#yuujun

Og

Use the sleeves of my sweater

And my god.

Just hold on:

In short, the three defining criteria are: 1. A love interest of a prominent character 2. Is dead (or some equivalent of dead, such as lost in a dimensional void, or frozen forever, or even just genuinely believed to be dead) before the story begins, or dies relatively early in the story 3. Their death has significant ongoing impact, consequences, and relevance for the remainder of the story

So that's 2/3

the third criterion above is the most important: in order to fit this trope, the character must have just as much, if not more, importance to the narrative dead than they would alive.

Junpei fulfills the third one so well that Yuuji as he is wouldn't even exist without this. I can practically retell Junpei's story with just quotes from this page:

If the Lost Lenore was murdered, a Roaring Rampage of Revenge usually ensues. Which leads to a crucial identifying point- Yuuji has a whole soundtrack called 'Yuuji's Rage' which plays specifically to signify how ANGRY he is about Junpei's death and he sets aside all his moral

After her death, whether it occurs before the story begins or during its course, the Lost Lenore is present in the thoughts, dialogue, and actions of living characters- Yuuji understands Megumi's will to not live because he remembered how he needs to listen to people and not impose his own wishes on people because of The Junpei Incident. He is especially antagonistic and repulsed by how people are transfigured by Mahito and always tries to save them and prays for them

Conversely, forces of evil may evoke the memory of the Lost Lenore, or even masquerade as a manifestation of her, in order to manipulate living characters- Mahito makes a hand puppet of Junpei just to get a reaction out of Yuuji.