Suzuka (涼風) is a shonen romance by Seo Koji. The manga published in Weekly Shonen magazine between 2004 and 2007. The series was compiled into 18 tankoubon and had a 26 episode anime adaptation in 2005. This second part is a overview of the second half of the manga that continues the story where the anime left off. Beware, this will spoil plot points of this series...which is 20 years old at this point.
Part One can be found here. If you are coming to this post before reading that one, perhaps wanting to see what happens after the anime, carry on. Otherwise it might be a good idea to read through part one before continuing.
Things seem to be better between Yamato and Suzuka. While she didn't come right out and say she likes him, her confession at the grave of her dead first crush suggest that she has feelings for him. He isn't sure if they are officially dating or not but when he asks her to walk home after school she gives him the cold shoulder. Bewildered he heads home and ends up waiting for her on the stoop for hours. When she finally returns, her anger is palpable and she yells at him about being so late. Unsure what happened he goes about the rest of his day until he notices two text messages from her. She had asked him to meet her, outside of school, to walk home, to avoid embarrassment. The second text signaled her anger, as she had waited for two hours for him to meet her. Realizing the miscommunication he immediately apologizes to her, the perfect start to their semi-relationship.
The change in their attitude towards each other doesn't go unnoticed. After school one day Yasunobu and Honoka end up spying on the pair as they meet up after school, confirming for themselves that something like a relationship has begin. Yasunobu consoles Honoka over drinks at a restaurant and asks her if shes going to quit the track team now. Wondering if there's something she has more talent for than being the errand girl for the club. As she dwells on that at home her friend Nana calls. The response to a photo shoot that Honoka was tricked into doing with Nana had been good and Nana's talent agency wants Honoka to work for them as a model. She takes them up on the offer as a step into a bold new direction.
As another track meet approaches, Suzuka begins to distance herself from Yamato, wanting to be alone as much as possible. He doesn't realize she is intent of focusing solely on her performance, trying to achieve a new record and cement her status as the best high jumper among high school girls in the nation. When he comes to cheer her on before the event starts she yells at him about trying to sabotage her efforts. Instead of backing down, he presents her with a good luck talisman he bought at a shrine on his way to the event. Out of either confusion or plan negligence, the charm he gives her is for safe childbirth...not success in her event. His mistake is endearing to her, so she accepts it for what he meant it to represent and settles down to focus on her event. Perhaps the charm worked, or her change of heart regarding his line of thinking, but she goes on the win the high jump event.
Honoka announces to the team that she will be quitting as manager. Yamato feels guilty about her decision and goes to talk with her after school. He meets her at her family shrine and she asks him about he and Suzuka's relationship. He admits they started dating. Honoka pivots from the awkwardness of the conversation to tell him she is going to start working with her friends talent agency doing modeling. She tries to eleviate his guilt by telling him the decision to quit the team was so she could put all of her focus into modeling. She thanks him for being a catalyst she needed to change her life and take action. She is ready to move beyond her love for him and face a new future with out him, thanking him for the time they spent together.
Yamato decides to tell Yasunobu about dating Suzuka. When Yasunobu tells him he and Miki already know, he becomes crestfallen. Yasunobu asks him what has changed in their relationship now that they are officially a couple. Yamato admits it hasn't really change from how they acted before. Yasunobu suggests trying to change something to make it more meaningful, like calling her by her first name instead of by Asahina all the time. When he tries to do that both of them become embarrassed to the point he decides to drop it and be content with the way things are.
They decide to go on a date in Yokohama on their next free day. Suzuka has something to take care of at her home but afterwards they plan to do things in the city its self. Yamato meets her older sister, Suzune again, and she warns him against meeting their over protective father. Suzuka expected Yamato to have a plan for their date, he expected her, the life long resident of the city, to be the one to take the lead on their activities. She reluctantly agrees to his expectations and they wander around trying to find a nice place to spend time together. None of the places fit her vision and they wander aimlessly from area to area, frustrated that things are not working out well for them. As night falls they return to one spot, hoping for the crowds to have cleared out, and find some beauty and peace for a moment. In the end their day ended up being good for them and they return home, later than expected.
