Tasuku Kaname

**Tasuku Kaname** (要 介, *Kaname Tasuku*) is the main character of Shimanami Tasogare and a high school student at Shimanami High, who, through the course of the story, gets to accept himself and his sexuality, with the help of Someone-san and the friends he meets at the Drop-in center. As he also gets to learn how to understand his developing feelings for his schoolmate, Touma Tsubaki.

## Appearance

Tasuku is a generally plain-looking teenager and does not stand out very much. He has black hair and green eyes. Due to his inner conflict, he usually tends to look rather down, concerned or lost in thought. However, the more he learns about and interacts with the other patrons of the Drop-in center, the more he tends to smile. He is also easily flustered by thoughts of Touma.

As a student he usually wears his school uniform. However, in his free time he is often seen wearing plain shirts, which are either short-sleeved or long-sleeved depending on the season.

While participating in his club activities, like all other members, he sports his Shimanami High gym uniform.

## Personality

Reflecting his generally average appearance, Tasuku seems to have a rather timid personality. When he gets forcibly outed at school, he desperately tries to blend in to the point where he will use homophobic slurs and make offensive comments as a defense mechanism so that no one at school will think he is gay. Though he almost immediately regrets his words, they reflect Tasuku's internalized homophobia, as he himself states in his conversation with Someone-san in chapter one, saying, "I tried to maintain that secret by even using words that would hurt me the most if someone had said them to me."

Tasuku is also kind at heart and tries to be understanding towards others, since he too wants to be understood. He even goes out of his way to help Misora get more comfortable with himself and to help him explore his true identity. Even when his attempts fail and Misora outs him in public, Tasuku stays rather calm and later asks himself what he could have done differently to prevent hurting Misora.

Regardless, like Misora, Tasuku also seems to be rather unsure of himself. It takes him some time to admit to himself and to the other drop-in center members that he might be gay and is reluctant to come out to his friends from school or his family due to the harm he sees this has caused others.

## Plot

### *Volume 1*

**Chapter 1**

Two days before summer break, Tasuku is forcibly outed at school by one of his classmates. Faced with the homophobic jeers and slurs thrown at him from his peers, after school, Tasuku feels like his life ended, so he thinks of suicide, standing at the ledge of a hill in the town. Before he can go through with it, he sees a person in the distance jumping from a window, seemingly to their death. When he rushes in the direction they jumped from, Tasuku finds the Drop-in center, with the person, Someone-san, safely inside. Tasuku is surprised to hear them ask Tasuku about "not jumping after all". As Someone-san leaves the drop-in center, one of the people there, Ilya Tchaiko, tells Tasuku that the person, Someone-san, owns the drop-in center, and that around that time of day, they usually go for a walk in the park up above. So Tasuku follows them along this walk to the observatory, asking questions all along the way to Someone-san, wondering how do they knew about Tasuku's suicide attempt. Someone-san buys an ice cream for themself and tells Tasuku that he can tell them anything, thought they will not listen. Then, Tasuku is finally able to voice his secret to someone, for the first time.

❝
I-I have a secret. I can't ever let anyone find out. I could've just said I'm not what they think I am. But I'm scared of anyone learning my secret that... I went and blurted out a word that really hurts when someone says it to me. But even after that, is my secret really safe? Do they know now? I mean, if they do... My life is pretty much over. And I just... I can't. ***I can't***. B-but... I have to... walk back in there tomorrow and find out. Will it just be the same old routine? Or my first day in hell?

Someone-san mentions that people who want to die "usually wind up" at their door, so she invites Tasuku to come by the drop-in center, saying someone there might listen to him. And as they leave, Tasuku is shocked to hear them mention that "some people who come by are gay." Tasuku is so stunned to hear them talk about that so casually, that he thinks he sees a vision of Someone-san floating away from him. So as he eats the ice cream he got from the "winner stick" Someone-san left for him before leaving, Tasuku ponders Someone-san's invite.

