Here are some questions I thought I should answer!!

Q: What the hell is it with Michi? Why does Takiyo even like her?

A: Okay, I am aware that loads of you dislike, even hate, Michi. Truth is, Michi is a friggin hypocrite. Her personality is super self-centred. She doesn't care about anything as long as it doesn't concern her. Like, for example, in the special chapter, you saw that Michi was super upset when Takiyo was ignoring her, but she herself doesn't notice it when she does it to him. In short, Michi lacks empathy.
But Takiyo is a guy who has known how touchy Michi could be once she cared about something. Michi lives in an incredibly small world, where she only considers herself. There are people like that, I should know. Michi is based off my own sister. She tries to be empathetic, but at the end of the day, she is still only viewing the world through her own eyes. They fail to see the world through other people's eyes. And if you really think about it, it's actually pretty sad. So Takiyo is like me. I want to protect my sister's fragile world. We don't know everything that is going through their minds, but if we don't try to view things from their eyes, we're doing what they do.
Eventually, Takiyo does loose his feelings for Michi though. Spending so much time with Yuko, who does nothing but look through other's eyes, to Michi, who only views things through her eyes. You can tell a difference.

Q: What exactly is it with Shun and Sara?

A: Lemme say it first, I gave these characters way less time than they deserved. I should have worked on them way more. Because Shun and Sara are super important and iconic characters. Shun is like Yuko's guide, and Sara is like Takiyo's. Even after the epilogue, Yuko and Takiyo continue to seek out Shun and Sara's guidance. And I am serious, even if I don't know where this story is going, those two know well and good. I just regret it so much, because these characters definitely deserve more features, because they both are super important. I honestly feel like those two know things even I don't. But just remember, these both are super important humans. Shun to Yuko and Sara to Takiyo.

Q: Did Yuko actually truly love Takiyo, and not love Saburo? Does Takiyo like her back?

A: Most of you probably remember the final scene in the final chapter, where Yuko cried as she realises that she liked Takiyo. But no, she liked Saburo. In that last scene, Yuko was in love with both Saburo and Takiyo. And she didn't know what to do. But I can assure you, when she comes back to Japan in the epilogue, her feelings are purely for Takiyo. But, she did love Saburo.
Regarding Takiyo's feelings, currently he views Yuko as a potential love interest. Who knows, he may actually like her and not notice it himself, or he still thinks of her as just a friend. Those painful feelings he was feeling in the story were potrayed as feelings for a friend, an extremely important friend being taken away, the need to protect, but could they be more? Who knows. Yuko likes him, but Takiyo is yet to get there.

Q: Does Yoichi actually repent? Where did he go in the final chapters?

A: Yes, Yoichi does repent. During the final chapter, he was in suspension. None of his classmates really wanted to acknowledge him then, and so Takiyo deliberately left out his name and nobody spoke up about it. Yoichi continues to live like normal. He was still a bastard, but he was transferred to a different class. Hikari does mention that their classes don't change during second and third year, but Yoichi was transferred to another class. He lived relatively normally after that. A typical, bastard-like guy, but he is depressed about breaking up with Michi. Slowly, he does repent, and changes. In the current timeline, that is the epilogue, he is still studying in university, like Arisu, aiming high, and a much better and matured human being. Now that he is a mature adult, he realises what an asshole he was.
I was hoping you guys would draw your own conclusion about him.

Q: Isao (Ashikaga-kun) calls Hikari 'Pikari'. On the other hand, Arisu calls her 'Hikarin'. Arisu, lover of cute, weird nicknames, why doesn't she use that ready-made nickname?

A: Like I mentioned, Isao and Hikari went to the same junior high school. So, Isao knew what Hikari was like in junior high. No, he's not a childhood friend. Anyway, believe it or not, Hikari was a tiny kid in junior high, standing at 138 cm. There was a Senpai (who was an utter bastard, and super tall) who liked to belittle and tease her due to her height. Therefore, due to her tiny cuteness, he had dubbed her 'Pikari', a name fitting her height. Eventually, it caught on with everyone else, and old habits die hard. However, Hikari shot up like crazy from her third year of junior high to first year of high school. (Her height in the current timeline, aka epilogue, is 170 cm, taller than Takin)
When Arisu met her, and discovered this nickname, found that 'Pikari' didn't suit her anymore. Therefore, due to her height and mature feel, Arisu wanted to give her a more (self-proclaimed) mature nickname.
Isao ain't gonna stop calling her that any time soon.

Q: What exactly is Namie and Hotaru's relationship?

A: Namie and Hotaru have a super platonic relationship, as far as high school. You can't easily start a love with someone like Hotaru. But based on how chill he was when talking about Namie's crush on Yoshihara-senpai, you could probably tell that he still thinks of her as a friend. They treat each other as a typical guy-and-girl best friend couple would. Namie sometimes pretends Hotaru is her boyfriend to shake guys off, but nothing too drastic happens. For now. (fufu)

Q: Did Aya fall in love with Yuuki?

A: Yes, our innocent little Aya-chan realised that she had fallen in love with him as she grew up. Call her what you like, a girl who likes older guys or a brocon. But it is a fact. Because she just thought how much there was to love about him. Now just take some time to register now sad that actually is. Falling in love with a dead guy. As she grew, the Yuuki in her head remained the same. Just think about it for some time. To be honest, I changed that ending a number of times, but I finally decided to leave it like that. Because you can just register now it is. Falling in love after he had died, but she didn't accept he was dead. Aya's situation is super sad, but I don't feel like I depicted it well enough. Oh well, our little girl is strong, she'll move on.

Q: Who exactly is Yuzuha?

A: Yuzuha is actually a character who I came up with at the last minute, but she has a huge impact on Takiyo's character in the start of the story. Actually, she was friends with Takiyo and Michi when they were all kids, but Takiyo pushes her away, which hurt her deeply. And the fact that Takiyo let Michi in and not her made it worse. It made her feel as the she was the one in the wrong, and started distancing herself from them as well, deciding that she was the person in the wrong. And therefore, she went from happy-go-lucky to dull and dark. She's kind of a darker, more secluded version of Yuko in junior high. That's why she says "like father like daughter". So the truth is that rather than distrusting friends, Takiyo is afraid of friends. You see? He is afraid how unpredictable they can be, and so on. But Yuzuha's significance is that at the end of the chapter, you can see Takiyo with more confidence, as he knows that if he ever meets her, he will know how deal with it. So Yuzuha shows the change in Takiyo, from running away to embracing.
To be honest, I wanted to leave Yuzuha as a mysterious and unexplainable character, and she would come in useful if I ever have any idea for more story. Yuzuha is just this character who has loads of questions around her, and I'll say that she is still in Osaka, and she hasn't talked with or contacted or met them ever since then. Sometimes things just happen in life that you can't repair, you know? And who knows if Yuzuha will be one of those things for Takiyo? (Oh shit this sounds like a trailer for a sequel 🤦)

That's all. Now that I have resolved matters, I can be at peace, and lay this story to rest. I'm sorry if you didn't like the ending, or storyline, but I am open to your opinions. That ending was mostly driven by my love for breaking clichés. But I feel in the end I came back to the same clichés. 😅

Bye!!

~❤️
HarmonySaucer2