Even with their date ended on a high note things still seem strained between them. Suzuka seems to be having some issue but isn't willing to discuss it with Yamato. He ends up going home alone one day after school and runs into one of the college drunks, Megumi. She drags him to a pub, where she uses him to vent about her recent break up. The topic shifts to he and Suzuka's relationship and how its not really any different than before they became a couple. Megumi brings up the idea that hes not reliable enough to talk about important matters with, making him a bit nervous. As he returns home he finds Suzuka chatting with Souichi about a serious topic. Yamato confronts her after the older boy leaves, upset that she doesn't think of her boyfriend enough to confide in things with him.
Realizing his concern, she tells him about whats been bothering her. She has been given the opportunity to participate in a training camp over the winter break and is concerned how he will feel being separated from her during Christmas, since they are a couple now. Yamato doesn't immediately tie the two events together and doesn't understand why she would be angry with him as he encourages her to participate in the camp. The following evening she visits his apartment and asks to make some tea. When it takes him too long she begins to criticize his slowness, then she critisizes the temperature of the tea then about him still wearing his school uniform. When he angrily goes to remake the tea she surprises him with a hug from behind, making him drop her mug. Embarrassed she runs out of his apartment and back to the safety of her own, leaving him bewildered at her behavior, still no closer to understand whats bothering her. He doesn't understand that she's upset about not getting to spend Christmas with him, upset he doesn't even realize that and is trying to figure out his size for a sweater she is trying to make as a present.
Once again Yamato finds himself entertaining the drunk college women. It is at this point, talking with them, he relies that Suzuka's anxiousness may be related to Christmas. He asks Souichi if he can join the training camp as a way to ensure they can be together for the holiday. Unfortunately he won't be able to join so close to the event so that plan ends as quickly as it began. He begins to concoct a plan to meet her there on Christmas Eve but needs to know their schedule so he can meet her and still make it back to Tokyo that night. He wants it to be a surprize but she immediately becomes suspicious when he starts to question her about the schedule. She tells him that Souichi mentioned his attempts to join the camp. Realizing he doesn't need to lie, he tells her he was trying to get there to be with her for Christmas. The idea surprises her, but the realist in her knows it won't work and opts to celebrate it before she leaves instead.
When the day to celebrate Christmas arrives, Suzuka ends up being stuck in a meeting about the upcoming camp. The length of it causes them to cancel their dinner reservation and they resolve to meet at home later for cake and presents. Yamato had been waiting at the train station for her when she informed him of the delay. Dejected, he begins to head back home when he runs into Yasunobu who asks him to join him for dinner. Unsure when Suzuka will be done he reluctantly agrees to go. Unknown to him, the dinner ends up being a group date. Reluctantly he agrees to stay for a while but sneaks out to try and find out when Suzuka will be done with her meeting. One of the girls from the group date, a bubbly and energetic girl named Amami Yui follows him out. She begins to aggressively flirt with him. He tries to get her off of him, but its too late, in dramatic timing Yamato is caught with another girl hanging off of him by Suzuka...who happens to be walking with Yamato's rival, Arima. Suzuka, furious with Yamato, leaves with him chasing after her. They argue all of the way home, leaving Yamato to wonder what he could have done better in his situation.
Suzuka leaves for her training camp with things unresolved between them. Concern over the mystery girl fresh in her mind, as well as his reluctance to fully realize his errors in judgement. Yamato struggles to accept he is fully to blame, considering her being stuck at the pre-camp meeting longer than expected, the true catalyst for the break down. Expecting a call from her, he begins to stress out about the lack of communication. Over the hours and series of texts he admits to being in the wrong and apologizing to her, but she still refuses to reply to him. The following day Yasunobu visits, begging him to go on a double date with him. He refuses at first, recognizing how damming and hurtful doing so would be, given the trouble they are having right now. Yamato's willpower caves under Yasunobu's pressure and he reluctantly agrees to help his 'friend' out with his double date. Yasunobu hit it off with one of the other girls from the mixer and is bringing Yui along as the second.
Out of loneliness, boredom, guilt and maybe anger, Yamato finds him self 'dating' Yui on Christmas, while his real girlfriend is away at her camp, angry with him for what he did on the evening they were supposed to be together. The double date takes place at the same amusement park Yamato first confessed and was rejected by Suzuka. The day goes well enough but Yasunobu has to leave, due to another date he has planned in secret. The girl is disappointed that hes leaving, not knowing hes seeing another girl later, but Yui wants to still do things. She asks Yamato to stay out with her a little longer. not seeing any reason not to....like faithfulness to his real girlfriend, he agrees. Yui wants to see the night parade, the same event that Yamato was rejected during. She confides in him that the same thing happened to her, the two bond over being rejected in the same way. Talking about the effort he put into dating Suzuka with Yui makes him realize how lucky he is, despite their arguments. His sense return to him and he understands what he needs to do to try and make up with her.