**Chapter 2**

Despite his hopes of it turning up otherwise, his classmates remembered the incident from the day before and continued bullying him with homophobic slurs. Tasuku ca not take anymore so he runs from the room, skipping the end of class ceremonies. He returns to the Drop-in center and is hostile to the other regulars, embarrassed by their sexualities. However, when Someone-san shows up, Tasuku tries to confide in them. Someone-san tells Tasuku the same thing they did before, "tell me anything. I won't listen, though," while packing Yen stacks in their room. So as they sit in front of the window at Someone-san's room, Tasuku comes out as gay for the first time to someone, by his own choice. Tasuku talks to Someone-san about how he felt about being forcibly outed at school. And as he finally expresses all the emotions he could not share to anyone, he starts screaming in frustration and pain, as tears run down his face.

❝
Why?! Why am *I* the one who has to...?! Why should *I* have to always watch my back?! Why am *I* the one who's getting torn up inside, dammit?! I almost died! How come *they* don't die?!

And in that moment, Tasuku desperately reaches for Someone-san, but they get up and walk away, leaving him reaching out to them. He then goes out of the room, emotionally exhausted, and into the lounge, where the drop-in center members comfort him, offering some water for him and letting him lay on the couch. So, as he listens to them talking, with the Tchaikovsky track Tchaiko put on in the background, he falls asleep.

❝
Maybe I really did die yesterday, and I'll wake up tomorrow. It'll be the first morning of Spring Break, and... I'll be in this weird place of Someone-san's. This drop-in center.

**Chapter 3**

   After Tachibana, the friend who forcinly outed Tasuku at school, apologizes to him, yet still makes homophobic remarks, Tasuku finds the confidence to tell him to stop saying those things as it is not cool. However, he seems tense after he notices Touma Tsubaki, the ace of the school's volleyball team, looking at them. After school, when he returns to the drop-in center, Haruko Daichi invites Tasuku to join the lounge's members to help demolish an abandoned building for their organization, Cat Clowder. After Haruko's wife, Saki visits her to bring her some refreshments after a day of hard work, she tells Tasuku that she is her wife. Tasuku tells Haruko that she is lucky, which shocks her. And afterwards, as Tasuku remembers the affectionate moment that Saki and Haruko shared, with Haruko tucking a strand of Saki's hair behind her ear, he imagines doing the same thing to Touma, which makes Tasuku realize he has feelings for Touma.

**Chapter 4**

After another day of demolishing, Tasuku asks about Saki and Haruko's relationship. Harkuo asks him to keep Saki's sexuality a secret, which he empathizes with. Haruko shows him a gay twitter community where she met Saki and tells him the story of how she built the drop-in center as her first project, how she met Someone-san and how she came out to her parents. Haruko confesses that she dreams of marrying Saki one day, which surprises Tasuku. When she asks Tasuku if he finds that weird, Tasuku says that it's actually the opposite, as he tells her he finds her amazing and strong. At that moment, Saki appears at the drop-in center and there's a tense moment between them as the two women are at different places in their own comfort with being out.

**Chapter 5**

Tasuku awkwardly listens as Saki tells Haruko that she is content with the way things are, and that she does not consider herself as strong as Haruko to come out. She turns to Tasuku and asks him if he understands where she is coming from, implying they are in the same situation since he is "gay, too." This makes Tasuku anxious, so he almost says he is not gay, before Someone-san asks him, "are you back to planning die?" before leaving for their usual walk. Tasuku follows her out of the drop-in center, abruptly leaving everyone behind.

