KOTARO LIVES ALONE
Please allow me to introduce all of you
to my dear friend and neighbor, Sir Karino.
Uh, nice to meet you all.
Thanks for the invite, Karino!
I just had to open my big, stupid mouth.
Movies?
Yeah. I'm supposed to watch whatever's popular in theaters
to get some inspiration for my manga.
Well then, I have no choice.
Fear not.
I shall accompany you to the movie theaters as your guardian.
If you wanna go, just say so.
Nuh-uh! Lucky! I wanna go!
Would it be okay if our little ones tagged along too?
Uh…
Are we going to the Aeyon movie theater?
No. Just the one in the mall.
-This is gonna be the best day ever! -Aeyon! Aeyon!
I wanna go to the toy store!
Karino, hurry up! Let's go!
Calm down. Stop pushing!
Would you get off of me? We're gonna fall!
It's not a joke!
I'm not gonna make it. I'm already pooped.
TONOSAMAN THE MOVIE
Oh, oh, oh. Let's see this!
Huh?
Dinosaur Hunter 3D?
I heard things come flying at your face!
Like poop? I saw that in a movie once.
Will you be okay if we don't see this one today?
Matters not to me.
Karino, can we get popcorn?
It's so expensive.
But I don't wanna make Kotaro look bad in front of his friends.
If I don't buy it,
are they gonna tease him for having a cheap guardian or something like that?
I know kids can be mean.
Oh, it's fine. Just buy the damn popcorn.
The snacks are on me!
Hooray!
All right. One each.
Hmm?
Uh, I'll take three kids' combos, please.
This is so cool!
Hey!
Huh? You're making a mess!
Would you stop talking during the movie?
That was awesome!
Karino, can we go to the toy store next?
-Oh yeah! -Come on!
I regret that we cannot stay.
The purpose of today's outing
was for Sir Karino to do research for his work.
No. It's fine. I'll just work later.
Sir Karino!
You must not neglect your responsibilities.
We are off. Good day.
Huh? W-wait!
Karino, thanks for the movie!
Did you boys have fun?
-Those dinosaurs were realistic. -That was fun.
That's it. I am never supervising them again.
What's up?
Why are you so close?
If you got something to say, then just spit it out!
Hang on.
Are you mad or something?
It would appear that you enjoy hanging out with my friends
more than with me.
You are supposed to be my guardian!
Hmm?
Oh, I am so sorry for showing your friends a good time.
Do not offer me false apologies!
Cease your laughter at once!
I will not be made fun of!
I'm not making fun.
I think I'm gonna head back to the movies.
You know, for work. You wanna come?
We can watch Tonosaman.
It would be rude of me to make you go alone.
Let's away!
I will save the day! I am Tonosaman!
How is this show so boring?
Okay, okay. I promise I won't pat your head anymore, Kotaro!
Am I to understand, once again you could not see your son?
Uh, yeah. Not this week.
His mom says he doesn't wanna see me.
He'll come around eventually.
Just gotta give him time.
You may come inside for one glass of milk.
Kotaro!
A FEW DAYS LATER
May I help you, sir?
Huh?
You got a problem?
Why don't you mind your own business?
Who the heck do you think you are Mr. Bigshot?
My name is Kotaro Sato,
and I am a resident of these apartments.
Huh? Hey, wait! Maybe you might know my dad.
Hmm?
'Cause my dad lives in one of these apartments.
Wait, what? No. This can't…
I don't have a son.
No.
You're joking, right?
My dad's way more put-together than this guy.
My apologies. Moving on.
I did not expect Sir Tamaru to be your father.
Unfortunately, he is away on business today.
You are most welcome to wait here for him.
Oh, thanks. This sure beats waiting out in the cold.
Please forgive my inquiry.
I was lead to believe
you no longer wanted to have anything to do with your father.
Not true! My mom made that up!
Hey, Kotaro!
I'm back from--
Papa!
Y-Yuta?
You're here?
Hey there, Pops. It's been a while, huh?
Thought I'd come see what's up.
Y-Yuta, you shouldn't be here.
But I just wanted to see you.
You and Mom are always meeting up without including me.
I felt left out, so I decided to come find you.
