The first section begins with Mikage, a young Japanese woman whose grandmother has recently passed. The narrative opens three days after the funeral. With her grandmother gone, Mikage is depressed and unsure of what to do next. Her grandmother was her last remaining blood relative. Distraught, and in an apartment too big for one person, Mikage takes her futon into the kitchen and sleeps there. Kitchens are the one place where Mikage always feels safe; they are her favorite place to be. Mikage describes how kitchens, even messy ones, are safe, lived-in spaces symbolic of creativity and connection.

Mikage is soon visited by Yuichi Tanabe. Yuichi is a college-age boy who was close to her grandmother. He asks Mikage if she would like to live with him and his mother, Eriko, given that her grandmother has just passed. He gives her instructions on how to reach their apartment, and invites her to the apartment later that evening. Mikage knows she will need to move, so this seems like a logical step, though she really does not know Yuichi well. She soon realizes that she does know Yuichi somewhat: Yuichi cared for her grandmother.