| "That person is totally like a seller in a home shopping channel." |
| Growing up, my mother, who was a Russian ballerina, taught me that a gentleman should always act gracefully and be strong. Thus, I had been learning both ballet and martial arts since childhood. |
| My Japanese father was also tall and blessed with good physique. I happened to have two extreme talents on hand. |
| Especially when I was learning physical expression in ballet, I was charmed by the world of performing arts that could draw the spectators in. However, there was a huge prejudice against men learning ballet at that time, so I kept it a secret from others. |
| During the time when people often picked fights with me due to my exceptional appearance, I developed a talent in martial arts. |
| Before I knew it, I was surrounded by underlings and spent my days fighting. Even though I was scolded by my parents, for the sake of the people who I could call friends for the first time, I reluctantly continued to fight over and over again. |
| It shouldn't be bothering me at all if it was to protect the precious bond between me and my friends. However, on that day--. |
| "Zen-san does ballet." |
| "Hey, don't make me laugh." |
| "No, I’m tellin' the truth! He goes to the same class as my sister!" |
| "You mean that kinda guy who wears frills and dances? No way." |
| "The men are wearin' super tight pants, y'kno." |
| "Pfft. I feel like I'm gonna laugh if I see his face the next time we meet." |
| "Don't ever tell him I was the one who spilled this. He'll kill me." |
| "Fine, I got it." |
| I was the only one who thought of them as friends. Knowing that, I stopped fighting and drove myself away from my circle. I wasn't even interested in continuing ballet in earnest. I quit once I graduated high school. |
| I left my parents' home after that. Not having anything I wanted to do, I made use of the skills I had and started working part-time as a dancer. Although it was some sort of a return to the world of performing arts that I was fascinated by, I just couldn't forget the friends who ridiculed me and was unable to dance like before. |
| But then, when I continued to spend days not knowing what to do as I couldn't find anything that I'd like to throw myself into, I met Yukio Tachibana, one of the part-timers at a show pub I worked in. |
| Generally speaking, Yukio couldn't do his job as a handyman properly. He was often scolded by not only the shop owner, but also the customers. But strangely enough, you just couldn't bring yourself to dislike him. |
| One day, after I didn't tell the owner about how Yukio forgot to clean the dancer's costume, he started to grow overly attached to me. |
| "Ah! Zen-san! Good work for today." |
| "Right back at you." |
| "Zen-san, looks like we won't have any meals today. The kitchen granny isn't here." |
| "Aah, I've eaten." |
| "How nice…" |
| "Why don't you buy some?" |
| "Money is tight this month…" |
| "Can't be helped, then." |
| Since he looked so pitiful, I made a simple fried rice in the kitchen. |
| "This is yum! You're a genius cook, Zen-san!" |
| "You're exaggerating." |
| Seeing him shocked, yet heartily eating the food I made, was not so bad. |
| "How can you make such delicious food like this?" |
| "I'm only cooking for myself when I get home. I naturally learned the know-hows that way." |
| "A chance to learn Zen-san's life that is veiled in mystery…!" |
| "You really like to exaggerate every single thing." |
| "What are you doing on your days off?" |
| "I wake up, make breakfast, clean… then I just watch the midnight home shopping channel and buy something." |
| "Home shopping channel!?" |
| "Is it really that surprising? It's just something that I do when I get home from part-time work, and it’s naturally become a habit of mine." |
| "Do you want to be a dancer in the future?" |
| "Nah… I just do this because things happened to turn out this way. I don't really feel like doing it." |
| Before I knew it, I found myself talking about my past that I don't usually tell others. |
| Yukio is the type of man who, without giving you any warning, would enter your heart whenever there's a gap. |
| "I thought I could recall the feelings I had in the past if I started dancing again, but… such things didn't happen." |
| "I see… To tell you the truth, there's a theater troupe that will suit Zen-san the best!" |
| "Hah?" |
| "A certain promising director has just established a new theater troupe and is currently looking for new members! You won't get a better deal like this anywhere else!" |
| "Moreover! Moreover! If you apply right now, we will give you the application ticket to be the manager of our newly-opened personal theater! With just one phone call, we'll hand you the key to this theater!" |
| "You can't just give it away." |
| "When I watched Zen-san dance for the first time, I was really sure that I could make good use of your physical expression in a play. You have such an overwhelming presence, and I was certain that you can do an act that attracts people." |
| "..." |
| "Plus, you give out this owner vibe. I feel like you're cut out to be the theater manager!" |
| "You're too easygoing." |
| "Don't you think you may find what you really wanna do if you try various things like that!? This is a fairly good deal in the long run! Don't miss it!" |
| He was just like the slick seller on the home shopping channel, with his pushy attitude and perfect level of suspiciousness, as well as how he tried to appeal to those who listened to him. |
| However, I didn't particularly have a lingering attachment to dance jobs, and nobody had ever invited me like this. I didn't have any reason to refuse. |
| "...I can't guarantee I can do it for a long time." |
| "Eeh~." |
| "But at the very least, I can help you out until you find a manager." |
| "That's more than enough!" |
| After that, I started acting as a complete amateur, and discovered a bond that I could call true friendship in the theater troupe. |
| However, I had a very hard time after the MANKAI dorm was built. |
