Last Cinderella Episode 4 Recap

Episode 4: "Forbidden Kiss"

  Sakura leaves the drug store with a pregnancy test. As she stares at it, Rintaro approaches, so she quickly stashes it in her coat pocket. He thinks she's hiding condoms. They bicker all the way back to their building, and when Sakura starts searching for her key, Rintaro sees the pregnancy test.

  At his place they discuss her possible future. He asks if she'll keep the baby, and she gets reeaal close to him to ask if she should. He then lectures her about not using contraception and asks if she'll marry Hiroto. Rintaro pushes her to go ahead and take the pregnancy test, because she doesn't want to see the results alone, but she promises that she'll do it later and runs away.

  Sakura and Hiroto meet at the bar, and he asks about the trip to the onsen (hot spring) that Rintaro won for the salon team. He worries that Rintaro may have feelings for Sakura and that he might act on them, but she reassures him that Rintaro doesn't see her as a woman. Plus, he's just a friend. Barkeep overhears and laughs at that, then slinks away again.

  Sakura asks Hiroto if he likes kids and is relieved when he says he does. She can't bring herself to tell him about possibly being pregnant, though, and he mistakes her fumbling attempt as an invitation to sleep over. (Classic case of putting the baby buggy before the horse.)

  Sakura comes down with a fever the day of the work trip. Rintaro notices and takes her to the hospital. When they get back, he insists that she call Hiroto so he can come and baby her. She tells him she's fine, but he informs her that people need to feel like they're needed in their relationships. He leaves and she stares at the unused pregnancy test.

  Kohei hangs out at the gym looking for Shima. When he sees her, he interrupts her flirting and forces her to talk to him. He tells her that adultery is wrong (unless it's with you? Yeah, I'm not convinced), and then gets excited when she tells him to meet her at the hotel, clearly thinking she has romance in mind. (There's a running gag of women hitting him in the face with stability balls throughout this scene. I wonder if that's intended to be symbolic? Hahaha!)

  At the onsen, Rintaro has a hard time enjoying himself while everyone else parties—he's haunted by the spectre of Sakura.
  Hiroto has a bad day biking and texts Sakura to see how she's enjoying the onsen. He also asks to go together next time.

  Sakura falls out of bed to get to her phone, then stumbles outside to buy more supplies. She finds a bag full of everything she needs and realizes that Rintaro left it. He even thought to buy her a box of condoms. Hahaha!

  At the hotel, Shima massages Kohei's foot while they discuss their ideas on marriage and divorce. He tries to justify the latter, while she admits that she's done with the former. But she thinks marriage and a family are a miracle. She talks sadly about couples becoming parents. I wonder if she has fertility issues and if that was the root of the problems in her marriage.

  When Kohei gets home, Miki asks why he's been staying out so late. They have an argument in which she tries to explain that she needs him to come home earlier to relieve her of dealing with MIL, but they don't communicate well. MIL warns Miki to not complain to Kohei, or he'll never want to come home. Miki asks him about wearing his socks inside-out, and he tries several lies to explain it. Miki is suspicious. 

  Sakura feels better the next day, and gratefully accepts the gift Rintaro brings her from the onsen. He asks about the pregnancy test and she drags him inside to be with her. He asks why she's hesitating and she admits that she's worried it won't go well. (I think she means that she's worried she may not be pregnant.) 

  She finally takes the test, then can't make up her mind about whether she wants Rintaro to look at it first or not. She finally works up to it, but is disappointed when she sees that it's negative. She pretends that's what she wanted, though it's clear she was hoping she was pregnant. 

  Miki and Shima stop by the salon for girl talk and the three women discuss contraception, menopause, and other girly things, which is mortifying for the staff (especially the young guy, haha). Shima admits that she doesn't have to worry about getting pregnant, and her friends assume it's because of menopause, but I'm not so sure.

  Rintaro hangs out at the bar with Kohei and Barkeep. They talk about developing old-man smell and "male menopause" and Kohei's still-undiagnosed ED. 

  Miki and Shima ask to meet Hiroto and talk Sakura into calling him. Of course, he's in bed with Naked Girl. He tells her that he's ended things with Naked Girl, as said girl drapes herself over his shoulders. 

  After he ends the call, he gets dressed and Naked Girl asks if they're really over. She asks if he's serious about Sakura (she calls her "that old woman"), and reminds him that he can't get serious with anyone. 