Mom hides everything in the same spot,
so it wasn't too hard to find your address
and sneak away without her noticing.
Even Mom can't stop me from being your son!
Isn't this wonderful?
You reunited, at last.
Go home, now.
But
why can't I stay?
Don't be absurd, Sir Tamaru? He's come all this way…
I'm extremely disappointed in this behavior, Yuta.
You not only lied to your mother,
you showed no regard for my feelings.
You can't go around doing whatever you want.
But Mom wouldn't tell me when I can see you next, and--
We're not talking about your mom,
we're talking about you right now.
Yes.
I'll call your mom to get you.
She's probably worried sick.
I did my best to clear the air with your mom.
Listen, whether you like it or not,
you gotta stick to the schedule.
Yeah.
Hmm.
Take care.
I'm sorry it has to be like this.
Really.
Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!
Your son traveled all this way to see you, Sir Tamaru!
What kind of heartless fiend would turn him away?
Come on. That hurts. That's a sensitive area, you know?
You have been pining for days, professing your desire to see Yuta!
Y-yeah. Of course I wanna see him!
Thing is…
Well, I don't want Yuta to grow up
thinking it's acceptable to break the rules.
He's better than that.
I hated having to send him away,
but it was the right thing to do.
I see.
In sending him away, you showed him you loved him.
It isn't always easy for a dad to show he cares.
I bet it was the same with yours.
Huh? What's that mean?
I'm not condoning the things he did or the way he treated you.
That was wrong. No question.
But I'd like to believe, deep down, he really did love you.
After all…
…how could a father not adore his own son?
Have heart, Sir Tamaru.
You did well to hold back these tears in front of Yuta.
I commend you for that.
Kotaro!
Yeah? What do you nee--
Hey. I'm Takei Sumire.
I just moved into apartment 201.
It's nice to meet you. Here.
Oh, thanks.
My name's Shin Karino.
Guess one hottie moves out and another moves in.
Except this one's giving off some serious power-suit vibes.
Which explains…
Don't tell me you never separate your recycling.
That's, like, adulting 101, guys.
Lay off, would you?
Maybe less "power-suit," more "nagging mom."
Good morrow.
-Oh. Hey. Good morning, Kotaro. -Hey.
Can you not work and talk at the same time?
Good morning, Kotaro.
Good morning to you, Lady Takei.
It's nice to see someone around here
knows how to properly separate their recycling.
You could teach these guys a thing or two.
Oh, that's so sweet.
That little girl's helping walk the dog.
And this little guy jogging to stay healthy.
They're setting great examples for us.
Well, she has plenty of nice things to say to the kids.
Whoa. What the…
Why is she sweating so much?
She is trying way too hard to please them.
Wait a minute. What did she say when we met?
Are there any children living in this building?
Yeah. There is one kid here,
but he lives alone, so we all take turns helping him.
You okay?
Yeah. I'm super! Just thinking about helping my new neighbor.
I… I'm here to help!
It's pretty obvious she isn't comfortable around kids.
I figured Kotaro would pick up on that.
Why is he chasing her around?
You wanna play tag? All right!
He looks like he's having fun, though.
Wonder why he's trying so hard to get her to play with him.
Hey. I hate to ask,
but is there any chance you could possibly pick up Kotaro from school today?
I gotta meet with my editor, and Isamu's not around either
I wouldn't ask, but I'm kind of in a bind.
Yeah. Look. You know, maybe I can find someone else.
No. That's nonsense. I don't mind.
I'm happy to help! It's the neighborly thing to do.
What? She picked you up from school in a taxi?
Aye. It was only a short trip,
but Takei, the driver, and myself had a lovely conversation.
Though, I do wish Lady Takei would be less nervous around me.
Hey. Sorry for the last-minute request.
It was no big deal, really. I didn't have any plans today anyway.
Like I told you,
I'm happy to help him out as long as I have the time.
Okay. Uh, I just…
You're not into kids, are you?
How did you know? Uh…
I don't dislike them.
Who does she think she's kidding?
You know, Kotaro is pretty observant.
I'm sure he knows.
All I'm saying is you don't need to fake it.
Just be yourself.
If you don't like kids, you don't like kids.
