Thank you for putting up a table of contents. It makes it easier for me to find your analyses.

eri reads Saezuru: table of contents

First of all, thank you for reading these posts. They are often a little bit longer than what I originally planned for, but there is so much to say! I promise I try to restrain myself and mostly stay on topic: I tried to keep each part consistent with an idea or theme, and often one character gets more space than another, but please consider that I believe Yashiro is the main character and that this manga is first and foremost his story.

I thought of having a table of contents in addition to the tags system, I hope it works.

Introduction to Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai (mostly focused on Yashiro’s agency before the time skip): part one** part two** part three

added thoughts on Yashiro’s agency from chapter 41

A symbolic reading of the sekigan 隻眼: Yashiro’s blinded eye

Going out to drink with Kamiya-kun

Yashiro, Doumeki, cigarettes and hierarchy*

A discussion on Saezuru as a bl manga

Yashiro’s Cruel God (analyzing the unbalanced situation between Yashiro and Doumeki): part one part two part three* part four* part five**

Doumeki vs homophobia*

Jealousy **

What the body wants and what the heart wants

* posts that focused more on Doumeki

** posts that included considerations about the yakuza setting

More in the tag: eri reads saezuru like brief considerations of single chapters or single panels that I am not including in this table of contents

If you have more advice on how to improve the navigation or other suggestions please let me know. Social media are not a natural habitat for me and I don’t think I am getting it right most of the time.

Such a great analysis! Yoneda-sensei uses this symbolism again with Doumeki.

Just like Yashiro, Doumeki is at the lowest point in his life. Yashiro had violently pushed Doumeki out of his life, he is still distanced from his family, and he has nowhere else to go. Everything, from how it's also presented as a flashback from the boss's point of view, to the atmosphere of the scene, shows how snow symbolizes being at rock bottom for Yashiro and Doumeki.

Snow is rain at its worst - A comment on Saezuru's symbolism

Snow can be a lot of things, figuratively. In Saezuru, for the main theme is rain as befallen suffering, snow can't be any good. Indeed, snow is rain at its most extreme manifestation - Yashiro's ordeal ascending its zenith at nothingness. Here we have Yashiro, black and blue, naked under the snow, lying his body on the freezing ground confirming who he is to Misumi. Yashiro is at his lowest, undeniably.

In this part of the story, Yashiro finds himself adrift after high school, distanced from Kageyama, and no longer desired by his pedophile stepfather. He grapples with an existential crisis, feeling lost in a vast, empty void. Desperate for an anchor on the ground, he clings to the persona of a homosexual – slut – masochistic pervert he has adopted to survive his trauma. He tries his best to sell others and especially himself into it by exaggerating his persona exhibition to absurdity – lustful demeanor, overtly promiscuity with yakuza men, and invitation to violence and cigarette burn marks on him, in a twisted rejoice. In this scene, he pins himself down amidst the snow below and above, amidst the siege of the snow-white emptiness, with a body full of marks as proof of the identity he desperately clamps onto. He kinda succeeds.

Yoneda sensei's storytelling prowess shines through in her adept transitions. As Yashiro teeters on the edge of life and death from bullet wounds, she skillfully weaves in the backstory of his descent into the yakuza, drawing a parallel between past and present. In these moments, he never knows he’s alive until he’s about to die, pain becomes the stark reminder of his existence, jolting him out of his numbed detachment. Stripped of all protection against the biting cold, Yashiro's bare vulnerability calls for pain to rain on him, encapsulating the ultimate of his tragedy. Paradoxically, the absence of external restraints doesn't free him, but conversely, imperils his very being. His terrifying childhood trauma has completely destroyed his psyche and identity to the extent that he knows nothing else than perpetually reliving the simulation of it. Such a self-destructive lifestyle summons another demon. In collaboration, they imprison him in an abyss from which escape seems increasingly impossible.

Amidst the merciless snow, there’s merciless Misumi who manipulates Yashiro into the path of no return nor redemption, just perpetual agony. Another abuser in place of Yashiro's stepfather.

I actually on the same boat as you. Even in straight romance, I always get turned off if one partner uses jealously as an excuse to hurt the person they love. I've found that Yoneda-sensei uses tropes commonly found in BL stories and turning them on their heads, and this is no different. Usually, when one partner acts violent due to jealousy, it somehow brings the couple closer than before. In Saezuru, that doesn't happen. Doumeki's jealousy is preventing them from getting together and further hurts Yashiro.

