Look, Kaoru!
It's...
You changed me so much I don't remember what I was like before we met.
The breeze caresses our cheeks.
Lullaby of Birdland...
As we run down the slope,
our flimsy shadows extend.
It's like a neverending summer vacation.
It feels like when we snuck into the pool.
Yeah, let's swim with our clothes on. Jump in!
It's an intense spiral of temptation.
A beat pierces my heart. A strange one.
It vanishes after a quick spark.
Even on bad days, I dress up
and dance to some swing. The music quickly surrounds me.
What is this dance exactly? I can't stop it.
Don't leave me. It's stuck in my head, and I can't get it out.
The melody...
is like love.
Shop Closed Today
Richie!
What're you just standin' there for? Hey!
Ri'ko, how about openin' the door?
It's open.
What's with her?
Huh? Ritsuko?
Yurika!
I love the cakes here.
Do you come here often?
Yeah. This is Jun's family's shop.
Oh... I had no idea.
Um... Yurika.
If you'd like, why don't you come over to my place and watch them practice?
It's over. She hates me.
What's that, avant-garde?
Come on, Richie. Get your head on straight.
How we gonna have a session?
Everyone, Yurika is here!
Ri, didn't your dad tell you that outsiders aren't allowed down here?
Yurika's our friend, so I'm sure Dad won't mind.
Well, Yurika, enjoy.
O-Okay.
What's wrong, Kaoru?
I'm just going to get a little fresh air.
Ri...
Huh?
It's Richie.
You're Sentaro's sister... Sachiko, right?
Are you playing by yourself?
Yeah. All my friends are off at cram school.
I see.
Then how about we play together?
Really?
Huh?
It's not playing? That's strange.
That thing's a relic, so sometimes it gets ornery.
You just gotta work a little magic on it when it gets like that.
Wow, Jun. How'd that get it to work?
Beats me.
Hello, is this the Children's Telephone Counseling Office?
Oh, that's right.
You see, there's this boy named Hashiguchi who's always mean to me.
He hides my slippers, pulls my hair...
What do you think I should do?
Let's see.
You know, maybe that Hashiguchi actually likes you.
My guess is he wants to be friends with you,
but he doesn't know how to express his feelings,
so he acts out like that without really thinking about it.
He does not!
Recently, I made the girl that I really like cry too.
I want to apologize to her...
but even if I do, I don't think she'll forgive me.
I won't forgive you.
That was my first time.
It's no good. I can't stay mad at you.
Kaoru...
There's something I have to tell you.
Coincidentally, I've been going to the shop for a while.
I had no idea it was your family's.
Shirayuri
The coincidences keep on coming.
Even the name is similar.
Actually, there's someone that I like.
He's the only one I can think of right now.
I'm flattered by the way you feel about me.
I'm flattered, but...
I understand.
Sentaro.
H-Hi. What's wrong?
You seem kinda troubled.
Here, eat this an' cheer up.
Sentaro, what should I do?
I said something terrible to Kaoru.
He might not come back here again.
Thank you.
Sachiko.
Do you...
know who it is that Ri'ko li...
I'm sleepy!
I'm hungry!
N-Never mind!
School starts again today?
I-I can't ask.
It's impossible to talk about anything romantic in this house.
Richie! It's been too long!
Why didn't you come over for practice during winter vacation?
Oh, sorry.
Um... The teacher told me to give this to you.
Thanks.
Dad's finally come back,
but everything seems so bleak right now
that I can't bring myself to talk about anything.
Yo!
Sen—What are you doing out there?
Richie! Get outta the way!
Richie, put a jacket on!
We're gonna practice.
Forget it.
Ri'ko's lonely without you around.
Come on, all you gotta do is stop by the shop.
I'm not going back there again.
Do you really mean that?
Yeah.
Kaoru, got a minute?
I thought I heard a loud noise in here a minute ago.
Oh, really?
Never mind.
Actually, I wanted to give you this letter.
A letter?
It's from Shizu, our old housekeeper, remember?
Shizu? Oh, that takes me back.
She wrote about your mother.
We've had our problems over the years,
but it seems she happened to run into your mother in Tokyo.
She got your mother's address and insisted I pass it on to you.
We split up when you were little,
so you might not remember her very well.
But if you'd like to see her, then maybe you could go on your next break.
I know this is sudden and may leave you at a loss,
but whether you go or not is totally up to you.
Well, I'll let you get back to your studies.
Richie. You can take her some sweet rice treats as a souvenir.
I never said I was going.
You're not goin'?
I'm just not up to it right now.
You moron!
You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you pass up this chance!
Kaoru?
Crap!
What are you doing? I'm coming in!
Wait a second!
Kaoru, you're hiding something, aren't you?
No, not really...
Blue trains?
"Blue train" refers to the limited express trains from Asakaze
that have dedicated blue sleeper cars.
Did you know that the design of the front and back car are different
because they have to switch between being the lead car?
I didn't know.
Come to think of it, this is my first time traveling alone.
Is it like a trip to help me get over my heartache?
Hey! You're late, Richie.
Y'know, it's a good thing I asked Maruo to get me a ticket!
W-Wait a minute.
