues with her sermons to me.

"I'm sorry, but this seat has my name assigned, so I just sit here," I reply. "I paid for the seat way before, so I took the seat."

"No fair!!!" Haruka shouts, but there are too many noises at the moment, so no one notices her shouting.

"We didn't even know each other back then, so just let him be," Keisei replies to Haruka's childish action. "Let just sit and wait for the show."

"Alright," Haruka replies.

As I scan my eyes through the auditorium, I can see the former Student Council President is also here, at seat number six, which means he is currently five seats away from me. He is with his friends and Secretary Tachibana.

I also see Sakayanagi sitting with someone else two seats away from me.

Honestly, the seat that I am currently having is considered to be one of the best spots in the auditorium, from what Torikachi told me, I could see the piano keys that he will be playing on.

And it's really comfortable too. Since the chair is made with fabric and wool, I could rest myself here with a cup of tea that is initially on the table.

Moments later, the contest finally begins, with the speakers calling out.

"Contestant #1: Asahina Nazusa, class 2-A. It is time for your performance."

Soon, a female figure came upfront the stage. Her beauty could rival many girls in the school. She is holding a violin, perhaps indicating she is a solo violin player as the starter of this contest.

She proceeds with a bow to the crowd prepare in her position to play her song.

(Proceeds to play 'Your Lie in April' OP)

https://youtu.be/rZ0mRtLOQu8

The play is long, but many students in the room cry out of emotional sympathy.

Finished her play, she then bow to the crowd again, gaining huge applause from the crowd.

"Next up, Contestant #2:..."

POV: Torikachi

"I'm glad that we made it to this day, Ryuko," I say with a small smile.

"S-Same goes for me, Tori." She replies with a smile while her current expression makes her stutter a bit.

"You nervous?" I ask.

"Umm... Yeah...." Ryuko nods multiple times. "Are you not nervous at all, Tori? As a prodigy, I think you should be okay."

"Well, the truth is..." I answer while grabbing her hand, and putting her hand on my chest. "I'm really nervous when it comes to crowds, Ryuko... you could feel my heartbeat, aren't you?"

Meanwhile, Ryuko could not handle this kind of emotional shock due to touching my chest with her hand, reddened by my action.

"W-well... I guess it is what it is..." she murmured.

"Next up, Contestant #7 and contestant #8, you guys will be next after contestant #6's performance." The speaker announces us to prepare.

"Well, it's time for us to stay calm now, and play like during our time of practicing the play. When you play, close your eyes, and imagine that you are playing with me, okay?" I give her one piece of advice before the time comes.

"Okay. I think I'm ready." She replies while putting her hands on her cheeks.

"That's the spirit. Now, let us go."

Now, this is my moment to shine, with the music from my previous world, I'm sure people will be more convinced that I am indeed the prodigy. But right now, I only care about one thing, which is to win the contest. I am very sure that I could pull things off.

*one performance later.

"Contestant #7 and #8, Nishikawa Ryuko from class 1-A and Torikachi from class 1-C, it is time for your performance."

Soon, the applause and cheers from the crowd can be heard from the distance, waiting for us to go to the stage, and make the most perfect play of 'Rainbow Chaser' that both of us have put our efforts in together.

"Let's go, Ryuko. It is time to show everyone that we will rule this contest." I encourage Ryuko for the final moment.

"That's right, Tori. Let's win this." She replies.

We started to walk to the front of the stage, bowing down to everyone about to witness my talent, my so-called 'creation' according to this world.

I could already see Kiyotaka at the seat I picked for him. He seems to enjoy it at the moment.

Surprisingly, Kushida is also here, probably witnessing the play as her final moment before dropping out.

Now, I guess I should start now.

I walk up to the piano, and Ryuko starts to position herself, preparing for our final showdown.

I use my foot as an indicator counting down from three.

And a Three, and a Two, and a One...

https://youtu.be/jsoT5rIdEP4

Yes, this song, from my previous world, is one of my most favorite from the artist named Plum, leaving a message from the song itself.