  Kohei has a meeting to sell a housewife insurance, and while he's there, her young son colors on his shirt with a red crayon. When he gets home, Miki finds the red mark that looks like lipstick and a receipt (for the hotel, maybe?).

  Miki expresses her concerns to Sakura at the salon the next day and says that if Kohei is having an affair, she'll go in for the kill. Rintaro asks who she means—Kohei or the other woman. He explains that most women blame the other woman for affairs, and Miki says it's probably because they tend to think that the woman would initiate things. 

  Rintaro and Sakura dig at each other about wanting to get married so old, and finally Miki admits that she got married when they were 20 because she thought she needed to take advantage of the opportunity. But she's never had the thought or feeling that she was happy to be married. "That's why if he's cheating on me I can never forgive him." This talk shuts the other two up. 

  Sakura meets Hiroto at the bike park and tells him about not going to the onsen. She tells him about Rintaro taking her to the hospital, and he gets mad and tells her that he doesn't like her talking about another man. Especially not one she's so intimate with. He gets up angrily and goes back to practicing.

  Miki gets a call that her daughter needs to come home from school early because she started her first period. Later, she discusses it with Kohei. When he leaves to take a bath, she searches his pockets and finds another receipt. (Also, there are seriously balls all over the place.)

  Chiyoko waits for Rintaro like a stalker. She follows him to a baseball diamond and is upset to see Sakura there. 

  Rintaro asks Sakura why she's in his favorite spot. She asks about his dream of becoming a baseball star, and he reveals that in high school he missed his chance to go pro when a teammate was caught smoking and the whole team was punished by not being allowed to play in the championships.

  He asks what her dream was and she reveals that she wanted to be a mom. But, she saw a doctor and found out that she missed her period due to a hormone imbalance. Rintaro reassures her that she can still have kids and then wonders about an ex who also had a pregnancy scare. He was hoping she was pregnant, but she didn't want a baby, so maybe that's why they didn't get married in the end. 

  As they talk, the kids hit a fly ball that heads straight to Sakura. Rintaro jumps in the way just in time and gets beaned by the ball. He falls to the ground unconscious, and Sakura tries to wake him. Finally, he tells her to stop shouting and she realizes that he was tricking her. They bicker some more and play with the kids while Chiyoko watches jealously.
  Hiroto's game is still off at the bike park.

  The three friends meet up at the only bar in town, which is where Rintaro is also eating. Shima explains to him that they're there to meet Hiroto. She starts flirting with Rintaro, but Sakura jumps in and separates them. Miki expresses her concerns that Kohei is cheating and asks Shima if she's noticed anything. Shima reassures her that he'd never cheat on Miki. (Sure, and what the two of you are doing is totally above board. Riiight.)

  Hiroto heads to the bar with a bouquet, but at the door he gets a call from Chiyoko demanding that he come to her right now. "Or I don't know what might happen." He drops the flowers and runs to meet her.

  Shima and Miki try to convince Rintaro to join them while Sakura tries calling Hiroto. She only gets voicemail, though. She heads back to the table and angrily pushes Rintaro out of her way.

  Hiroto shows up at Chiyoko's house and confronts her about drinking. He tells her that she knows she can't drink, and they fight over the bottle of red wine. It flies across the room, smashes against the wall, and leaves a stain. Chiyoko chuckles and says that it reminds her of "that," by which I assume she means blood. She takes off her sweater and Hiroto stares at a large scar on her back. 

  She spins and yells at him that it's his fault she can't fall in love. She starts pushing him and screaming that it's all his fault, and he couldn't even get that woman to fall for him. He grabs her from behind and hugs her close, apologizing. He leans down and starts kissing down her scar.

  Sakura vows to wait for Hiroto, since she was the one who stood him up last time. So she should be patient for whatever may have come up. Rintaro leaves and notices the bouquet on the steps outside.
  Comments: 

  Well, that was a surprising kiss.
  Ah, the good old pregnancy scare. I saw that one coming 3 episodes ago. 
  I'm just going to come out and say it. It's probably a good idea to find out you're pregnant before telling your new and very young boyfriend that you are. But I guess that would leave fewer crazy and predictable twists for the plot of every romantic drama ever.
  I had a lot more to say about this episode, and none of it was really positive, but I just got so annoyed, I gave up. 

  Yeah, my head hurts, too.