Tree Blossoms in Spring

On a high mountain overlooking the city and the sea, there is a stone statue of an old man and a wolf, in memory of the town that used to be there. A group of people are taking pictures and looking over the area as the sea shines in the sunlight.

 As this is going on, we see a news camera and a journalist interviewing two girls who look to be in their early twenties.

One friend is very happy to be out, while the other says to the interviewer with a blank face, “We came to see the view of the sea.” Then the journalist notices a man watching them during the interview. She asks, “And sir, what brought you here on this beautiful day?”

The man, named Minato, looks at the reporter. We see him point to himself with a dazed look. The newswoman says, “Yes, you, sir.” Minato, with an innocent expression, says plainly, “I’m looking for a date.”

After he says this, the newswoman quickly ends the conversation and says into the camera, “This is me signing out.” She and her cameraman walk away, visibly relieved the job is done.

We then see the friend of the girl who was interviewed—whose name is Aoi—turn to Minato and ask, “What made you choose to come here of all places to look for a date?”

He answers, “I thought there would be a lot of pretty girls here.”

Aoi’s friend gives a strange look to both Aoi and the man. Minato then adds, “You see, my girlfriend broke up with me this morning, and I need a date. I have a family function tonight, and I was hoping to find someone willing to go—just for the night.”

Aoi’s friend whispers in her ear, “Stranger danger, stranger danger,” but Aoi dismisses her and asks Minato, “So, you must be pretty desperate. Can’t you just go alone?”

He replies, “I could, but I have my reasons,” with a solemnly, strange look on his face. “I just need someone to pretend to be my girlfriend for the night. You wouldn’t even have to say anything—maybe just greet a few people, and that would be it. I’m even willing to pay, if I have to.”

The quiet girl replies cheekily, “Pay? I doubt you’d find anybody who would do such a crazy thing for free.”

Aoi, with a light in her eyes, says in a childlike way, “I’ll do it. How about me?” She smiles and adds, “Don’t worry, you won’t have to pay me—otherwise, it wouldn’t feel like a date.”

Aoi’s friend, now in disbelief, also notices her younger brother coming from behind Minato. The boy yells, “Older sister!” He then stands next to Minato, hands him a drink, and says, “I’ve been looking all over for you. Don’t wander off like that, man.”

Hearing this, his sister says, “You know this crazy man?”

He looks at his sister strangely and replies, “Yes, we’re in the same economics class. Why do you ask?”

Aoi says, “That’s great that you two know each other. Now I don’t have to worry about going on a date with a complete stranger."

Aoi and Minato look at each other happily as cherry blossoms sway in the air.

Minato, now focused but cheerful, says, “About what you’ll be wearing—don’t worry about it. The party will be taking place at my family’s hotel. Just give me your phone number and text me your dress size and shoe size. And Please be there an hour before the party starts. Does that sound good to you?”

"Perfect,"Aoi says.

Aoi's friend's brother, now standing beside his sister, says,"They seem to get along.

His sister replies coldly,"They just met."

He exclaims,"What!?"

we then see Minato and Aoi exchanging phone numbers while smiling at each other.

Later that night, Aoi stands in front of a ritzy-looking hotel, on the phone. Minato steps out of a car, also on the phone, and walks up to her in a sharp suit. His hair is slicked back; he looks more mature, serious, and somber—almost like a completely different person.

She ends the call and walks in with him.

Inside, we see a grand hall—something out of a 1920s New York ballroom, with glass chandeliers.

Minato, now in a more formal suit, approaches her and, with a confident voice, says, "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," she replies. "This place looks wonderful."

He offers his arm and says, "Feel free not to talk to anyone if you're not comfortable. I won't be able to stay with you for most of the night, but if you need me, please speak up."

She looks up at him and says, "I'll be fine."

He looks at her, taken by her words, and smiles neutrally.

They walk to a long white table full of people. After a while, Aoi notices someone at the opposite end of the table—it was a university acquaintance. He was surrounded by a group of people—some sitting beside him and his date, others standing. Minato is nearby, talking to a group of elderly people by the fireplace. Aoi, now also noticed by the man, gets up as he stands, eyes wide in surprise. We see the man walking with his date on his arm—a woman whose body pours out feminine charm with sensual restraint, ebony-red hair, and dove-like eyes.

"What are you doing here? How come I've never seen you here before? Is this your first time here?"

She replies quietly, "I came as a guest."

“Really? Tell me who invited you? Maybe I know the family,” he says.

"I thought I was invited to a family event," she says.

The man, now curious, says, "Then you must be a guest of someone from the Ito family. Only they can invite people not tied to the family business. My family's been doing business with the Itos for years—so who is it? Maybe I know them."

"We see Minato in the distance, talking to an older man."