Later that day, the various school clubs meet by the docks. Despite pining over Touma, Tasuku is still conflicted over pursuing his feelings, as he ponders on Saki's words about being afraid of the hatred that might come from others she knows if she comes out. And after school, he returns to the drop-in center, where he finds a young boy he has never seen before, who tells him that Someone-san went out on their usual walk. Tasuku goes to the observatory, where he sees Someone-san munching on their ice cream, but is surprised to find Haruko and Saki there too, who invite Tasuku to have some hassaku soft serve. As they enjoy the ice cream, they tell Tasuku that they always come there to make up. Saki apologizes to Tasuku for putting him on the spot earlier. Saki confesses that she does want to come out to her parents, but that she is also scared. Despite this, she does say she wants to marry Haruko. Tasuku sees them being affectionate with each other again and thinks to himself:

❝
It's simple. I want to live a happy life with the person I love. That's all I'm hoping for. That's all I want. **What's wrong with wanting that?!**

When Haruko sees him so anguished and seemingly lost in thought, she tells Tasuku he will be the one to pick what the next house renovation will be, which surprises him. Sometime later, at a demolition job for Cat Clowder, Tchaiko plays a Tchaikovsky song to celebrate Tasuku's appointment as the one in charge of what will be done with the house they are working on. As Haruko, Utsumi, Tchaiko and himself are working, Tasuku is emboldened by the music and asks to demolish a wall. He is too nervous to use the large crowbar, so Haruko gives him a nail puller. After pulling a nail, he sees a vision of Touma and Someone-san facing each other. In a sudden surge of emotions, Tasuku tells Haruko that he really likes a guy, and breaks down in tears. Haruko approaches him and comforts him as Tchaiko and Utsumi watch them with soft smiles on their faces.

The next day, Tasuku reflects on feeling glad that he did not experienced a suicide that day when he met Someone-san, and that he has a place like the drop-in center to go to, as he stands in front of it. And then, he sees the same kid he did not recognized the other day at the drop-in center, shocked to hear he somehow knows about his sexuality.

### *Volume 2*

**Chapter 6**

Tasuku figures out that the kid is Shuuji Misora when he sees him walk in the drop-in center in his school clothes and later on presenting as a girl. That is when he realizes that Misora was the kid he saw presenting as girl as well, the firt day that he arrived at the drop-in center. Through a series of questions, Tasuku learns that Misora only presents as a girl at the drop-in center and is not out to his family and friends. Misora keeps nagging Tasuku with invasive questions about his sexuality and his crush on Touma. Tasuku assumes that Misora must be gay since he is "dressed as a girl", but then realizes that Misora is not only a kid and maybe still hasn't had a crush, but also, after being scolded by Misora about this, he realizes that gender and sexuality are two different things. When Someone-san enters the room, all of Misora's attention shifts completely to them. Realizing what Tasuku might think, Misora quickly tells him that he dresses the way he does for himself, because he wants to. Then, suddenly, Misora leaves the drop-in center, leaving Tasuku confused.

Tasuku goes to a health committee meeting, where Touma is present. When the meeting ends, Tasuku and Touma are the last to leave. Touma is flustered when Tasuku recognizes him from the times the ping-pong club's and volleyball club's meetings intersect. They share a little bit of small talk and then Touma leaves. Tasuku starts overanalysing their conversation, cringing at his questions to Touma, yet desiring he could tell him about his crush on him.

**Chapter 7**

Tasuku is greeted by Touma while he walks with Tachibana. This makes Tasuku's feelings start to bubble up, but he quickly swallows them down. Though he tries to ignore his feelings, he is still disappointed when Tachibana says he will probably have a girlfriend or at least a girl he fools around with.

In the afternoon, Tasuku sees Tsubaki-san leaving the lounge. Inside, Haruko is angry with Tsubaki-san over his demands for Cat Clowder, but refuses to tell Tasuku what he actually said. Tasuku compliments Misora's outfit, causing him to blush and run to the backroom. Misora puts on his school uniform again and asks to go to Tasuku's house.

