The world is operating somewhere you don't know.

Author: Kyoichi Katayama
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: High school student Tatsuki is about to be slapped by the physical education teacher on the for watching adult videos when he loosens his belt, revealing his buttocks, causing boys to burst into laughter, girls to gasp, and the teacher to be stunned. Invited to a beach "couple's date," he shows no interest in his female classmate wearing a bikini, who has an incredibly voluptuous waist that is simply intoxicating. He mockingly remarks, "Your body is so busy rising and falling, with so many curves—it's a mess," and looks her in the eye without even glancing. His room is always cluttered with trash and dishes, with messy bedding, except for the neatly arranged classical Western music records and the spotlessly clean area around his audio equipment, which seems like a completely different world. Moreover, he is fond of reading philosophy, religious books, and literary classics. In contrast, the protagonist "I" is a conventional good student, adhering to school rules and studying diligently. Although he starts dating his female classmate Kaori in high school and, under Tatsuki's encouragement, takes Kaori's "" to retaliate against her overly strict father, his attitude is serious, planning to marry Kaori after graduating from university and live together forever—"eating, listening to music, showering, and sleeping together"—never again calling Kaori his "world's most beloved person." However, Tatsuki tells him that one cannot be with their "world's most beloved person," but "I" dismisses this, eager to have love knock on the door of the material world. The ensuing college entrance exams separate Tatsuki, "I," and Kaori. Tatsuki, who performs better academically, unexpectedly fails the exam and starts working, while "I" and Kaori attend universities far apart. Unbeknownst to them, Kaori falls ill and is hospitalized a few months later. Initially, she has no appetite and vomits at the sight of food, but then she develops binge-eating disorder and cannot stop eating. Neither "I" nor Kaori's parents know the cause of her illness—only Tatsuki is aware. During a trip to a remote island together, "I" is shocked to see Tatsuki and Kaori hugging, and Kaori even invites Tatsuki into her room. Of course, we should not blame Kaori for being unfaithful based on this, but rather view it as a symbol—a symbol of Kaori's attempt and effort to move love away from materialization and toward the metaphysical world. Unsurprisingly, the next day, Tatsuki drowns while swimming in the sea. As a result, Kaori loses her only spiritual and intellectual confidante in this world, the person she relied on to escape materialized love.