The Chocolate Girl in Love

Chocolate Girl In Love is the ninth episode of Michiko to Hatchin.

The episode starts with a hooded figure praying to a statue of Virgin Mary that cries blood. Scene cuts to the town of Perna on April 14, where Hatchin is looking for a man named Tony Kaka, who pressured her into buying a map of the town the day before. She eventually found him trying to get an uninterested woman to buy the same map. When the woman walked away Hatchin approached the man and tried to explain that she was low on money and asked for a refund but the man claimed that she was confusing him for someone else and that his name was "Garcia Boltz" even though his face is printed on the map.

The next morning, Hatchin is sleeping on a bench when she is awaken by a smiling young girl dressed in a risqué outfit and lots of jewelry who was apparently watching her sleep for awhile. Hatchin is startled by this and then looks up to see an angry boy standing behind a tree watching the scene. When the unknown girl realizes this she tells him that "they are through" and reveals his name is Massan. Massan claims that he will be the one to say goodbye but then whispers and that could never do that anyways and demands to know who Hatchin is and the second girl, who thinks Hatchin is a boy due to her short hair and boyish clothes, answers that "he" is her boyfriend. Massan, obviously jealous, insults Hatchin but the girl doesn't listen, grabs Hatchin's hand and walks away with her with Massan in tow. The unknown girl suddently runs away with Hatchin to get away from Massan and manages to lose him in an alleyway. Once there, the girl attempts to kiss Hatchin but Hatchin stops her and reveals that she is in fact a girl too. The other girl immediately stops and touches Hatchin's chest to check if that's true but Hatchin pulls away and nods. The girl then leans against the wall and asks for Hatchin's age and the girl too reveals that she is ten years old and takes Hatchin to eat when the latter's stomach growls.

At a restaurant, Hatchin is eating while the other girl sweet talks a man into paying for Hatchin's meal. Suddently, Hatchin spots a picture of a younger Michiko on the news but Hatchin doesn't react to this. Once Hatchin finishes her food the two girls walk away while the girl tries to check if the string on her tampon is loose. She then finally reveals that her name is Rita and Hatchin introduces herself with her real name Hana and the two girls go to a lookout where they talk about the famous Mary statue that cries blood. Rita claims that she doesn't believe in the tale since she is too old to believe in such things like a statue that grants wishes. She briefly spies on a young couple before her face falls and she stops looking.

Hatchin and Rita then sit on a bench and drink soda in front of a lake where a circus is settled at the other side. Rita then points at the circus and reveals that she in fact works there and invites Hatchin to come visit her whenever she wants before music starts playing at the circus and Rita knows it's her time to go back and bids goodbye to Hatchin. After Rita leaves, Hatchin takes a look at piece of paper Michiko gave her, where Michiko states that she will come back for her but Hatchin claims she doesn't need to be concerned about her and gets rid of the paper.

At the circus, everyone is getting ready for their shows while the young man whom Rita spied on earlier is sitting on a couch reading a magazine until he hears the Ringmaster screaming his name, Gino and smacks Gino with a mop to keep him from getting up and looking down upon him since the Ringmaster is much shorter than Gino. The furious Ringmaster scolds him for not keeping an eye on Rita but Gino simply tells him that is no big deal since she came back but the Ringmaster keeps hitting and yelling at him until Rita arrives and her glare makes the Ringmaster back off and he leaves them alone. She then glares at Gino but he doesn't react so she walks away but comes back right after and demands to know why didn't she follow her, even though she knew why, but Gino again answers that she knew she could come back but Rita has a tantrum and demands that Gino does as she says but he again keeps silent, causing Rita to become upset and leave.

Meanwhile, Hatchin is still on the bench, trying to sleep until she notices Rita standing in front of her. Rita sits next to Hatchin and asks if Hatchin ever had a crush on someone because that's what Rita is going through since she has a crush on Gino and reveals that they have been together since she was born as she was abandoned at birth at the circus' Big Top's entrance and that Gino was the first person to find her and how she tries to get him look at her by hanging out with a lot of boys (and men) as well as running away from the circus in hopes that he will follow her but all her attempts are fruitless and it hurts Rita. Hatchin looks down and lets Rita lean on her shoulder but is unable to offer any words of comfort.

The next morning, Rita yells good morning at Hatchin from the other side of the lake and Hatchin replies as well. Awhile later, Hatchin is brushing her teeth when suddently Massan arrives on his bike and threatens Hatchin to stay away from Rita or else Massan could beat "him" up until Hatchin tells him that she is a girl. Massan then stops and asks Hatchin to come with him. The children arrive at a restaurant where the girl Gino was with the other day works as a waitress, Massan than reveals that her name is Natalia and that she is Gino's girlfriend and is pregnant with Gino's child. Massan then claims that "no one can protect Rita except him" then offers Hatchin to buy her food in exchange of her putting up a good word of him to Rita but Hatchin simply walks away after slapping Massan across the face.

At the circus, Rita is practicing her acrobatic act with her partner Gino and she tells him to go faster. She attempts a jump to another rope and misses, causing her to fall but Gino catches her right before she hit the floor, places her on her feet and asks if she is okay but Rita pushes him away from her and tells him to leave her alone before running off. While Rita fixes her earrings she sees Nuno holding down Hana, mistaking her for a burglar when she was just trying to see Rita but ends up getting beaten with Nuno's mop. A little later, Hana is sitting in Rita's tent after the latter managed to rescue Hana from Nuno's wrath. Rita places a soda in front of her and Hana tries to gently tell Rita about Gino having a girlfriend but this only causes Rita to kick Hatchin out and storm out of the tent. Hana then decided to talk to Gino instead, with Rita spying on them as they talked. Gino explained to Hana that he was leaving the circus since he was going to be a father and couldn't be with Rita anymore, but that he believed that she could grow up well, meet lots of people and find someone worthy of her while Rita, having changed from her practice outfit, sneaks away from the circus grounds once again towards the place where the weeping Mary statue is seated.

Rita met up with Hana later, apologized to her and told her that she would go with her if she was leaving. Rita left, but came back to Hana with Massan's bike. After losing a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors, Rita pedaled the bike, while Hana stood on the back and they eventually rode to see the statue of Virgin Mary but when they got there they found that the statue had been replaced since someone had cut off it's head. Rita asked one of the workers if the new one would cry and grant wishes he didn't answer her so she pressed him for answers but he pushed her to the ground, got in the truck and drove away. Rita got up and ran after the truck. When it had gotten too far away, she screamed and dropped to her knees since she apparently had prayed to the previous Virgin Mary statue despite claiming that she didn't believe in the story.

Later, the girls take a bus to return to the circus. Hana tries to comfort Rita by placing her hand on Rita's while Rita, not taking her eyes off the window, declares that she wants to be an adult as soon as possible. Back at the circus, everybody is getting ready for the show. Gino and Rita exchange a look before Nuno announces that they are next. During Rita and Gino's act their performance goes well and Rita is able to catch the second rope unlike before and slides down perfectly. When she is on the floor she smiles at Gino, letting him know that there are no hard feelings and Gino smiles back before they hold hands and bow to their cheering audience, including Hana, who was among them. After the circus is closed, Gino walks up to a waiting Natalia, who congratulates him on his performance before the couple walks away. Hana watches them leave before she spots Rita looking at him, when Rita sees this she gives Hana a reassuring smile and tells her that she is alright know and the two girls say goodbye to each other since the circus is leaving town the following day.

The next morning, Rita is picking up trash left by the circus' attendants when she sees Hana standing in front of her. Hana, not wanting to leave Rita or return to Michiko, asks Rita if she can go with her and Rita smiles.