Kodomo ni naisho de written by Ioka Itsuki and illustrated by Kazuaki
To be frank, I didn't expect much from Kodomo ni naisho de written by Ioka Itsuki and illustrated by Kazuaki when I bought it. The blurb sounded rather hokey, but I was on an Ioka Itsuki streak (thanks to Mahiru no tsuki) and the cover art was oddly compelling (if not exactly my favorite kind of art) so I took a chance. I am so glad I did, because it turned out to be utterly delightful. The best part about it? The main characters are decent, nice, ordinary people who act mostly like sensible adults. It can be tiring to read about ultra-beautiful tragic/special/stupid ukes meeting ultra-gorgeous arrogant/brilliant/domineering semes and doing their ultra-shiny thing in one BL novel after another. So when I can get nice person meeting another nice person and they don't act out a soap opera, it's like a breath of fresh air.
Torishima Yuuma is a young man who hosts a children's morning show. The children's book publisher salesman Shiozaki Tetsuya (who's not very good at his job) happens to see Yuuma interacting very well with some children in a bookstore and begs him to teach him what it is that children like. Yuuma decides to help him out. They become friends, but of course things don't remain that way.
I realized as I wrote the summary that I can't even begin to show just what makes the story utterly delightful without translating whole passages. The interactions between Yuuma and the children and Yuuma and Shiozaki are wonderful and sweet and what make the story...
Torishima Yuuma had been an unknown actor when he had auditioned for a short-term children's morning show. But thanks to the surprising popularity of the show both with children and their parents, he is still host and will continue indefinitely. A week's worth of shows are shot in one day with that week's group of children chosen from the audience. The story begins as a day's shoot is wrapping up. He takes promo pics with the children before saying goodbye to them. He is grateful that children seem to take to him because he truly enjoys interacting with the children, tiring as it can be. He doesn't mind the restrictions the job places on him, such as not being able to take on other acting jobs or go partying at night (to prevent any sullying of his image).
Yuuma leaves the studio and visits a bookstore to check out the children's books. He makes sure to research what children like so that he can carry on conversations with them properly. At the bookstore, one of the children recognize him and he is quickly surrounded by kids. He talks to them a while about the books they are interested in, a bit concerned about any trouble he might be making for the bookstore with the crowd. He manages to smoothly get the kids going and leaves. But as he is leaving, he is stopped by a man in a suit. He's a bit taken aback by the slightly scary looking man, but it turns out the man is a salesman for a children's picture book publisher. Shiozaki Tetsuya had seen Yuuma getting along with the children in the bookstore and asks Yuuma to advise him on what kids like. He's been having a hard time having the bookstore carry his books as they don't sell, and he's desperate. Yuuma decides to help him out, but he wonders why Shiozaki doesn't know who he is. While Yuuma doesn't think of himself as generally famous, he finds it odd that an employee of a children's book publisher wouldn't be aware of a show popular with the target demographic. He tells Shiozaki that he'll help, but only if Shiozaki can find out what his name is. He walks away while Shiozaki stands there dumbfounded. Yuuma figures Shiozaki must have thought he was just blowing him off, but Yuuma leaves it to Shiozaki to make the effort to find out who he is and find a way to contact him.
Yuuma gets a call from one of his friends, Kazunari, asking him if he wants to go out that night. Yuuma declines as he's been doing since he started the show. He knows he can't hurt his image, and just doesn't have it in him to disguise himself and lie. He knows he has to be extra careful to keep the fact that he's gay a secret to safe-keep his job.
