I wonder when I gave up trying to get out of this picture.
I can't even remember that.
Can I really get out?
Sorry. I will write it down.
That's me.
Mother, is it okay for you to get up?
I feel good today.
It's beautiful, isn't it?
Yeah.
I had always wanted to appear in this director's movies.
My dream came true, even if it was just for an instant.
Dream?
I hope your dream comes true too.
Even if it's not a great one,
as long as it's a dream that you desire from the bottom of your heart,
a dream that you've had for a long time.
Don't worry, Mother.
Because I've already found it.
Is it interesting?
Sorry. Did I disturb you?
No, not really.
Your form was really beautiful.
Can I see that?
Y-Yeah.
The way you shot it is bad.
You only shot my face and didn't get any of my form at all.
Nah, that's not what I was aiming for...
Next time you shoot without my permission, I'll use my right hand.
This is why the sports club...
But...
Which one is pointing at eleven?
Kei didn't come to wake me up today, eh?
The furigana next to it says "Tokimeki," which means "Excitement."
Erm, can I kiss you?
Renji-kun.
You're Renji-kun, right?
Y-Yeah, I am.
You're here early today.
Because I had some free time.
Erm, about what happened yesterday...
Yes, I remember.
Ah, nah, I didn't mean to...
I'm thinking of trying to write the novel.
But my memory only lasts thirteen hours right now.
It's impossible for me to do it by myself.
It's okay. I'll help you.
Okay.
Let's give it a try... together.
Thank you very much.
Besides... you're responsible for it too.
Responsible?
You hugged me, confessed to me, and kissed me yesterday, right?
E-Eh, erm, I didn't kiss you.
You did other things, didn't you?
Nah, it was inevitable in that situation...
That means you took advantage of it?
Nah, that's not true...
Chihiro, did you write that down in your diary?
I forgot about it.
It's a dream I gave up on a long time ago.
You reminded me of it again.
Chihiro...
I want to try it one more time.
Okay.
Miyamura-senpai!
What is it?
Erm... Shindou Kei-chan.
I need to talk to you about something.
Can you come with me?
Is it going to take long?
Probably.
Then I don't want to hear it.
I want to go home.
Eh? Go home?
If you have something to say, you can come along with me.
If it's something you have to say even if it means you're skipping school.
Well then, where should we work on it?
Let's see...
What's wrong?
I'm confirming what time I had my meal.
I had my breakfast at seven this morning. It's about time to have lunch.
I see. We could eat something I make at home, but maybe we should just go somewhere to eat.
You want to come with me, Chihiro?
Can I?
Yeah.
I was a bit surprised.
I'm interested in your cooking.
Eh? Wh-Why am I cooking?
Didn't you say "something I make at home" just now?
Did I?
You did.
Chihiro, you actually have a good memory, don't you?
If it's within thirteen hours.
Oh my, oh my, oh my. Welcome.
Nice to meet you. I'm Shindou Chihiro.
How polite of you. I'm Asou Sumire.
Are you Renji-kun's... elder sister?
I'm his wife.
Nah, I'm really sorry.
Even though I don't really want to believe it either, she's my mother.
Eh, your mother?
Yes.
This is my neighbor, Kuze-san.
Hi. I'm a good young man with a sparkling smile.
Good afternoon.
Is that so?
So, what's your relationship with Renji?
If you're asking about our relationship, I think we're just friends.
Friendships doesn't exist between men and women.
Hmm, is that really the case?
Even though it's mostly the guy who ends up with his love unrequited.
Erm, I don't think Renji-kun is like that.
He's just kind.
Oh my.
My, my.
Exactly which part of Renji do you think is good?
That child looks silly even from a parent's point of view.
Eh? That's not true...
Or does he bring out your maternal instinct?
I wonder.
But I'm glad because I was worried about not hearing anything of his love life until now.
I find it amusing to watch.
So, which part of Renji did you fall in love with?
Enough is enough. You're bothering Chihiro.
My, that's not true. Right, Chihiro-chan?
Yes. I'm happy.
See?
You came along with me after all.
Because I'm the one who talked to you.
You seem serious.
Are you aiming to take the perfect attendance award?
That doesn't matter.
Then what does matter?
Th-That's...
This is an important time for Hirono-senpai.
His academic results are at a critical point and full of failing marks.
His attendance record is poor too, and there's even the possibility that he'll have to repeat.
But, even now, he can still save the situation.
If he studies and comes to classes regularly, he can become a third-year student.
So please don't lure Hirono-senpai into skipping school.
That's a lose-lose situation.
You didn't need to throw away your perfect attendance award to talk about this.
I thought I'd hear something more interesting.
This isn't an issue of interesting or boring!
This is about Onii-cha- Hirono-senpai's future.
But shouldn't Hirono-kun think about that himself?
Only Hirono-kun can decide what he's going to do.
It's useless for outsiders to worry for him.
Outsiders... no way...
Or can you handle the responsibility?
Will his future be assured as long as he goes to school?
That's...
If Hirono-kun refrains from doing what he wants and devotes himself to studying,
can he become a successful manga artist?
Hirono-kun is mature,
so wouldn't he have thought about skipping school, drawing manga, studying, and all that?
Am I wrong?
But Onii-chan is still a student. Right now he should study...
Is the world of manga artists so easy that you can come and go whenever you want?
He's doing his best to draw, while enduring the pain in his hand.
If that comes to nothing, can you handle the responsibility?
And, Kei-chan.
You're showing your honesty in the wrong place.
If you remain unaware of it, you might end up hating yourself one day.
If you go back now, you might still be in time for the sixth period.
Thank you for the meal.
I didn't think you'd be good at cooking.
That's my only redeeming quality.
Ah, are you even writing down what you ate?
Yes, since there's a possibility for the nutrition to be biased.