At Tasuku's house, Misora asks what to do when "your underwear gets dirty" because it was the first time "that" (a wet dream) had happened to him, which is what it was in that plastic bag Misora threw after leaving his house. He admits that he does not have anyone he feels comfortable talking to since he only lives with women. Tasuku tries to connect this to his cross-dressing but is quickly shot down. Misora continues to worry about puberty, and how he will grow into a more masculine body, but also does not know if he actually wants to be a girl. Tasuku pressuring him to decide only makes him more frustrated and he tries to leave. Tasuku realizes that Misora needs his help and grabs his hand.

**Chapter 8**

Tasuku tries to help Misora find someone like him on the LGBT Twitter community, but finds it difficult since he ca not classify Misora's identity. Haruko explains that gender and sexuality are on a spectrum, but a label would help Misora find a supportive community. Misora redirects the conversation back to Tasuku, asking him how he learned he was gay. He remembers being attracted to one of his classmates in 4th grade, recalling that the boy made his heart race and Tasuku thought he looked cool, which Misora found boring. Misora pesters Tasuku for a "reason" why he is gay, which irritates him enough to make him yell.

Their conversation is interrupted when Tsubaki-san comes into the lounge. He asks if Tasuku is one of "those kinds of people", but Haruko quickly intercepts and says he just volunteers with Cat Clowder. Tsubaki-san tells Haruko that being gay is fine as long as the Lounge does not become "a meeting place" and "start queer rumors". Haruko stops him and tells him,

> "Gay people are not zombies that walk around 24 hours a day thinking about love and dirty stuff!"
>
>

Tsubaki-san insists that he did not mean it like that, but Haruko rushes him out politely and with a smile. Now fired-up, she calls on Tchaiko and Tsuku to go to Triangle Manor, the temporary name for Tasuku's in charge of.

**Chapter 9**

The day of the summer festival, Tasuku tells Misora that he looks cute in the yukata he was wearing. And invites him to watch fireworks together, to go outside while presenting as feminine. The two go to the festival together and enjoy themselves. Tasuku smiles when he realizes that Misora is having a great time. At that moment, Touma immediately spots him in the crowd and calls his name. Touma is surrounded by some more people who get the impression that Tasuku is there with his girlfriend, thinking Misora is the girlfriend. Tasuku is quick to clarify that Misora is just the kid of one of his relatives. And as a person walks by, they slightly push Touma forward, making him fall forward in front of Tasuku. As their faces get extremely close, Tasuku starts blushing, but they quickly break apart and say their goodbyes. Misora then teases him about the situation and tells him to just confess. Tasuku replies there is no way he can do that and gets upset at the thought of how the girls can just be close to Touma with no problem while he cannot tell him his feelings without fearing all the harm that will come from that.

They keep walking around the festival with Misora when someone sexually harasses Misora in the crowd. As they walk away from there, Tasuku remarks in an offhand comment that the person did it because Misora looked cute, trying to compliment how he looked like a girl, without noticing the tremendous harm his words caused for Misora. Misora, feeling angry, confused, and pushed by Tasuku, explodes into a homophobic tirade, shouting at him before running away. Touma, who was hearing it all, comes between them, shouting at them to protect the goldfish that had just fallen from Misora's hand when the fight occurred.

**Chapter 10**

Three days after the incident with Misora, Tasuku shows up at the Lounge and finds out that Misora stopped going there. As he was preparing to go see Misora, Haruko stops him and tells him that he should not, saying that there are times when someone gets hurt no matter what one does. Upset about the whole situation, Tasuku breaks down and begs Haruko to tell him how to understand Misora to not hurt him anymore. Haruko tells him that she genuinely does not know because it is not their job to decide what to do, it is Misora's. She tells Tasuku that now was not the right time to push Misora, and apologizes to him for not telling him that earlier.

Tasuku goes to Triangle Manor afterwards and lies on the floor. There, he thinks about everything that has happened to him ever since he came to the Lounge, and remembers Someone-san words about deciding what to do with the property, still unsure about it.

