| "To me, he was like a fairy godmother from fairy tales." |
| I used to like my name a lot when I was little. It is such a delicate name, like the name of the heroine in shoujo mangas. I thought it’s a name that perfectly suited me, loving romantic fairy tales ever since I could remember. However, at some point, people began to make fun of my name and preference. |
| "Why are you so girly, Kasumi?" |
| "Huh…?" |
| "You read books and manga for girls. It's weird." |
| "It's up to him if he reads that kind of thing." |
| "What the hell, Yuzo?" |
| "Quit griping." |
| "Thanks, Yuzo." |
| "But I also think that Kasumi-kun is a little girly." |
| "See~!" |
| "I think you should be more manly." |
| With the person that I secretly liked back then also saying such a thing, I started hiding my hobbies. |
| Hoping to be manly like Yuzo, I joined the basketball club back in high school. However, athletic clubs were just not suitable for someone clumsy like me. Furthermore, a lot of the club members made fun of me just because of my appearance and name. In the end, I quit. |
| The name that I once liked a lot became my biggest complex. |
| I didn’t join any clubs after that. Instead, I spent my days reading shoujo manga and watching dramas without telling anyone. Still, the frustration I had felt for not being able to be open about what I liked remained deep in my heart. |
| During that time, Yuzo invited me to watch the theater club's play at our first cultural festival in high school. When I went to watch their rehearsal, I saw Yukio-san giving out instructions with a serious look on his face. I knew him since he had always been famous for being a clumsy senior. I felt like he and I were similar in many ways. |
| However, Yukio-san looked really cool when he was directing. Moreover, the actor who was receiving his instruction, Reni-san, was elegant and beautiful. They were wonderful. What happened on the stage was like a world inside a dream. It was sparkling, like fairytale and shoujo manga stories. It didn't seem like reality. |
| Becoming a fan of Yukio-san and Reni-san at once, I got involved in producing the play at the cultural festival the following year. This led me to end up becoming a big fan of theater and Yukio-san. |
| I wasn't able to contain myself when I heard that Yukio-san and Reni-san established a theater troupe. Thus, I went to the audition venue. I was planning to help out behind the scenes, but for some reason I was given a task for an aspiring actor. |
| For my task, there was a line for a romantic heroine character that made my heart flutter. I tried to do my best since I had already gone all the way there, but in the end, all I could offer them was a terrible performance. |
| I was convinced that I'd be rejected, but I somehow got accepted. Furthermore, Yukio-san gave me a female role. I wondered how that person knew the desire inside my heart. It truly made me think that he might be a wizard. |
| There was pressure in taking the role of such a critical character like the heroine, but this might be my last chance in life to be the heroine that I secretly longed to be. |
| With that thought in mind, I frantically worked hard during rehearsals. In the end, all of my co-stars could feel and acknowledge my feelings. |
| "Nice work on the final show, Kasumi. How was it?" |
| "It was so much fun that I didn't realize it was already time to wrap the show…" |
| "You tripped over your costume, though." |
| "I, I apologize for that…" |
| "No, it's fine. I could see that you really had fun on the stage." |
| "...But I'm anxious." |
| "Anxious?" |
| "I caused everyone a lot of trouble during rehearsals." |
| "Hahaha. I've gotta admit your acting was extremely awkward." |
| "I'm sorry… Just as I thought, I was just here to make up the numbers. If a more skillful person joins this troupe, I'll… B-But even if I'm not an actor, I'll continue to support this theater troupe as backstage staff! I'll work hard so that this wonderful troupe will be known to many people!" |
| "Hmm, that'll be a problem." |
| "Huh…" |
| "I'm thinking of making you the Spring Troupe leader." |
| "Whaat!? L-Leader!? B-But among all of us, my acting sucks the most." |
| "At the beginning, I thought you have a beautiful name." |
| "Huh…" |
| "There's a flower called baby's breath, right? The small lovely flowers that you usually arrange alongside the main flowers when making a bouquet. I got reminded of that flower when looking at you, Kasumi. You have the gentleness and elegance of a baby's breath. Plus, I feel like you can be considerate of our early members who are all full of talents." |
| "Me…" |
| "Besides, baby's breath means 'everlasting love' in the west." |
| "Everlasting love, huh…" |
| "I have a feeling people will come to love our theater troupe if Kasumi continues to be by our side. That's why I'm entrusting you to be the leader." |
| "I'm sure… I'll always be by this theater troupe's side." |
| "Thanks! Oh, right. I've actually been considering making the Spring Troupe a unit whose plays focus on your favorite romantic tales, Kasumi. How's that sound?" |
| "Huuuh!? Is-Is it really okay!?" |
| Being the leader of the Spring Troupe which focuses on romantic plays felt like a dream to me. Yukio-san, who suddenly appeared in front of me, made the dream that I had always kept a secret, come true easily. |
| |
| Sakuya | I also tripped over a lot during my first play! |
| Kasumi | What!? Seriously!? |
| Sakuya | What a coincidence! |
| Kasumi | Hahaha, I know, right. This might be the Spring Troupe leaders' thing. |