The shoot the next week is a bit different from normal. The producer of the show, Sakamoto, had shown up with the sponsor of the show. Yuuma ends up showing the president of the sponsor company around during the break, having to endure a bit too much touching for his own comfort. But he knows how important the sponsor is and keeps his complaints to himself. When he leaves the studio he sees Shiozaki waiting for him. Yuuma had forgotten about Shiozaki until he saw him again, but he realizes that Shiozaki must have found out who he was. They go to a cafe for drinks, and Yuuma ends up telling Shiozaki that in the end it's hard to figure out, as adults, exactly what kids will like. He relates how his show was supposed to a short-term thing, but it had become unexpectedly popular. He suggests that Shiozaki ask kids to find out what they like and don't like. They also do the polite small talk. Shiozaki is 39, divorced (I love the word "batsuichi" to describe a one-time divorcee), and had previously worked in sales at a computer leasing firm. When he had been laid off during a corporate restructuring he had a hard time finding a new job until he had managed to get this current job through an acquaintance's introduction. Yuuma is surprised to find out that Shiozaki is 13 years older than him. Shiozaki, for his part, is surprised that Yuuma isn't younger. Yuuma has a gentle, somewhat androgynous face that makes him look much younger than he really is. While Shiozaki isn't even close to Yuuma's type, for some reason he brings out a sort of maternal instinct to help him out. Yuuma offers to help him further and they exchange phone numbers.
The next morning, Yuuma receives a text message from Shiozaki right after his show airs on TV commenting on the show. Yuuma is amused to find how serious Shiozaki is, who bothers to make time in his busy morning to watch and respond to it (partly as research for his job and partly as duty since he's seeking Yuuma's advice).
Yuuma goes to the bookstore to check out the picture books by Shiozaki's company. He finds them to be quite good, buys several, and texts Shiozaki to let him know that he thought they were quite good. Shiozaki immediately calls back and thanks Yuuma, apologetic that he hadn't thought to bring Yuuma his company's books when they had met the other day. Shiozaki invites Yuuma to dinner that night. He gives Yuuma a huge bag full of his company's books, and they have more polite, pleasant conversation. Shiozaki asks why Yuuma hadn't just researched his company's books online and finds out that Yuuma doesn't own a computer. Shiozaki offers to advise Yuuma on buying a computer, but after giving Yuuma detailed information on the subject Yuuma only feels more confused. So Shiozaki offers to actually help pick out a computer with Yuuma. They arrange to meet on Sunday to go to a store and buy a computer.
Upon arriving home, Yuuma gets a call from Kazunari inviting him to the movies with other friends on Sunday. Yuuma declines as he has plans already. Kazunari, knowing that Yuuma isn't much for going out, starts grilling him about who it is that has managed to get Yuuma out and make Yuuma decline an outing with established friends. Yuuma assures Kazunari that it's not a romantic interest like Kazunari thinks. But Kazunari keeps thinking that it's actually a secret love because it's more fun and exciting to think of it that way.
It makes Yuuma wonder about what would've happened if Shiozaki had been his type. He figures he wouldn't have been able to act very naturally around Shiozaki, that he'd try to show himself to advantage. He's amazed and kind of mystified at how much he thinks about Shiozaki when there's absolutely no romantic interest involved.
On Sunday Yuuma and Shiozaki meet up and chose a computer. When Shiozaki learns even better how little Yuuma understands computers and the Internet, he offers to set everything up for Yuuma. When Yuuma gives Shiozaki his address, it comes out that Shiozaki lives quite a distance away from work in a single-family residence he had bought while married. They get into a conversation about Shiozaki's past with his ex-wife and Yuuma manages to dodge questions about him being single. Shiozaki is very glad that he had first spoken to Yuuma. He explains that he took Yuuma's advice and offered his company's books for free to a kindergarten in exchange for the teachers' opinions on them. He took the book most liked from the lot and explained the good points as mentioned by the teachers to the bookseller to convince the bookseller to stock the book. He also did some other things which apparently had helped him in his job.
The next week Shiozaki comes over to set up and connect Yuuma's computer, which Yuuma hadn't even taken out of the box. Yuuma makes a simple meal (which Shiozaki praises highly because he can't cook at all) and they have more plesant conversation. They continue to meet, having fun talking to each other and enjoying each other's company. Yuuma finds their differing ages and interests refreshing, and enjoys how Shiozaki's a bit dense and awkward and fun to tease but is still mature and able to indulge the much younger Yuuma.
