"Detective! Night Scoop" (ABC TV, Fridays at 11:17 PM) is a popular variety show where "detectives" tackle bizarre requests and worries submitted by viewers. On April 24th, Detective Katsura Niha investigated the request, "I want to hear that night's performance again." Special Director En Hiroshi, Assistant Director Hiroshi Tamura, and Secretary Masuda Saori appeared on the show.
The request came from a 21-year-old woman in Aichi Prefecture. She wanted to hear a song again that she had only heard once, about 10 years ago.
At the time, the young woman, then a primary school student, was struggling with her friendships. One night, she heard a man singing and playing guitar from her neighborhood. His voice was gentle, as if speaking directly to her, and the lyrics were memorable. It was the first time she had ever been so moved by a song. That song gave her the strength to move forward and persevere.
Throughout middle and high school, whenever the woman faced difficulties, she would recall that song and overcome them. She often wished she could hear that man's song again, but since that day, she has never heard it again, and she still doesn't know anything about the man who sang it—not even what he looked like or who he was.
This spring, the woman started a new job and became a working adult. However, she has absolutely no confidence in her ability to work as a working adult. She spends every day feeling extremely anxious about whether she will be able to do well at the company and whether she will be able to become an independent working adult. That's why, even though she has only heard it once, she thinks that if she could hear that man's song again in the same situation as that night, she would be able to look forward and do her best again.
The woman's company induction ceremony is scheduled for one week after the filming date. The only thing that remains in her memory from a song she heard when she was in the third grade of elementary school is the phrase "I'm glad I'm alive." Upon investigation, it turns out to be "Shinya Kōsoku" by Flower Companies. At the time, she heard it coming from the house two doors down, and the singer seemed to be a man about 10 years older than her, judging from the figure she saw. However, she doesn't know anything about him because she doesn't have much contact with her neighbors.
So, Detective Futaba went to the house alone and found that the son was indeed the man in question, and that he had been singing and playing guitar about 10 years ago. As she waited on the bed, just like she used to, she heard that singing voice coming from the house two doors down.