| Sakuya | I remember that day like it had only happened yesterday, but… Several years have actually passed since then. |
| Kasumi | Me too. I remember it all. |
| During the opening show, I waited backstage with bated breath for my turn to make my first appearance. |
| I desperately tried to keep myself from falling as I walked under the lighting. |
| When I looked up, I found that all eyes were on me… |
| I remember it like it was only yesterday, but a long time has passed since then… For some reason, I’m fond of such contradictions. |
| Sakuya | It's a pleasant memory, right. |
| Kasumi | Yep. It was a really pleasant, dream-like time. |
| Sakuya | In that case, why did you stop performing? |
| Kasumi | ...I've always had a complex. |
| When it came to acting, I was not only far more inferior than the other leaders, but also the other members. |
| I continued to do my best thanks to everyone's support, but I kept getting nervous until we received Hakkaku-san's new script. |
| I could only breathe a sigh of relief when I got casted, thinking that I could still be in this theater troupe. |
| It went on and on. I got scared every time we wrapped up a show. |
| Will this be my last play? Will I not get any roles next? Will I have nowhere to go? I kept thinking about such things. |
| I got especially scared when everyone in the troupe got excited over our Fleur Award nomination. |
| Since I was getting older, the number of female roles that I could do were gradually decreasing. |
| I felt like that one kid who caused the entire class to fail at breaking records in group jump rope. |
| I had no idea what to do when Yukio-san disappeared, and thus I was the first one to bring up the whole talk about leaving the troupe. |
| Sakuya | … |
| Kasumi | After that, Yuzo, Zen-san, and even Syu-san decided to leave the troupe. |
| They all had their own reasons, but it was because someone as faint-hearted as me initiated that kind of talk that the troupe fell into such a state. I deeply regretted it. |
| I promised Yukio-san to always be by the troupe's side, and yet… |
| I also said that I'd support MANKAI Company in my own way when I quit, but in the end, I was scared to face it… |
| Everlasting love… I was supposed to believe in that at the time… |
| The time that I spent with my friends back then felt like an eternity, but I couldn't stop time. |
| Just like how bloomed flowers are falling, our youth is disappearing. Even our bonds are fading. |
| One can also realize their limit when their potential meets a dead end. |
| Despite knowing that, I ended up making such an irresponsible promise to Yukio-san. |
| I couldn't forgive myself no matter what. That is why I no longer deserve to stand on this theater's stage again. |
| Sakuya | ...Despite that, you felt like that moment was eternal, didn't you? |
| You met friends that made you want to believe in eternity. Don't you think that's the most important thing here? |
| Plus, it's not something that happens often. It's such an amazing thing that can't be replaced by anything! |
| I've also come to realize something after performing a lot of plays in this theater troupe. |
| Time flies when we're having fun. The plays that I perform alongside everyone will eventually wrap up when the final show comes around. The story will come to an end. |
| Even though the curtain has closed, the lives of the characters that we have played still remain in our hearts. |
| The Show Must Go On… |
| Kasumi | --. |
| Sakuya | I believe there's a story that remains in our hearts like an endless dream, even when the curtain has gone down. |
| I'm sure you also have an endless story that lives on forever in your heart. |
 |
| Kasumi | … |
| ...You're right. I’ll never be able to forget it. I feel like that story still continues inside my heart even now. |
| --. |
| Sakuya | Kasumi-san? |
| Kasumi | Hehe. For some reason, I want to meet them all right now. |
| Sakuya | They're all waiting for you, Kasumi-san. Yuzo-san told us that. He said, that role belongs to you. |
| Kasumi | But still, it's been a long time since I last acted. I feel like I'm going to hold back the others from making the play a success… |
| Sakuya | I think it's fine if you hold them back a little bit. |
| Back during our debut show, I also held everyone back. I felt inferior. |
| Even so, I want to keep spending my days here in this place where I can stand with everyone. I really can't give it away. Therefore, I worked my butt off. |
| I'm glad that I could be honest with my own feelings. |
| Kasumi | ...You're right. We need to be honest with ourselves… |
| Sakuya | Kasumi-san, do you want to perform with your friends again? |
| Kasumi | --Yea. I want to do it. |
| I want to put all of it aside… the fact that I'm getting old, the fact that I had awkwardly parted ways with the others, and the fact that I broke my promise to Yukio-san… |
| I just want to perform with them all once more. |
| I want to take the stage at my beloved theater once more. |
| Then, from now on, I want to stay close to MANKAI Company with confidence. |
| Sakuya | Kasumi-san… |
| Kasumi | It's all thanks to you that I’ve finally gained the courage to join the play. |
| Sakuya | Seriously!? |
| Yeaaay!! I'm so happy! I can't wait to see your performance!! |
| Kasumi | I wanna see your play too, Sakuya-kun. |
| I should have watched the newborn MANKAI Company's plays earlier. What a waste. |
| Sakuya | In that case, do make sure to watch the next play I'm in! |
| Kasumi | For sure. I've already decided to stan Sakuya-kun, after all. |
| Sakuya | Ahaha, thank you! |