The song also contains the beats, but I ignored those and focused on the piano and the violin itself.

The synergy from both of us created the perfect sync for the song to shine, to be significant to the crowd.

I close my eyes as I play, and I can sense Ryuko has done the same strategy as I did. This should give us confidence when it comes to public plays. We ignore all the attention that points toward us, and only we could sense each other by touching the instrument.

The more I play this song, the more I feel like I am missing something within me for me to complete.

Is it some certain factor that I need to have, for me to feel more comfortable in life and in the future?

It does not matter at the moment.

What matters the most here, is I get to spend time with Ryuko. I feel more comfortable around her, to the point that I felt quite lonely without her...

Is this called love?

Or is it only a feeling of caring for someone else that you feel comfortable with?

I see... I guess this is the feeling?

I do not hate it... not at all...

The song has certain meanings for me. I listen to it every time I felt distressed in life during my previous, but for certain moments that I ever felt that way...

Now, both Ryuko and I have finished our song, it is more than four minutes, so we managed to meet the criteria.

We then bow again to the crowd that is currently in front of us, and I notice that there are more students before I start playing. I guess being too popular is also something that I should be aware of in the future.

Then, cheers and applauses came to us as we finished our bow.

I even notice flowers being thrown at the stage.

Perhaps, from Chie-sensei. I could already guess that she was the culprit for throwing flowers at me.

As we head back to the backstage, I and Ryuko could see some senpais starting to invite us for a final celebration after the contest.

"Contestant #9, Yamamura Miki Class 1-A, it is time for your performance."

Oh yeah, I totally forgot about Yamamura. She didn't stand out much from the light novel series, but I'm surprised that she's also a member of the music club.

"Oh, Miki-san. It's your turn now, right?" Ryuko greets her with a smile after our performance.

"Indeed it is. I already expect you two will get first place, guaranteed, no exceptions, so I hope I could at least get a second or third place though... so yeah. Gotta go now." She replies as she walks to the stage to begin her performance.

However...

"Oi, Ryuko-san, if you managed to reach first place, you already know the bet that we've made before that." Yamamura continues with a grin towards Ryuko, while the target got embarrassed just by a grin. I think I like where this is going.

"Ryuko, what bet did you make with her?" I ask her innocently while winking at Yamamura.

"T-There's nothing notable for you to know about... it's just a silly bet." She immediately replies.

"Or is it, really, Ryuko-san??" Yamamura asks.

"S-stop it already..." Ryuko could not defend against both of us teasing.

Well, my part does also count as teasing, right?

Right???

Anyhow, I think one more contestant after Yamamura then the contest will be officially over and there will be results immediately.

*meanwhile at the crowd (back to Tori's performance)

POV: Kiyotaka

It is time for Torikachi's performance. As he appears with Nishikawa on the stage, cheerings and applauses can be heard loudly from the crowd since Torikachi is popular in the school due to him being labeled as a prodigy.

Torikachi and Nishikawa play the song titled 'Rainbow Chaser' from what Torikachi told me before.

The notes of the song create a perfect sync. Even though everyone in the school has never heard of it, I could see many of them falling with the play slowly.

As I look around, everyone closes their eyes, to experience the song to the fullest.

Even President has a small smile on his face, proving satisfaction during hearing the duet's performance.

More than four minutes later, the music stops, as the duet open their eyes, walking to the front of the stage.

They make a final bow to the crowd before returning to the backstage, while silence covers upon the audience, assuming they felt comfortable hearing the play.

A few seconds later, cheers and applause can be heard slowly and cheerfully, proving the audience's satisfaction with the content they heard.

"I guess it's worth it to attend to the contest after all," Haruka says. "They played the song perfectly."

"Well, I guess that's a good thing for them," Akito says.

"Contestant #9: Yamamura Miki, class 1-A. It is time for your performance..."

POV: Ryuko

We've done it!!!

We nailed the song perfectly, as Tori said we would!!!

