Itsuki Saionji (Wakana Matsumoto) is a savvy Marketing Agent for, an advertising company specializing in Household products. She has a special talent for knowing exactly what the busy household needs to get by, and has become extremely succesful in her department, and lauded for her efforts!
But ironically enough, Itsuki herself loathes housework and will do just about ANY thing to get out of performing those dull and mundane chores that the average household struggles with each day.
So strong is her dislike of chores that she has just plunked down a huge down payment on a house specifically designed to cut out all the work that goes into maintaining it!
Removal of stairs and steps, automatic laundry machine with dryer attached that she can simply take clothes out of when she needs them- no cooking in the kitchen (only take-out food) and disposable paper plates and cups to eliminate dishwashing, leaving only the roomba to sweep up the floors, giving her the rest of the day free to relax and dote on her dog!
The bill for such a place is in the extreme, but she feels it’s worth it, and besides, there’s a side apartment space that she can rent out to help pay off the debt as well! Little does she know it will come into play sooner than she thinks…. 
Her fast paced days at work are shaken up by the arrival of a young hotshot designer from a huge computer company (called, hilariously enough “Pineapple”, obviously a take on Apple, LOL) named Toshiano Kusumi (Hokuto Matsumura).
Though she's initially excited to have him on her team, the first thing Kusumi does is challenge Itsuki on her latest project ideas, citing the excess use of resources to load the webpages, too many ideas and too much clutter. Additionally, he doesn’t like her household lifehacks, saying they are only temporary short-cut solutions and that REAL housework should be done carefully and with dedication. Things aren’t off to a good start!
That night, she complains to her dog Riki about the new employee: “Bet he doesn’t know the first thing about doing housework!” she grumps, but just then she hears sirens and smells smoke coming from outside. There’s a fire in the neighborhood!
Rushing down to the street to gawk along with the others, she is surprised to see Kusumi there, talking on the phone. Seems it’s HIS apartment that has burned down, but he seems entirely non-plussed, at least to Itsuki!
Concerned, she offers her assistance for anything he might need, but she is rebuffed immediately as he cuts her off with a quick “I’ll be fine” and leaves.
It's then that Itsuki realizes there's no way she can deal with this guy~!
Wanting to stay away from him in the future, Itsuki is instead told by her superviser Amano (Takashi Fujii!) to have a talk with Kusumi and see if they can't talk things out so they can work harmoniously with each other.
A few days later, a reluctant Itsuki agrees to a lunch meeting with the stand-offish Kusumi about the project redesigns. Bur she doesn't know how it can help!
She expects him to put down her ideas once more, but instead he surprises her by lowering his head and APOLOGIZING! He has looked over the project again and has seen his error in only seeing the technical aspects of the project and not considering the actual households and their need for time cutting and management in their busy lives!
He further surprises her by showing his new web designs which, though changed around to make server load easier, incorporates all Itsuki’s ideas into it. “Hey!” she thinks “This guy might not be so bad after all!”
She then asks about his living situation after the fire and is shocked to find he has been staying at a manga cafe the past few days. He apologizes to her for his curtness that night when she offered her help. “I was in such a panic, I didn’t know what to do.”, stunning Itsuki as he appeared to have no reaction at all!
As he makes to leave, Kusumi stumbles on the way out. Seems living the nights at a manga cafe has taken a toll on his health and he stifles a cough. She shows her concern, but is once again told he can make it on his own.
He leaves, but Itsuki’s kind nature makes him run after him out of concern. She catches up with him at a nursery school where she finds her third surprise of the day: Kusumi has a little girl named Ruki and has been taking care of her all by himself!
With his health getting worse by the minute, they take Kusumi to get checked out at the local clinic. Seems he'll be OK if he can jus t get a good night's sleep, but a manga cafe only promises worse health.
Itsuki considers the Side-apartment and urges him to accept her help, if only for the night. In his weakened state Kusumi obliges and in the end, Father and daughter stay at Itsuki's. Concerns of making his daughter sick, Dad sleeps alone in the side apartment while Itsuki takes Ruki in with her.
Father Kusumi can finally get the sleep he needs, while Itsuki tries in her own awkward way to entertain the reclusive Ruki, who eventually drifts off to sleep herself.
The next day, feeling better, Kusumi plans to move on, but Ruki is already attached to the place and refuses to leave. With that in mind, Itsuki offers to temporarily rent out the space officially to them.
Though they are two people totally at odds, they slowly begin to see the other's good sides. What kind of relationship will grown out of this sudden closeness between the two, at home, at work, and at love?
Yeah, it’s as cliched as can be, but Wakana Matsumoto is such a living doll in this drama I’ve just GOT to keep watching. I already KNEW she was gonna be the bee’s knees just by her cute portrayal in the promotional pic and knew I’d be in for a fun ride for the Wakana goodness alone!!
If that wasn’t enough, we’ve also got Mayu Yokota (last seen by me in Ashita, Watashi wa Dareka no Kanojo) as Itsuki’s sister, and Airi Matsui (!) as Kusumi’s deceased wife and Ruki’s mother! If I do have any concerns, it's the dynamic between Itsuki and Kusumi's daughter. Some of you might remember how much I actually loathe these kind of story set-ups with the "Successful Businessperson gets saddled with a Child" trope, as the kids are usually insufferable and the Professional person meant to look like the bad guy, but we'll see how this one goes...
Hope things all work out- As you all know, I really like Wakana Matsumoto and feel she never gets to play leads in dramas; on MDL, her only credit as “main role” was the excellent “Fukushuu no Miboujin” from 2022, otherwise she’s been only playing “support roles”. Happily, Saionji-san wa Kaji wo Shinai feel really special and I hope it’s succesful and gets her ever greater recognition and more "main roles"! Posted by zdorama @ zdoramaagain.blogspot.om
