Translator's Notes:
Summarized & HTML'ized by Mandisa Washington. c. 2001, ver. 1.0
Original material by Yohko Kamio, Margaret Comics, Shueisha, 1993.
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Driven to exhaustion by the strange love-games of Doumyouji, Shizuka, and Hanazawa Rui, Makino gladly welcomes Kazuya's invitation to spend the summer with him in Atami. Her parents tag along as chaperones, but they only have eyes for young, rich Doumyouji, who has made a surprise appearance in Atami with the whole school in tow. Doumyouji's awkward pursuit of Makino seems to pay off when a party game on a rocking yacht results in a stolen first kiss.
Startled and embarrassed at finding herself face-to-face with her worst enemy, Doumyouji, Makino flees the party room. Doumyouji follows her outside and teases the girl for her apparent forwardness, though his playful words contrast sharply with the deep blush that covers his face and the tears that cover hers. Makino continues to be deeply shaken for almost the entire trip home with Kazuya. The next day she reluctantly faces the F4 and the rest at the beach, only to bear more teasing from Soujirou, Doumyouji, and Asai. Frantic, Makino explains her unhappy accident to a chilly Rui, who callously declares his uninterest.
Makino returns to the yacht that night, but her attempts to find Shizuka are interrupted by teenagers on the make at every turn. When she finally marks her quarry, Shizuka is deep in conversation with a typically moody Hanazawa Rui. Their conversation about Rui's odd behavior of late causes Makino to hold back and eavesdrop for a bit, until Rui angrily declares his lust for Shizuka and drags the older girl off to his cabin. Behind closed doors, Rui tries to carry out his feigned role of aggressor, but Shizuka's pliable manner puts him off the game. Plaintive and desperate, Rui tries to explain his hurt feelings to Shizuka, who fails to understand his distress.
Elsewhere, Kazuya defends his lady fair and challenges Doumyouji to a squid-fishing contest for Tsukushi's honor. Naturally, the rich boy is outmatched by Kazuya, who turns up 10 squid to Doumyouji's 1 octopus. The boys take the opportunity to talk about the lady of their common obsession, Makino Tsukushi. Kazuya reminisces about the lovely days of elementary and middle school when Tsukushi was the center of his life and would often save him from the agonies of school life. [Ed. note: And what's changed?!] Always competitive, Tsukasa counters with tales of Makino's passionate display of love towards him, which incenses Kazuya.
Doumyouji and Kazuya return with their buckets and find Tsukushi weeping on the deck of the yacht. Their antics and newfound camaraderie actually manage to cheer Tsukushi up a little, and the fresh grilled squid doesn't hurt. Doumyouji goes on a door-opening spree through the ship, demanding that the horny kids abandon their play and eat the squid *he* caught. This stirs everyone from their beds, including Shizuka and the rest of the F4. Soujirou and Akira complain about losing their bedmates, but turn the screws on Doumyouji, pushing him to reconcile with the outcast Rui. Makino cries a little more, but she and Rui come to a sort of agreement to remain "friends of the emergency stairs". Summer in Atami closes with a happy and mostly carefree night of smoky squid, but will the joviality reach all the way to Tokyo?
End Chapter 10 -- Return to Contents
The Fall semester begins with dread for Tsukushi, as she can only look forward to the coming Winter Vacation. Across town, Doumyouji rises early and prances around his room, asking his servants for advice on his dashing outfit. The staff is incredulous at their usually sullen master's positive change in attitude and eagerness to go to school. Kazuya arrives at school in his oddly-decorated family car, and waxes romantic over the summer's air of friendship. Reality comes crashing through however, as the posh students continue their harrassment, albeit in a somewhat less physical way.
