Motoko Hayakawa, a credit union employee trapped by society's pressures in her mid-30s, and Kizuna Kameyama, a manga artist in her late 20s who fears the burden of human relationships, meet at a boarding house. Alongside an ageless professor, an upbeat young landlady, and a woman fleeing after embezzling 300 million yen, they reevaluate their lives, grow, and take new steps forward. ©NIPPON TV

Motoko is shocked when a tabloid offers 50,000 yen for a photo of Mariko and realizes her album could be worth a fortune. After learning Umeko already sold one for cheap, she angrily leaves home. She confesses to Kizuna that she had been thinking the same greedy thoughts she despised in Umeko, breaking down in regret. Meanwhile, Kyoichi surprises Kizuna with a birthday cake. ©NIPPON TV

When asked what she wants as a housewarming gift, Motoko can't decide. Later, she's hurt after reading an article mocking her inability to break open her coin savings jar, calling her someone who can never move forward. Determined to change, she leaves the boarding house, realizes she's always valued money over meaning, and sets out to buy something that will finally change her life. ©NIPPON TV

After accidentally throwing away her work uniform, Motoko skips work for the first time and pretends to be sick. Meanwhile, Kizuna quits manga and starts a restaurant job, only to get fired immediately. A detective later encourages Motoko to find something that truly frees her. Meanwhile, Kizuna unknowingly decorates part of Motoko's discarded uniform with embroidery and beads. ©NIPPON TV

When it's revealed that Kizuna's father is wealthy, the boarding house erupts in excitement. Motoko writes a company newsletter profile about Kizuna but fills it with idealized lies, upsetting her. At the same time, after accidentally breaking a customer's ceramic doll at work, Motoko becomes obsessed with finding an identical replacement, feeling a simple apology isn't enough. ©NIPPON TV

During Obon, Kizuna learns her late twin sister once planned to run away for love, realizing she too had wanted freedom. Meanwhile, Natsuko reflects on a promise from a lover 30 years earlier who said he would return for her someday. At the same time, Motoko receives a call from fugitive Mariko and waits all night at a café, believing Mariko wants to see her again. ©NIPPON TV

Motoko's mother becomes obsessed with getting her daughter married and suggests outrageous "bridal training." Meanwhile, Kizuna rejects Kyoichi's marriage proposal, unwilling to carry his emotional burdens. As the residents discuss a wild "singing dog" that chose freedom over domestication, Motoko envies its carefree life, realizing how trapped she feels by society's expectations. ©NIPPON TV

As Mars makes a rare close approach to Earth, Motoko accompanies her mother to the hospital after a possible cancer diagnosis. Meanwhile, Kizuna clashes with an editor over a new manga series and grows increasingly frustrated with her stalled life, especially after Kyoichi finds a job. At the same time, Natsuko visits a student who attempted suicide and is met with a cold response. ©NIPPON TV

Ten days after Kizuna's beloved cat disappears, she struggles to move on and can barely work. Meanwhile, Motoko's mother successfully undergoes cancer surgery, leading Motoko to question her own future. Encouraged to live more independently, she finally tells her mother that she cannot keep living the same life she has. ©NIPPON TV

Natsuko shocks everyone by quitting her university job after punching the chairman and announces she's leaving the boarding house to travel. Meanwhile, fugitive Mariko secretly reunites with Motoko and invites her to run away together. At the same time, Kizuna says goodbye to Kyoichi at the station, but on her way home, she is stabbed while trying to stop a violent teenager. ©NIPPON TV