01x03 - Kiiroi Shiori

[bunniefuu]

THANK YOU FOR YOUR PURCHASE

What's up?

Looks like this machine is
out of my usual milk tea.

BRAZILIAN COFFEE

I see.

She memorized the button's
position to buy it,

but now that trick won't work.

Then want to try something else?

Coffee or juice?
I'll press the button for you.

Hmm, I guess so.

Here goes!

Huh? Are you sure?

Yes.

It's fun to try something like this
once in a while, isn't it?

Even if she says that,

it never would've occurred
to me to close my eyes

and buy a drink at random.

LOVE UNSEEN BENEATH THE CLEAR NIGHT SKY

Whenever we had free time after class,

it became a habit for Fuyutsuki
and me to k*ll time on the terrace.

She even texted me yesterday,

asking, "Would you like to have
some tea on the terrace?"

That had made it hard
to turn her down.

Sorry to keep you waiting...

What's wrong?

I have a bad feeling about this.

What's the matter?

I can't drink carbonated drinks.

They make my throat feel burnt.

Then maybe you shouldn't
have played drink roulette.

Kakeru, I'm sorry.
Would you mind drinking it for me?

I don't mind it.

Is it really okay for me to drink this?

If I start thinking about it,
I feel like I lose.

But pretending not to notice
also feels like losing.

I'm sorry.

Guess I have no choice.

Oh, there they are.

Koharu!

Yuko.

Good morning!
- Why's Narumi here too?

Good morning.
- Why's Narumi here too?

I just happened to run into Hayase.
Since we don't have any more classes today,

we were talking about
going somewhere together.

Right?

Yeah.

That sounds great.

Then how about we grab something to eat?

Ah!

What's wrong?

If you're up for it,
how about we go to karaoke?

Oh, you said you'd never
been before, right?

That's right. I've wanted to try it
at least once for a while now.

That sounds nice.
We can eat at karaoke too.

Let's go there!

I'm looking forward to it!

Which place is closest?

There's one in Monzen-Nakacho
that has rooms available...

Karaoke, huh...

Yuko, you're such a good singer!

If the first singer is this good,
it just raises the bar for the rest of us.

Kakeru, Yuko is an amazing singer,
isn't she?

Y-Yeah...

She's so close!
Way too close!

He's really good at singing too?!

Kakeru, what kind of songs do you sing?

Huh? I can go later.

You can go first.

How do you pick a song at karaoke?

Come to think of it,
how does Fuyutsuki pick songs?

Just tell me what you want to sing,
and I'll put it in for you.

Oh, right.
- Then...

Since we're all here,

someone else can just select it for her.
- Ah, I like that song too.

Koharu, do you like it as well?

Of course.
It's a song about fireworks.

She really loves fireworks, huh.

THERE'S SOMETHING I WANT YOU TO KNOW

Koharu, you're amazing!

Seriously, you surprised me!

Okay. Kakeru, you're next.

Knock 'em dead, Sorano!
- The pressure is so intense!

Sorano, what are you going to sing?
- I'm not bragging, but I'm a terrible singer.

No, I'm just plain bad at it.

After Fuyutsuki's incredible singing,
I'm guaranteed to k*ll the mood.

Um... I'll pass.

Kakeru, you can do it!

Oh, great.
I guess I'll just have to go for it...

I picked a song

THE DAYS WHEN I TELL YOU THAT I LOVE YOU
that seemed easy enough to sing,

but it turned out to be a love song...

IT FADES INTO THE NIGHT SKY
UNTIL IT DISAPPEARS

I slipped up!

Ugh... I'm really bad at singing.

Sorry for making you cheer me on!

I know this song too.

It was packed with cheesy lyrics

about "my precious" and "I love you,"
and I felt so embarrassed...

But seeing Fuyutsuki
laughing beside me,

I found myself actually enjoying singing.

That picture of two dolphins swimming
together as if they were playfully frolicking.

Kakeru.

Hmm?

I thought you'd wandered off somewhere.

I guess I went into my shell.

You're such a meanie.

