The movie and the credits ended, and the lights came back on in the screening room. The soundproofing made the room like a dome, shutting out all outside sounds but enhancing the inside noises you wouldn’t normally notice, such as the rustling of clothes as people stood up from their seats, footsteps, the faint clinking of ice cubes inside paper cups, and the last bits of popcorn rolling against the sides of nearly empty popcorn buckets.
Takina thought it was as if they were in an intermediary world between the movie and the real world.
Chisato stood up gingerly, picking up her empty popcorn bucket and cup. She checked to make sure she didn’t leave anything on her seat. In the row behind her and Takina, Mika, Kurumi, and Mizuki also stood up and started walking down the aisles and out of the room. Takina and Chisato followed after them. As soon as they stepped outside, there was so much noise around them. Theater staff were calling, “Empty cups here!” and everyone around was suddenly talking as if they’d been unmuted. Quite a few people hurried to the restrooms.
“I was surprised by how many people stayed until after the credits. Why didn’t they leave after the movie ended?” Takina asked Chisato, who was walking beside her.
Chisato looked a bit thrown for a moment. She crossed her arms, staring at the ground.
“You always come up with these difficult questions…”
“Is it difficult…?”
“Well, I also stay until after the credits… Mainly to digest what I’ve seen? The production team specially chose the roll credits music, so it doesn’t shake you out of the world of the movie, and you can just sit there reflecting on what was good about the film, what you enjoyed about it, and let the experience sink in. I also like to check the names of actors I thought played well.”
“Ah, so that’s why you watch the credits.”
“I don’t, like, read them all. I just idly watch them roll. Oh, but sometimes you make surprising discoveries, like that a famous actor made a cameo appearance. I like that. Oh, and if there’s a post-credits scene, that’s the cherry on top.”
Takina hadn’t heard of post-credits scenes before. Kurumi, walking behind her, explained that they were bonus scenes at the end. They were shown after the credits. Sometimes, they were intended to get the audiences excited for a sequel, and other times, they broke the fourth wall with a character from the movie directly addressing the audience, saying, “It’s the end. Go home,” or they were just shots of the main characters doing something completely unrelated to the plot… But they could also show something crucial to the understanding of the movie.
“But this movie didn’t have a post-credits scene. Were you disappointed?”
“Nah, not really. If there is a post-credits scene, that’s great, but I don’t mind if there isn’t. Most movies don’t have them! I do always hope for something after the credits, though.”
To Takina, it seemed like yet another overly complicated aspect of moviegoing, but she would agree that if she was paying to see a movie, it made sense to stay until the end of the credits and get the most out of the experience.
They left the theater and headed to the elevators. While they waited, Chisato turned around.
“Guys!” she said. “You haven’t thrown away your tickets, right?!”
Takina guessed she meant the tickets for the movie. They weren’t the “tear in half” type, but printed slips.
“Shopping malls like this one offer little freebies to customers with movie tickets! I recommend the games arcade in the basement! If you have a ticket, you get one free go on a claw machine, even the two-hundred-yen ones!”
“Really? That sounds like a very good deal!” Takina exclaimed in surprise.
Chisato grinned as if that was the sort of response she’d been waiting for.
“It is! It’s a real bargain!”
“Only if you can land a prize,” Mizuki said with a smirk.
“As it happens, there are five of us… With five goes, we’re sure to get some plushies! It’s relatively easy to get prizes on the two-hundred-yen machines. And by the way, there are quite a few other places where you can use your movie tickets to get freebies. You’ll find a list on the theater’s website or in the pamphlets. If you’re serious about it, you can get all sorts of stuff for free.”
“I just want to go for drinks, really,” said Mizuki.
“And I want to grab something sweet to eat. Or have a sit-down meal,” piped up Kurumi.
“I think they have a spa on the top floor,” said Mika. “I’d like to go there. I’ve never tried a Finnish sauna before.”
“What, you’re all going somewhere else?”
Chisato sounded disappointed. Since they’d come to the theater together, she probably wanted to hang out as a group. Mizuki patted her on the head.
“What can you do? We all have different interests. And the spa here is for men only.”
“But let’s go to the games arcade together,” Takina cut in. “Even if we’re going to go our different ways after, we could do that together first. Let’s not miss out on our freebies. It’s better to go together than everyone at a different time. We’ll have a better chance of getting something.”
“Yes, let’s do that!” Chisato agreed with a smile. She pressed the elevator button. “Here comes team LycoReco! Mission start!”
✦ ✦ ✦
“See? It’s absolutely fine to watch movies on a tablet or laptop, but watching in a movie theater with all the bells and whistles is pretty neat, right?” Chisato asked after they finished their meal.
“Perhaps, although the movie itself wasn’t good, if I’m being honest.”
“But they tried their best!”
“‘They tried their best’ isn’t a positive review, either, is it? I didn’t like the excessive amount of blood and gore… The killer itself wasn’t too bad as a character, though.”
“That’s enough to make it worth seeing, no?”
“I won’t disagree, but I’d have preferred it if I knew in advance what sort of movie it was, so I could choose whether to watch it in a theater or at home.”
“I’d say it’s always best to see a movie in a theater and hope it turns out good!”
“That’s a waste of time and money.”
“Okay, then. Maybe you should choose the next movie we go to.”
“All right, I will…” Takina stopped, alarm bells ringing. She was looking at Chisato, who was sitting opposite her, with the intense feeling that something was wrong. Chisato was drinking apple juice…with a big, self-satisfied grin. But why would she be grinning? Takina criticized her movie choice, so why did she look triumphant?
And then it sank in. Takina realized she’d fallen into Chisato’s trap. Without suspecting anything, she’d effectively agreed to go see a movie with Chisato again. They had a similar conversation before the movie started, but this time the suggestion to go again came from Takina. It was no coincidence—Chisato had clearly steered the conversation to make her say so. And she was grinning now, seeing that Takina had realized she’d been played.
“Oh, don’t spoil your pretty face with a frown! Joking, you look adorable either way!” Chisato said, still grinning but less smug.
The entire LycoReco crew had gone to the games arcade, and they had a pretty good time there. At Chisato’s insistence, they then went to a café near the arcade, where they chatted about the movie over coffee. Afterward, Mizuki went to a craft beer bar on the first floor, Mika to the spa on the top floor, Kurumi to a pancake place on the third floor, and Takina and Chisato to a different café located inside a stylish general store on the fourth floor, where they had a meal…
The movie wasn’t great, but Takina was really enjoying the day out, and it wasn’t because they managed to get discounted tickets. She was clearly having fun. She didn’t regret having gone there with Chisato. And that made her annoyed with herself.
“Heh.” Chisato’s smile suddenly softened. “I’m not going to force you to do anything. It’s up to you, Takina. But if you decide to go to the movies again, then—”