There's nothing you can do about it.
It's just that easy for men, isn't it?
Huh?
You have no idea what it's like to be a woman who's not good around kids.
The stares, the whispers.
What kind of woman is uncomfortable around kids?
It's not my fault, and I didn't choose to be this way, you know?
I'm working so hard to fix myself.
Don't tell me there's nothing…
…I can do!
I didn't realize she was struggling with that so much.
But…
Can't catch me! I love tag!
Come on.
He's gotta know Takei's not great with kids.
So why does he keep chasing her?
There was a time when my parents did not know how to act around me.
They worked hard to overcome their uncertainty.
It can be done, and I shall help you do it.
I know that you're trying hard to get along with me,
so I will help you overcome your fear.
I should've known.
That kid is always thinking five steps ahead of us.
Then again, maybe he's just messing with her.
Something…
Something's off!
Hey. How are you doing this morning, Takei?
Is it just me, or is there something seriously different about Kotaro today?
Ah, you noticed too, huh?
Hey, kid. You've been putting on some weight, huh?
He did not!
'Tis true I have become quite round as of late.
However, it is important for a growing boy to eat three square meals a day.
Oh, and before you jump to conclusions,
may I remind you that I do not eat tissues anymore.
Yeah. I know that!
Tissues?
Lady Takei! 'Tis time to train!
We shall conquer your child phobia!
So how'd that go?
I'm getting faster.
But a more important question,
he was eating tissues?
Uh…
You see, before he moved in here,
Kotaro didn't exactly have the best family life.
He had to eat tissues to survive.
That's terrible. I had no idea.
Well, you know, binge eating could explain the weight gain.
Could that be it?
Well, he wasn't binge eating before.
It's gotta be something more recent.
Hey. What is that? A kids menu?
Oh, yeah.
It's the daily school-lunch menu from the kindergarten.
There's a PTA meeting to discuss it.
You think maybe I could go?
I've taught myself a lot about nutrition.
What? But there's…
I'm going, and that's that!
I'm surrounded by kindergartners!
I did not think this through!
Ms. Tohko, how is everything?
Any problems with the nutrition program?
No. Everything's been great.
That's good to hear.
We wanna make sure these kids are eating healthy snacks,
not all that junk.
Kids eat way too much processed sugar these days.
It's terrible.
Thank you for the food!
My dear lady, is the food not to your liking?
It's not the food.
Hmm.
This appears to be a well-balanced meal.
I can't imagine this is the cause of his weight gain.
Hey, Kotaro!
You'll eat my leftovers again today, right?
Verily I will.
You want mine too?
Kotaro, don't forget about mine!
Oh, don't force him to eat it! He may not want seconds.
Kotaro always eats our leftovers.
He loves it.
Time for dodgeball!
Let's go! Let's go!
Good thing you're not picky…
…or it would go to waste.
That's right. You've got a great appetite.
Hey. Are you even hungry still?
Not really,
but I cannot stop whenever food is put in front of me.
I would hate for it to go to waste.
I think I get it.
You know, more than anyone,
that a daily meal isn't always guaranteed.
Kotaro!
I'm here, at last.
Goodness. I had no idea.
I just assumed Kotaro had a healthy appetite.
It didn't occur to me that it was something more serious than that.
I'll do my best to make sure this doesn't happen again.
It's pretty smart having the parents and students eat lunch together.
Gives you a great perspective of what's going on with them.
We try to arrange it as often as possible.
You should join us for the next lunch.
Me? Oh, uh…
-Time to play dodgeball! -I think I'd like that very much.
I have a better idea.
Huh?
This game is entitled "Chase Lady Takei!"
Come on, everyone! Follow me!
What?
I knew this was a bad idea!
COLLECTION/GOOD DAY FOR SOCCER
An intriguing-looking rock.
Surely you would agree, Sir Karino.
Yeah. It looks like a rock.
I shall take it home and add it to my extensive collection.
Collection of what?
Of all the unusual and beautiful things I found!
Occasionally I display all of my treasures
and admire them at my leisure while sipping cold milk.
Do you ever think about trying to act like a normal kid?
I mean, I think it would do you some good.
-It's genius! -Huh?