| Per Yukio's request, we set up a fine kitchen in the dorm. But other than me, there was basically no one in the troupe who could cook. Inevitably, I was in charge of cooking. |
| Yukio liked stew and was strangely fussy about it. As I tried to make a satisfying stew over and over again, my cooking got to the level of a professional. It was quite hard to prepare meals in an all-male household three times a day, but seeing how the others enjoyed my food as much as Yukio, it didn't bother me at all. |
| Before I knew it, the happy looks of those who ate my food and the impressed looks of those who watched my performance became irreplaceable to me after I joined this theater company. |
| Then, naturally, I could see myself opening a dinner theater in the future. |
| However, I felt too comfortable in MANKAI Company to the point where I turned away from my dream on purpose. During that time, Yukio brought a helpless young man to the troupe. He didn't seem to be an actor candidate and was just as clumsy as Yukio. |
| "Who's this guy?" |
| "Looks like this guy originally went to a high school of music, but he couldn't go to college due to his family's circumstances nor look for a job. He seemed desperate so I brought him." |
| "Brought him, you say…? He's not a cat." |
| "He could be in charge of the production and audio in the theater troupe, as well as a candidate for second-gen manager. He can do a lot of things. I think this is a pretty good deal." |
| Just when I thought about how he resembled a suspicious seller again, Yukio stared at me. |
| "...If you ever feel like having someone succeed your spot as the manager, he can take over." |
| "The hell is that?" |
| I was kind of shocked, but his tone at the time bothered me for some reason. It was as if he wasn't a part of the future. |
| "You're not getting caught in some dangerous things, are you?" |
| "Huh? I'm not." |
| "Tell me if anything happens." |
| "Yep." |
| Even though he nodded, Yukio suddenly disappeared after some time passed. Then, after that, the troupe members started leaving one by one. |
| Kasumi, who started all of this, said that he wanted to launch a theater magazine in order to support the troupe in a different way. Meanwhile, Yuzo wanted to work as a director. Each of us found a new path. Seeing them like that, I could not turn away from my new dream. |
| In the end, I told them that I wanted to open a dinner theater where my customers could watch a play, and left the troupe. |
| Starting from scratch was quite a strenuous task, but I somehow managed to gather staff and was ready to open my restaurant. Then, suddenly, Hakkaku-san came to my empty store that had just opened. |
| From what I know, after Hakkaku-san finished writing the script for our canceled play before Yukio's disappearance, he didn't show any sign of writing any new works. |
| Even though I was concerned, he had come in as a customer, so without a word I served him with our star menu, stew. Not staying for too long, Hakkaku-san quietly ate the stew and got up from his seat. |
| Hakkaku-san was about to pay me for the stew, but I told him I couldn't accept it. So instead of money, he gave me an envelope with the word "twist" written on it. |
| |
| Banri | … |
| Zen | Hm? |
| Banri | Ah--. |
| Zen | You're here, huh. |
| Banri | I was told to come, so I stopped by the neighborhood. But looks like you're closed today, huh. I'll just come back later. |
| Zen | Don't worry about that, just eat. I'll open the store. |
| |
| Sit wherever you like. |
| Banri | But the chef ain't here… |
| Zen | I'll make it. Besides, I'm also planning out a new menu. |
| Banri | Heh… |
| Zen | What's your order? There are some that I can't make today, though. |
| Banri | Do you have any recommendations? |
| Zen | It's stew. |
| But I don't have the ingredients for that today, and it takes time to prepare it. If you want that, come again next time with that one guy who has a menacing look. |
| Banri | It ain't like I always hang out with that guy. |
| Zen | If you don't have any orders, I'll make whatever I want. |
| Banri | 'Kay. |
| |
| Zen | Who's in charge of cooking at the dorm now? |
| Banri | Director-chan, Spring Troupe's Tsuzuru, and Autumn Troupe's Omi always take turns. |
| Zen | Things are easier if you have three people. |
| Banri | … |
| Zen | … |
| Banri | ...Why did you quit the troupe? |
| Zen | ...It's inevitable. |
| Yukio's disappearance played a big part in it, but each of us eventually found a new path apart from continuing acting at the troupe. |
| There are many of us who, just like me, decided to move away from acting… I lost contact with most of our members and was only able to meet some for the first time in a while after Yuzo invited us. |
| Banri | But y'all had always been together, right? Have you ever thought something like, "I want to perform with them again one more time"? |
| Zen | In our long lives, our paths merely crossed for a moment. The bond between us will fade over time. |
| Banri | How old are you, Zen-san? |
| Zen | 50. |
| Banri | Hmm… so you're 30 years older than me. |
| Let's say that someone caught a fragment of a real bond. Even if they become a boomer, the value of that fragment won't change. It won't fade. |
| That's what I believe. |
| But well, only if your bond is a real bond, that is. |
| Zen | Stop treating me like an old man. |
| Banri | It's not like I can help it, y'know? You're older than my dad. |
| Zen | Hmph… you have a point. Bring your friends here next time. |
| I'll teach that Omi guy how to make the first-gen's dorm stew. |
| |
| Misumi | We're back! |
| Itaru | Welcome home. |
| Tenma | I wanna practice as soon as possible. |
| Kazunari | I wonder how far Tsuzuroon has progressed with the script~. |
| Muku | Isn't it about time he's done with the plot? |
| Kumon | I wanna read it fast! |
| Sakuya | Ah, um… |
| Citron | Sssh! It's a bamboo subject! |
| Masumi | Taboo. |
| Izumi | ...Huh? |
| Chikage | He hasn't written even a word. |
| Izumi | Eeeh!? |