You brought up how Doumeki is not good with boundaries and dialogue, which is something I think stems from his experiences. His parents stopped showing affection to him in elementary school to make him more independent, but results in Doumeki repressing his emotions and staying silent. People did not respect his boundaries, using him as they liked. For example, Doumeki's first sexual experience was his school nurse forcing herself on him, then his cell mate repeatedly came onto him until Doumeki gave up and let him do whatever he wanted. Even Yashiro breaches Doumeki's boundaries at the beginning. It definitely does not excuse Doumeki's behavior, but it's not surprising given his past. Just like Yashiro, Doumeki needs to work on himself before having any relationship with anyone.

Jealousy

One of the occasions when I strongly feel like my opinion is at odds with other people’s is when Doumeki’s jealousy comes to the surface. I am not sure if maybe this is a result of how unacquainted I am with romance literature or portrayals in media of romantic relationships, heterosexual ones mostly, since I have always been very impatient with those tropes. And that’s maybe what it is, that many readers of Saezuru are more comfortable or acquainted with straight romances and are used to read jealousy or possessiveness from the male partner as a sign of interest and proof of affection or love. I can’t take it like that tho, personally, honestly I can’t see a man being jealous of his partner or potential partner as a positive. Jealousy is a sign of insecurity for me and men being insecure? Potentially bad news, my alarm bells are going off and I don’t get any enjoyment from that part of the story. So is Yoneda Kou using Doumeki’s jealousy uncritically and just as a romantic motif?

Again what Yoneda-sensei did with the yakuza plot in the first half of Saezuru is very interesting to me, because within the whole Hirata’s debacle jealousy was a very central theme. Yashiro’s thoughts about the relationships between men in the yakuza are also quite revealing, and he tends to think about those men as behaving in their relationships like they would in romantic situations. The first we see of one of Hirata’s passive aggressive behaviors towards Yashiro, he is taking his wakagashira to a function at the Matsuhara group’s place. That place is tied to a period of Yashiro’s life when he was completely adrift, those aren’t good memories, here is Yashiro’s unreliability again in revisiting the past and always downplaying it or seeing it in the lighter way possible. In this case, being in a room full of men, yakuza men, those types of violent and ruthless men tied together by either exclusion from normal society, or money interests and money debts, or complicated emotions under the surface waiting to shift the uneasy balance, Yashiro is thinking of them and of their dynamics in homo erotic terms. The fantasies that he has here, in my opinion, surge from anxiety, as part of his normal coping mechanisms and part of the pattern where he is being fucked all the time and the best he can hope for is to enjoy it or find some form of empowerment in it. When Misumi comes in and sits beside him and not at the front of the room, where his place should be, and Hirata and the others notice, Yashiro is uneasy about it, like he was when Doumeki reported what was being said at the other office by the manager Kirishima (the one in charge of collecting money from debtors and that hired Doumeki in the first place). Yashiro interrogates Kirishima only about those rumors that could potentially become a threat due to jealousy and resentment in a highly hierarchical environment.

Yashiro correctly understands that a man’s jealousy is an open door for trouble. Hirata is keeping track of his movements and of his interactions with Misumi. Rumors are spread widely across the group, but again it is more troubling that these rumors involve Misumi now that a succession process is underway in the Doushinkai. Sexual relationships between men in the yakuza can’t have a legitimate place because of this fear of a perceived unfair competition and advantage, because a sexual relationship has the power to potentially build intimacy and trust in a way that isn’t like any other (that’s the primary function of sex in a marriage, and that is a unique type of relationship protected by several laws and where the bond is considered so strong that each party is exonerated from having to report confidential information exchanged between them to any other authority). That is why men in these environments tend to prefer a very strong unbalance of power in sexual relationships and to keep women separated from their business relationships. Hirata breaks many rules considered fundamental in the yakuza, having betrayed a sworn brother (Kurobane) and having ordered the killing of a sworn son (Yashiro) and remarkably letting his men use sexual violence to gain information from Ryuuzaki’s girlfriend. In the yakuza all those things are strictly forbidden, and the need for protection of the members’ women is another sign of the place these women have in this world, a position of inherent weakness where no one expects them to stand on their own and where they have no power.