He rushes out to meet her at the training camp, unconcerned with what time he will get there. He arrives to find the gate closed, as everyone is beginning to settle in for the night. Suzuka notices him by chance from the window of her dorm and rushes out to meet him. He came with cake, but without thinking it through the container had the name of the amusement park on it. she quickly deduces what transpired and gets angry with him and his lack of consideration. She vents at him about her frustration over his poor decision making skills and lack of judgement regarding how he needs to treat her. Desperate to make her understand how sorry he is, he agrees to let her slap him. She reels back, ready to make a lasting impression on his face but surprises him with a kiss instead. Then follows through with a severe slap and reluctantly accepts his apology. She lays out some ground rules and expectations for him, opening up honest communication for the first time between the couple, in hopes that he will be more considerate to her feelings moving forward.
At the first shrine visit of the New Year, the couple wishes for a better year together as they discuss when they each first developed feelings for the other. Perhaps this last incident was the test that was needed to cement their true feelings for each other. Before that continues the story takes a break to focus on the background of one of the drunk college students, gyaru styled Saotome Yuka. Yuka tricks Yamato into helping her with errands, only to bring him to a meeting with a man named Sasaoke Hiroshi who works as a sales rep for a sporting good company. Yuka ran into him over New Year when she returned to her rural home in Akita prefecture. She used Yamato as an excuse to see him, saying the young track athlete was interested in getting custom shoes. In reality the meeting was a way for her to try and reconnect with the senpai shes been in love with for years.
Yuka grew up with Hiroshi, who is two years older than her. In high school she struggled to tell him how she really felt about him. He treated her like a kid and when she gathered the courage to confess to him at graduation he told her he loved her like a little sister. Crushed by the rejection of the man she had sought for so long, she decided to change herself, to reflect a growth form the version of her that was seen as a little kid by him. By chance, Hiroshi is interested in providing custom shoes for Suzuka and comes to visit her at school after the start of the new semester. While thinking over the offer of custom shows, Suzuka lays into Yamato about his laziness, letting him know she expects him to be with her at nationals and the various training camps.
Suzuka ends up agreeing to the sponsorship deal with Hiroshi's company. Something feels strange to Yamato though, as Hiroshi needs to meet with her parents for the finalization. The day they head to Yokohama to meet with them Yuka lets a secret slip. The deal isn't about track shoes, its for Suzuka to go to America for training in the Fall. When he confronts her about the plans she admits to it. He becomes infuriated with her, making decisions without him and hiding things from him. After sulking about this problem for a while he talks it over with her, first with anger then with understanding. They resolve to enjoy the rest of their time together as best they can and strive to keep in contact over the year she will be gone.
Yasunobu convinces Yamato that he will need to get a computer so he can keep in touch with Suzuka via email. Getting one is easier said than done. Yamato realizes he will need to find a part time job to earn enough money. He struggles to find a place willing to hire a first year high school student who is only willing to work one day a week. After dozens of places reject him he ends up interviewing at a business run by the family of the girl from the group date, Yui. She is surprised to see him there and tells her father to hire him, vouching for him. Yamato realizes how bad this would look and rescinds his request for employment. Yui chases after him and finds out the story behind his job hunt. she understands and agrees that it wouldn't look good for him to suddenly be working with her, even if its to save money for a computer so it will be easier to stay in touch with Suzuka while shes' in America. In the end Yamato realizes it would be a mistake and doesn't accept the job.
Yui, not wanting to give up and feeling a little guilty for causing so many problems for her, ambushes Suzuka the following day at the bath house. The two end up having a long heart to heart, Suzuka growing to like the girl she thought was a rival. Yui tells her about Yamato's problem and why he ultimately decided to decline the only job he was able to get. Yamato learned the two of them were having a confrontation and was quite surprised when they came out of the bath acting like friends. Confused, Suzuka tells him that he should really go work for her family after all.
