SUIKA

Motoko Hayakawa, a credit union employee trapped by society's pressures in her mid-30s, and Kizuna Kameyama, a manga artist in her late 20s who fears the burden of human relationships, meet at a boarding house. Alongside an ageless professor, an upbeat young landlady, and a woman fleeing after embezzling 300 million yen, they reevaluate their lives, grow, and take new steps forward. ©NIPPON TV

Motoko is shocked when a tabloid offers 50,000 yen for a photo of Mariko and realizes her album could be worth a fortune. After learning Umeko already sold one for cheap, she angrily leaves home. She confesses to Kizuna that she had been thinking the same greedy thoughts she despised in Umeko, breaking down in regret. Meanwhile, Kyoichi surprises Kizuna with a birthday cake. ©NIPPON TV

When asked what she wants as a housewarming gift, Motoko can't decide. Later, she's hurt after reading an article mocking her inability to break open her coin savings jar, calling her someone who can never move forward. Determined to change, she leaves the boarding house, realizes she's always valued money over meaning, and sets out to buy something that will finally change her life. ©NIPPON TV

After accidentally throwing away her work uniform, Motoko skips work for the first time and pretends to be sick. Meanwhile, Kizuna quits manga and starts a restaurant job, only to get fired immediately. A detective later encourages Motoko to find something that truly frees her. Meanwhile, Kizuna unknowingly decorates part of Motoko's discarded uniform with embroidery and beads. ©NIPPON TV

When it's revealed that Kizuna's father is wealthy, the boarding house erupts in excitement. Motoko writes a company newsletter profile about Kizuna but fills it with idealized lies, upsetting her. At the same time, after accidentally breaking a customer's ceramic doll at work, Motoko becomes obsessed with finding an identical replacement, feeling a simple apology isn't enough. ©NIPPON TV

During Obon, Kizuna learns her late twin sister once planned to run away for love, realizing she too had wanted freedom. Meanwhile, Natsuko reflects on a promise from a lover 30 years earlier who said he would return for her someday. At the same time, Motoko receives a call from fugitive Mariko and waits all night at a café, believing Mariko wants to see her again. ©NIPPON TV