Makino trudges down the halls for a little relief from Asai's tyranny, only to find Doumyouji in the corridor, wearing *her* missing school slippers over his own shoes. [Ed. note: Since Doumyouji is wearing men's loafers that are several sizes larger than Tsukushi's dainty little slippers, this is a truly ridiculous sight.] She goes off on him, and retrieves her slippers, failing to notice Tsukasa's devilish smile of glee. Soujirou and Akira are wholly perplexed by their friend's strange behavior, especially since he insists that he cannot return the girl's supposed crush on him. Asai and her crew hear this exchange and decide to stop Makino's scheming.
Makino goes to her quiet spot on the stairs and is met, unsurprisingly, by Hanazawa Rui. They chat a bit, although mostly it's Makino expressing humbly how pleased she is that they can continue to spend such time together. She confesses, against Rui's casual protests, that this is her most favorite time of all. Unbeknownst to both of them, Doumyouji listens nearby, having finally found Rui's hiding place. In shock at his lady love's candid admission, he returns to Soujirou and Akira, asking about the meetings on the staircase. Unfortunately, his queries are answered by the opportunistic Asai and her pals.
Equipped with a video camera, Asai shows Doumyouji the emotional reconciliation between Rui and Makino on the yacht in Atami. Tsukushi's tear-wrought face fills Doumyouji's eyes, even as Asai's stories of a long, secret affair between Hanazawa Rui and Makino Tsukushi fill his ears. Asai even goes so far as to say her concern for Doumyouji's honor and well-being compelled her to expose Makino's romantic treachery. Tsukasa hears none of this, as he slips into a silent fury.
End Chapter 11 -- Return to Contents
Turning abrupt and cold, Tsukasa drops the video camera and seems to recede into his mind. For failing to notice this change in attitude, Asai gets slapped across the face and falls to the ground. Still, Soujirou and Akira try to redeem the situation, and point out that Rui is devoted to Shizuka, and a poor girl like Makino isn't worth the bother. Tsukasa is so angry his speech is terse and harsh, and alienates even the cheery Soujirou. He walks off, hands shoved into his pockets, with a wholly emotionless blank face. The look reminds the two older members of the F4 of the time in middle school when Tsukasa nearly beat a boy to death.
Looking for a little unhealthy expression for his anger, Doumyouji bullies a handful of boys lounging about the campus. Quite unaware of this emotional storm, Makino compares the brisk autumn wind to the sakura-laden breezes of the spring when she and Hanazawa Rui met. Her poetry is lost on Rui until Shizuka appears, trying to change a dinner date with Rui into a business dinner. Noticing Makino, Shizuka graciously offers an invitation to her coming birthday party. The prospect of another formal encounter with Asai and her gang [Ch. 2] leaves Makino spluttering an apology, but the elegant, quick-witted Shizuka forestalls her young protege's fears. The Soware designer dress from the yacht party [Ch. 9] is up for borrowing again, and this time, the sadistic students of Eitoku are not invited.
Adrift in a dream, Makino finds chaos in the halls. Rushing off expecting to save Kazuya, she is horribly shocked to witness Doumyouji grinding his heel into some poor kid's neck. Soujirou and Akira try to dissuade their friend from his deadly amusement, but he just gives the kid another kick and grabs some new boy from the crowd that's gathered. After pushing that one down the stairs, Doumyouji picks up a chair and Smash! through the window it goes. [Ed. note: Why the heck was a chair on the staircase?! Doumyouji's eyes are really wide, like those of a rabid or frightened animal.]
At day's end, Makino still ponders over Doumyouji's inexplicable change in temperament. Kazuya tries to engage her in conversation on the way home, but she only half-hears him, until he mentions the current Physics assignment. [Ed. note: Go Physics!!] Due to her eventful day, Makino forgot the relevant notes back at the school. Kazuya worries for her safety after hours, but Makino's preoccupied with the certainty of bad grades for missing homework. Racing to the emergency stairs, Makino runs right into an gently smiling Doumyouji, lounging on the railing. Struck by his eerily calm manner, Makino mutters a greeting and hastily gathers her books. As she turns to leave, Doumyouji springs into action, blocking her movement with his gangly arms. He curses her for making a fool out of him, and Makino starts to get a little scared.