While Yashiro correctly perceives jealousy as a threat, he also shows a certain disappointment when Doumeki denies that he is angry after discovering his relationship with Ryuuzaki. Yashiro shows many contradictory behaviors, signs of his decision to hide himself and his vulnerability. But he has been effected by the way Doumeki keeps looking at him and the possibility that maybe this person might care. On the other hand, Doumeki is alerted early on to the fact that showing his true feelings now that he regained potency (remarkably by watching Yashiro while recounting his time with the nurse) is potentially going to cost him his position as Yashiro’s bodyguard. From this moment on Doumeki is misguided by this insecurity. After the reunion, Doumeki discovers that Yashiro is in contact with Inami and he is taken by anger and jealousy, and he is misguided once again by those emotions.

Yashiro’s feelings towards Izumi are so complex that we can’t really conclude if he is jealous or not, only that he is suffering, and that he can’t quite manage to picture himself beside Doumeki. Both scenes played between the entryway of his building and the elevator have shown a Yashiro yearning for Doumeki, a Yashiro who doesn’t want to let him go. These scenes happen before he witnesses Doumeki and Izumi together. Yashiro really struggles with this new and assertive Doumeki, a full yakuza now. He entertains the desire to be chosen, but he feels like that is probably no longer a possibility if his competitors are women.

I do understand what Doumeki wants and why he keeps pushing Yashiro. Doumeki wants him to admit out loud what is it that he really wants: whether the truth has always been the same and Yashiro hasn’t changed - he can’t have a normal relationship, he likes to be treated roughly, gentle sex makes him nauseous and so on - or whether he has been lying all along - he might have wanted to be embraced by Doumeki and treated gently, since that time in the bathtub when Doumeki asked for the first time, he ultimately wanted what happened between them at Doumeki’s house and he still wants it. Why Doumeki has to torture this information out of Yashiro is what I have a problem with. Doumeki senses that Yashiro is lying, but can’t be sure. He wants the truth, but he never quite understands in the first place why Yashiro is lying, why the mask was there in the first place. He hasn’t asked the right questions yet, in my opinion, since the very start. And I believe that Yoneda has been very consistent in showing the readers that Doumeki is misguided. Does it matters that he cares for Yashiro, that he loves him if he acts like that? Is jealousy a good sign? Yashiro knows that the person closer to you has the power to really hurt you. Other people don’t have the power to hurt Yashiro in any way that matters to him, even if they beat him, or rape him again, even if they kill him, they would do him a favor. But the ones he let close to his heart have suddenly all the power. Yashiro is a liar because lying is tied to his survival instinct and Yashiro’s survival instinct is tied not to the preservation of his own life, but of his sense of self. This is trauma at its most deep level, something I always thought Doumeki, like most people for that matter, never has been fully equipped to understand. Which is completely normal, but it is all the more important that people become aware of how important are boundaries and dialogue. And those are the areas where Doumeki is a dog with a bone, or more of a policeman with a suspect than a sympathetic character or a younger man blinded by love or infatuation. As I said in a previous analysis, I truly believe that Yoneda is so clever that it is actually an intentional subtext that Doumeki’s motivations aren’t all about selflessness. That he needs to prove to himself that he didn’t rape Yashiro back then, because he himself isn’t so sure about it.

When I first read that page in English, my first thought was "The Rose of Versailles". I wonder now if Yashiro still sees himself this way with Doumeki.

You are the light, I am the shadow

Yesterday I was trying to copy my Saezuru playlist on Spotify, because I thought it would look better than on YT, but the problem with that is that songs easily available in the jungle of the YT app don’t appear on the other one and in particular a song that is very important to me that I want in the playlist:

If you search for it on Spotify, you will find a bad remixed version and another cover version, but not the original 1979 song from the soundtrack of the anime The Rose of Versailles.

This isn’t new information, nor a discovery I made on my own, it was first pointed out to me during a discussion on discord by other people more attentive than me. This is chapter 1 of Saezuru and Yashiro is looking at Kageyama leaving on his bicycle. Picturing Kuga he sings: きみは ひかり ぼくは かげ - You are the light, I am the shadow. In the official English translation by June, they simply translated the text as follows:

So if you are reading it, without the drama cd playing, you are likely unaware that Yashiro is singing here. While the elongated lines following the words in the Japanese edition would visually clue you in: these words are meant to be sung or their sound should linger… Not only that, but Yashiro’s mouth is open wider than usual and there are lines near his chest to show he is taking more air in.

I want to include here the full lyrics of the song, so that others can check if there are mistakes in the English translation available, that you find in the description of the video above and on a couple of other places.

Although the song is performed by 鈴木宏子 Suzuki Hiroko, a female singer in a rather high register, it is clear from the lyrics and the dialogue inserted in the composition that the person talking is André addressing Oscar and calling out to her at the end. The use of masculine pronouns and other gendered words should easily indicate that the thoughts expressed are André’s and that he is the shadow to Oscar’s light.

