In 1936, Onodera Toshiko, who moved to Tokyo from Iwate, auditioned for the Moulin Rouge theater in Shinjuku to become a star. On the spot, she catches the attention of the manager and producer Sasaki Senri and the theater's leading actress Takanawa Yoshiko, and then she begins working as a theater's member. Based on the true story of Ashita Matsuko (明日待子), a popular Japanese idol in war period.
In Tokyo, lonely patrons pay to sleep ("soine") with someone. Massage, cuddle, sleep… for comfort and nothing more than the warm embrace of another. Tasuku, a young man fresh out of a relationship, starts a new job as one of the cuddlers. He's nervous and reticent, but soon finds himself with a procession of clients, male as well as female. In his unique position as their companion, he finds himself privy to the true selves they keep closeted. Tender performance and contemplative writing elevate an exploration of the human need for comfort and tenderness, while learning to be true to oneself.
Kazuhiko seizes the opportunity of his mother's illness to quit work and return to his parents' home. He begins working at senior citizens' home, performing his duties despite having doubts about the facility's policies even as he listens to his mother's grumblings at home. Then he meets a rebellious woman, Aiko, who begins to have an influence on him.