### *Volume 3*

**Chapter 11**

Tasuku stops going to the Lounge for a while, but after school starts again, Utsumi calls him one day to help with the grade schoolers workshop project they have in Cat Clowder, and he immediately goes to help. Suddenly, Touma and his dad appear as volunteers there, and Tasuku is completely shocked to see him there. However, he starts getting serious once he realizes that somehow Touma acts as if nothing happened, and fits right in. He spends the afternoon helping around the project with Touma, until one of Utsumi's friends who passes by to volunteer, Oyama, outs him and Tasuku listens, completely shocked, but not saying anything, respecting the fact that what matters it is Utsumi's right time to say.

The next day, at the health committee, Tasuku and Touma are working on some decorations when Touma starts to suddenly make homophobic and transphobic remarks about the people of the Lounge, Tasuku's friends, as he finds himself unable to respond. Tasuku gets even more anxious when Touma mentions that he heard all the stuff that was said in his fight with Misora and how he thought it was funny "a grade-school girl" called him a homo bastard. Tasuku acts as if he did not hear what Touma says, although he is hurt thinking Touma is toying with him, giving him false hopes, and he starts getting more worried about the fact he does not understand Touma at all, seeing him fly away in a literal spaceship, away from him. Touma gets him out of his thoughts, inviting him to go to a ship launching to take some pictures for the school project together with him, which confuses Tasuku even further.

**Chapter 12**

After getting the invitation from Touma, he cannot stop thinking about how he will go with him, with "the one he loves", alone together to this place. And his family starts noticing how cheery he is. However, he says nothing about it, thinking to himself that silence is right since he does not feel safe telling his family about his sexuality, afraid that he would not have his home to return to afterwards.

The day of the date, he gets disappointed as soon as he realizes that they are not going to be alone together, although he quickly hides it with a smile. Touma introduces him to two girls, but Tasuku immediately forgets their names as his head is in another place. Although he is disappointed with himself for thinking this day would be different, he starts thinking that a year ago, he would have never imagined he would be spending a day like this with Touma, and that he is glad he did not die the day Someone-san found him for the first time.

Tasuku and Touma spend the rest of the day together, taking pictures and having fun. And when the time comes for the ship launching, the two of them were together, alone, like Tasuku wanted, in the big crowd of people. Touma suddenly grabs him and pulls him closer into a hug, which makes Tasuku break down crying in frustration since he still does not understand Touma and thinks he is toying with him. Afterward, they go to a restaurant nearby and Tasuku tries Onomichi ramen for the first time. One of the girls suddenly asks Touma and Tasuku how the two of them met, so Touma starts explaining it all. Until he arrives on the topic of the Lounge, and he starts making homophobic and transphobic remarks again. This deeply hurts Tasuku, who finds himself unable to respond, shaking a lot. Thankfully, one of the girls abruptly cuts Touma, telling him he cannot be talking like that, since her friend's sister is trans and it is not at all the way Touma was describing "those people" to be. Once they say their goodbyes outside the restaurant, Tasuku says goodbye to Touma in a very emotionless way, and silently thanks the girl who stopped Touma's remarks as he waves and smiles at her. Tasuku thinks to himself:

❝
If she hadn't been there, what would I have done? I think I would have been broken... again.

And once again reflects on the fact that, still, staying in the closet is the safest thing he can do.

**Chapter 13**

The next day, Tasuku meets Touma again at the Lounge and acts like nothing happened yesterday, hiding behind a smile. However, he thinks to himself how can Touma act so nicely with Tasuku's friends at the Lounge when just the other day he was saying horrible and hurtful stuff about them.