愛が苦しみなら

いくらでも苦しもう

それが君の心に いつか届くまで

君は光 僕は影

離れられない 二人のきずな

苦しめば苦しむほど 愛は深まる

この胸を傷つけて 愛は 愛は深まる

「愛しても、愛と呼べない、僕の目は

もう君を見ることができなくなる……

オスカル」

君が死ぬ時には

この僕も死ぬ時だ

永遠（とわ）の愛を捧げる 君にいつの日も

思いおこせ 剣を置いて

君を抱くのは 一人の男

哀しめば哀しむほど 愛は深まる

うすれゆく星を見て 愛は 愛は深まる

君は命 僕の命

誰が切ろうと 切れないきずな

苦しめば苦しむほど 愛は深まる

この胸を傷つけて 愛は 愛は深まる

「オスカル！」

What really struck me when I listened to it with a translation is the portrayal of love as pain and suffering, and that the more the person is hurting, the deeper they are loving. Which I believe is really consistent with how Yashiro thinks about love, so - knowing what this song was about - to hear it quoted in the very first chapter of Saezuru is not only a homage to one of the greatest Shōjo manga ever written but a suggestion of the themes or at least how Yashiro feels about love.

If love is pain, I'll suffer as much as I want, Until it reaches your heart one day (…) The more I suffer, the deeper my love (grows). This heart is hurt and love, love will deepen.

In the story of The Rose of Versailles, André at the beginning is just a secondary character in the background, but he has been with Oscar since the beginning and he will be the only man to embrace her. During the early stages of the revolution he is wounded and loses sight from one eye, and in the end he becomes completely blind. Let’s hope that Yashiro doesn’t follow André’s destiny further.

But putting that song in the mind of the reader was such a clever way to let us glimpse into the very complex interior life of this character otherwise known as “a serious masochist and deviant, a leacherous bottom and the public toilet for the executives”. Yashiro has every reason to think about love as suffering, to feel that maybe his only way is to love silently, from the shadows, and feel that pain.

It's March 3rd! Happy Hina Matsuri!!

There is so much origami happening in this scene!!!

Theory: Yashiro continues to have sex with Inami to keep Doumeki safe

We know Inami is a very vindictive person, and he would not forget the beating he got from Doumeki four years ago. Doumeki beat him up to the point he was unconscious, and had to be dragged out by Sugimoto. Even before then, Inami has a weird obsession with Doumeki and likes to torment him. We also know Inami uses crooked methods to bring someone down, including planting evidence. If Inami is planning to take down Doumeki in some way, this would explain why Yashiro would continue to have sex with Inami even though he is not enjoying it.

Kou Yoneda belongs with the greats, such as, Keiko Takemiya (Kaze to Ki no Uta), Moto Hagio (The Heart of Thomas, A Cruel God Reigns), and Akimi Yoshida (Banana Fish).

Yoneda-Sensei

Just some thoughts…

In order to craft a story as rich and as layered as saezuru, you have to be a person who really gets humans. You know? And in order to make characters this realistic and this tragic, you truly have to understand the motivations and deeply rooted traumas that drive the human spirit. Along with the truths they bury so that they may move forward. In order to create a story like this, these primal and honest human traits must imbue every action and thought process of each character. And at this, Yoneda is a genius.

Many other stories or manga that I’ve read present the reader with a characture of what a person is. Their ideals too manufactured, and understating of life too naive. I find this leads to stagnant protagonists, cliche character archetypes, pseudo-conflicts, and a predictable/flat storyline. This is especially why I love how the characters are actual adults and not some cliche teenagers. They’ve lived through much and are aware of the true nature of the world they live in.

Saezuru is unlike anything I’ve read if I’m being honest. The core of what makes this story so successful and passionately loved is that Yoneda-Sensei allows these characters - these people - to control their own narrative. It’s their love story after all. Do you know how easy it would be to say “okay, it’s been 12 years, I think it’s time to wrap this up and give the people what they want. I’m tired.” This is the very idea she rejects. I know she is probably wanting to work on a new series and that we are nearing the rising action/climax, but I am so glad she isn’t rushing it. She simply refuses to - that sex scene could have been five pages, but they needed to do what THEY NEEDED TO DO! It is so cool to see an author allow her characters to develop at their own pace. She’s spent all these years truly getting to know them herself and so, she tells their story with integrity.

