Harapeko Oyako to Motokare Yanushi - Ch. 22

[havelmom]

my theory is the most unhinged of them all
she killed her father and this is a thriller murder-mystery manga

 

[havelmom]

I feel like Kyou got SA’d. It could explain the sudden break up, vagueness about the father and his family, and her having to drop out. Just the time frame doesn’t add up and the fact that they “met” after she broke up with him. Maybe it’s the same guy and he saw her again at work. Hopefully we get a chapter that goes in depth about the father.

this feels like the case, unfortunately
specially considering how she recalled that flashback of what was possibly (most likely) of him

 

[Takuma_Aki]

I assumed the story would either avoid the subject of the father (since it's bound to be controversial) or come up with some bullshit to make it so MC was the dad after all.

Instead, they not only confirmed he existed and wasn't MC, but also hinted there was something odd going on. Not to mention making him play a big part in the emotional conflict of the story.

I was only half interested on this and mostly following to get a laugh at the comment section meltdowns, but now they got me invested.

My theory was they never legally married, because that's the only way I can think of for it to be difficult for her to put his name as Minori's dad. If they had legally married and she became widowed after his death, Minori's birth would be in the grace period the law would assume to be his child and putting his name in wouldn't be too difficult. If they never legally married though, that could be a hell of a hassle to do so - and this might hint at her not being on a good term with his family, too?

 

[drepurp]

I dont need the writer to pull a "shes actually your daughter" I just need him to understand his feelings for her and not make the same mistake twice. Become the father she never had a chance to have, get your woman back and just be a family.

 

[UdenEmpati]

My theory was they never legally married, because that's the only way I can think of for it to be difficult for her to put his name as Minori's dad. If they had legally married and she became widowed after his death, Minori's birth would be in the grace period the law would assume to be his child and putting his name in wouldn't be too difficult. If they never legally married though, that could be a hell of a hassle to do so - and this might hint at her not being on a good term with his family, too?

Also, she never once refers to him as her husband, or even by name - always "Minori's father".

Maybe it could be said that Kyou is being sensitive to Takaharu in not labeling her relationship during the period they were apart, but it's so consistent in the narrative that it feels like an important implication.

We also get two different shots of his left hand in flashbacks, and there's never a ring. Not saying that's not potentially incidental, but this series actually does do small details quite well, to the point it feels intentional.

 

[Boomthorkell]

I realize I loathe Post-WWII Japanese occupation culture. It's just demented and unnatural. No man in this circumstance wouldn't be having sex with her. Additionally, being this level of beta is sad and weird. Also, having a girl pregnant in college is an absolute win.

It's just so...fake. It's very fake.

 

[Rafalga]

My biggest issue with the story is probably Takaharu himself. Not his inability to asking questions but him being mentally stuck with a girl he dated for like 5 months when he was like 18-19 for almost 20 years. And as far as we can see from their past flashbacks, it wasn't some over the top telenovela tier relationship either. If anything, it was pretty much a nothing burger. She left. Didn't even contact him once for 17 long ass years but dude is still in the exact spot she has left him. Both mentally and socially. Way too convenient just to make the bait part of the bait and switch applicable since he apparently doesn't even care.

She is probably the luckiest woman on earth to land a backup like this in such a short period of time.

 

[UdenEmpati]

My biggest issue with the story is probably Takaharu himself. Not his inability to asking questions but him being mentally stuck with a girl he dated for like 5 months when he was like 18-19 for almost 20 years. And as far as we can see from their past flashbacks, it wasn't some over the top telenovela tier relationship either. If anything, it was pretty much a nothing burger. She left. Didn't even contact him once for 17 long ass years but dude is still in the exact spot she has left him. Both mentally and socially. Way too convenient just to make the bait part of the bait and switch applicable since he apparently doesn't even care.

She is probably the luckiest woman on earth to land a backup like this in such a short period of time.

Except we get some justification for that side of him in the story.

In chapter 14 when he's sleeping and dreaming about Kyou, we get the flashback to when she broke up with him, and part of him realizes it's because he was so focused on his artwork that he neglected her ("neglected what was actually important").

But--she was also a model for his work, and more importantly for his best work. One of his last conversations with Kyou was talking about how he'd have to work even harder to put together material for the gallery showing, because the rest of the group ditched him and Azuma. He had to use a bunch of pieces centered around Kyou as a result, and those were the ones that everyone who attended resonated with the most.
So he had all of the best qualities of Kyou, thrown back in his face over and over and over again. The very things he captured in his art, that strangers noticed and picked out, and they were things he himself missed in the real life person until she was already gone.

That sort of thing will have a lasting impact on a person. The best art he makes, the pieces that leave the biggest impact on those who see them, are the ones of Kyou. She is tied to him intrinsically, in the one manner with which he acts upon the world around him. And he can't talk to her, because he already let her slip through his fingers, only to be constantly reminded of her every time he puts pen or brush to paper or canvas, and every time someone comments on a piece that's either of her, or a product of her impact on him.

To me, him going 17 years with that following him around, makes perfect sense for why he never let go.

 

[parasquerl]

This guys way too much of a simp for this girl who dumped him, ghosted him, and found another guy.

Like, if her husband hadn't of died this dude wouldn't even be on her radar.

...isn't that how it usually works? By most people's standards, it's a good thing if she was faithful to her husband for his whole life....