Nurses Station
Visitation Card
Katsurako Ibuki
Found it.
Sensei?
Oh, you came.
You scared me.
You're in the hospital again.
This might finally be it for me.
Don't talk like that.
I'm serious this time.
If anything, I've lived too long.
Tabata-san...
Have you ever regretted going to Awajima?
I'm not sure.
Well...
I never made it as an actress,
but I have the career I do now because of my time there.
Objectively speaking, I might have been a flop.
But I'm proud of myself.
You really are a good girl.
I'm full of regrets.
I've done things that I can never undo.
I can't even atone for them anymore.
Would you do me the favor of listening to my silly nonsense?
Gladly, if you're happy to share with me.
I want to confess everything.
Internal Medicine Katsurako Ibuki-sama
It's far more than I deserve,
but if you would, I'd like you to write an article.
And if it's possible, I'd like you to write a book.
I want all of my foolish actions to be documented.
With that, Sensei began telling me about an Emi Okabe.
A Hundred Scenes of AWAJIMA
Emi Okabe & Katsurako Ibuki
Oh, Tabata-san.
Here to do research again?
Yes.
I was hoping to look through some old documents.
What about?
Do you have the records of students who've withdrawn?
Why?
I'd like to hear from more students who gave up their acting careers as I did.
And graduates wouldn't do?
I've never had an opportunity to speak with students who've left.
I don't know what you might want to ask anyone who's already left Awajima,
but we do have records.
That's great.
Who is it you'd like to learn more about?
Someone named Emi Okabe.
That name takes me way back.
You know of her?
Yes, well...
My upperclassmen told me about her.
Why are you digging up her name now?
What sort of article are you writing?
A request from Ibuki-sensei.
She's in recovery at the moment, correct?
Yes.
I went to visit her the other day, which was when...
So she's told you all about it, then.
Yes.
How did you feel about it?
To be honest, it was a shock.
We heard rumors about it when I was in school too, but talk is just talk.
And she's a teacher I respect deeply.
I'm still flustered about it.
But as long as I'm doing this work,
I think it's worth making clear what happened.
Even when it's a stain on this school?
Is Ibuki-sensei such a disgrace?
I can't imagine the school didn't know anything about it.
And now that I know, I feel I also have a responsibility.
Have you considered their families' wishes as well?
What if they want to forget about it?
That's part of what it means to dig up the past.
You're right.
What am I supposed to do, then?
It's not like I'm trying to expose Ibuki-sensei for what she did, either.
I know this must be her way of setting things right,
but for others, that might seem nothing more than feigned concern.
And above all else, Sensei told me herself that Okabe-san has already passed on.
How heavy...
Awajima Revue School Office
Y-Yes?
The only record we have is of Okabe-san's family.
I don't know if you'll be able to reach them, but...
Th-Thank you!
Memories of Flowers and Dreams
The History of the Awajima Revue Troupe
N-No, that's perfect.
That said...
The parents of Ibuki-sensei's classmates must be up there in age.
Even if they're still around, I'm not sure they'll understand.
Okabe
Why, yes, we're the Okabes.
No, my parents are deceased.
Oh, you mean my sister?
I'm afraid she's passed on as well.
What is it?
Oh, just a second.
Who is it?
Well, apparently, she's with Awajima.
Awajima?
Says she was an actress who went by the name Ao Hazuki.
She's a writer now or something.
Give me a second.
Wakana Tabata Official Website
I found her website.
This is her!
She publishes under her real name now.
Wakana Tabata...
Is it really her?
Dunno.
And what does she want?
She wants to ask us about my older sister.
I wonder...
My sister used to go to the Awajima school.
She quit though, didn't she?
I don't know too much about it.
She never wanted to talk about it.
Mom and Dad might have known, but...
Have her prove who she really is, for starters.
Maybe do an online call or something.
Yes, of course. Sure thing.
I'll follow up later.
Thank you very much for your time.
You should let your brother know too.
Right.
Kubota
Kubota here.
Akihiko Okabe
Oh, Akihiko-kun.
It's been a while.
How's everyone doing over there?
She wants to ask about Emi?
Kubota
Yes.
And I think she called us because she wants us to connect you.
I see...
What shall I do?
Should I turn her down?
No.
I don't mind at all.
Nice to meet you.
I'm Wakana Tabata.
Thank you for sparing the time.
Not at all. Thank you too.
Excuse me. I'll make some tea or something.
What's gotten into you?
Oh my gosh, it really is her!
It's this woman?
Yup, that's her.
Huh. I wonder if she was popular.
Wakana Tabata
Born in Gunma Prefecture, she entered Awajima Revue School with a lifelong love for the stage. After graduation, she joined the Awajima Revue Troupe under the name Ao Hazuki. She made a name for herself with her glamour and patient demeanor. After retiring from the troupe, she switched to a career in writing, focusing mostly on essays depicting her own experiences and the people she met along the way.