It is their own motivations, flaws, and decisions that drive the story, Yoneda doesn’t impose her own will onto them. She doesn’t allow her own idea of what the plot should be control the characters actions (if that makes sense - this is getting kinda meta lol). The story purely responds to the decisions of the men who it follows, whether they are born from greed, jealousy, lust, anger, Yashiro’s explosive temper tantrums, or love. Sometimes the characters don’t even know why they do the things they do - because that is real life! And I cannot express how well it allows the story to flow. I’ve also noticed that this allows for the story to mimic real life under the context of “Nothing is truly black or white.” In traditional storytellings, there is obvious right and wrong, blatant heroes and villains. But in Saezuru these lines are sometimes blurred, what can I say…true art mimics life. And that is why you must pay attention to every nuance or you’ll miss a core theme.

The topics of childhood trauma, rape, assault, sexual abuse, being thrown into a world of ruthless men, parentless children, homosexuality amongst wolves, fearing one’s own feminity, self-hatred, lovelessness, hopelessness, shame, grief, guilt, being hurt by and hurting the ones you love, and the true nature of love as paradox are all topics needing to be dealt with using the highest sensitivity and empathy. And Yoneda-Sensei has proved that she is an author who can handle these nuanced and difficult topics with grace. And it’s so cool that she trusts us readers to empathetically understand these characters as well!

As Yashiro says, “People are full of contradictions. They’re lonely and then they’re not, they’re missed and then they’re not.” So simply put. This very understanding of the human condition is what makes Yoneda-Sensei an amazing storyteller in my book.

This story could play out for another five years and I wouldn’t mind.

Thanks for reading!

<3

Just a fantasy of mine

These two couples give off the same atmosphere. If Saezuru had came out in the 90s, I think the late Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung can pull off Yashiro and Doumeki in a Hong Kong adaptation.

Publishing this one-shot is what cemented Yoneda-sensei's decision to write Saezuru. There is so much emotions in Yashiro's backstory, especially those last few pages.

The way he says “I’m back” when he knows no one is there to welcome him home…

I'm glad you talked about Doumeki's side of things. Because most tend to focus on Yashiro's side of the story that they tend to forget Doumeki's feelings in the story. As you said, Doumeki is still reeling from Yashiro's cruelty from four years ago and is afraid to make him run again. I hope that Yashiro will continue to open up to Doumeki and eventually apologize for what happened four years ago.

It's so interesting to read the comments about the chapter. Everyone is happy, but I also saw that many were angry at Doumeki for saying that it was just sex. But how could he answer otherwise? Yes, Yashiro really has changed. But he also denies feelings for now and reduces everything to physical pleasure. Unfortunately Doumeki is not a telepath. He gives in to Yashiro and plays by his rules. .. Are you sick of my tenderness and love? I will be cool and not emotional. Is it just physical attraction? Okay, so it's just sex between us. Doumeki is afraid that Yashiro will run away from him. Last time he opened his soul and received cruelty. I think until Yashiro also opens up to him, Doumeki will play his role so that Yashiro doesn’t leave him. But I want to say that Yashiro is absolutely amazing in this chapter. Finally he speaks. He says what he likes and what he doesn’t. Shows emotions. This is a huge step forward and makes your heart tremble. I'm so proud of him

I think some just saw it as a missed opportunity to confess his feelings since it seems like Yashiro is waiting for a love confession and indirectly gave one of his own. However, you’re right Doumeki is not a telepath. He doesn’t know what Yashiro wants or if he is ready for a relationship with Doumeki. Doumeki wants monogamy and Yashiro has yet to express the same desire. He is following Yashiro’s lead and hoping that maybe he can have this part of him even if it isn’t exactly what he wants. Recently I have made posts emphasizing that Yashiro needs to have his own personal journey of understanding and communicating his emotions and being able to express what he wants out of life without a guarantee Doumeki will be with him in the end because love is about being vulnerable. This chapter proves that Yashiro is more than capable of it. I also think it is important to remember that Doumeki is in a complicated situation right now and needs to keep that in mind as well. He hasn’t exactly told Yashiro what has been expected of him and we don’t know yet if he will. Doumeki is still hurt about what happened 4 years ago and is just trying to consider what Yashiro has said he wants. I don’t think he did anything in this chapter that is worth criticizing in my opinion.

Thanks for translating. I hope we see Doumeki use his kendo skills in the series.

