For Kenji’s birthday Shiro gifts a trip together to Kyoto, but the lawyer’s uncharacteristic spree has the easy-going hair stylist fearing the worst. Also in this volume, “brownies” enter Shiro’s lexicon and repertoire.

Madam surprises Shiro with a gift that he quickly puts to good use. Shino asks Shiro for advice on how to keep her new husband fit and healthy. Kayoko invites Shiro to a cherry blossom picnic, at which Shiro is rescued from romantic disaster. Kenji gets a spiffy new suit for his birthday, and the couple considers the implications of a new same-sex partnership certificate law in Shibuya…

A hard-working middle-aged gay couple in Tokyo experience new challenges both at work and at home. While Kenji struggles to adjust to his new position at the salon, Shiro has unexpected conversations with his parents about the future. Concerns about weight gain also lead to an overhauling of their long-established Christmas menu. In this volume, we see Shiro and Kenji themselves start to get on in years as they come to enjoy the simple joys of healthy home-cooked meals.

Wedding bells are in the air as Gilbert/Wataru and Kohinata begin preparing for their upcoming nuptials. Pushed to his limit by the stress of finding an LGBTQ+-friendly venue and getting wedding-hot, Gilbert turns to his good friends Shiro and Kenji for the comforting company and soul food he knows he can rely on. This save-the-date announcement also means Shiro can finally broach a conversation years in the making with Kenji, and colors a significant step he takes in connecting his family with his life partner. And because when it rains it pours, big changes are also in store for Shiro at work…