#hikaritsu

i'll use any excuse to talk about them so HI

i actually drew something recently that i think basically sums it up.. in my head they kind of bypassed the lovers phase to become "friends (sexual tension) to enemies (sexual tension)"

i don't think hikari is friendzoning ritsu per se in fact i think given hikari's complicated relationship with his family and nonexistent love life, friendship is basically the most important kind of relationship to him and i think ritsu is who he would consider his closest friend... it's quite clear that up until the end of ritsu's life hikari is reluctant to let go of those feelings even if he has to acknowledge that those feelings don't matter anymore because of the path both of them chose.

ritsu on the other hand just has.. a whole lot of different feelings towards hikari and i think their relationship was bound to end up in conflict eventually one way or another. on the one hand i think ritsu is (was) truly grateful for hikari's friendship and probably the opportunities he's been given as a result of that but i think he resents that things have always come easier for hikari, whether it's due to his status or his skills.

to me they're both characters who wish for a world where people of all backgrounds are given equal footing in life but there's a lot of key differences where they differ; i think hikari truly sees everyone as his equals and believes everyone deserves a life free of harm, but he views everything from a very privileged perspective that ritsu isn't afforded. ritsu simultaneously believes anyone can achieve what they want through hard work but is also incredibly blinded by status and positions, including his own. unlike hikari, he hasn't been able to live without acknowledging the world's inequalities because while hikari has the privilege and lowers himself to the level of others to become equals, ritsu is forced to fight for the right for others to view him as an equal. it's a fundamental difference in their characters and i think why their perspectives were doomed to never align

ALSO i think ritsu finds hikari beautiful but hates himself for it yay for internalized homophobia

thanks for the ask!!!!