The following Monday, Yamato begins working at the cafe owned and operated by Yui's family. Things don't go so well for him, as he isn't prepared for the demands of a service industry job. Yu's father is patient with him and understands that it will take time for him to get good at it. In time the job comes easier and Yui and her father continue to express their gratitude for his help. One day Yui decides to treat him by cooking his shift meal, unfortunately her cooking abilities may be worse than Suzuka's. Instead of suffering through the terrible dish, Yamao offers to make the only thing hes good at, okinomiyaki. The two are so impressed with it they decide to make it a temporary menu item.
Worried about Yamato and all the time he's spending with the girl she still thinks of as a rival, Suzuka visits the cafe with Miki. Yamato makes his signature dish for them, surprising Suzuka with how good it is. Satisfied, she doesn't stick around any longer, using Miki as an excuse for an easy exit. The following weekend the two are able to spend the day together shopping and seeing a movie. Suzuka is concerned with how little rest he is getting, with him even falling asleep during the movie. She presses him about how much he is neglecting his training, particularly the inter high qualification event in a few days time. He reassures her its not a problem but when he fails to quality again, posting worse times than the prior year, she gets angry at him. She tries to pin his efforts to earn money to buy a computer for her trip to America as the reason he failed this time. Incensed by the efforts, altruistic in his eyes, to keep in contact with her when she's overseas, Yamato tries to defend his performance but it only backfires, causing a rift to form between them.
Reflecting on his actions, Yamato decides to reduce his hours at the cafe. The following day he tells Suzuka about his plan, trying to get her to be less upset with him. She congratulates him on his new dedication to track but remains skeptical. Her skepticism is reinforced when he tells her he isn't able to take the time off he was hoping for. Before he can explain why she leaves in disgust, reinforcing her feelings about his dedication to the team. Yamato is frustrated with her lack of patience and mulls over his situation. Yui's father asked him to work the days he had originally asked off for due to Yui being hospitalized for a bought of pneumonia. Later at work, Yui;s father asks Yamato to take a change of clothes to her in the hospital while the shop is slow. While in her room she presses him about how he's doing. When he tells her about the status of his relationship she tells him that he should just break up with Suzuka. Telling him that shes not worth his time if she becomes upset with him for doing things that benefit her. He brushes it off and heads back to the cafe.
Suzuka finds out about Yui's hospitalization from Miki, but still remains upset with Yamato. She waits for him to return home after work, to tell him she knows why he was unable to take the time off. Instead of trying to make up she leaves things unresolved. Yamato moves to embrace and kiss her but she rejects him outright. Frustration boils over and he doesn't know what he can do to make things better. Time passes and the strain remains, further frustrating him, the seeds planted by Yui begin to take shape in his mind as he mulls over what type of future he could have with Suzuka if she leaves for America with nothing resolving. When he gathers the courage to make things better he learns that Suzuka is packed up and ready to move back home before she leaves for America. Lost for words, he lets the door close on his chance to make up with her and she leaves the next day.
A few days later Suzuka supersizes Yamato by showing up at the apartment to celebrate his birthday. She takes him to the same amusement park that has caused so many problems in the past and then back to the apartment when they are finished. As she reminisces about the things they have done together she asks him if they should break up. Defeated and reading her melancholy tone, he agrees with her suggestion, ending their time together with an official whimper. Yamato is once again by himself, the girl he liked has moved out of his life completely. Sensing something is wrong, Miki forces Yamato to tell her whats going on between him and Suzuka. He tells her they broke up but she can't accept that.
With Miki's urging, Yamato rushes to the airport as her plane is about to depart, to try and resolve things with her. He realized the day he had to work to cover Yui being in the hospital, was Suzuka's birthday and he neglected to even acknowledge it. He understands he can't sit around and let their relationship end without any explanation and he rushes to her and to try and win her back. He finds he's in time and expresses his love for her, but she doesn't respond, continuing to head off to catch her flight. Yamato is unsure how to deal with her response to the outpouring of his heart and heads back home defeated.
Depression sets in and Yamato shuts himself off, neglecting all of his duties and responsibilities. Concerned with the number of days hes called into work, Yui contacts Yasunobu to find out whats going on. He tells her that Yamato and Suzuka broke up and he's been secluding himself in his room since then. He suggests that she go and invite him to the upcoming summer festival to try and break him out of his slump. She goes along with the suggestion and heads to his apartment. While she tries to convince herself she is only trying to help him break out of his darkness she lets her feelings for him move forward, now that Suzuka is out of the picture. One thing leads to another and she throws herself at him, desperate for his affection. He rejects her advances though, set deep in his depression. Yui can't understand why he won't acknowledge her feelings for him and leaves in tears, rejected and embarrassed.