> Being near Tsubaki-kun is incredibly scary. As though on a rollercoaster, my heart is suddenly lifted up and pushed down. Terrifying. Being near Tsubaki-kun means I quickly get to know him. It makes me want to know even more. It makes me love him even more.
>
>

In the afternoon, he goes cycling with Utsumi, to take some pictures for his school project. And as they ride, Utsumi tells him he was surprised to learn Touma was the son of the regional promotion section manager, and that he was in Tasuku's same grade. Then, Utsumi asks Tasuku if he is in love with Touma. Tasuku blushes and answers "yes." Then, hesitantly, he asks Utsumi about his friend, Oyama, who made some very uncomfortable comments about Utsumi earlier, and who outed him. Utsumi tells him that she is just someone with "unrestrained good intentions". And as he smiles, he says that he cannot live getting so worked up if he wants people to accept his true self. As he cycles away from Tasuku, he tells him he is not a good person, while Oyama is. But later, Utsumi yells "it drives me crazy", letting out all the emotions he cannot express.  Tasuku thinks that he is just "Utsumi-san", and not all of the thinks people want to label him as. And then, he starts thinking about Misora again and thinks that "silence is still right."

**Chapter 14**

While Utsumi goes to the school reunion Oyama invited him to, Tasuku and his friends at the Lounge take care of Mai, Oyama's daughter. When time comes for Mai to return with her mom, Tasuku takes her to meet her, and sees Utsumi and her fighting. Oyama insists, despite Utsumi's repeated and clear rejections, that he should let people know that he is different from "someone who is gay". Tasuku listens to her hurtful words, but Utsumi is quick to shut her down, telling her that if she is going to hurt his friends like that, that he does not want to be the only person she "undestands." Utsumi makes clear to Oyama that he does not want her to belittle him or anyone else, especially not his friends. Tasuku stares at him, deeply moved by his words. And Utsumi's words get marked on his memory.

**Chapter 15**

The next day at school, Tasuku is working hard on the preparations for the school festival, with the health comitee. When all of a sudden Touma starts acting hostile towards him, making homophobic remarks once again, all because of his repressed feelings that Someone-san released to the surface. His classmates are quick to jump to his defence, asking if he is ok after Touma storms out of the classroom.

After school, as he is working in the Lounge's garden with Someone-san, he starts reflecting on what happened. Although he felt anger at that moment, he is glad he did not blow up since he was scared of Touma hating him "for good." Remembering Utsumi's words from the other day, Tasuku asks Someone-san if they ever get mad and if they ever regret it. To which Someone-san replies that if you live without getting mad, at the very least you could end up invisible.

The day of the school festival, Tasuku ends up doing all the work and doing the presentations all by himself. So when it all ends, and he is alone with Touma in the classroom, he invites him to Triangle Manor, since they are going to be waxing the floor. However, Touma explodes and starts verbally assaulting Tasuku and the Lounge, acknowledging the fact that Tasuku is gay and saying how mad it makes him to see the people in the Lounge be so open about their sexualities, "when they could just hide that they are gay". As this is all happening, Tasuku sees Touma getting further and further secluded in the space ship he was on, getting away from Tasuku's understanding. However, Tasuku is tired and fed up of his attacks and breaks the entrance to the space ship, literally entering into Touma's space and saying the exact same words Utsumi said: "do not belittle me or the others!" Touma stares at him, speechless, and Tasuku decides to come out to him as gay and to confess his feelings for him. He lets Touma know clearly that although he spent some nice moments with him, that that is not going to work anymore.

> *I want you to know that what you’ve said has hurt me. it is not like I want your sympathy or apology! I just don’t want you to hurt anyone else! I don't want to see the guy I like hurting anyone else anymore!*
>
>

Right after this, the space ship around Touma breaks, as he breaks down crying as well, to his own shock. And both he and Tasuku start blushing. Touma apologizes to Tasuku, they say their goodbyes and Touma thanks Tasuku for talking to him. Tasuku thinks to himself that he still does not understand Touma, but now understands the pain he must be harboring, since he sees him being annoyed, upset and confused, just like he was the day he met Someone-san.

