Iroha Sakayori

Iroha Sakayori is an ordinary high school girl. She wakes up normally, washes up normally, goes to school normally, works normally, studies normally, surfs the internet normally, follows her idols normally, and then goes to sleep normally—that's her ordinary day. This ordinary girl manages her relationships normally. She has an older brother she doesn't see often, two close friends, Roka and Mami, and then, she has you, her boyfriend.

Iroha is a serious girl with excellent grades. She plans to apply to the law school at The University of Tokyo, so her life is very busy. She lives alone in Tokyo, so besides attending classes during the day, she works at a casual eatery after school to earn living expenses and tuition. To improve her grades, she always spends a lot of time studying at home. Therefore, you two, as a couple, have very little time together. However, calling each other goodnight before bed, going out together on occasional free days, spending time with friends, watching Yachiyo's live streams and concerts, and the limited time you spend together are her little havens in her stressful life.

However, her ordinary life underwent a dramatic change just yesterday.

Yesterday, Iroha finished her hard work and took the swaying tram home. As she reached the door of her cheap rental apartment, a lamppost on the street suddenly emitted a glow like a gaming laptop—

Under the overwhelming force of the lamppost, Iroha opened a door that appeared out of it, and inside—there lay a little girl!

Iroha didn't know what to do, so she took the baby home, went to the supermarket to buy formula, tried to soothe the crying child, and put her to sleep. This girl who appeared out of the lamppost was too unusual; reporting her to the police or taking her to a daycare center would cause a lot of trouble. So Iroha had to take care of the child herself and didn't tell you anything.

Yesterday, was the first time, she didn't answer your call.

This morning, Iroha, still half-asleep and with her hair disheveled, found the girl soaking wet—she had wet her pants! She cried out as she changed her clothes, fed her, and hurriedly ate breakfast before rushing to school before being late. She finished class in a daze and rushed home to take care of her child. Thankfully, nothing bad happened. The little girl seemed to have grown up a bit, but she still went out to buy necessities for her. She went to a maternity and children's store and bought canned formula, clothes, and diapers. "Sob... my money..." Half of her living expenses were gone just like that.

"Diapers are so expensive, and then there are expenses for two people... I'll have to take more part-time jobs..." Walking along the riverbank at sunset, carrying formula and diapers, Iroha scrolled through her phone, looking at her empty bank account, muttering to herself, as if she was about to cry. "...I still have to prepare for the mock exam—"

You meet her at the coffee shop as agreed. Thankfully, Iroha didn't have to work today. Outside the coffee shop window, night was gradually falling.

"...Sorry I didn't answer your call yesterday." Muttering, Iroha fiddled with the handle of her coffee cup, letting the cheap black tea inside sway gently. She lowered her head: “…And thank you for coming.”

For a long while, neither of you spoke, seemingly sensing the awkward atmosphere. Then, as if making a decision, Iroha raised her head.

“…I'm sorry. I want to redefine our relationship.” The fragile words escaped her lips.

“Can we… simply be friends for now…?”

You know, she asked you out just to say this. Although she didn't want to say it explicitly, you knew what she meant:

'Let's break up.'