Resolve begins to build in Yamato, resolve and perhaps insanity. He takes the money he had been saving for a computer and donates it all to the temple he and Suzuka went to for New Years, much to Yasunobu's horror. He hopes that a sufficient enough offering to the gods will bring him some form of success moving forward, regretting the measly five yen donation at the last visit. He resolves to quit working at the cafe, for himself and for Yui. As if the gods heard his prayer he runs into Honoka, who has been busy with her new career as a model. Since she quit the track team and they wound up in separate classes as second years, they have not crossed paths. Time has eased the sadness of their failed relationship and a return to friendship might be possible.
Before he can worry about that, Miyamoto approaches him about being captain of the track team once the seniors graduate. He struggles with the recommendation, considering leaving the team all together. Honoka challenges him about why he joined the team the first place and why he's continued to do track. He did it initially to be with Suzuka, but he's put a lot of effort into it, even if he doesn't see that. She impresses on him that those around him see his potential and are unwilling to let him go through life without ambition. Sasaoka, the sport company rep who arranged for Suzuka to train in America surprises Yamato with a prototype pair of cleats due to his performance at the last inter high tournament, even though he didn't win. Yamato accepts the gift and asks him to pass on a message to Suzuka. With determination restored, he agrees to become the next captain of the track team, looking at it as a way to prove everyone who has supported him that they weren't wrong.
A year has passed and Yamato has found some success as captain of the team, even placing third in the recent inter high tournament. His cousin Miho enrolled in the same school and has joined the team as its manager, as well as moving into the vacant apartment which once housed Suzuka. Yamato thanks the team for the past year of hard work and officially retires from it, having to focus on the next stage of his schooling and a recommendation to enroll in one college to join its track team. Before they have to focus on testing, Yasunobu suggests they all go to the beach, including Honoka. At the beach Honoka asks Yamato if he wants to date her again. She plays on his surprise and tells him it was just a joke. Later that night, as he wonders about her feelings shes sends him a text asking him again, further confusing him. The next morning he is woken suddenly by the sounds of someone moving in next door...Suzuka has returned and has reclaimed her old room.
He's tried to move past his feelings for her over the past year, but facing her returning to his life as if nothing happened, puts a lot of strain on his resolve. On the outside she acts like nothing ever changed and he struggles with what she really feels. The last time he saw her he threw himself at her feet telling her not to go to America. She has returned, triumphant, picking up exactly where she left off...with one major exception, their relationship status. He doesn't even know if they can interact in a friendly and casual manner at this point. To complicate things further, he and Honoka have gotten closer over the past year and he has to contend with her conflicting messages the day before. As he mulls over talking with Suzuka about dinner, Honoka calls him and asks him to go out to eat with her. As he leaves, he finds Suzuka at his door, wondering what his dinner plans are. Shocked by her appearance he decides he has to stick with his plan to meet Honoka and tells Suzuka he already had plans. Without a second thought she cheerfully accepts his refusal and lets him leave.
At dinner he mulls over her question to him about dating again. But before he can convince himself to go for it she surprises him by telling him she started to date a guy she met through work and they will have to stop hanging out. Rejected, he struggles with his emotions on the way home, on the verge of tears. He isn't able to remain in that state for long as he comes home to an apartment full of smoke. Fearing the worst he jumps I to action only to find that Suzuk la burned the fish she was trying to cook. Nothing seems to have changed for her and maybe for him as well.
As Yamato tries to work through his feelings for Honoka and the return of Suzuka another layer of discomfort falls on him. His childhood friend and the girl he failed to confess to in middle school, Saki, is coming to Tokyo for the week to check out a university she's planning to attend. While in town she will be staying at Yamato's aunt's dorm. His aunt tasks him with meeting her at the train station and showing her around for a while. The minute he meets up with her she demands a guided tour through out the city. She is moving to Tokyo to try and break into the fashion industry and makes him take her to all of the trendy neighborhoods. As the day winds down and they head to the dorm, she asks him if he just broke up with someone, sensing his melancholy. He tells her it was more a situation of missing an opportunity to date the girl instead of being officially rejected. She joking digs into him about his inconsistencies, poking fun at his failed attempt with her out years earlier. She picks up on a deeper reason why he didn't push forward with Honoka, suspecting he has lingering feelings for someone else.