The producer Sakamoto again shows up at the next shoot to speak to Yuuma. Sakamoto tells Yuuma that the sponsor thinks that the show is too routine and has suggested changing the host. Sakamoto assures Yuuma that he has no complaints about Yuuma, but the sponsor is very important to the show. He suggests Yuuma meet with the sponsor, saying that the sponsor will surely change their mind if Yuuma asks them to. Yuuma doesn't mind trying, but wonders why Sakamoto even brought the whole matter up if it was going to be so simple to solve. And he finds Sakamoto's behavior very odd--Sakamoto wouldn't look at him the entire time. Sakamoto then tells Yuuma that his agency will tell him about it further and leaves.
The president of his agency comes in and is a lot more blunt about it. She tells Yuuma that the sponsor wants to sleep with him. If he doesn't, not only will he lose his current job he won't be able to work in the industry again. She haughtily tells him she'll contact him with further details and quickly leaves.
Yuuma is contacted by the agency president the next day with time and place details. He is torn between wanting to keep his current job and not wanting to do something so dirty to keep it. As the appointed time approaches he makes his way to the hotel, but can't quite walk in. Just as he's agonizing about taking the last step and just walking in, he runs into Shiozaki just leaving the hotel. Shiozaki had finished a bit of work, and asks if Yuuma was also at the hotel for work. Seeing Shiozaki working so hard and so honestly, Yuuma can't look into his face. He decides that he wouldn't be able to keep working with children if he went through with it. If he's going to regret it either way, he's going to chose the decision that will keep him from hating himself. After confirming that Shiozaki was finished with work, Yuuma invites Shiozaki to drinks. He doesn't want to go home and be harassed by his agency when he doesn't show up in the hotel room.
Of course Yuuma drinks more heavily than usual. Shiozaki asks what's wrong. Yuuma explains that he's going to lose his job thanks to the sponsor. He even tells Shiozaki that the sponsor had demanded his body to keep his job. Yuuma tells Shiozaki he's glad he met Shiozaki there because it had brought him back to his senses. Shiozaki expresses disbelief and disgust at the terrible abuse of power. He tries to comfort Yuuma by telling him that he'll easily find another job. Yuuma, intoxicated and distressed and warmed by Shiozaki's regard, maneuvers the conversation to get Shiozaki to agree to spending the night with him to comfort him. Of course Shiozaki doesn't quite understand the meaning of it until Yuuma brings him to a love hotel. Shiozaki protests that they are both guys, that Yuuma had just refused to do just such a thing with another guy (not realizing that Yuuma is gay), that this was all craziness (okay, not the last bit, but you know that's what Shiozaki is thinking). Yuuma, for his own part, appeals to Shiozaki's regard for him ("do you not like me?" "you said you'd comfort me" etc) until Shiozaki gives in. Yuuma gives Shiozaki a blow job, gets aroused while doing it, then ends up riding him...
Yuuma wakes up the next morning, sees Shiozaki sleeping next to him, remembers the night before and is overcome with regret. He had taken advantage of Shiozaki's kindness and had ruined their precious friendship for one night's comfort. He puts on his clothing and leaves the hotel. He has several message waiting for him at home, including one from his agency ordering him to come to the office. Instead of going down to get yelled at, he calls and gets a nasty "don't show your face at the studio or the agency there are oodles of replacements for the likes of you" telling off from the president. Yuuma doesn't know what he'll do now that he's lost the job he loved and the friendship he treasured, and ends up crying while taking a bath.
That night he shows up at a gay bar his friend Kazunari frequents. He tells Kazunari that he's lost his job. Kazunari immediately asks if they had found out he was gay. Yuuma tells him the real reason, and of course Kazunari is upset for him. Kazunari praises Yuuma for not falling into the stereotype of the loose gay guy and sleeping with the sponsor even though his job was on the line. Yuuma jokes that he might have if the sponsor had been good-looking. Kazunari knows Yuuma is not capable of something like that. He also wonders if it wasn't also because of the person Yuuma seems interested in. Yuuma denies Kazunari's speculation again, and becomes depressed about Shiozaki. Kazunari offers to treat him in an effort to cheer him up. Yuuma talks with old friends and acquaintances and tries to forget about his troubles. Kazunari points out after Yuuma had talked briefly with some random guy that the guy was Yuuma's type. Yuuma hadn't noticed, which makes Kazunari think even more that Yuuma was interested in someone already. Yuuma again is reminded of Shiozaki and the awful mistake he had made and vigorously denies Kazunari's hypothesis.