End Chapter 12 -- Return to Contents
[Ed. note: Ach, this part's kind of hard to take b/c of the violence. Not for the faint of heart, really. But it's totally relevant and important to the story, and censorship sucks.]
Makino protests her ignorance, and threatens to cry out for help. Doumyouji taunts her with the knowledge that they're alone, and his actions are unquestioned and unpunished in any case. He gets even more mad with her apparent refusal to admit her crime and punches the glass door, making his hand bleed. He licks the blood off with a sick gleam in his eye, causing Makino to throw her books up as a distraction. She runs a little ways down the hall away from him, but trips on a hurt ankle. Doumyouji looms kind of menacingly then forces Tsukushi to the floor and opens her blouse and necktie. At this point Tsukushi is doing a constant struggle, urging Tsukasa to stop, but he goes ahead and nuzzles her neck and toys with her skirt jumper. Regressing from the terror at hand, she recalls Hanazawa Rui's gentle words on the staircase. She's crying and calling Doumyouji's name when he finally seems to register the wrongness and stops. Coming out of attack mode, Doumyouji tries to console her, sort of, by cradling Makino in his arms and whispering soothing words.
Disheveled as all hell, Tsukushi arrives at home and offers a lame story that she fell down. Mama and her little brother are full of concern, especially when they notice the blood on her torn blouse (from his glass-sliced hand) and when she collapses and cries uncontrollably. Papa tries to leaven the mood by showing off the *correct* way to fall, but Tsukushi racks her brain trying to fathom what could have changed the smiling, cheery Doumyouji into the heartless monster who attacked her.
A few days later, Tsukushi discusses the unsettling affair with her friend and co-worker, (at the bakery [Ch. 1]) Yuuki. While Yuuki gets excited over the tale, Tsukushi's mind lingers on a single gentle kiss that Doumyouji planted, as well as his gentle words and caresses at the end. Switching gears, Tsukushi asks Yuuki to join her at Shizuka's birthday party, and together they solicit the clothes, hair, and makeup advice of Yuuki's flashy, club-hopping older sister [Ed. note: Yuuki's sister goes on for a bit about some posh club called "Juliana", and dresses the girls in attire appropriate for clubbing]. Tsukushi ends up in a Chinese-style thigh-length dress with a bright floral print, plus a feather boa and asymmetrical ponytail. Yuuki gets off a little easier with a sporty two piece suit with knee-length wrap skirt and a feather-accented fan. The awkward girls are escorted by Kazuya, complete with game-show host jacket, wide cumberbund, and an eye-catching ruffle-bow necktie.
After some introductions in the strangely-decorated Aoike family car, Makino's mind turns once again to Doumyouji, as she realizes that he will probably be at the party. (Ah shades!) When the trio arrives at the posh Toudou mansion, they find a horde of people in chic couture, television crews, and inevitably, the F4. Doumyouji plays it cool while Makino is completely anxious, but aside from the F4, none of the other rich and famous guests pay attention to Tsukushi and her friends. Hanazawa Rui shows a little kindness by getting some food service for the young trio, but even this does not distract Tsukushi from her glaring study of Doumyouji.
Fortified and dazed by wine and high spirits, Makino beats down a lecherous TV director who was pawing an adorable young girl in a kimono. Although she was only substituting the sleazy man for her own tormentor, the crowd cheers her bravery and the kimono-clad girl thanks her by name. Before Makino can even wonder about this mysterious young girl, Shizuka starts her welcoming speech. Receiving the cheers with characteristic grace, Shizuka turns to her parents and adopts a more formal tone. Stating her surprising intention to return to Paris and become a public defense lawyer, she picks up a shiny penknife. With a single definitive stroke, Shizuka slices off her hair, and declares the end of her days as the pampered daughter of the Toudou family.
End Chapter 13 -- Return to Contents
End Chapter 14 -- Return to Contents
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