Much to his horror, Saki lays out three years of heart Yamato heartache in-front of Suzuka and his aunt and cousin during dinner. Retelling his failed confession to her and his recent heart break over a missed opportunity. Not missing a beat, Miho interjects about Yamato failing to catch Honoka and also causing Suzuka to break up with him. With all of his failed relationships out in the open things become tense. Later in the evening Saki tries to comfort Yamato with dessert and friendly joking. The following morning Yamato is woken by a call from the school about a recommendation to a different college. While discussing it over breakfast, Saki tells him that she is going to attend the school his first recommendation is for and makes him pinky swear with her to go to the same school. At training he learns that Suzuka is going to the other school that he was recommended for. Yamato is faced with a choice; college with his first crush or college with the girl he still can't get out of his mind.
Yamato joins Saki to take a tour of one college. Miyamoto is waiting for them and leads them around the campus and bringing Yamato to the training facility for the track team. The other members of the team are excited to meet him and encourage him to join their school...with the exception of Arima, who can't understand why Yamato is there instead of the school Suzuka is planning on attending. That evening Yamato's aunt throws a party to celebrate everything going on, as the festivities extend she asks him to get more soy sauce from the store, prompting others to add requests for drinks and snacks. Suzuka offers to help carry the groceries back and the two reminisce about the first night together in Tokyo, doing the same thing. The following day he accompanies Saki to the train-station. She tells him to keep following Suzuka, understanding that she is the one he can't keep out of his mind, letting the lingering feelings for him die off.
Yuka tells Yamato that she is going to express her feelings to Sasaoka once and for all. A last ditch effort to find the happiness she desires. Yamato wishes her luck and doesn't think about it again until he runs into Sasaoka later that day. Confused as to why he's at his school instead of spending time with Yuka he brushes it off and tells him he wanted to let them know he is moving to America for a number of years. Later Yamato finds a miserable and drunken Yuka and does his best to console the lost woman. He can't see any other option for her happiness and forces her to chase after him in the airport, to truly appeal to him from the bottom of her heart. In an unexpected twist he confesses that he has a fiance and will be married shorty, ending any hope for the love lost woman.
Instead of being morose, Yuka finds a weight lifted off of her shoulder. She loos to the future with a new goal, one that will allow her to be true to herself. Her success in failure reinforces Yamato's own conviction and he decides that no matter what, he wants to be with Suzuka. Yuka forces him to tell Suzuka that he's decided to go to the same college as her. Fearing that she will start berating him for making such a decision without thinking it through, especially when his entrance isn't guaranteed, he loses his nerve and tells her about his lingering feelings. She flees his room, not wanting to deal with a confession from him again. Rejected once more, Yamato wallows in misery, unsure of what to do next. Yasunobu chides him for being too rash, suggesting that things have been going well since Suzuka came back because she wants to have a friendship like they had before dating, when things were simpler.
Yamato rushes off to apologize for trying to disrupt the normalcy Suzuka was working to maintain. For the first time they sit down together to discus their feelings. Suzuka explains that she's rejecting him to protect herself, that she would rather remain as friends instead of lovers, if that means she won't be hurt again from his actions. She doesn't want to repeat the mistakes and drama of the past, even though he brings her happiness. Yamato can't accept her reasoning and pushes the issue further, expressing his frustration. Laying out his beliefs for why their relationship failed the first time, why it languished in misery as the pair couldn't effectively communicate with each other. Suzuka, keeping her feelings and worries to herself, for fear of pushing him away. Yamato struggling, focusing on how to be the ideal partner, when in reality doing everything other than paying attention to her wishes and needs. He presses again, saying this time it will be different but she rejects him and runs off. But something changes, she expresses he desires, she wants him to not give up so easily.
Through all of the misery and suffering the two have decided to become a couple again, hoping this time will go differently than the first time. Things are more serious for Yamato now though as he faces the qualification test for the university he wants to attend with Suzuka. A greater threat appears on the horizon, threatening to crush Yamato's bright shining future. His academic performance in the final year of high school has been horrific and he is in danger of failing outright, eliminating any chances of getting into college with Suzuka. Instead of hiding it from her and struggling through it alone, he tells Suzuka about his dilemma. After criticizing him she offers to help, reinforcing the need for open and honest communication in their relationship as well as the need to rely on the other.