According to Fuyutsuki, if I stayed silent
and withdrawn for a moment,

it seemed as though
I'd actually disappeared.

Apparently, I was quite unique
in the way I could erase my presence.

I never imagined we'd get to the point
where we could joke around like this.

Maybe we just click,
or maybe it's something else,

but talking with her
feels strangely comfortable.

It's the first time I've ever genuinely
enjoyed talking with a girl.

By the way,
what's that book you're always reading?

Oh?

This one?

Yeah, that.

The title's written right here, you know?

Come on, I can't read Braille.

It's The Diary of Anne Frank.

Oh, The Diary of Anne Frank, huh.

Huh?! Have you read it?

No, not at all.

What? What was with that reaction then?

Do you like it?

I do.

Seeing how she stayed strong
and never gave up

makes me want to keep going too.

And there's one passage I love so much

that I end up reading it
over and over again.

Is it hard to read Braille?

It took me quite a while at first,
but I'm used to it now.

These days audiobooks have
become more commonplace,

so I listen to those as well.

But running my fingers over the paper
myself has a charm of its own.

Oh, yeah?

Want to try reading Braille too, Kakeru?

Whoa.

That's not an answer.

Well, I'll think about it.

That's the kind of answer that means
you're never going to do it.

By the way, what's this?

Which one?

Oh, that's a bookmark I made.

What does it say?

I'd really like you to try
reading it yourself, Kakeru.

I'll decipher it when
I'm more in the mood.

And that's another
"I'm never going to do it."

You're so funny, Kakeru.

By the way, do you like fireworks?

You asked me that before.

Did I?

Speaking of fireworks...

My hometown's Shimonoseki.

Well, my family moved around a lot,
so it's just the last place we lived.

There's this festival called
the Kanmon Strait Fireworks Festival,

where they launch fireworks
on either side of the strait

in Shimonoseki and Mojiko in Fukuoka.

I went there with my parents
when I was a kid...

It was super crowded.

I was waiting for some heartwarming story,

but what kind of comment is that?

Seriously, the crowds were insane.

It's the second most crowded
fireworks festival in Japan.

That's so like you.

I'd love to go there someday.

It must be amazing,

with fireworks going off
one after another across the sea.

But it's so packed.

Isn't it nice how people
crowd together to watch fireworks?

Huh?

Everyone's looking up at the night sky.

They're laughing excitedly,
and you're surrounded by tons of people.

Isn't that what makes fireworks
so wonderful?

I was speechless.

I'd never thought of it that way before.

I wondered what kind of
world Fuyutsuki saw.

The world she sees without sight
must be completely different from mine.

She really is amazing.

You can make a Braille bookmark like this?

It's pretty easy if you have
the right kind of printer.

I can tell it's bumpy, but I wouldn't
have thought it was text.

It's amazing that she can read this.

I made this after becoming
a college student.

Have you ever made one of your own?

A bucket list.

A bucket list?

Winning the lottery,

staying home forever,
and spending my days reading books...

No, that's not really a bucket list.
That's just wishful thinking.

You never know when you're going to die.

Huh?

Sorry! That was a joke.
I'm just kidding!

Don't scare me like that...

Eh?

What's wrong?

I'm sorry.

Your bookmark got blown away
by the wind...

I'm really sorry.

I see.

It's okay.
I remember what was written on it anyway.

I'm really sorry...

Did you know...

...there's apparently
a Fireworks Research Club?

Huh?

Our university has a course for
training maritime navigators,

so there's a harbor on
campus called the Pond

NO TRESPASSING
so there's a harbor on campus called the Pond

that has some small boats anchored to it

According to Fuyutsuki, Hayase had
told her that beside the first boathouse

near the Pond was a prefabricated building
where the Fireworks Research Club met.

Because I felt guilty about
losing her Braille bookmark,

I couldn't bring myself to refuse
when she asked me to take her there.

I feel bad always asking Yuko for favors.

She's working at her part-time job
this morning, right?

Yes. She'll be busy at the café by now.

Yuko always comes back
smelling like coffee,

which somehow makes her
seem even more wonderful.