Doumeki's Character Profile From The 20072017 Yoneda Kou's Fanbook

Dohmeki Chikara (age 25)

Character profile

born on October, 28th Scorpio, type O 190cm/82kg Can be compared to: a dog (Golden Retriever) Likes: white rice, mochi rice, sleeping, appreciating movies, reading (crime novels), kendou (participated in the interhighs) Special skill: Kendou, Judou, Joint lock (in Judou) His type: He doesn’t say (he likes people with beautiful legs)

Parameters

Degree of doggyness: 5 Unequalled: 5 Patience: 5 Intelligence: 2 Broad-mindedness: 3.5 Pride: 1 Easily moved to tears: 3 Ability in combat: [off the charts!] 8

Burns easily in the sun

Because he doesn’t smile often, he is scary, but, because of that, the power of destruction of his smiling face is great!

He only drinks in moderation

His underwear are rather short boxer types

His normal clothes are Jeans and big/loose Tshirts

Surprisingly soft hair type

His eye sight isn’t good

His chest measures 107cm (Teasing his nipples makes him weak)

He doesn’t toss and turn in his sleep

He can crack the joints of his fingers.

When he was in primary school, he was going to the police kendou-club of his neighbourhood.

Shoe size: 29cm

There’s also this cute dialogue between Doumeki and his beloved boss:

Yash: Are you unexpectedly a crybaby? Up till volume 5, you cried twice… Doumeki: … I’ll pay attention not to cry in hard times. Yash: Since it’s cute, cry more! Doumeki: ……

_________________

My additions are in Italics.

Please let me know if I made any mistakes!

I have the fanbook and now I can understand the profiles. Thanks for sharing.

Yashiro’s Character Profile From The 20072017 Yoneda Kou Fanbook

Yashiro (age 36)

Character profile

Born on January, 30th Aquarius, type B, 178cm/68kg Can be compared to: a cat (Russian Blue) Likes: junk food, sweet things, sex, driving cars Favorite cigarettes: Garam Signature Menthol Special skill: gambling Favorite car: Lexus His type: unsophisticated and clumsy

Parameters

Sex appeal: 5 Kindness: 3.5 Debauched: [off the charts!!] 6 Vitality: 3 Good at being spoilt/depending on others: 2 [ ;_; ] Patience: 5 Intelligence: 4.5 Ability in combat: 3

His eyes generally look sleepy.

His voice sounds husky in middle and low tones.

His skintone is light so he sometimes gets mistaken for a half-Japanese.

He’s the kind of person who files their nails.

His drinking habits aren’t good.

His underwear is the bikini-type.

He has the figure of a model.

When he sleeps, he doesn’t wear underwear.

He has bad habits with his feet [as I understood it, this means that he walks in a peculiar way, or he sits in weird positions]

Except for monochrome suits, he doesn’t care what kind of clothes he wears.

Shoe Size: 27cm

And there’s also this cute little dialogue with Doumeki:

D: The boss is a kind, strong and beautiful person. Y: I’m tired of hearing that. D: The boss is… beautiful and kind and strong and beautiful. Y: That’s enough, idiot.

_________________

My additions are in [Italics and brackets].

Please let me know if I made any mistakes!

Doumeki has a lot in common with a certain snow queen

Older siblings to younger sisters

Loves their younger sisters, but distances themselves from them due to guilt

Afraid they will become monsters

Suppresses their emotions so that they don't lose control of themselves and hurt people

Gloves symbolism

(If this gets attention in the Frozen fandom and people are curious, please heed the TWs for Saezuru: CSA as backstory, violence, homophobia, r*pe)

Excuse me you two looking mighty fine

I feel like the Joker card is fitting for Yashiro too

Why do you think D asked Y in chapter 56 if Y wants to do it with him? What do you think was the point of that question?

To get Yashiro to admit for once. Doumeki wants to hear Yashiro say he wants him in some capacity. Yashiro finally did admit that he wants Doumeki though.

It is not the words “I want only you” but it is an admission

Yashiro never imagined having an innocent sort of love until Doumeki came into his life.

This was so sweet of Yashiro, his innocence when it comes to love is endearing. This was some amazing foreshadowing as well, there is so much feeling behind this simple kiss I bet Yashiro wasn’t even fully aware of. I wonder why Y believes he kissed Doumkei on the cheek here, I’m sure he told himself “it’s just because he’s so cute.” lol <333

It's so intimate and romantic. This is actually very important for Yashiro's development as before he didn't know what to do with his hands during sex/intimate moments with Doumeki.

Thinking about the way Yashiro clings to Doumeki, as if there is no tomorrow, as if he doesn't want to let him go, as if his life depends on that kiss....that man is really the love of his life.