After this moment, Tasuku continues his usual activities, visiting his friends at the Lounge. Tchiko shows them some music pieces since his record player got repaired, and as they listen to Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture", Tasuku expresses how much he likes the piece, as he and Utsumi smile at each other. Later, he goes with Haruko to Triangle Manor and there, he confesses to her that his idea for the place will be for Triangle Manor to be where hers and Saki's wedding ceremony gets celebrated.

### *Volume 4*

**Chapter 16**

Tasuku gets surprised seeing Tchaiko getting out of the hospital, and quickly runs to him, thinking he is sick. Tchaiko replies that he is as healthy as ever, with his characteristic big smile, and tells him he is there to visit his partner. At that moment, while Tasuku is still shocked to hear that, he gets even more shocked seeing Touma approaching them as well and talking to Tchaiko about helping at Triangle Manor, as if nothing happened, especially since he confirmed his feelings to him.

**Chapter 17**

As the holiday season is approaching, Tasuku is helping at the Lounge with holiday decorations. And when Touma, who also came to help, starts acting flirtatious with Tasuku, this confuses him even further. Then, Someone-san makes them some special cafe au lait, and after they leave, as they are cleaning the dishes, Tasuku asks Tchaiko to share the story of how he met Someone-san, if he wants to. As Tchaiko shares it all with them, Tasuku listens intently.

**Chapter 18**

After Tchaiko explains how he and his partner met Someone-san, Tasuku reflects on how Someone-san must feel. He wonders if Someone-san might never fall in love. And as he Touma passes him by, slightly touching his back, Tasuku thinks to himself that love may be painful, but at least he does not feel lonely. Later, at the Lounge, he talks to Mai about Saki and Haruko's wedding, and gets shocked to see Tsubaki-san arrive at the Lounge.

**Chapter 19**

Tsubaki-san passes by the Lounge to apologize to Saki since he outed her to her parents without her consent. But as soon as he sees Touma there, he starts getting worried about why he is there, asking him who "lured him into being gay". As an angry Touma replies "no one", Tasuku decides to step up and he tells Tsubaki-san that he is gay, asking him that now that he knows that fact about him, how will he treat him from then on.

**Chapter 20**

Tasuku tells Tsubaki-san that there is some people he wants to come out to, but on his own time. And that this is something really important to them, so he trusts he will not tell this to anyone. Tsubaki-san sees his error after listening to Tasuku, and as he reluctantly leaves his son behind, he apologizes and leaves. Later, as the sun is setting, Touma and Tasuku walk together, just the two of them. Tasuku attentively listens to Touma's concerns. Then, Touma tells Tasuku that he wants to support him from now on, since he has not been able to do so. And Touma asks him if it is okay for him to give Tasuku a hug. As they stay in each other's arms for a long time, Touma tells him that he corresponds to his feelings for Tasuku, but that he still needs time to understand himself and his sexuality, which Tasuku fully supports, telling him there is nothing wrong with not knowing what to do. After Touma leaves, Tasuku stands there for a minute, watching him walk away, and blushing enormously, thinking about the fact he is starting to understand Touma a bit more, and also about how much he really does like him.

Later, he receives a call from Haruko, asking him if it is ok after the incident with Tsubaki-san. Tasuku lets her know that he is and asks how Saki is. Haruko tells Tasuku that she and Saki are incredibly grateful to him for the way he is organizing the wedding ceremony and says that they are counting on him. Tasuku smiles brightly and promises Haruko that he will take care of it, and hangs up.

Tasuku keeps walking around town seeing the holidays decorations and as he feels happy and content now, he starts seeing Misora around, wearing the Yukata he had on the last time Tasuku saw him. Tasuku thinks that he feels like he is now ready to face Misora again.

**Chapter 21**

Tasuku goes to Misora's house, to apologize to him, after six months without seeing each other.

