Kumiko Yamamura, known as Josee, has navigated life in a wheelchair since birth due to paralysis from the waist down. Her nickname, borrowed from a character in François Sagan’s *Those Without Shadows*, mirrors her literary passion and penchant for crafting imaginative identities. Sporting light-brown wavy hair and striking pink-purple eyes, her slender frame is often adorned with flowing dresses or a teal skirt that mirrors the mermaid’s tail from her recurring dreams. Orphaned early and raised under her grandmother’s overprotective wing, Josee’s sheltered existence cultivated a sharp sarcasm and defensive demeanor. Fabricated stories—like boasts of romantic escapades—mask her vulnerability, though those close to her swiftly see through the charade. Her grandmother’s strictures and society’s stigmatization of her disability crystallize into social anxiety, rendering strangers as prowling "tigers" in her psyche. A natural artist, Josee transmutes her inner world into *The Mermaid and the Radiant Wings*, a picture book allegorizing her yearning for freedom as a mermaid and external fears as lurking tigers. Initially a private refuge, her art becomes a bridge to connection through a library job, where she cautiously forges ties with colleagues like librarian Kana Kishimoto. Her guarded existence fractures when Tsuneo Suzukawa, a university student hired as her caretaker, persistently nudges her beyond her confines. Their relationship, born from friction—her initial hostility even manifests in physical outbursts—gradually evolves into reciprocal support. Together, they navigate beaches, societal prejudices, and the dissolution of her grandmother’s household, which thrusts Josee into transient housing and self-doubt. Accusations of burdening Tsuneo and his subsequent injury—a temporary mirror of her physical limits—spur mutual reckoning. Josee channels these trials into professional illustration, while their bond solidifies into a steadfast commitment to champion each other’s ambitions. Her narrative sidesteps tropes of miraculous cure, instead tracing resilience through adaptation. Challenges of disability, societal perception, and self-acceptance intertwine with her artistic evolution, framing a journey where agency and emotional complexity eclipse simplistic resolutions.