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The episode starts where we last left off, with Ruka and Sousuke fighting at Sousuke's apartment. Ruka manages to hit him with the broken lamp and dashes out. Her good luck charm from Michiru has fallen out and is left on the floor, though. She buys a shirt to replace the one Sousuke ripped.

At home, Michiru and Takeru ask how she got the cut on her face. Ruka says it was from a fall off her bike, nothing big. Michiru says they should disinfect it anyway, but Takeru looks a little suspicious. Later that night everyone digs into dinner (Thai food this time). Eri introduces all the dishes. Ogurin goes, "Didn't Michiru make them though?" Lol. Then Ogurin suggests that Michiru cosplay like Eri. XD The doorbell rings, scaring all of them. Ruka asks who it is before opening the door - turns out it's just a package for Eri. Michiru feels bad for making everyone feel like they have to live in alarm. Ruka says that Sousuke is persistent, and for Michiru to live alone would be dangerous.

Takeru tries to go to work, but they have found a substitute for the movie job because of his injured arm. Michiru apologizes, but Takeru says it's not her fault, and that he won't be defeated by this kind of thing. He tells Michiru not to give up and go back to Sousuke because it'd be like betraying Ruka. Since Ruka is putting her life on the line to protect Michiru.

Sousuke goes to the playground to see that kid again. This time the kid's mom is watching him. The kid asks if he can play with 'onii chan' but Sousuke says that since the kid has his mom back, he shouldn't be lonely anymore. Anyway, he's going to go take back someone very dear to him (uh oh), so the boy should go back and cherish his mother.

Eri is seen at a convenience store. She picks up a magazine (Weekly State Affairs) and in it is an article declaring "Popular Female Racer has gender identity disorder". Back at home (with the magazine), Eri and Takeru wonder if this is going too far, even if it's resentment. Ruka comes home and asks what's up. Eri throws the magazine in the trash, but of course Ruka picks it up and sees the article. She tells Eri it's all lies and goes back to her room, where she rips the magazine into pieces.

Michiru and Ogurin are out picking up their dry-cleaning. Michiru gets her clothes, Ruka's, and a...pair of star spangled banner boxers??? Ogurin jumps in hastily, saying those are his 'gaming pants'. Lol.

Takeru asks to come into Ruka's room. He asks her if it's okay not to tell Michiru about who Ruka really is and what her feelings really are. After all, Michiru is the person whom Ruka wants to understand her the most, right? Michiru comes home and is just outside Ruka's door to give her her clothes when she overhears Ruka saying that she definitely can't tell Michiru her feelings. Ruka says that when they first met in junior high, they had lots of good memories. Right before graduation, Michiru disappeared and Ruka was so happy to run into her again. She is also scared. Michiru doesn't think of Ruka as anything other than a friend. If Michiru were to find out that from the beginning, Ruka's feelings had always been more than friendship, then all of Michiru's white memories of their friendship would be stained grey.

Michiru is shocked and puts down the dry cleaning clothes, which of course Takeru and Ruka hear. They see Michiru running out of the house from Ruka's window. Michiru runs to the park where she and Ruka used to hang out and has a pained and confused look on her face. She remembers what Sousuke said about Ruka before, about how Ruka looked at Michiru with the eyes of a man.

That night everyone is worried about Michiru, but she comes home. She won't look anyone in the eye, though, and passes on dinner. The next morning she carries a big bag into the kitchen and picks out her pink mug. Takeru catches her leaving though. Michiru says not to worry; she won't go back to Sousuke. She's going to stay at her mother's for a bit. Takeru says that Ruka treasures her a lot, can't she accept that? Michiru replies that it's not that she can't, but she doesn't know how to face Ruka now. No matter what, she can't return her feelings like that. And now it would be painful/awkward to look at Ruka and see the distance between them. In the meantime Ruka is in her room and has overheard all of this. Michiru takes one final look at the sharehouse, then walks off.

At her mom's house, the mom and her boy-toy are watching TV. Michiru says that she is going to stay the night. Her mom asks for how long? Michiru doesn't answer that.

At the bookstore, Ruka's dad is seen reading a magazine. When he puts it down, we see that it is the Weekly State Affairs. At the racetrack Ruka is seen pulling off good speeds. Hayashida says Ruka is now ready for her "dream stage". After changing, Ruka walks out of the locker room to see her dad waiting for her. They go to Takeru's bar. Ruka's dad asks her how she's feeling (in regards to her race). Ruka says she feels calm and ready. She thanks her dad for always supporting her in the things she liked, and never forcing her to do things she didn't like. Her dad asks if she's happy. Ruka replies that she's fighting for the things she likes. Of course. The he asks if there isn't anything she wants to tell him. Ruka apologizes, and tells her dad that she's not like other girls. She won't be able to fulfill her dad's dreams and marry a guy or have kids. Her dad protests that they don't know what will happen in the future. Ruka says she knows that, but regardless, she will never like guys. But not to worry - she will find her own path and be happy. She wanted her dad to know, though, that this is who she really is. There's a pause, and her dad finally says that he'll give her his full support. It's the least a parent can do, after all. (Phew!)

