Ichinose Hanako, a 45-year-old full-time housewife living in a small rural town, leads a life she considers fairly happy despite daily frustrations. One day she sees a former classmate from vocational school, Mizuki Urara, appearing on television as a successful novelist. The sight stirs up memories of 27 years earlier, when Hanako, Urara, and another classmate, Hiraizumi Kanon, were inseparable. Back then all three vaguely dreamed of becoming something, but those aspirations were shattered when Urara dismissed Hanako’s ambitions, leading to a bitter quarrel that ended their friendship. As Hanako compares her own mundane present with Urara’s public success, jealousy takes hold and she posts a harsh critical review of Urara’s novel on a bookstore site.

The story follows the three women after a chance reunion that reopens old wounds. Urara, now a bestselling author, apologizes for her past behavior, but Hanako confesses to writing the review. Despite the awkward start, the trio tentatively rebuilds their bond. Each woman faces her own midlife challenges: Hanako struggles with her son’s refusal to attend school, Urara deals with her partner’s affair with her editor, and the timid illustrator Kanon finally gets an opportunity to hold her first solo exhibition at a local gallery. Through these trials, the three lean on one another, vowing to find happiness together.

Set in a provincial Japanese town, the narrative moves between present-day events and flashbacks to their teenage years, exploring how a friendship broken at eighteen can still haunt and heal hearts decades later. The series spans three volumes, following the women’s gradual reconciliation and personal growth as they navigate the bittersweet realities of being forty-five.