That does sound kinda cool.

I'd like to try having
a part-time job too.

This must be the place.

What's it like?

Well, uh,

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
a sight to behold.

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
That doesn't tell me anything.

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
It's basically a prefab shed

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
that looks like a storage building.

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
The door says "Fireworks Research Club,"

FIRE EXTINGUISHER
and there are a bunch

FIRE EXTINGUISHER
of iron tubes lying around outside,

FIRE EXTINGUISHER
ranging from about 20 cm tall

FIRE EXTINGUISHER
to almost knee-high.

FIREWORKS RESEARCH CLUB
The place feels like some kind of secret lair.

What now? Should I knock on the door?

Yes, please.

Looks like nobody's here.

Is that so?

Need something?

Um...

Are you a member
of the Fireworks Research Club?

I'm Yuichi Kotomugi,
the club president...

Though I'm the only member.

How can I help you?

KEEP AWAY FROM FIRE
We just came to take a look.

What about that girl? Is she blind?

Ah, yes.

You're interested in fireworks
even though you can't see?

Well, you don't need to see
them to enjoy fireworks.

Listening to them
is part of the fun too.

Does this club actually launch fireworks?

Why do you ask?

We noticed some fireworks being
launched from campus the other day,

so we were wondering if it was you.

The welcome party...

I do remember fireworks going up
from somewhere around the Pond.

I've always wanted to
launch fireworks myself.

Why don't you just watch them
with everyone else from a distance?

I'd prefer to experience
it up close, if I can.

Easier said than done...
Fireworks are dangerous.

If you can't see,
you could end up hurting yourself.

Those were probably
burn scars from fireworks.

Maybe he was trying to give us
a visual warning of the risks involved.

If Fuyutsuki could see, I'm sure it
would've gotten the message across.

But...

What's the matter?

Nah, it's nothing.

Please tell me.

Let's go, Fuyutsuki.

Did something happen back there?

What do you mean?

It went all quiet. So I thought he was trying
to tell me something with a gesture.

He showed us
the burn scars on his arm.

I see.

It's really sad when people
just give up on explaining things to you.

I remembered hearing that humans absorbed

about 80% of their
information through sight.

Eye contact, gestures, all that.

And if someone couldn't do that,
they'd often just give up trying.

I could understand why
that might be disheartening.

I don't want to give up.

That's it!

Let's do fireworks ourselves!

Absolutely not!

Huh? But don't you find this frustrating?

Not really.

Oh! I heard they have fireworks
stores in Asakusabashi!

Absolutely not!

Come on, just one more push!

What do you mean,
"one more push"?

You're a really nice guy, Kakeru.

Wait... Are you assuming
I'll take you there?

You lost my bookmark, remember?

Eh?

Please?

When do you want to go?

Tomorrow, huh...

I guess I'll pick out
what I'm going to wear.

KOHARU FUYUTSUKI
What?

What happened?

Did something come up for tomorrow?

That'd actually be a relief...
No, wait, I should be disappointed.

Hello, Sorano speaking.

Hello?

Ah, yes! It's me, Koharu Fuyutsuki!

I know. What's up?

Sorry. I just realized we hadn't decided on
a meeting place or time for tomorrow,

so I thought I'd give you a call.

Somehow... I'm really nervous.

Nervous? We talk all
the time at university.

Talking face-to-face and talking
on the phone feel completely different.

It's so embarrassing.

Just imagining Fuyutsuki blushing
on the other end of the line

made my own face feel hot.

Now you're making me embarrassed too.

Let's hurry up and decide
when and where to meet.

You're right! Let's do that!

Actually, I'll just come pick you up
in front of your apartment.

But then it won't feel
like a date, will it?

Huh? Tomorrow's a date?

Of course it is.

We're just going shopping
together, aren't we?

That's what a date is.

Then let's meet at 9 o'clock
by the foot of Aioi Bridge!

Got it.

Good night.

My ears felt hot.

It felt like Fuyutsuki's breath
was still lingering near my ear.

THE YELLOW BOOKMARK