Even though Tomori looks a bit airheaded, she actually understands everything. She just doesn't say it out loud.
And she always prefers to see people through a lens of kindness.
At the very least, Sakiko knows that she herself really isn't as good as Tomori thinks she is.
Back when she quit the band, what she showed Tomori was nothing more than raw emotional venting.
As for afterward—maybe there was some concern for Tomori mixed in, but far more of it was about protecting her own pride.
Otherwise, how could she have hurt Tomori again and again?
Sakiko couldn't help recalling Kamijou Mutsuki's earlier evaluation of her.
Was she really… that high and mighty?
"It's all because of you, Mutsuki, that I could feel saki-chan's true feelings!"
What true feelings do I even have?
"And the band, too,"
Tomori opened her eyes wide, her amber-like pupils shining with a brilliance they'd never shown before.
"Because of you, Mutsuki, everyone could stay together."
"Because of you, I could finally… have courage."
Honestly, this was stealing Anon's role—but the pink-haired girl really didn't have grounds to complain.
Just like she'd thought when watching the anime: if she'd shown a bit more backbone at karaoke back then, would Kamijou Mutsuki even have had a chance?
But you can't really blame Saint Anon either. She's just a normal extrovert—how could she have synced up with Tomori, the Queen of Gravity, right from the start?
On top of that, she basically invited the wolf into the house, letting everything become Kamijou Mutsuki's wedding dress—surpassing even her anime counterpart.
After all, unlike Anon, Kamijou Mutsuki didn't reject the idea of "forever" early on.
To Tomori, he was practically a white-Sakiko template.
"So, I want to… say thank you."
"Mutsuki won't leave like Sakiko did…"
There was clear unease in Tomori's voice. Sakiko's withdrawal from the band had obviously left her with serious emotional scars.
And hearing this, Sakiko felt even more crushed by guilt.
I really am trash.
"Will you… form a band with me for our whole lives?"
Oh no. Black hole detected.
Only when Tomori tightly grabbed his hand did Kamijou Mutsuki realize that he, too, had been caught by gravity.
"Subjectively speaking, of course I'd like to," he said calmly,
"but objectively, expecting to stay together forever just by forming a band is pretty difficult."
But mere black hole gravity wasn't nearly enough to make Kamijou Mutsuki surrender.
"..."
Tomori didn't reply, but her sadness was obvious.
"However—just like I said before."
Even in pajamas, Kamijou Mutsuki somehow pulled out a marriage registration form from who-knows-where.
"As long as we get married, we can be together forever!"
Fight gravity with gravity.
Scumbag—what are you trying to make Tomori sign?!
Even though Sakiko couldn't see very clearly from inside the wardrobe, just from Kamijou Mutsuki's words, she could already guess exactly what he had handed to Tomori.
Sakiko, who had never seen a scene like this before, honestly couldn't understand what was going on—but she was deeply shaken nonetheless.
Still, she felt that even Tomori wouldn't be fooled this easily by Kamijou Mutsuki.
After all, Tomori might be airheaded, but she wasn't completely lacking in common sense.
"As long as I sign this, I can form a band with Mutsuki for my whole life?"
The moment this thought crossed Sakiko's mind, Tomori slapped her right in the face with reality.
Holding the marriage registration form for the second time, Tomori barely hesitated at all. She grabbed a pen from the bedside and was about to sign her name.
Wait—are you seriously signing it?!
It wasn't just Sakiko who thought this. Even Kamijou Mutsuki hadn't expected things to go this way.
Alright, now everyone knows who the real heavyweight is.
"Wait—don't sign it!"
Seeing Tomori about to write her name on the marriage registration form, Sakiko realized that if she kept hiding, in a while she'd probably be attending Tomori's wedding as a bridesmaid.
So she threw caution to the wind, burst out of the wardrobe, and stopped her.
Tomori, unsurprisingly, tilted her head in confusion when she saw Sakiko suddenly appear.
Saki-chan… why are you in the wardrobe?
Thank goodness it was Tomori. If it were anyone else, Sakiko could jump into Tokyo Bay and still never wash this clean.
"Saki-chan, do you want this too?"
Seeing Sakiko firmly pressing down on the marriage registration form in her hand, Tomori suddenly seemed to have an epiphany.
"Does Sakiko also want to marry Mutsuki?"
"Who would want to marry that guy?!"
Tomori's question nearly made Sakiko lose her breath on the spot.
Tomori, how did you even arrive at that conclusion?
And why do you look so happy at the idea of me marrying Kamijou Mutsuki?!
"Saki-chan doesn't want to?"
So tell me—Tomori, why do you sound disappointed?
Seeing that Sakiko had no intention of marrying Kamijou Mutsuki together with her, Tomori pulled the marriage registration form back and prepared to continue signing it.
"Hey—stop, stop!"
Seeing just how stubborn Tomori was being, Sakiko honestly couldn't take it anymore.
She decisively snatched the marriage registration form out of Tomori's hands.
"Sakiko, you're lying."
If you don't want to sign it, then why are you stealing my marriage registration form?
"Tomori, I'm not lying!"
Faced with Tomori's resentful gaze, Sakiko could only explain.
"It's just that—I can't let you sign it!"
"Sakiko-chan, why?"
"Do you know what you're doing?"
"Signing a marriage registration form."
"Do you know what consequences this will have?"
"Signing a marriage registration form."
"?"
Are you seriously doing this bit with me right now?
"No—signing this means getting married, Tomori. Do you know that?"
"I know."
Just as said before, Tomori was only airheaded, not lacking in basic common sense.
"Then do you know what getting married represents?"
"Forming a band for a lifetime!"
Tomori's tone carried a faint hint of joy.
"..."
No—bands aren't formed like this, okay?!
Sakiko was utterly shaken.
"In any case, you can't get married for a reason like that. If you were forming a band with me, would you marry me too?"
Sakiko decided to defeat Tomori using Tomori's own logic.
"Sakiko can marry Mutsuki together with me."
Not difficult for her at all.
"Is that okay?"
Tomori looked at Sakiko with anticipation.
"Of course not!"
Sakiko was completely overwhelmed by Tomori's logic. What on earth had happened to Tomori while she was gone?
"Anyway…"
Sakiko felt she really had to straighten out Tomori's completely derailed way of thinking. She absolutely did not want to end up someday helping Kamijou Mutsuki and Tomori raise a daughter.
"Mutsuki, I have something to say to you."
And right at that moment, there was another knock on the door—this time, it was Mutsuki's fiancée.
Having already gone through this once, Sakiko was much calmer now.
She quickly analyzed the situation: it was nighttime; both she and Tomori were wearing pajamas; she was holding a half-signed marriage registration form.
And during dinner, she had already learned that Kamijou Mutsuki seemed to be engaged to Mutsuki's fiancée.
Meanwhile, Tomori was stubbornly insisting on marrying Kamijou Mutsuki.
Uh-oh. This is bad.
And so, Great Sakiko once again dove into the wardrobe—this time, dragging Tomori in with her.
....................