01x11 - The Former Couple Visits Relatives 'I Guess You Could Say She Loved to Laugh

[bunniefuu]

Summer break of my

second year in middle school.

I'd just had my first-ever date

at a summer festival days prior,

and I hadn't been able

to stop myself sighing since.

I love Irido-kun.

Irido Mizuto

Remind Me

Message

Decline

Accept

H-Hello?

Hey. Is now a good time?

Y-Yup! Absolutely!

I wasn't doing much anyway!

S-So, what's up?

D-Did you need something?

No, not really.

Oh, okay.

Yeah

I just felt like talking to you.

Huh?!

U-Um Me too.

I've been wanting to talk to you too.

Really? Perfect timing, then.

Y-Yeah, it is!

It must be pretty windy out, huh?

Oh Yeah.

Ayai?

Hmm?

Never mind.

Actually, my battery's getting pretty low.

Oh, I understand.

Can we talk some other time, Irido-kun?

Yeah, of course.

I'm sure I'll see you in the library

the day after tomorrow.

Okay. I can't wait.

Talk to you then.

Yeah.

Bye.

Bye-bye.

Why couldn't we talk

while his phone was charging?

My Stepmom's

Daughter Is

My Ex

The Former Couple Visits Relatives

"I Guess You Could Say She Loved to Laugh"

Welcome! It's nice to meet you.

I'm Irido Natsume.

N-Nice to meet you too!

I'm Irido Yuni.

Sorry for not introducing myself sooner.

No, no! The same goes for me.

Now then, you must be Yume-chan.

Yes, I'm Irido Yume.

Thank you for having us.

My, my! How polite!

What a nice young lady you are.

I trust you're getting along with Mizuto.

Y-Yes

They're practically closer

than we are, in fact.

It's true! Mizuto's been such a gentleman.

Right, Yume?

Hey, Mizuto-kun! It's been too long!

Long time no see, Madoka-san.

What a relief. I see you're

still a man of few words.

I wasn't sure what I'd do if you'd decided

to reinvent yourself as a high schooler.

High school isn't the time

to go reinventing yourself.

Wow, harsh.

Yuni-san, Yume-chan,

allow me to introduce you.

These are my uncle's grandchildren.

I guess that'd make them your

second cousins, Yume-chan.

Meet Tanesato Madoka-chan

and Tanesato Chikuma-kun.

I see what's going on here.

Um, is something the matter?

Not a thing.

Yup, yup

In just a little bit,

the whole family's going to be having

a welcome barbecue down by the river.

In our swimsuits, of course!

Are you both enjoying the food?

Yes, we are.

It's delicious.

I gotta say, you did a

fine job raising Mizuto-kun.

You really came through, Mineaki-kun.

It's really something.

Thank you very much.

Uncle Mineaki became a single father not

long after Mizuto-kun was born.

Apparently, Granny Natsume

helped out from time to time,

but it couldn't have been easy.

The whole family was worried

about him, you know?

Which is why How should I put it?

We want to welcome you and Yuni-san

with open arms, you could say.

I'm grateful.

It's clearer to me now than ever.

Mineaki-san remarrying was a testament

to overcoming a great hardship in his life.

Because of that, I have to

We have to protect this new

family of ours no matter what.

By the way, Yume-chan

You're so skinny! How is your waist so thin?!

I-I'm just not very muscular, that's all.

I'm so freaking jealous!

And that bikini's gorgeous!

Did you pick it out yourself?

Um Well, kinda.

Your boyfriend?

No, it's not like that.

I see, I see. Not there yet, huh?

Well not exactly.

Huh?

Wh-Wh-What?!

Do you mean what I think you mean?!

N-No way! Absolutely not!

That reaction makes it

even more suspicious!

I'm telling you the truth.

I feel a little left out, though.

He never seemed to want to open up to me.

Really? I had no idea.

It's true!

I've been watching over

him since kindergarten,

but I get the cold shoulder

whenever I try to talk to him.

Does that mean

Dad.

I'm done eating, so I'm heading back.

Sure. Thanks, kid.

Thanks? For what?

Later.

Huh?!

You're kidding! You're leaving already?

We haven't gotten in the water yet!

I'll pass!

Unbelievable! How can you come

to the river and not even swim?

At the very least, I'm not letting

Yume-chan get away!

What?

Off with you!

M-Madoka-san, sto—

All right!

Time to settle our tummies

with a little swimming!

Oh, Yume-chan.

Go get some rest once

you're done with those, okay?

Are you sure?

This lot isn't going to bed any time soon.

Duly noted.

Oh, could you let Mizuto-kun know

it's his turn in the bath?

He's probably in Great-Grandpa's study.

Oh, it's you. What's up?

It's your turn to take a bath.

That time already?

The Siberian Dancing Girl

You're not going to use a bookmark?

No need. I remember the whole story anyway.

Huh?

You won't find this book anywhere else, see.

The Siberian Dancing Girl

I reread it every time we come back here.

"The Siberian Dancing Girl"?

It's my great-granddad's autobiography.

Wow, his autobiography?

Wait

He published it himself.

Well, it was never sold or distributed,

so I guess it's just a hand-bound book.

Pretty weird hobby, huh?

I'd just started elementary school when

I first stumbled upon it in this study.

There's no author listed, so it struck

me as mysterious, you know?

I couldn't help but open it.

The Siberian Dancing Girl

I've read it every year since.

Is it really that interesting?

It was full of words I didn't know,

so it was largely impenetrable

to me at the time.

And yet, for whatever reason,

I read it through to the end.

The Siberian Dancing Girl

It was the first story that I

ever read all by myself.

The first story you read by yourself

The Siberian Internment.