Aoi says, “The young man over there.”

Her acquaintance, now with sharply squinted eyes, tries to see across the room looking to see who the man was. Minato’s face, hidden until now and only seen from the side, turns into full view. Once he does, the man's eyes widen. His red-haired date covers her mouth as she gasps.

He laughs loudly, giving a fright to the guests around them, and in a raised voice says, “Minato! The eldest son of the Ito family? The Minato whose family sponsors this event every year? The same Minato, mind you, who got dumped by my cousin this morning over a silly argument?”After wiping a small tear from his eye from all the laughter, he says…

Wow—what a surprise! I did not expect that.”

Aoi, surprised, says, "Your cousin?"

"Don’t worry," he replies. "I’m not mad. Honestly, I’m glad they broke up—she had such a nasty temper."

After calming down, he asks, “How did you end up playing substitute?”

Aoi had nothing to say, looking at the man and woman with an embarrassed look on her face.

He gently says, “Don’t worry, it’ll be our little secret—just between the three of us. Anyways Most of the people here didn’t even know they were dating, let alone that they broke up.”

“Good,” Aoi says with a relieved sigh.

Minato, after seeing them together, joins them and gives the man a brotherly hug.

Later, Aoi smiles and mingles with other guests in the large ballroom. She notices Minato walking toward a balcony at the far end of the room and follows him. The balcony is large—spacious enough to fit a small home on it she saw the where not a lot of people in this side of the ball room

"She made her way onto the large balcony and saw him light a cigarette, take a smoke, and exhale. Then we see him sigh and place two fingers between his eyes. Taken aback by what she saw, she took a step back, And remembered what her friend had told her before Minato came."

"He may seem like he's over what happened with my cousin—maybe he is, I don't know. But look out for him.  there must be a reason he chose to come here with you tonight.""When her friend said this, she looked at him with widened eyes as he was being embraced by Minato."

Now, still on the balcony, she walks forward. Minato, noticing her as she quietly walks closer, sees her stretch out her arms over the balcony railing, looking up at the sky. Minato, who was still looking at her, turns his face to the moon and says, “If you don’t mind, could we just stay silent, please?” He says this while putting out his cigarette.

 She replies,"l wouldn't want it any other way."

From above, we see them standing together, the light from the ballroom almost flooding the balcony. Then, a sound interrupts them, and we see the shadows of guests moving together, reflecting off the balcony.

Minato says, “I guess that’s our cue to go back in,” extending his arm to her. They walk back out into the ballroom, where they and a small group of young guests were taken into a semi-theater that had an upper level and small round tables in and around a flat-stage, where the only light in the room came from.

As the photos were about to be taken, we see Aoi sitting with some small children at a table near where the photos were being taken. She looks over at a group of women as they are about to take a picture—some sitting on the long velvet sofa, others standing behind it.

Looking out onto the stage, Aoi notices the beautiful redhead—who seemed to have been her friend’s date from earlier—looking at her and gesturing brightly for her to come over for the picture. Aoi shyly went up .

We see the male guests waiting, each for their respective dates and spouses, admiring the beauty as they looked on while cloaked in darkness, waiting patiently for their turn. As Aoi came into view and sat down next to the redheaded lady, arms linked in hers, Minato looked at her, observing her frame. A strange feeling came over him, which took him by surprise, visibly changing the look on his face. Standing next to him was Aoi’s school acquaintance, looking lovingly at his fiancée. Minato quickly lit a cigarette and walked away, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling in his stomach. He moved to a corner of the room near a exit, leaving the men waiting to take the picture. 

"Now, taking in the beauty of it all, Aoi, now finished with her photo, stood beside Minato, both of them playing the wallflower. She noticed people stealing looks in their direction, not knowing that they were admiring how beautiful they looked together. While Aoi was observing her surroundings, Minato was looking at her deeply the whole time."

"Taken by his eyes, her eyes locked and her heart pinched at the sight of him.""And they looked at each other silently for a while."

"An old photographer who was walking by noticed the two of them." 

The old man asked, "Would the lovely couple like a picture?" Aoi, looking at the cute old man, said, "Sure."

Now, Minato—still with his cigarette in one hand—startled by what had just happened, composed himself and got ready for the photo. Then the photographer said, “A little to the left... good, arms in... good.” As he said this, Minato, finding himself staring at Aoi once again, leaned over and kissed her cheek.

Now, the photographer, looking at his camera, says, “Good, I think that one came out nice.” In the picture, we see the moment Minato kissed her cheek and Aoi’s face turning as red as a strawberry.

"Now the two of them stand frozen, arms still linked like two wallflowers. Minato, realizing what he had done, turns his head with his now-flushed face and takes a puff of his cigarette, secretly trying to hide his face behind it."

The end.

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