Kei Tsukishima

It's Valentine's Day at the Sendai City Museum. The atmosphere is different than usual: groups of young girls wander whispering, couples hold hands, and in the hallways, you see small prettily wrapped packages.

Tsukishima, cleaning an exhibition hall, is interrupted by Sato, his overenthusiastic colleague, who reminds him it's "the big day." Tsukishima royally ignores him, preferring to focus on his work. But when a regular female visitor to the museum, a young woman he has noticed several times, approaches him with a small carefully wrapped package, he can no longer pretend to be indifferent.

The day he hoped would be calm and predictable takes an unexpected turn.

Scene 1: The colleague's teasing

Sato catches Tsukishima in the break room, coffee cup in hand.

Sato: "So Tsukishima-san! Morning report? How many chocolates?"

Tsukishima: (wiping a table) "Zero. And I prefer it that way. Less mess to clean."

Sato: "How can it be ZERO?! You're tall, quiet, you have that slightly bored look... Girls LOVE that!"

Tsukishima: (sigh) "Sato, I'm a museum janitor, not a shoujo character."

Sato: "Exactly! The mysterious janitor who talks to dinosaurs! It's romantic!"

Tsukishima: "I do NOT talk to dinosaurs."

Sato: "But the other day, I heard you say 'at least you don't complain' in front of the triceratops..."

Tsukishima: (dark look) "Sato."

Sato: "Yes?"

Tsukishima: "Go clean the men's restroom. There's a leak."

Sato: "WHAT?! That's disgusting!"

Tsukishima: "Teamwork, Sato. The basics."

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Scene 2: The meeting with Yuki

The young woman, Yuki, gathers her courage near the fountain in the main hall.

Yuki: (talking to herself) "Come on Yuki, you can do it. He's just a guy. A tall sarcastic guy who cleans dinosaur bones. Nothing intimidating."

Tsukishima passes behind her with his cleaning cart.

Tsukishima: (without stopping) "Talking to yourself is the first sign of madness."

Yuki: (jumping) "AH! T-Tsukishima-san! I... I wasn't talking to myself! Well I was, but it was... to encourage myself!"

Tsukishima: (stopping, looking at her) "Why do you need encouragement? It's just a museum."

Yuki: (blushing) "It's... it's not the museum that's the problem. It's... well..."

She takes the small package out of her bag and holds it out with a trembling hand.

Yuki: "Here. It's for you. For Valentine's Day."

Tsukishima looks at the package, then at her, then at the package. He says nothing.

Yuki: (panicking) "You don't have to accept! I can take it back! Or eat it myself! Or give it to the triceratops!"

Tsukishima: (taking the package) "The triceratops doesn't have a digestive system. That would be wasteful."

A silence. Yuki looks at him, not knowing if it's a joke or not.

Tsukishima: "Thank you. It's... unexpected."

Yuki: (blushing) "You're welcome."

She runs off. Tsukishima stands there, chocolate in hand, looking at the triceratops.

Tsukishima: (muttering) "You're lucky. No one gives you chocolate."

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Scene 3: Lunch break

Tsukishima sits alone on a bench near the museum cafeteria. He holds the chocolate in his hands, examining it like a rare specimen.

Sato: (sitting next to him) "Woah! Tsukishima-san! You got chocolate! WHO?! HOW?! WHEN?!"

Tsukishima: (without looking up) "A visitor."

Sato: "A VISITOR?! The mysterious fossil girl? The one who always comes alone?!"

Tsukishima: (looking at him) "How do you know she always comes alone?"

Sato: "I noticed her! She's pretty! And she spends HOURS in the fossil hall. She's passionate! Like you!"

Tsukishima: "I am NOT passionate."

Sato: "You talked to her about the triceratops the other day, I saw you!"

Tsukishima: (slightly blushing) "She asked a question. I answered. It's my job."

Sato: "Your job is to clean, not to give paleontology lessons!"

Tsukishima: "Go clean the restrooms, Sato."

Sato: "NO WAY! First, tell me EVERYTHING about this chocolate story!"

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Scene 4: Tsukishima's inner thoughts

(Tsukishima, at home that evening, sitting on his couch. The chocolate is on the coffee table, still wrapped. He stares at it.)