A week after Yuuma was fired the show is already airing brand new episodes with a new host, discarding already shot episodes with Yuuma. Yuuma tries to watch the new show but can't even watch it to the end. He's at a complete loss as to what to do, when one day Shiozaki comes calling. Shiozaki immediately apologizes, first for showing up suddenly and then for the other night. Yuuma insists that he's the one who should apologize, but Shiozaki interrupts. He knows they need to talk about the matter, but he wants to talk about what's going to happen to Yuuma now first. He asks if Yuuma isn't planning try to get back on the show. Yuuma thinks it's impossible, but Shiozaki informs him of the outcry among the audience for Yuuma to return. Shiozaki shows Yuuma one website dedicated to bringing Yuuma back. The audience had figured there must have been something to cause Yuuma to be dropped so quickly and quietly, but since no scandalous news broke on Yuuma they demanded to know why Yuuma was dropped. Shiozaki thought that it'd be a good idea for Yuuma to act now, to show that he had some power to attract children. He presents a proposal for a book fair in which Yuuma meets with kids and recommends books. Yuuma doesn't think he has that kind of popularity, but Shiozaki reassures him that he does. Yuuma decides to give it a try, if only to respond to Shiozaki's confidence in him. He's incredibly happy that Shiozaki is willing to interact with him as he had done before, despite everything.
The book fair is arranged two weeks later at one of the biggest bookstores in Tokyo. Shiozaki comes to fetch Yuuma at his apartment, and Yuuma can't help but express his anxiety as they make their way to the bookstore. They arrive hours before the book fair is set to start, but they find kids and their mothers already waiting. Yuuma is moved that the kids still remember him, weeks after they had last seen him on TV. The bookstore begins passing out tickets to the fair, but they quickly run out of the hundred tickets they had prepared. Yuuma is moved even more that not only had the kids not forgotten him, they had believed in his popularity enough to bother to come when the store opened rather than when the fair started so that they could see him. Yuuma wonders if it's all just a dream.
They start the fair early and manage to keep going until Yuuma meets with every child who shows up, which turns out to be around three hundred. He talks to each one and recommends books to them individually. He is terribly happy that he is able to meet so many children in one day. The children and their mothers ask Yuuma what he is going to do in the future. There were even children to burst into tears as soon as they saw him, they had missed him so much. Yuuma promises that he'd somehow meet them again, in some form some day. He feels like he can try and move forward and find a new path for himself now. He is also happy that Shiozaki is willing to support him in this, but he knows that they will have to settle things between them at some point. He decides to wait until Shiozaki brings it up again so that he can keep this fake continuation of their friendship for as long as possible. He's come to realize that he's actually fallen for Shiozaki, but he knows he can't ever tell Shiozaki. He wonders how long they can remain friends...
The news of the success of the book fair is reported in the media, which makes the voices calling for Yuuma to be restored to only get louder. Finally, the president of Yuuma's former agency calls to haughtily say that she's willing to forgive Yuuma this one time and take him back. Yuuma declines, not wanting to work with a person who had treated him so badly before. He thinks he'd given up any chance of going back on the show with that act, but then the director of the show shows up. The director had apparently pieced together what had happened and had moved to find a new sponsor for the show. He had recruited network employees who were fans of (or had kids who were fans of) the show and Yuuma and they had found a new sponsor, which meant there'd be no problems for Yuuma to return to the show.
