Q10 Episode 3

Show, why are you so freakin’ adorable?! What can I say… I love this episode to the core!

Episode 3

Kyuuto, once again, stupefies everybody when she uncaringly enters the room full of half-naked guys. Yay!

Heita: Maybe there isn’t anything Kyuuto (Q10) dislikes… nothing that makes her hesitate… nothing so embarrassing that it makes her cry out without realizing it… nothing she wishes could be undone but can’t be…

It’s almost Culture Festival Day and everybody’s excited, well, not everybody. Heita hates that day. Not only becoz  all  male seniors are required to take part in the “Victory in Exams Invocation” (annual ritual said to bring luck for University Entrance  Exam), but mainly becoz the Festival reminds him of something he’d rather forget.

You see, it was during Festival Day when he broke young Shibata Kyouko‘s heart. Seeing some bullies on campus, Heita panicked and heartlessly shook off Kyouku’s hands. It may not be too big of a deal for some, but for someone who’s in love, it is!

Heita: The same wind never blows twice…Even though I’m not in love with Shibata Kyouko anymore, don’t even think about her…every time I see her, my breath catches in my throat. Even if I want to take it back… I remember that there are some things you can never get back…the hopelessness of that hurts. This feeling is something…Kyuuto probably doesn’t understand.

The girls are quite ecstatic seeing the boys shirtless for the upcoming ritual.  Tsk! Girls will be girls. And while they were busy establishing who’s got the nicest body, Kyuuto has only one thing in mind. Heita’s mark!

She gets all nosy and later finds out that Heita’s mark is actually a surgical scar.  After thorough analysis (or rather overanalysis!), she concludes that Heita hates the Festival Day becoz he doesn’t want people to see his scar.

Another Festival highlight is the “Miss Contest” (beauty pageant). The class agrees to choose Kawaii. But then, Kawaii isn’t really the confident type, so she takes it as a pun. She even got disappointed when Kageyama eagerly votes for her to join too.

Kageyama: Well, I mean… because you’re cute, Kawai-san. You really are pretty!

But his semi-love confession fell in deaf ears.

Thanks to Nakao’s ingenuity, Kyuuto finally finds a way to solve Heita’s “problem”.

Imagine Heita’s shock when Kyuuto appears like this. Of course, he’s terrified! Thinking that Nakao is also in trouble, he hurriedly and frantically runs to help!… Only to find out that it’s all special effects make-up. Haha! Heita is overwhelmed. Make-up! Why do they have to go to such lengths?

Well, Nakao thought that if they have scars that stand out more than Heita’s, then he would join the ritual and eventually pass the University Exams.

Meet THE Shibata Kyouko. Unlike Heita, she’s looking forward to the  Festival Day. She even volunteers as representative for the Miss Contest, hoping that if she wins she could patch things up with Heita.

Meet Fujino Tsukiko, the Mytery Girl. As of now, all we know about her is that she’s supposed to be a shut-in. And though she never came, somehow, she knows everything!

Heita and Kyuuto visit the shrine. Noticing that Heita threw in some coins, Kyuuto wonders if it’s alright to dispose money. Heita explains that it’s not “throwing” but “offering”. And so Kyuuto relays that Fujioka also threw 30,000 worth of money in the trash. And Heita goes WHAT???!!! Nobody throws away 30, 000 yen! That’s a lot of money.

Using her playback features, Kyuuto shows Heita what happened. It seems Fujioka is having 0money troubles. Kyuuto then decides to help him out by asking everyone to dispose some of their money.

By everyone she means, everybody she’ll meet from now on. And that starts from Heita. Haha!

Kawaii needs clothes for the contest and so she borrows some money from her brother. It’s all about money issues, eh? But then, all she gets are cruel insults.

Yamamoto overhears the conversation and offers some words of advice. Kawaii can’t possibly believe his brother. She’s not ugly like what her brother says. But Kawaii can’t take the complement. She wants to believe… but can’t.

Yamamoto: If you don’t say “that’s wrong”, the “wrong” things become the truth. Unless you say it as loud as you can.  After all, no one else will say it for you. Say it. Scream it. Say, “I am beautiful.” Who cares if people make fun of you? Say, “it isn’t true,” as loud as you can.

And so, if clothes are the only thing hindering Kawaii to join, then Yamamoto has a lot  of dresses to spare. With the gesture, Kawaii is slowly building up the confidence.

Kyuuto is definitely taking the “disposing-of-money-for-Fujioka’s-sake” seriously. In fact, she went home tattered and all worn-out.

It’s Culture Festival Day and everybody’s busy. But still, Kyuuto’s out in the streets, gathering some money. Guess, Kyuuto ain’t designed for long hours of “overwork” becoz she “overheats”! Thankfully, some random man helped her out.

Turns out, the “man” ain’t that random after all. Yay! It’s Heita’s dad! Lo and behold, he witnesses the mechanical thingy on her back.  He freaked out and faints!