I could not help myself but jump over Tori because we managed to play the song perfectly.

I am very happy about it.

"W-wait, Ryuko..." Tori speaks. "The results have yet to be finalized..."

Truthfully, I do not care if we managed to get the first place or not, we played the song perfectly, and that was the only thing that matters to me.

"I don't care," I reply. "We managed to nail the song perfectly in the contest. I'm just too happy about it."

"Alright, alright..." He speaks. "Can you calm down? The contest is almost over now, so we will know the results soon."

"Okay..." I reply as I let go of his arm.

I immediately blush because I accidentally held his arm, but he did not show any sign of discomfort.

POV: Torikachi

"The music contest has ended, and the results have been finalized." Says the speaker out loud to the crowd.

"It is time to hear the results, Ryuko. Are you nervous?" I ask the person who is currently sitting next to me.

She replies with a nod while covering up half of her face.

Welp... I guess things can go as planned then.

"We will now announce the top three rated contestants of ANHS Music Contest, as well as top three plays of today's contest.

Starting at number 3, the song name: 'Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso' played by Asahina Nazusa, class 2-A. Everyone, please give her a round of applause!!!"

Soon the clapping echoes throughout the auditorium.

"Second place, the song name: 'River Flow in You' played by Yamamura Miki, class 1-A. Please give her a round of applause!!!"

Again, Yamamura is a guitar player, so her performance was really good.

"And finally, first place, the song that no one has ever heard it once before: 'Rainbow Chaser' played by Nishikawa Ryuko, class 1-A and Torikachi, class 1-C. That is the final result for the plays of our contest."

I am not surprised. What should I say now...?

"Coincidence can be freaky."

...

"And now, we will announce the top three contestants of the contest.

Starting at number 3, Contestant #9, Yamamura Miki, class 1-A had taken the spot, over the fourth contestant by a small margin. Everyone, please give her a round of applause!!"

Another win for Yamamura. I am genuinely surprised that Nazusa-senpai did not manage to get into the list. I guess young talent is better.

"Next up, number 2: Contestant #7, Nishikawa Ryuko, class 1-A. Well done with your performance.

And finally, number 1: The young Prodigy of ANHS, the one who created such amazing tracks to gain his popularity: Congratulation, Torikachi, class 1-C. You are the best player at ANHS's Music Contest this Autumn. Everyone, please give him a round of applause."

Soon, the applause gets louder and louder, screaming and cheering can be heard from the distance, assuming those were the girls who were stalking me ever since the rumors takes place.

To be honest, I already expected the results except for Nazusa-senpai. I'm quite surprised that "Your Lie in April" anime still exists in this world.

I guess this new world has something more to it, isn't it?

"W-we won!!!" Ryuko can not hold herself back anymore after hearing the result of us being on the top.

"We won!! We won!!!" She shouts as she jumps around me.

That's right. We won the contest, and I might get even more popular in the future.

"Damn right, Ryuko-san..." said a voice with a grin on her face. "You better do it, since you won after all."

"M-Miki-san..." Ryuko realizes that it was her voice, along with other members of the music club. "F-Fine... I will do it."

As soon as she said that, Ryuko turns her face up to me with a sign of embarrassment.

I think I know where this is going.

"T-Tori... could you come along with me for a moment?"

===========================================================================

Eyyyy

What's up everyone?? I'm back with another update.

So, school is back, and I want to tell y'all that I won't be able to update this fanfic much more often.

Of course, I will write the drafts when I'm free, but not as much as before because schools, that's why.

So, side note here, the Confession will be a SS after V6Y1 completion of this fanfic, so a rewinded SS it is.

We had another Kushida revelation, a bit development for her might not change anything if she still makes the bet with Horikita.

But it won't hurt to add it in right?

Right???

So, next chapter, will Kushida actually redeem herself or not?

Will she do anything to expel Horikita, or she will actually help the class?

Find out in the next chapter.

PEACE!!!!!!!!!!