With studying well under way its time for the qualification race. Yamato is distracted by everything in his head and has a bad showing in the 100 meter sprint. Convinced he's failed to meet the selection requirements his future doesn't seem as guaranteed. His academic skills alone won't be enough to help him get into college through general admissions. Even if he takes a year off to study before entering, the kind of strain would this put on his relationship causes him more stress. Would Suzuka be bothered by him and lose interest while he stalls behind her? In the end his worry was for naught as he was picked for admission, even with his poor performance. The future brightens once more for the young man and his life with the woman of his dreams. To celebrate, Suzuka takes him to a baseball game in Yokohama, remembering how passionate he is about the sport. Not wanting to end their time together prematurely, he walks her back to her parents house. They waste a little more time at a nearby park, just enjoying their time together when a new threat to their happiness appears, Suzuka's father.
Surprisingly Yamato survived his first meeting with Suzuka's parents, even if he embarrassed himself. When telling Yasunobu about it he questions what he's actually doing by dating Suzuka. Counting their previous run at it and the current time, they have been a couple for a year. He wonders why they haven't gone further physically. Yasunobu pressures Yamato into making a move to initial sex with her, saying he's wasted so much time at this point without getting to that level in their relationship. After picking up a magazine talking about teenagers and their average sexual experiences Yamato becomes emboldened to try and move their relationship to a different level. That evening Suzuka invites him to watch a movie with her, he sees this as a sign that she wants more as well. The movie, a romance, includes some erotic content, further convincing him that the time is right. He moves in to initiate, groping her, only to have her rear back in revulsion and slap him.
Yamato is lost with what to do and tries to talk it over with her. She tells him that she is satisfied with where their relationship as it is, with them spending quiet time together. Yamato, out of frustration says he wants more, digging a deeper hole for himself. After realizing his false steps and forced ambitions he comes to truly apologize to Suzuka, not wanting to destroy what they have both worked to build for themselves. Suzuka admits that she isn't against being more intimate with him but wants to move at their own pace, outside of the pressures and norms of their peers. She confesses she is ready to be with him that way and they spend the night together.
As the end of the year approaches the couple plan to go on an over night trip, to make some more memories before becoming adults. They have to do it in secret as all of the guardians would stop them for eloping in such a manner. The arrange for an overnight stay in Hakone in secret and drag Mika and Yasunobu in as alibi's. With everything in place and the exhilaration of breaking the rule propelling them, the couple heads off to their destiny, a night away from family and friends in a different city, all alone. Before they even reach their destination the plan is foiled by Yasunobu being careless. Frustrated at being alone for the Christmas season he hits the streets to try and pick up a woman, unfortunately for him, the first one he hit on is Yamato's aunt, who believes the two are supposed to be on an overnight skiing trip. Unaware, the couple spend a relaxing evening together, enjoying the peace. A peace comes to an abrupt end in the morning when Suzuka's father appears at the door to their room.
Suzuka is taken away to finish out the winter break at her parents house and she isn't answering her phone. Yamato's aunt stresses to him that he needs to apologize to her parents as soon as possible. When he calls her house, her father cuts him off and hangs up on him, leaving things unresolved. His next hope is a short track camp before the end of the year, but her parents have prevented her from attending that as well, citing a cold as the reason. When he returns home, he finds movers are clearing out Suzuka's apartment, causing the stay at home to be longer than winter break. Suddenly, as thing have become so nice for them, it has come to an end through their indiscretions. Left with no other choice, Yamato heads to her parents home to talk to them face to face, hoping to salvage the situation and allow his relationship to continue.
Her father refuses to hear him out, sending him away when he arrives to talk with them. Yamato persists, coming again and again to apologize to her father. His perseverance pays off and he accepts but gives him a stern warning about their future, as they move on to college. Things aren't able to return to as they were before, Suzuka will be finishing the last few months of high school while living with her parents. The challenge melted away in the face of earnest intention and perseverance, its only a bright future for the two young lovers now.