Today's lunch was a rare ten points.
Ten points?
By the way, today's breakfast was four points.
Yesterday's dinner was seven points.
Is that a point system?
Since the number of meals is big, and it's tough to evaluate them,
I just use a simple point system.
Isn't that scary for the person who made the food?
Can you cook?
I can, but the finished product should not be eaten.
It seems my family and cooking don't get along.
In other words, you can't.
So, let's begin.
Please take this.
This book has my ideas for the novel.
Please read it after I go home.
I don't like someone reading what I wrote in front of me.
I see. I'm borrowing this then.
So, what kinds of things are hard for you?
Hard for me?
Yeah. Things you can't do.
I think it'll be a good idea for me to remember, so I can confirm it.
It's like being an editor.
I see.
The obstacle is that I can't finish writing in one day.
Time is the problem after all.
I forget memories and details.
The story, setting, and even my impression of the characters change.
Many times, I've failed halfway through writing and ended up redoing the story.
By the way, it seems I tried 31 times in four years.
31 times, eh? It'll be my job to challenge that number, then.
I don't know. I'll leave it to you.
Roger. Is there anything else I should pay attention to?
Erm...
Hm?
Ah, nothing.
What's wrong? Tell me everything that's on your mind now.
Erm, there was a question in my math class.
A stake is driven in a field, and a sheep is tied to it.
The sheep keeps munching the grass.
What is the area of the resulting circle?
The square of the length of the string times pi, right?
It seems the sheep even eats the roots of the grass.
The grass can't grow back, and the plain turns into a desert.
When I heard this question, I saw an image of that tied sheep slowly starving to death.
For this novel, I...
Nah, it's nothing.
I misunderstood. It's nothing.
But...
Please forget what I said just now.
R-Really? I won't write it down in my diary then.
You keep a diary too?
Nah, not at all.
Geez.
You're showing your honesty in the wrong place.
Even if you didn't say it... but...
What are you doing?
I'm sketching. It's practice for drawing.
Can you draw manga?
Manga, eh. You can't draw a manga if you don't have a story.
Story? Should I try to think of one?
You?
Yeah. I like to do that.
Okay.
Onii-chan, I just bought this month's issue. Let's read it together.
The protagonist will definitely... and then...
Hey, Onii-chan. Shiori or Shimiko, which one do you like?
Hmm, let's see...
This is hard.
Let me take a look.
Ah, please don't read it yet. It's embarrassing.
Eh, what's wrong about that? Show me.
No.
Onii-chan, let's go to the beach.
But I made a promise to Chihiro that we would draw manga together.
Chihiro has something to do today, so... please?
Onee-chan. Onii-chan.
It's all my fault.
Kei...
Because I... stole a march on her.
I don't have the right to tell him my feelings.
Are you making excuses for yourself?
You have always been treading the same ground.
You want someone to grab your hand and take you somewhere one day.
Hello.
Ah, is this Kei? I need to talk to you about something.
It's not something we can discuss on the phone. Can we meet?
Yeah, that's fine.
Excuse me for disturbing you.
Come over and play again anytime.
Yes. Thank you very much.
Chihiro, see you tomorrow.
Yes, see you tomorrow.
Excuse me...
What is it?
Have we met before?
Many times.
Since I'm Himura's friend.
So I know everything about you.
As I thought. I'm sorry.
Nah, don't worry about it.
Oh yeah. I'll teach you a song.
A song?
Iku yamakawa koesari yukaba sabishisa no, hatenamu kuni zo kyou mo tabi yuku.
It's written by Wakayama Bokusui.
What does it mean?
"How many mountains and rivers must I cross to reach the country where there's no loneliness?"
"Even though I know no such country actually exists, I too set out on a new journey today."
It's a cheerful song, even though it mentions loneliness.
I learned this song from Himura.
I bet he learned it by heart a long time ago for someone's sake.
Welcome back.
I'm back.
Did you have fun?
Yes.
Really? I'm glad to hear it.
Oh, sorry I asked you over so late.
Hmm, did someone come over?
Hmm, yeah. Anyway, come in.
Yo. Good evening.
Ah, you're the one this morning...
Tsutsumi Kyosuke. You know him, right?
He's in the same class as me, and he's a member of the film research club.
Now I'm an ex-member of the film research club.
He's got something to discuss with you.
With me?
Yeah. Actually...
I want you to go out with me.
Heh?!
The furigana next to it says "Chihiro."
The first half of the story below can be found in the opening animation.
"The girl is the only one in the world."
"That made her the god of this world."
"She found herself on an island when she began to understand things around her."
"The island was small, and one could go around it in half a day by foot."
"All she could see at the beach the ocean, the sky,
clouds and the horizon stretching as far as she could see in a 360-degree view."
"There was a mansion on the island."
"There were a huge amount of preserved foods and daily necessities inside the warehouse of the castle,
so she did not have to starve."
"There were tons of books which she couldn't finish reading, even if she spent her whole life."
"They contained everything in this world."
"The stories written in the books were all about people."
"People cannot live alone."
"There were many books with that written in them."
"However, the girl was alone."
"She lived by herself."
"Laughing, crying, things that were previously of value, none of them were needed."
"They were finished. They were completed."
"The girl was the first 'average' person in human history."
"The average of the statistics is exactly the same as the sum of herself."
"That's why everything she does is correct."
"And at the same time, everything could be wrong."
Sheep...
The area of the circle is the square of the length of the chain times 3.14.
The length of the chain is twelve years old.
It has always been the same length since the accident four years ago.
The stretchable length of the arm is thirteen hours.
That's everything of me right now.
Both anxiety and fear will be washed away by the rain of time.
Next episode, ef - a tale of memories:
Rain.
Do you have memories you don't want to forget?