The next time she come to the café with Rin, Itsuomi asks her all kinds of questions, and it’s confirmed Yuki is completely deaf and has been since birth. Since he’s either curious or interested (both really), Yuki deems it the right moment to give Itsuomi a lovingly hand-illustrated sign language guide. He accepts it, but notes he may not use it much, as he’d much rather practice signing in person, with her.
The bliss is interrupted by the arrival to two of Itsuomi’s old friends, Shin and Emma. Because they’re drunk and slurring their words, even when they’re facing her Yuki can’t make out what they’re saying. But more concerning to her is that the gorgeous Emma is clinging to Itsuomi; Yuki doesn’t need words to read how she feels about him.
Four days pass without Yuki and Itsuomi interacting, but when she works up the nerve to ask via text if he’s in Japan, he says he is, and invites her to hang out with him at the laundromat if she wants. It’s the latest Yuki has ever gone out on her own, let alone to meet a guy, and on her way she encounters the overbearing Oushi, who warns her not to get too close to Itsuomi, assuming he’s just messing with her.
Oushi should really mind his business. If he likes Yuki, he should tell her, and be nicer to her, but for all his signing fluency he keeps their relationship at odds. Itsuomi may only be starting to learn signs one by one, but because its out of a genuine desire to get closer to Yuki and her world.
When he verbalizes that he’s always looked at far-off goals, but now finds a special one much closer to him, Yuki unfortunately isn’t watching his lips. But she does manage to make it clear that she wants to become much closer to him too, using the sign for more by “climbing the ladder” with her hands as high as she can reach. When he takes her hands in his, she feels excited and her heart races, but she also feels safe, and never wants her curfew to come. He draws her into a hug, he says “you’re sweet” in German.
He walks her home in the gently falling snow, and Morohoshi Sumire’s inner monologue, as ever, feels just as beautiful and delicate. They pinky promise to see each other again soon, but when Itsuomi comes home he finds Emma waiting for him with drinks. She makes clear why she’s there, so he makes it just as clear he’s not interested.
This is not apparently not the first time Emma has “pulled this crap;” suffice it to say Itsuomi is fine with their status as “just friends” while she wants to take the next step. Instead, he leaves her in his place to drink alone, which is when she discovers the signing guide.
When it’s just Yuki and Itsuomi, it truly feels like time stops. But her heart isn’t the only thing racing; she’s one vertex in a love polygon with him, Emma, and Oushi. There may be drama afoot, so we’ll see how Yuki weathers it.
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