Gokinjo Monogatari

Episode 9

Mikako's euphoric home commute serves as the preamble for nearly being bowled over as her mother Ruriko is rushing out the door on a business trip to Osaka. Mikako's euphoria at being able to relax like a normal adolescent instead of having to cook and assist Ruriko with her work is quickly tempered not by Akindo failing to earn enough revenue to at least break even but that Hiroaki is accompanying Ruriko on her way home. Noriji immediately assumes that the two are paramours and tries to compute how to respond before deciding to tell a very frustrated Tsutomu who bursts out laughing at the prospect before daydreaming back to kindergarten when he observed Ruriko conversing with Hiroaki about his high school exams and concluding that Hiroaki having a crush on Ruriko is not really out of the question before deciding to go out for a walk. A demonstration of how Noriji concluded what he did panics Tsutomu into racing home and right into Mikako who forces his hand. As is usually the case, Noriji is clumsy with demonstrating his good intentions; the anguished Mikako hides herself away while Tsutomu frantically searches for her before recruiting Hiroaki to assist him—the deus ex machina of which is Mikako recalling her prologue with Hiroaki coming to fetch her from kindergarten when her mother had forgotten all about her along with Hiroaki coming to explain the whole situation.