"One ticket to the Museum of Treasures."
I take it you all got one of these in your mailbox today too?
Kotaro actually invited me!
It's gonna be fun, isn't it?
Huh?
Salutations, my friends, and welcome to my museum.
Right this way, ladies and gentlemen!
Wow, this is amazing, Kotaro!
It looks like a real museum.
So where do we begin?
Anyway, enjoy yourselves to your heart's content.
Wait. These are his treasures?
That's the picture I gave him from the park.
And these are the Band-aids I doddled on.
I can't believe that one of your treasures
is the shopping bag from our trip we took to the mall together.
Oh.
So these are all things Kotaro has collected over the years.
Oh, so cute!
Hey, Kotaro. What are those?
These gloves are the only thing my mother left behind.
She wore them any time she had to give me a bath or feed me.
What's he talking about?
Kotaro, I think you need to throw them away.
Hmm?
Hey, Takei?
I will not.
Those are not treasures. You need to throw them away.
-That's not your call. -Don't make such a big deal out of it.
Fine. If you can't do it yourself, I'll do it for you.
Give them to me, now!
-I need them in case-- -I said throw them away!
Back off! Leave him be!
Hey, Isamu. Calm down.
They're garbage! Throw them out!
Why do you always wear those gloves when you get her dressed?
I don't like touching her.
I can't help it.
I know it sounds bad, but I can't stand to look at her.
And touching her makes me sick to my stomach.
Apologies, Lady Takei.
My mother needed these gloves
in order to wash my hair and get me dressed each day.
It is because of these gloves
that my mother could touch me at all.
And you still love her after all that?
Of course.
That is why I cannot throw them away.
Growing up with a mother who will only touch you while wearing gloves
is something I understand all too well.
If it were me,
I wouldn't wanna hold on to a memory like that one.
That's you, though.
For him, maybe even a painful memory
is better than forgetting her altogether
because that's all he has left of his mom.
Yeah. Maybe you're right.
But it doesn't make it less sad.
I promise I will always have these gloves waiting for you
whenever you come back home.
You had best be ready for this, Sir Hide.
I am now prepared to pass the ball!
Just kick it already, kid!
Very well.
I faked you out.
Since when do you fake out your own teammates?
Hmm.
You joined a kids' soccer club?
Indeed.
Playing soccer is an excellent form of exercise,
and the team will consist of kids from both kindergarten and elementary school.
When did this happen?
Do you even know how to play soccer?
I am skilled at fake outs.
Just bounce it off your knee. Got it?
Aye. Ready?
What's the matter with you?
It was not at all what I intended.
Well, it still hurt!
Hey! Come on!
Pack it up and head home!
My apologies, Sir Coach! We shall depart!
Sir Hide, thank you for instructing me today.
Is everything all right?
I'm okay.
It's nothing.
Kotaro, you should go home now.
Aye.
Thank you for today!
Ugh, I'm so nervous.
How come you never look nervous?
There's nothing to be nervous about. We've got this.
Just play like you always do.
Exactly. Just play the way we always do.
Not you! You need to play better!
Yeah! Nice shot!
I hope my actions were able to assist your shot.
What are you talking about, Kotaro?
All you were doing was running away from the ball.
Precisely as you instructed.
I didn't mean for you to just randomly run around the--
Defense!
You think the other team's gonna wait for you?
Get back in position!
Ugh. The other team's coach is a real drill sergeant.
Uh, Sir Hide, where should I run to next?
Sir Hide?
Hey! Move it!
I've seen snails run faster than you!
Hide! Why don't you ever listen to me when I talk to you?
Hey! What's wrong with you?
Why is it so hard to do what you're told?
What are you teaching him, huh?
You're with him all day! You need to teach him some manners!
You always blame me!
Why don't you try parenting for a change instead of watching TV all night?
I had a friend who did this.
It always helped calm me down whenever the bad memories came back.
This will pass.
No one on this field is upset with you.
Hey! Get off me!
I do not need your help!
Huh?
Stop following me! I'm trying to play!
Stop being shy!
I'm not!
Hide!
'Twas a rather good shot.
Uh, mm-hmm.
Yeah. Really good shot. .