| Azuma | My parents’ car apparently crashed into an oncoming car and got thrown off a cliff. |
| My parents’ bodies were found, but my brother’s body is still missing… |
| I know that it’s hopeless, but no matter what I still couldn’t give up; I grew my hair and prayed that he would return home someday. |
| …If only I had said “Don’t go” instead of “Have a safe trip.” I regretted that again and again. |
| Even though there’s no point in mulling about it now. |
| Izumi | Azuma-san… |
| Azuma | Since then, I had always lived by myself. When I sleep at night, I get bad dreams about the accident, so I’m afraid of facing the morning alone… |
| That’s why I started accompanying people to sleep. |
| I joined the theater company for a similar reason at first. |
| Perhaps even now, I keep doing theater because I still don’t want to be alone. |
| …When I think about that, I feel guilty towards Tasuku who’s always throwing himself head-on into acting, and towards the Director who entrusted the lead role to me… |
| I thought that if I returned to being by myself again, then I might be able play the role of Reo, who embraces solitude. |
| Tasuku | Is that why you’ve been going here every day…? |
| Azuma | That’s right. |
| …Ahh. I honestly didn’t mean to show all of you this weak and pathetic side of me. |
| But Tasuku was unusually making a lot of effort, so I don’t care about the embarrassment anymore. |
| Tasuku | The embarrassment is mutual. |
| Azuma | That’s right. |
| I, and the rest of the Winter Troupe – we’re all adults, so we know how to keep a comfortable distance with other people. |
| That’s why we never pried more than necessary. |
| But I created distance under the pretense of being ‘considerate,’ and in the end I was also protecting myself. |
| If we don’t pry, then we can get through without hurting each other. |
| That kind of relationship was reassuring— but perhaps also a little lonely. |
| Homare | … |
| Hisoka | … |
| Azuma | Things are still how they were during our debut performance. We haven’t taken a step forward from our past and our regrets. |
| Tasuku | ―― |
| Azuma | There’s no need to force yourself to talk, and it’s okay to forget and blame it on the alcohol. But just for tonight, why don’t we try and lay ourselves bare for the things we haven’t talked about? |
| In order for us to move forward, even just a bit. |
| Tsumugi | …I think that’s a good idea. I want to know more about everyone, and I want you all to know too. |
| Homare | Why not? It’s something essential for all of us. |
| Hisoka | …Okay. |
| Tasuku | Should we prepare some drinks? |
| Tsumugi | There might be some things that are hard to talk about when sober. |
| Izumi | We’re pulling an all-nighter tonight then! |
| Homare | An all-nighter, huh. How exciting. |
| Hisoka | …You’d probably be the first to fall asleep after saying that.[1] |
| |
| Tasuku | …So, what do we talk about? |
| Tsumugi | If we’re talking about pasts, you’re the one who hasn’t talked about it yet, right Tasuku? |
| Azuma | I already talked after all. |
| Tasuku | Me, huh… |
| Homare | For example, how did your relationship with Tsumugi-kun turn so sour back during our debut? |
| Azuma | I’m certainly curious about that. |
| Tasuku | …When Tsumugi and I auditioned for GOD-za, I was the only one who passed. |
| Tsumugi felt down, but I couldn’t say anything to him. And before I knew it we lost touch. |
| And then after that, I heard that Tsumugi quit theater; I was shocked, and somewhere deep inside I also felt like I was betrayed… |
| But at the same time I was angry at myself for not being able to do anything. |
| Azuma | That’s just like you. |
| Tasuku | When we met again, it felt like his excessive use of “someone like me” with a pessimistic attitude negated the Tsumugi from the past who had worked himself to the bone.[2] |
| Tsumugi | Tasuku… |
| Tasuku | There was something about acting and me that made you scared, and whenever I saw you like that my feelings became a jumbled mess… so I ended up adopting that attitude towards you. |
