Recap
We get to see Togawa’s heart-wrenching apologies again, before Nozue slowly leaves the apartment, Togawa still sniffling.

Both men go about work like normal, but things are awkward. Nozue is distracted and Togawa is less confident. Nozue tries to get things back to normal by inviting Togawa to lunch but is rejected.

Nozue goes out at night with his boss, shamelessly enjoying an ornate parfait while she drinks. The boss again offers a promotion and is surprised when Nozue wants to seriously consider it.

Some later evening, both men go out for a department drinking party. So much drinking with workmates, no thank you. Nozue gets drunk and is vocally disappointed by the co-worker who is sitting next to him, to that co-worker’s confusion. Togawa hears from the others about Nozue transferring to another department.

Togawa gets bossy and stops Nozue from taking a co-worker’s drink, startling everyone by hustling drunk Nozue out. As they wait for a taxi, Nozue confirms he’s transferring. Nozue decides to go catch the train despite Togawa’s objections about safety, only to have Togawa run after him to hand him an umbrella just in case.

Nozue remembers Togawa doing this before and realizes he doesn’t want to go back to being passive again. He doesn’t want to be just Togawa’s boss.

Now Nozue is running! He’s out of breath as he catches up to Togawa and confesses. At first, Togawa pulls away, worried it’s just pity. Nozue explains that he was afraid and running away again. He wants to experience new happiness with Togawa. There’s hugging as Togawa accepts it.

They panic at nearby voices, then laugh and tease each other about their ages as they walk through the narrow streets. Togawa tells Nozue not to worry about their differences, and they talk about the future.

Life goes on, and Nozue and Togawa meet up for lunch even though they are no longer in the same department. Nozue assures Togawa he took the promotion not to get away from him, but because he was ready for something new. Togawa knew and is happy for Nozue.

They talk about where to go next, and Togawa feeds Nozue some pancake.

Thoughts
I am ready to get on a flight to Japan right now and have any of the desserts that I saw on this show. 

There’s some really great lighting in this episode. When Togawa and Nozue were standing on the narrow streets there were all the pretty lights of the various restaurant signs behind them. Later, when Nozue was confessing, they were in darkness with dramatic orange and blue lighting from the background. 

I missed the singular objects to illustrate Nozue’s evolution in this episode and the last, but I am glad to see them still showing up. Nozue is confident with his smartphone, something that his boss notices and comments on. He also just orders and eats a parfait without any fear of anyone else judging him.

One thing I’m not sure how I feel about is that while Togawa seems to have been gay and known it, Nozue’s past is murky. He doesn’t seem to have had any prior experiences being attracted to men and expresses fear at the idea. We know though, that he hasn’t always been so fearful, so I’m not sure if Togawa is the first man he’s been attracted to or not.

This feels like a missed opportunity to explore, even a little, if this is something he’s always been too afraid to deal with. At the same time, maybe it’s nice to not dwell on that fear and keep the story smaller. I’m not sure what I think.

But I do like that his decision to be with Togawa is tied to his personal growth. I think the Nozue at the beginning of the show would have been too afraid to date anyone. Now he’s taking a promotion and dating a younger man. 

It’s such a nice message because no matter who you are you can get stuck in life, and shows like this are a lovely reminder of the rewards of trying new things at any age.