Tsukishima: (thoughts) "Why do people do this? Why willingly expose themselves to rejection? It's illogical. It's risky. It's... courageous."

(He gets up, approaches the window, looks at the city lighting up.)

Tsukishima: (thoughts) "She's been coming for months. She looks at fossils with real curiosity. Not like tourists who take a photo and leave. She... she takes notes. She draws."

(He returns to the table, touches the ribbon with his fingertips.)

Tsukishima: (thoughts) "And she noticed me. The guy who cleans dust. Why? I'm not... I don't do anything special. I'm just there."

(He sighs, takes off his glasses, rubs his eyes.)

Tsukishima: (thoughts) "Tomorrow, I'll talk to her. Not to give her hope, not to promise anything. Just to... say thank you. Because even I know that leaving people without an answer is cowardly."

(He looks at the chocolate.)

Tsukishima: (thoughts) "And I'll eat it. It smells good. It would be stupid to waste something made with care."

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Scene 5: The conversation with Yamaguchi (phone call)

Tsukishima, late at night, talks on the phone with his childhood friend, Tadashi Yamaguchi.

Yamaguchi: (cheerful voice) "Tsukki! How was your Valentine's Day?"

Tsukishima: "As usual. I cleaned bones."

Yamaguchi: "Still as romantic... Wait, what's that box on your table?"

Tsukishima: (pause) "Nothing."

Yamaguchi: "Tsukki... is that CHOCOLATE?! Someone gave you chocolate?!"

Tsukishima: "Yamaguchi, you're shouting in my ear."

Yamaguchi: "SORRY BUT THIS IS HUGE! Who is it?! A colleague? A visitor?!"

Tsukishima: (silence) "A visitor."

Yamaguchi: "NOOO! Tsukki! The guy who said human relationships are 'too much effort' got chocolate from a stranger!"

Tsukishima: "Not a stranger. She comes often."

Yamaguchi: "AND SHE GAVE YOU CHOCOLATE! What are you going to do?!"

Tsukishima: "I don't know. Talk to her, maybe."

Yamaguchi: "TALK TO HER?! Tsukki VOLUNTARILY TALKING TO A GIRL?! I want photos!"

Tsukishima: "Yamaguchi."

Yamaguchi: "Yes?"

Tsukishima: "I'm hanging up."

Yamaguchi: "NO WAIT—"

Tsukishima hangs up. But a slight smile hovers on his lips.

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Scene 6: The next day

Tsukishima arrives early at the museum. He mechanically cleans the fossil hall, but his gaze regularly turns toward the entrance.

Yuki appears, her notebook in hand. She stops short when she sees him.

Yuki: "T-Tsukishima-san..."

Tsukishima: (putting away his broom) "Yuki."

She startles. It's the first time he's said her first name.

Yuki: "You... you remember my name?"

Tsukishima: "I work in a museum. I'm trained to remember details."

Yuki: (blushing) "Ah... okay."

Awkward silence. Tsukishima takes the small package from his pocket, already opened.

Tsukishima: "The chocolate was good."

Yuki: (eyes lighting up) "Really?"

Tsukishima: "Yes. Not too sweet. Good balance."

Yuki: "I spent three days looking for the right recipe..."

Tsukishima: "It shows. It's made with care."

Another silence, but less awkward.

Tsukishima: "About what you said yesterday... I don't know what to answer. I'm not good at these things."

Yuki: (softly) "I know. I noticed."

Tsukishima: "You noticed?"

Yuki: "You talk little. You avoid glances. But you're meticulous. Patient. You take care of old and fragile things. I find that... beautiful."

Tsukishima remains silent, destabilized.

Tsukishima: "I... I can't promise you anything. I don't know how these... relationships work."

Yuki: (smiling) "No one really knows, Tsukishima-san. We learn together."

Tsukishima: "... We can start with dinosaurs. If you want."

Yuki: (blushing) "I'd like that very much."

Tsukishima: "Then... come. I'll show you the stegosaurus. It has a brain the size of a walnut. Perfect to start gently."

Yuki bursts out laughing. Tsukishima, surprised, feels his lips stretch into a discreet smile.