So I finally watched The Summer Hikaru Died after binge-reading the manga, and I just realized something that made the title hurt way more than it already did.
The real Hikaru died in the winter.
So the title isn't referring to the physical time of his death. It's referring to the metaphorical death of the real Hikaru in Yoshiki's mind during the summer—the moment he finally accepts that the Hikaru he grew up with is truly gone.
But I also can't stop thinking that the title could just as easily be referring to "Hikaru."
The one who wasn't really Hikaru, but still became someone Yoshiki cared about in his own complicated way. The one who had Hikaru's face, his memories, and his place beside Yoshiki—only to disappear too.
So Yoshiki didn't just lose Hikaru once.
He lost Hikaru.
And then he lost "Hikaru."
Two different losses. Two different goodbyes. Somehow, the same unbearable grief. I'm feeling unwell.
