The neighbors in my new apartment in Tokyo were a beautiful, kind woman and her handsome husband. She was a student and noticed I was struggling with living alone, so she took the time to look after me. We even worked part-time at the same place, and she always went out of her way to help. The reason for her kindness, it turned out, was that I resembled her childhood friend from back home. As we grew closer, our feelings for each other began to blossom, eventually leading to a physical relationship. However, she always carried a quiet loneliness—her husband had a habit of cheating. We continued our affair in secret, and she finally decided to divorce him. At that moment, I realized she had awakened feelings she never knew she had for her childhood friend. She resolved to leave Tokyo, return home, and reunite with him. When she confessed she had secretly loved him all along, it marked the beginning of "After Divorcing, I Returned to My Hometown and Reunited with My Childhood Friend—Then Confessed My Long-Held Love… Ayaka Muto." This is the prelude, Episode Zero.