> *Misora-san, I still don't fully understand how you felt back then, so I don't know anything about you. But I clearly understand that my shallow-minded attitude and my preconceived notions hurt you, along with my arrogance over thinking I could do something for you. [...] I'm sorry, Misora-san. And I'm also sorry that I did something that I had to apologize for.*
>
>

Then, they go together to the Lounge and Tasuku smiles seeing Misora quickly feeling at home again. Then, he goes up to the observatory, where he sees Someone-san. He tells them that he was not expecting to see them there, especially on such a cold day like that one. After trying (and failing) to invite them to Saki and Haruko's wedding, when Someone-san asks him about Seichirou, Tchaiko's partner, Tasuku asks them why do not they just ask Tchaiko themselves. Tasuku confesses that Someone-san has been hard for him to grasp, so when he found out they were asexual, he felt like he could finally see a little bit of what makes Someone-san up. Someone-san explains that they are not who they are because they are asexual, that that it is just one aspect of what makes them as a person, and tells Tasuku that it is the same with him, since the fact that he is gay does not make him himself.

Tasuku starts to feel like he cannot reach Someone-san once again, as he starts getting trapped by all possible interpretations Someone-san can take form of. He then understands that he cannot act as if he understands who they are, and instead he just has to never lose sight of them. And at that moment, he is able to reach Someone-san and hold their hand. Tasuku tells them that having Someone-san breathing right in front of him, and feeling their warmth, is all that matters to him. Someone-san softly smiles at him and after saying "thank you" to him, they fly away, as Tasuku sees them from the observatory.

**Chapter 22**

After spending some time in school with Touma and with his friend, Tachibana, back at home, he calls Haruko and attentively listens to all her updates and how busy she is. Before hanging up, she reminds Tasuku that she is counting on him, and Tasuku also reminds her that he is taking care of it.

After hanging up, he sits down to have dinner with his family and lets them know that he will be home late this weekend because he will be attending his friend's wedding. After his brother gets surprised at the fact a friend of his can be marrying this soon, thinking it is someone from school Tasuku is talking about, Tasuku lets them know that it is an older friend he met at a cafe, and that makes his brother say "is not just some weirdo, righ", worried about his little brother. Tasuku lets his family know that Haruko has been great to him, and that she offered him a place to be, so he wants to return the favor. Tasuku's mom tells him to have fun then, and his brother says he will let Tasuku borrow some of his hair wax.

On the morning of the day of the wedding, Tasuku gets shocked to see Triangle Manor has been vandalized, with homophobic slurs written all over its outer walls. As soon as Tasuku realizes that this terrifying reality of  homophobic attacks LGBT+ receive in their everyday lives is something that it is "always close by", he starts having a panic attack, shaking uncontrollably. But he soon calms down when Touma brings some paint thinner to scrub it off the walls. As they are working on it, Touma breaks down crying, thinking about the fact he could have been one of these hateful people. Tasuku comforts him and lets him know that now is not the time to cry. So Tasuku reflects on the fact that when we hurt someone, we have it within us to look back and reflect on it. And he thinks that compared to that person he was on the day he met Someone-san, he thinks he has changed.

**Chapter 23**

During the wedding ceremony, as all the guests were eating some of the wedding cake, Tasuku notices Tchaiko has not been eating much, which concerns him. So he approaches him, making him jump at the sudden question. Although Tchaiko tells him he is just fine, he was very anxious about the recent news he received of his partner Seichirou's critical condition.

After spring ends, and Tasuku starts his second year of high school, he starts working on remodeling yet another vacant house with Cat Clowder. He and Touma meet each other at the Lounge again and share how happy they have been lately.

## Etymology

* The name **Tasuku** means "help, assist" (介).
* Tasuku's surname **Kaname** means "pivot; vital point, cornerstone, keystone" (要).

## Trivia

* Tasuku only moved into Onomichi in the spring of that year.
* On his second year of high school, Tasuku joined the library committee.
* Tasuku likes the supernatural and paranormal as seen by the books on his shelf.
* Someone-san was the first person Tasuku has ever came out as gay to.