I don't know much about theater people.
I dunno much about Awajima either.
How strange to think your dad's talking to a former celebrity...
Aunt Emi might've been a huge star if she hadn't quit Awajima too.
I'm Emi Okabe's son.
As my father is quite elderly, I'll be sitting in on the conversation as well.
Thank you.
Allow me to be frank.
What does the person who stole my mother's future want after all this time?
Is this one final business venture to apologize to my mother?
Stop it.
Or will you donate the royalties from this tell-all book to us and call it even?
No, nothing like that.
Sensei...
Katsurako Ibuki-san...
She's been living in regret.
That word is reserved for my mother.
Ibuki has no right to speak of regret.
Calm down.
Yukie Onoda, was it?
I've been wishing...
that I could speak with her just once.
Yukie Onoda.
Ibuki-sensei spoke of her.
Said she was also brimming with talent.
That she left Awajima, as if to chase after Okabe-san,
without her gifts ever bearing fruit.
That she passed away young.
The truth remains a mystery.
It would have been fine if I'd never known.
But...
If it truly was her and other students' fault
that my wife had to leave Awajima, then I wanted to hear,
in her own words, why that was.
My wife was a happy, warm woman,
but there was always a cloud hanging over her.
To be honest, I would have liked to know if that
was because she was haunted by something that happened at Awajima.
If my wife...
If this will serve as some record
that Emi Okabe was indeed a talent that could have been...
This book is neither merely to blow the whistle nor to field a confession.
It is a book to make known Emi Okabe.
But I can't stray off course, either.
This book is also Ibuki-sensei's means of atonement.
Still, though, it's a good thing Okabe-san's family gave me their blessing.
But that just makes it weigh heavier on me.
The records of the fissures that existed at Awajima...
I shouldn't work with a publisher that would turn this into a huge scandal.
But most of the mainstream publishers do gossip books.
Or maybe it's okay because this would be in a different department...
Who would work with me in good faith?
Who would honor our intent?
I need to find a good partner.
I see...
We might not be a good fit, then.
We do photo and PR books for Awajima.
I figured.
I do know of an editor I can recommend, though.
She's earnest and well-connected.
Nice to meet you.
I'm Kayoko Yanagihara.
Writer/Editor
Kayoko Yanagihara
I didn't expect you to be so young.
And the books you've worked on are all so fantastic.
I'm honored.
Actually, to tell you the truth, I went to Awajima too.
What? Really?
I did.
It isn't on my resume, though.
I went into literature instead of joining the revue troupe.
And one more thing. This isn't the first time we've met, either.
I mean, this is the first time we've actually sat down to talk,
but you came to speak once when I was a student.
Oh, I remember that!
You inspired me to do what you're doing.
Although I ended up an editor and not a writer.
And having heard from you again, I'm certain I made the right choice.
My upperclassmen's generation was a mess.
One of my friends even took time off school because of it.
But while she was there, we all cheered her on and did our best
to make sure our underclassmen didn't have to suffer the same way...
Although I'm sure this kind of thing will keep happening.
We can't eliminate it.
And that's frustrating.
I'm sure this is difficult for you as well, Tabata-san.
And she's a teacher I respect deeply.
It is.
Thank you.
I really appreciate that.
Who would've thought it'd be so clear when your time is near?
I'm sorry, Okabe-san.
I was jealous of you, Onoda-san.
I wanted to be like you. Like all of you.
I was meant to deliver these words to you.
And I failed to do so. I'm sorry.
Mother, I said some awful things to Grandmother.
I simply...
wanted to be loved. That was all.
Everyone, I'm so very sorry.
Waka-chan!
Sorry I'm late, Momo-chan.
It's fine.
We just got here too.
Ibuki Family Funeral
Guestbooks
Our reunion wound up being Ibuki-sensei's funeral... It's so sad.
She was strict, but she was a good person.
Yeah.
Some girls couldn't stand her, but I think people were quite fond of her.
That's the truth.
The instructors everyone feared weren't necessarily hated.
What I'm about to do might overturn that statement.
Maybe that was what Ibuki-sensei herself would've wanted, but...
Momo-chan, Waka-chan!
Okubo-san! Long time no see.
I saw you in Little Women the other day.
You should have come to the greenroom.
You were perfect for that role.
Takehara-senpai!
It's been a while, ladies.
It's good to see you.
What a sad day this is.
T-Truly...
I haven't seen you since the interview, Tabata-san.
Thank you for the help that day.
Are you still writing books?
Yes, I am.
Right in the middle of one, in fact.
But I'm very...
anxious.
This book I'm about to put out
might bring about the destruction of something.
The dream that is Awajima.
The hopes of all who dream.
The book everyone's talking about!
Days of Parting
A Hundred Scenes of Awajima
Glimmers of light and shadow among the girls who chased their dreams
Wakana Tabata