After each new episode airs, Yuuma receives a text message from Shiozaki with comments about the show as before. Shiozaki had continued to support Yuuma as he made his way back to the show. But Yuuma knows the time had come to confront the issue, because he is at his limit. He'd rather just tell Shiozaki before Shiozaki, dense as he is, figures out his feelings. He arranges to meet Shiozaki at his apartment.
That night Shiozaki shows up after work and asks to speak first. Shiozaki confesses that he can't continue the relationship as is with Yuuma because he has ulterior motives. He can't help but remember that night---he hadn't been drunk like Yuuma. But instead of repelling Yuuma as Shiozaki had thought, Yuuma is happy that Shiozaki likes him. He immediately confesses that he cares for Shiozaki that way as well. They embrace and kiss, and embarrassed, Yuuma gets up to make tea. But Shiozaki tells Yuuma he'd rather have him than tea, and they have sex.
Yuuma wakes up to find Shiozaki watching his show ( Shiozaki had gotten into the habit of waking up to watch the show). Yuuma gives Shiozaki a good morning kiss, which causes Shiozaki some embarrassment. He feels...immoral. Like he'd just stolen the children's favorite friend. Yuuma tells Shiozaki that they can just keep it a secret from the kids. After all, adults all have secrets. When Yuuma asks if Shiozaki wants to broadcast their relationship to the world, Shiozaki smiles and says he'd love to boast about it. Yuuma flushes, and then asks if Shiozaki doesn't want to kiss the lover he so wants to boast about....And Shiozaki does.
Yuuma, in addition to the show, begins to attend kids events around the country. His friend Kazunari's older brother becomes his manager, and Shiozaki sells his house and moves to the same apartment building as Yuuma. Yuuma comments that he's heard that people get very anxious when they feel that everything's going too well, but that it's not true for everyone. He doesn't feel anxious at all. In fact, he feels fearless with Shiozaki at his side.
There's a side story in which the show has been extended into the weekends. In order for the entire family to enjoy it, the show is lengthened into thirty minutes and they add the female host that had taken over for Yuuma after his firing to co-host. He ends up with the indoor activities while she takes care of the outdoor/athletic activities. They laugh about the silly rumor that they are dating, especially since they had only met a few days earlier. After the shoot, Yuuma stops by Shiozaki's place. There, in the middle of a pretty normal conversation he's suddenly assaulted with forceful kisses and a quick hand-job. He stops Shiozaki from going further to find out what's wrong with him. Turns out Shiozaki had heard the rumors about Yuuma and the co-host and had been jealous. Yuuma is terribly happy that Shiozaki was jealous, but more than that he's puzzled that Shiozaki would believe such a rumor. Yuuma points out that she's a woman...And realizes from Shiozaki's reaction that Shiozaki hadn't realized he was gay. He tells Shiozaki, and Shiozaki is rather embarrassed that he'd been jealous over nothing at all. He calms down and starts worrying about having been a bit forceful with Yuuma. Yuuma, on the other hand, had been aroused by the very different Shiozaki. He coyly demands Shiozaki finish what he'd started, relishing Shiozaki's slightly pitiful face. He smiles as Shiozaki kisses him again, this time ever so sweetly.
I love love love how not hysterical Yuuma and Shiozaki are. Shiozaki is a wonderful combination of slightly awkward and dense (but not hetare) yet mature and able to fully support Yuuma. Yuuma is completely independent but able to genuinely rely on Shiozaki. They are equals who are able to have companionship, understanding, and support without the crazy ego clashes. It's such a sweet story! As I've said before, I don't think the summary can truly do justice to this one--it's all in the details of the interactions and the dialogue. XD
A little girl fixing Yuuma's hair for the promo pic in a slightly bossy older sister way.
Shiozaki calling to Yuuma outside the bookstore.
Talking pleasantly over dinner.
Yuuma protesting to the agency president about the sponsor's demand for sex.
Yuuma running into Shiozaki outside of the hotel.
Yuuma getting the comfort he wants.
Yuuma getting more comfort and feeling good.
Shiozaki calling on Yuuma to talk about Yuuma's future.
Conveying their feelings to each other.
And proceeding to have sex.