For no apparent reasons, the clothes that should be used for the Miss Contest got wet. In the end, Kawaii can’t participate. She has no clothes and she’s ugly (or that’s what she believes).

Yamamoto: Are you going to believe your brother? Or are you going to believe in yourself? Who are you going to live your life believing in?

Kawaii: I want to believe in myself…

Kageyama listens from afar and it just broke his heart hearing Kawaii’s self-doubting words. 😦

Kageyama feels down and disappointed. He wants to help Kawaii, but his words just “don’t get through” and he “can’t give a hug”. It’s so frustrating.  Thankfully, Yanagi knows exactly what to do.

If the usual things don’t help, then “all that’s left is passion”. She then uses the camera lid as an example.

Yanagi: You see… Right here, you can feel this heat simmering, and soon… pop! The lid will come flying off. And it will land, clink, with the person you’re trying to reach.

Yamamoto: It’ll hit its target that easily?

Yanagi: Don’t think about aiming, just hope for its flying.

And so, instead of invoking luck for University Exams, Kageyama shouts that “Kawaii is beautiful”. Aw, that’s cute. Kawaii is a tad embarrassed watching him, but then the message get through, just like what Yanagi said.

And the message went along with the lid. Haha! And Kawaii returns it to Kageyama. Yay! Symbolism.

Kawaii rises above the insecurities and bravely steps on stage. It sure took a lot of convincing and invoking. Tehehehe. Love the lyrics of her song.

Every single person sets out on their journey alone.

Every single person looks back at the home they’ve left.

Feeling just a little bit lonely even if you turn and look back

All that will be there is the wind blowing.

Every single person stumbles in their lives.

Every single person, has their dream crushed and turns to look back.

Dry sycamore leaves dance on this winter road.

At the sound of the sycamore leaves falling I turn and look back.

Even if I hear “please, come home,” and turn back

All that there will be is the wind.

Backstage.

Kyouko: That day, if I had just smiled and said, “it’s fine,” after you shook me off your arm, do you think we’d still be together, even now? If I won the Miss Contest, I thought I might be able to get that back. “Of course we can get it back”. Will you say that for me? Even if it’s a lie.

Heita: If we started dating again, would that mean that we’d gone back and fixed things? I know that’s not what it would be. And you know that it wouldn’t be, right? “Getting something back” probably means being able to move on to the next thing.

This is what “closure” means. Painful but liberating at the same time. And just to even off the edges, Heita suggests that Kyuoko shake off his arm and never look back.  Now, they’re even.

If you think everything’s resolved. Think again! Turns out there’s this amulet that wards off evil spirit and anything other than a human touches it will suddenly vanish from this world. And when the Principal’s dog licked the amulet, it died! Heita freaks out. He gave one to Kyuuto. And suddenly, there’s a lightning bolt. Someone or something got hit! Could it be Kyuuto?!

Heita starts to scream and cry like crazy … and it’s creepy! Ahahaha. The classmates try to calm him down, but he’s way too absurd to the screaming and crying thing. Funny how Mystery Girl Tsukiko curiously stares at him. Don’t tell me she’s going to be the third wheel!

And out of nowhere, Kyuuto appears. Kyuuto: “Are you okay?” Haha!

All Heita could say is… “Give me a break!” Haha!

Heita then informs Fujioka about Kyuuto’s collected money. But then, he remains pessimistic. Fujioka: “Loose change like this isn’t going to change anything”.

Heita: But I don’t like it when people crush other people. You don’t like it either, right? Standing by silently… watching someone get crushed. You hate it, right?

Fujioka can’t believe his Nishi-senpai could do such a thing. But sadly, Nishi confirms everything. He picked the money and he’s going to crush Fujioka under his heels.

And since Heita was at school the whole time, he asked Yanagi to  go to the hospital and play with Kubo in his behalf.

Kubo: Heita hates endings. And because he’s afraid of endings… he’s not good at starting things.

Yanagi: Well, you can’t live that way, can you? Humans die, 100%. Everyone knows that. That’s why you live.

On the way home, Kyuuto met an accident. Oh my! A cutter fell on her arms! Nakao sees the whole thing and he’s in for the shock of a life time. The cut didn’t even hurt her.  There were no blood, no pain, no girly squeaks! Instead, electric currents flicker over the supposed wound!

Heita: The same wind will never blow twice. And in the midst of that…we live.

In conclusion:

Fujioka is moved by everyone’s effort. Along with the coins and bills were encouraging notes. Aw, people care after all.

Kawaii and Kageyama, at long last, had an understanding! Weee! Blossoming romance.

Heita: I had a dream. Kyuuto was human and I was a robot. When I asked why I wasn’t a human, Kyuuto came to my side and said this “Being human or not…that stuff doesn’t matter. Right now, you and I, Heita, we’re becoming human. Being worried for by others, worrying about others. We can do that. We are becoming people who others can love. Isn’t that enough?” Kyuuto’s words were so kind… even in my dream, I sobbed uncontrollably.