| Homare | To put it simply, you were sulking. |
| Azuma | I guess so. |
| Tasuku | ―― |
| Azuma | It must be hard for Tsumugi too, to have a childhood friend that’s not honest with his feelings. |
| Tsumugi | I devoted so much of myself into theater – I’m also in the wrong for giving up on it after just one failure. |
| And besides, he told me that he liked my acting. It balances out. |
| Izumi | Ohh— |
| Azuma | So he can be honest when it’s necessary. |
| Tasuku | You didn’t have to mention that. |
| Izumi | Now, now. Today is disclosure convention after all. |
| Tasuku | Then what about you, Director? |
| Izumi | What!? I’m not a Winter Troupe member so shouldn’t I be exempted? |
| Azuma | Of course not. |
| Izumi | N-no way…! |
| |
| Tasuku | There’s surprisingly a bunch of things we don’t know about each other yet. |
| Azuma | Yeah. There’s a lot of things we don’t dare talk about after all. |
| Izumi | That’s all the more reason why the Winter Troupe has a lot of unsaid stories. |
| Azuma | …It feels like the Spring Troupe are a family, the Summer Troupe are friends, and the Autumn Troupe are comrades. What about us? |
| Tsumugi | Erm… I feel like the Winter Troupe is neither of those things. |
| Tasuku | That’s true. Calling us friends or comrades doesn’t sound right. |
| Hisoka | …We’re something. |
| Homare | What do you mean by ‘something’? |
| Azuma | He probably means something that can’t be named. |
| Hisoka | …Yeah. |
| Tsumugi | If we’re comfortable with a relationship that can’t be named, then isn’t that fine? |
| Azuma | That’s right… |
| Homare | Hm, I’ve got it. Why don’t we temporarily call ourselves people who share the same destiny? |
| Tasuku | We already settled on something just now though. |
| Homare | Together in sickness and in health, in happiness and in sadness, in smiles and in tears: people bound together by a common destiny… Is that not wonderful! |
| Izumi | It’s kind of like marriage. |
| Hisoka | …That’s depressing. |
| Homare | What do you mean by depressing, hm? |
| Tasuku | Well, whatever you say. |
| Tsumugi | Whenever we’re not able to handle it alone, we can share and carry the burden of each other’s pain together… Something like that? |
| Azuma | Yeah. I’d like a relationship like that. |
| |
| Hisoka | …Zzz, zzz. |
| Homare | …*snore, snore* |
| Tsumugi | …Zzz, zzz. |
| Azuma | Everyone fell asleep. |
| Tasuku | Who said anything about an all-nighter… |
| Azuma | Why don’t we head to bed soon too? All-nighters are bad for the skin at this age. |
| Tasuku | Yeah… Come to think of it, in the end are you going to cut your hair? |
| Azuma | I might cut it. What do you think? |
| Tasuku | Well, short hair suits you just fine too. But when you wore a wig for our second play, you looked like a different person and it was a bit unsettling. |
| Azuma | …I see. |
| …Ah. |
| Tasuku | ? |
| Azuma | Look out the window. It’s morning. |
| Tasuku | It’s already this late, huh. We ended up pulling an all-nighter after all… *yawn* ‘M sleepy… |
| Azuma | … |
| Tasuku | Is something wrong? |
| Azuma | It just occurred to me that I had no idea the morning sun is this beautiful from up here. |
| Tasuku | The view from the top floor is really nice. |
| Azuma | But this is the last time I’ll be seeing this view. |
| Tasuku | Are you returning your key? |
| Azuma | Yeah. I don’t need it anymore. |
| Tasuku | …What’s that other key for? |
| Azuma | It’s the key to my parents’ home. I left that house when my family passed away, and I haven’t been back since. |
| I feel like going back will make me realize that I’m all alone, and that scares me. |
| Tasuku | … |
| Azuma | …Someday, if I ever get the courage to go there, will you come with me? Just kidding— |
| Tasuku | … |
| Azuma | He fell asleep. Hehe. He falls asleep during convenient times. |
| Tasuku | …Zzz, zzz. |
| Azuma | “Good night, and sweet dreams.” |