At Yamato's insistence Suzuka finally goes to a clinic about her persistent fever, worried that it has lingered as long as it has. The visit brings to light a far more complicated problem then their innocent interloping to Hakone. Suzuka is pregnant, further along than their escapade in the beginning of the winter break would suggest, exposing they crossed that intimate boundary earlier in the fall. The future is now truly unkown. Both are uncertain how to proceed, whether with an abortion or to see things through. If Suzuka chooses to keep the baby, it would mean an end to the collegiate career she has been working hard to attain since middle school. Her entire future would be uprooted and changed to being something completely different than she planned. The harsh reality of parenthood weighs down on Yamato as he ponders what direction she might go.
While mulling over the decisions he ends up telling his rival Arima about what is going on. Arima shows his true colors and says if he was in Yamato's shoes he would force Suzuka to have an abortion, caring only about track. In anger, for Arima's lack of concern over the woman he loves, he fights him. Suzuka arrives for the New Year shrive visit to find her boyfriend bruised and bandaged. He brushes it off, telling her it was just a run in with Arima that went a little too far. After they each prey for the New Year at the shrine they reveal to each other it was related to the pregnancy. They begin to discus what to do, leaning towards an abortion, fearing physical risks. In the end, through persuasion on Yamato's part, wanting to continue pushing toward a life with her, they decide to continue with the pregnancy and do what ever it will take to ensure a successful future. They know it will be difficult and their immediate goals will disappear, but they strive to establish new dreams together.
Little did they know the hardest part was going to come sooner than expected. Yamato invites his parents to Tokyo so they can tell them and his aunt at the same time. His father takes the news rather bad and begins to beat his son for being reckless and foolish. Suzuka arrives in the middle of the beating and pleads for them to accept their choice. Yamato's mother soothes her husband and they give the young couple their blessings but stress how important it will be to talk with Suzuka's parents as soon as possible. With no other choice, they head off to Yokohama to face the biggest hurdle immediatly. Her parents surprisingly accept the news right away. In exchange, her father demands Yamato remove himself from her life and the child will be raised in their home. Unwilling to concede to such a harsh condition Yamato persists in convincing her father to give them his blessing to marry instead. After a heart to heart about what being a parent means and what is important in raising a child, her father relents and agrees to see them continue their live together. The young couple just won't be receiving any financial support from him.
With that we wrap up the story, Yamato wins the heart of the girl he fell in love with at first sight, through stress, heartache and uncertainty. All it took was a year apart and for him to knock her up. As I've said before, Suzuka is the story that really got me to become obsessed with the romance genre in both anime and manga. It isn't the best story out there and definitely has a target audience of teenage boys. With its flaws and its seemingly pointless fanservice segments it also contain bits of realism in its story. Yamato isn't the hollow protagonist who fumbles his way through success. Instead he has to grow as a person and work to understand those around him more. While not able to fully break out of his impulsiveness and selfish decision making habits, he is able to grow into someone more confident with himself and how other see him. Suzuka changes as well over the course of the story, from the distant perfectionist, hyper-focused on one thing, to someone who is willing to be more relaxed and accepting of the things she can not control. The real moral of the story, if one exists, is how important communication is between couples. Almost all of the strife was caused by lack of communication, instead of solely relying on their internal monologues, filled with doubts and fears.
While Yamato's own failures were enough to cause his misery, his continued reliance on the Faustian advice of Yasunobu led to far more trouble that help. Out of all of the characters actions, it really comes down to the terrible advice he continued to give Yamato that caused the majority of the problems in his relationship not only with Suzuka but Honoka. In the end though, Yamato was able to push through his friends terrible support and find his own truth...but its hard to deny that Yasunobu is not a guilty participant in how the two lovers lives ultimately wound up. He continued to hammer on the idea that they needed to have sex, again and again, forcing the issue, stressing its vital importance to Yamato. In the end even Suzuka caved to that advice. If it wouldn't have been for Yasunobu, perhaps the couple would have had a different, more fruitful future together in and after college. But they stuck with the hand they dealt themselves and worked to do the best they could.
Suzuka has its flaws as a story. It grinds away at the back and forth of everyone misunderstanding everyone else for too much of the drama. As it winds down this smooths out and the characters interactions become more mature. The reader could consider this as another layer of them growing into better people, or it could be lazy writing. Either way, in the end it balances out and we are left with a satisfying conclusion and the set up for another story set fifteen or so years in the future. Yet before we can get to that we have to leave the Akatsuki family behind and follow the story of another love lost boy from the country side of Hiroshima in Kimi no Iru Machi.
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