Once again, spoilers lurk beyond this point, especially in the story-specific sections. You've been warned.
On 'Promise Me'
- Yumi orders ramen (soup noodles) for herself, and oyako-don (steamed
rice topped with chicken and egg) for Taka.
- Sanseido is a large Japanese bookstore chain.
The relationship between Yumi and Taka is one of the most perplexing things in the game to me. It's something more than a deus ex machina and something less than psychologically convincing.
The entire plot of the game hinges on Yumi pursuing Taka in Grade 5, the ensuing disaster with Taka's 'love letter', and Taka's subsequent about-face in his attitude to Kana. Similarly, the drama as Taka wrestles with his feelings of love and lust for Kana is heightened by his encounters with Yumi when they're both in university.
I can understand and appreciate the need for a 'Yumi' in the plot. However, there's a long period in the middle of the game – between when Taka stops talking to Yumi and when he meets her after graduation – where any normal person would have given up on Taka. He didn't talk to her for eight years.
The game justifies this by painting Yumi as someone who doesn't give up when she's in the middle of something. She pursues Taka because she thinks he's the one for her. There's something noble about that – especially in the other endings to the game, where she's often a sign of Taka's redemption from grief.
However, it's really hard to write someone like that. I managed to avoid doing it in the first ten chapters. Yumi would have been an unnecessary burden to the plot. But I couldn't avoid it anymore. I don't know if I've portrayed Yumi convincingly. Heck, even Taka admits he doesn't understand her all the time – both in the game and in this chapter!
There will be more Yumi to come. And so I'll continue my efforts to understand her. Hopefully, by the end, Taka will understand her as well.