I felt like takin' a trip to Tokyo too, so I'm taggin' along!
I only went on this trip so I could be alone and think things over quietly.
Man, travel an' frozen tangerines go together like bread an' butter!
I do have one more tangerine.
Well, much obliged!
They taste better before they thaw.
Damn that Maruo.
By the way, how can you afford this?
Oh, I have money saved up from my part-time job.
And then I sold some old records.
You don't have nearly enough.
Well, if I can make it to Jun's place, I'm sure it'll work out.
What a thoughtless fool.
Here, this is yours, Richie.
Ri'ko said the food in the dining car would probably be expensive
so she made these for us.
Ain't you gonna eat it?
She's been worried about you.
Wh-What's with all these people?
Is there a festival? Or a New Year's sale?
Tokyo Station is always like this.
Why don't you go sightseeing around Tokyo?
I wanna see what your mom's like, so I'm comin' with you.
Blue Butterfly
Wh-What the heck? This is some workplace.
W-Wait, maybe I got the address wrong.
It's right.
Well, let's go in an' ask.
Wait a second!
I've changed my mind about meeting her.
Richie!
What are you talkin' about? You've come this far!
It's better if I don't see her.
Even if I did, I'm sure...
All right!
She said it's your mom's day off today.
Said she'd meet you here tomorrow afternoon.
So we'll come back then.
All right, I say we relax at Jun's place until then!
Do you two have business with Katsuragi Junichi?
Yes.
There's no point in waiting for him.
He's been missing since last month.
Missing?
Yeah.
Rumor has it he got in bad with some faction, and now he's in hiding.
It's possible that he's just shacking up with some girl, though.
Fukahori Yurika
That guy's popular with the college girls.
Yeah, that doesn't surprise me.
Right, Richie?
No, not surprised.
Have you two come all the way from Kyushu?
Well, let's make our guests from faraway Kyushu feel welcome!
With shochu and water...
Cheers!
Huh?
Water?
That's right! You wouldn't believe how stupid this guy is!
He's always in some kind of trouble!
When I'm with him, his stupidity rubs off on me!
Good for you. You're lucky to have such a good buddy.
Buddy? Not at all!
The best kind!
It's pretty rare to have a friend you can get goofy with.
Treasure him.
Unlike love affairs, friendship is for life.
Kaoru?
You're Kaoru, right?
Idiot! What are you standing around like a scarecrow for?
You'll catch a cold!
What are you doing? Hurry up and come in!
Wh-What is this?
I've never eaten curry this fancy before!
Go on. Don't be shy. Just eat!
Thank you!
Hot!
I like the way you shovel it in.
I've got a thing for men with a hearty appetite.
She's totally different from how I imagined her.
Hot!
What was that?
Mother and son in perfect unison!
Shut up!
Sorry. He has no manners.
Is he a friend from school?
Yeah. Or more like, we play music together.
He's a drummer, and I play the piano.
Piano?
Oh, you used to love it when your dad played the piano.
He would play, and I'd sing along.
Even if you were crying, you'd always stop and listen.
That's such a happy memory.
Oh, really? I don't remember at all.
Anyway, Dad never likes to talk about the past.
Of course he doesn't.
Who would want to talk about a washout of a mother like me?
Looks like the rain's stopped.
I'm gonna take a little stroll around Ginza.
I think he wanted to give us some time alone.
Better eat before it gets cold.
It's this curry.
It's spicier than usual.
Kaoru!
By the way, how's school?
Oh, it's okay.
Have your eyes on any girls?
Oh, did it not work out?
Mom, I'd rather not talk about that right now.
What, I'm right?
Wh-What's so funny?
Well, just the idea of the baby boy in my memory
who'd call me "Mama" and make gurgling noises... having a broken heart!
You're in the heyday of youth!
A broken heart! Not bad, not bad at all!
That's right! I'm lovelorn!
The more I laughed,
the more whatever had been building up inside me disappeared into thin air.
My mind emptied out.
Oh, there he is!
I thought you weren't gonna make it in time.
Mom, here!
For me?
It's a jazz record.
It's a song called "Lullaby of Birdland."
Listen and then try singing along to it.
I'll come back to visit you again,
so until then, I'd like you to practice that.
But this is in English, isn't it?
I don't know English at all.
It'll be fine. Just imitate what you hear.
Jazz sounds best when it's sung by a woman with a husky voice.
I'll come back for sure, so practice for me, Mom!
Kaoru... Um...
Thank you for coming to see me.
I thought... I'd probably never see you again.
That's what I told myself.
Why did my mom leave me behind?
Those words that I couldn't ask flew away somewhere with this scenery.
Mom's mouth formed the words, "I'm sorry."
I shook my head, but I'm not sure she saw it.
I'm back!
That was heavy.
Oh, Ri'ko!
Where were ya?
Welcome back, Ri.
I was waiting for you on that slope.
We made a promise to meet after school.
The goodbye blurred into the distance.
So weak, so twisted, so fragile
had I been back then,
but you gave me a small pair of wings.
I'm searching the sky beyond the twilight
for the faint flicker of light
because I want to tell you I love you.
I wrote a letter to you in my textbook margins,
but I could never give it to you.
It's still just there.