After the w*r, he was held c*ptive in

the Soviet Union for three or four years.

This book is about his time there.

So who's the "dancing girl"?

Remember Mori Ogai?

Elise?

Exactly. He wrote about a

woman he met in Siberia,

just like Mori Ogai did in "The Dancing Girl."

Well, if you want to know the rest,

why not read it for yourself?

Huh?

Books are meant to be read, no?

If you're so inclined, how about it?

It's short, so it shouldn't take you long.

Are you sure?

You act like something bad's going to happen.

I'm gonna go take a bath now.

Hey.

Hmm?

Has anyone else ever read this?

I mean I really doubt it.

It was pretty tucked away

when I first found it.

Not Mineaki-san, Natsume-san,

The Siberian Dancing Girl

and not even Madoka-san have ever read this.

The book that shaped Irido Mizuto

Does he really not mind sharing it with me?

Oh no, what have I done?

I should dab that off

Alone in this study secluded

from the outside world,

as if to separate himself from its reach

He's been sequestered in

this room his entire life.

Make it to the end?

Yeah.

I see.

Your great-granddad was in love back then.

Say, do you mind if I ask

what your first love was like?

Huh?

I guess you could say she loved to laugh.

I see.

I knew it.

His first love had to be

Madoka-san after all.

My Stepmom's Daughter Is My Ex

We've got plenty to choose from,

so pick whichever suits your fancy!

Thanks, Granny!

What kind of yukata would you like, Yume-chan?

Hmm

You're thin, and your hair's nice and long,

so I bet you'd look good

in any traditional clothes.

I can't wait for the summer festival!

The weather's supposed to be good,

so the fireworks should be quite a sight.

Yume-chan?

Did something happen between

you and Mizuto-kun?

It's not about anything that he did.

I'm just in my own head

about how selfish I've been.

That's it. I finally understand.

He's his own living, breathing person.

He isn't some perfect manifestation

of my dreams or ideals.

He ostracized himself from others,

living in complete isolation before we met.

It's not crazy to think a boy like him

would've fallen for someone else before me.

Are you in love with Mizuto-kun?

I don't know

How do you define loving someone?

It's simple, isn't it?

Your heart races when you're near them.

And you find yourself daydreaming

about kissing them.

If that's your experience,

the diagnosis is clear, no?

But how is that any different from lust?

Whoa there, now someone's

asking the tough questions.

I-I'm sorry.

Listen

Aren't you constantly invalidating

your own emotions, Yume-chan?

Huh?

You're always looking for excuses to

justify not being with Mizuto-kun, right?

I'm looking for excuses not to be with him?

Now, now! Don't look so puzzled.

There's no need to think so hard on it.

Just take the opportunity to

start sorting out those feelings.

Y-You say that, but I have

no idea where to start.

No worries! Your cousin's got an idea!

I wonder what exactly she's planning.

Sorry! Something came up and I just

can't get out of it, you know?

It's not a problem.

Thanks a ton!

There should be a light bulb somewhere

in that chest of drawers over there,

so have a look for it

with Yume-chan, will you?

I'll leave you all alone

for about half an hour, 'kay?

Absolutely no one, not even Aunt Yuni and

Uncle Mineaki, will be by, you hear?

Th-That was dreadful.

I didn't realize Madoka-san

was such an atrocious liar.

What's up?

You have something you want

to tell me, don't you?

Why else would you have her arrange this?

I have no idea what to say first.

I scarcely know what my problem is,

let alone how to go about solving it.

After coming here

and getting to know my new relatives,

I feel like I'm finally part of the family.

Then in that old study,

The Siberian Dancing Girl

I discovered the book that

shaped the boy I know today.

And in doing so,

it made me realize how selfish I've been.

Getting the wrong idea and wasting

his time just like I am now

Getting mad at him, getting snarky,

and treating him unfairly

I'm lugging around feelings

I should have let go of long ago.

I get it now. I think I finally understand.

I know what's wrong with me,

how to fix it

and what I need to tell him right now.

It's not gonna make it all better.

It's going to feel like ripping off the scab

that's formed over my broken heart.

I'm sure it'll be painful.

Excruciating.

But even so, if I

If we're ever going to move on,

I need to face this

and finally accept the heartbreak

of my first relationship.

Irido-kun

Irido-kun Irido-kun

Irido-kun, you were my first love.

And yet

When you said you wanted to break up,

it felt like a weight was

lifted off my shoulders.

"It's finally over. I'm finally free."

"I no longer have to feel

hurt, sad, or alone anymore."

That's how I truly felt deep down.

But still

I never wanted us to break up.

I should have called you that summer.

And I should have bought you

something for Christmas.

I should have made you

chocolate for Valentine's.

And I should have told you I didn't want to

when you said we should break up.

There's just so much I

regret not doing, Irido-kun.

Irido-kun

Stop crying!

I'm the one who decided to cast aside

the one person who could wipe away my tears.

I don't deserve to

Ayai.

Just this once, let's go back in time, Ayai.

Irido-kun

Irido-kun Irido-kun!

Ayai

So, what was it that you

wanted to talk to me about?

Your first love.

Huh?

When I realized it must be Madoka-san,

it really bothered me for some reason.

I couldn't sit still.

You think Madoka-san was my first love?

Huh?

Sh-She wasn't?

I don't recall ever having feelings for her.

B-But yesterday, you said

Yesterday?

I thought you were acting strange after

asking me such a weird question.

So that's what got into your head?

You've got so much going for you on paper,

but you're a real mess under

the hood, you know that?

Your nose is running, by the way.

Huh?!

Just kidding.

What's so funny?

Just that you can be such a child, you know?

See? Didn't I tell you?

Huh?

My first love loved to laugh.