That night, Takeru is walking home from work and sees Ruka's dad just sitting in the park by the water. He offers Ruka's dad a drink. Ruka's dad admits that he thought Ruka and Takeru were dating at first. Takeru replies that no, he wasn't acceptable. Ruka's dad says that when Ruka was little, she preferred trousers and shorts. She would catch crayfish and cicadas and come home covered with mud. He says that even now, he thinks his daughter is a charming daughter in his eyes, and then bursts into tears. :(

Next day at the sharehouse, Eri and Ogurin leave for work. Some distance off, Ogurin pulls Eri aside because he sees Sousuke sitting on a bench at a park near the sharehouse. Can we say creepy? Eri gets pissed and goes up to him and tells him that by hanging around, using violence and stuff, he might think that he's putting pressure on them, but it doesn't work on Eri. She tells him that she thinks it's pathetic, and that sort of stuff only makes Michiru like him less. If he's really a man, then back off and let Michiru live in peace. Then she stalks off. Further off, Eri clarifies to Ogurin that men should never depend on other people. Ogurin, too, he should go back to his wife. Then she goes off, leaving Ogurin standing with a hurt look on his face.

At Michiru's mom's place, Michiru is cleaning up when the phone rings. Sousuke is on the other line. He asks her isn't she having a hard time without her clothes? He's packed hers at home. He'd also like Michiru to return the spare key. After all, Eri told him that if he were a man, he ought to distance himself, right? So he's ready to end things. So Michiru goes to his apartment, but her face is full of misgivings. She puts the spare key on a table and says she'll take her stuff and go. Sousuke says, "Wait, I've made coffee." (*rolls eyes*) While he's pouring the coffee, Michiru sees Ruka's good luck charm on the floor near the bed. She remembers when Ruka came back the other day with a cut on her face. Michiru asks if Ruka came by here the other day. Sousuke replies in the affirmative, and by the way, did she know that Ruka loved her? He goes on by saying that if there was one person who wanted to ruin their relationship, it would be Ruka. He thinks that Ruka is an idiot for thinking she could protect Michiru with her strength when she doesn't have any. Michiru has a pissed look on her face and asked what Ruka said. Sousuke repeats what Ruka said earlier: "The one who truly loves Michiru is me. That's why I'll never give her to you." Michiru starts remembering all the times Ruka protected her and helped her; meanwhile Sousuke is still standing there badmouthing Ruka, because even after saying all that, Ruka is still a woman. Michiru asks what did he do to Ruka? Sousuke replies, nothing, he just broke her pride. Michiru goes over and SLAPS Sousuke. Finally! She is about to leave when Sousuke holds her back. Of course he only told her he wanted to 'end things' because that was the only way Michiru would come back to the apartment. What a creep. He throws her down and starts beating her, but she pushes him off, saying she doesn't belong to him anymore. He goes, "So you don't care what happens to your friends? I won't hand you over to them." The scene ends with him beating her and ripping her clothes off to rape her again.

Later it shows Michiru on the bed, beat up, telling Sousuke to promise to never hurt her friends again. If he can swear to that, she'll stay and let Sousuke 'do this' (i.e. beat her up) as many times as he wants. Sousuke tells her to stop crying, and is about to punch her, but this time holds his fist back and walks into the other room and closes the bedroom door behind him and starts crying. Uh, sorry Sousuke, it's about ten episodes too late for that. There is a package nearby him with photos of Michiru and the sharehouse folks, so he starts looking at them and seeing how happy Michiru is with them (still ten episodes too late for that).

Next morning is the day of Ruka's race. Ruka's mom and little brother look a little weirded out, but Ruka's dad has a supporting smile. With a little nudge the other two also smile and Ruka's little brother holds up his poster and wishes his sister good luck. The sharehouse folk are cheering Ruka. The race is about to start, and Ruka is about to finger her good luck charm which is always on her motorcycle, but this time it isn't there. Ruka tells herself she's going anyway, and the race starts.

Back at Sousuke's Michiru wakes up and opens the bedroom door to find Sousuke asleep on the couch. Or is he? Alas, no. The camera zooms out and it turns out Sousuke slit his wrist and let himself bleed out while hugging one of Michiru's white dresses.
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