#takinami suzuka

[choujinx]

KONO OTO TOMARE! (2012-?) by sakura amyuu

[dailykot]

Volume 30 cover ft. Takinami Suzuka

[sweetbrier2908]

cw: kot! ch126 spoilers

i really love the difference in every takezo and suzuka's interaction, they always be like:

- takezo 😊😊😊 and then we have suzuka 😒😒😒

or takezo 😠😠😠 with 🤣🤣🤣 suzuka

[lilium-dragomir]

[princeedwivedi]

I love how Takinami says that the drinks can be tea next time. There's going to be a next time!!!

He refused to accept any homemade chocolates from others but accepted hers.

He recognises her talent and has so much faith in her. I love them!!

They'd make a cute couple

[tessenpai]

Kono Oto Tomare! Chapter 138 Scans and Rough TL

Disclaimer: Please DO NOT use this translation to make your own TL of the chapter!! The KOT TL group works very hard to give you the most accurate translation, that does as much justice to the original script as possible. This is a ROUGH translation. That means is faulty and there must be mistakes in certain places. This is just for impatient people like myself to get a grasp on what is going on in the chapter! You can REFERENCE my TL if you want to discuss the chapter but never USE it as it was your own.

Scans: kono oto tomare 138 raw scans

Page 1

Takezou[thoughts]: Back then, I couldn't have even imagined...

Side text: We experienced and overcame so many things together...

Page 2 & 3

*No text*

Page 4

*No text*

Page 5

Takezou [thoughts]: That this day would come.

Chapter title: #138 Tokise High School Koto Club

Page 6

Audience 1: Hey, it's the school of the incident.

Audience 2: It's finally here.

Uzuki: ...

Tsukaji[thoughts]: They're completely in enemy turf here. I already knew that but...

Page 7

Tsukaji[thoughts]: Somehow, through their performance they'll-

Audience 3: Hey, I even saw a bit of their performance on TV, but it wasn't all that impressive.

Audience 4: Totally.

Tsukaji: ...

Komaki: Ugh, everyone's just saying whatever they want! I hope they shut them up with their performance--

Tsukaji[thoughts]: To be honest, if it were Satowa's introductory solo like in 'Tenkyuu', it would surely have silenced the audience instantly with just the first note, but...

Tsukaji[thoughts]: 'Harmony' starts with Kurata's solo.

Tsukaji [thoughts]: When I heard it before it lacked confidence

Tsukaji [thoughts]: To put it harshly, it didn't come even close to Tenkyuu's opening.

Page 8

Tsukaji [thoughts]: Ahhhh I shouldn't be thinking like this! I don't want to think about it but...

Tsukaji [thoughts]: Ichiei and Meiryou made no compromises when assigning their parts...!

Tsukaji [thoughts]: I understand they wanted to be considerate with Kurata, with him being a 3rd year student and the club president!

Tsukaji [thoughts]: But that kind of kindness...

Tsukaji [thoughts]: At Nationals, it could be your downfall.

Judge Tatsumi [thoughts]: With this atmosphere, they probably won't be able to perform properly. Placing at the top is already unlikely. I just hope it ends without any major issues...

Page 9

Announcer: Program Number 13

Announcer: Kanagawa Prefecture. Tokise High School.

Announcer: Composed by Takinami Suzuka: Harmony.

Page 10

Announcer: In April of last year, Tokise High School's koto club was in the verge of disbandment, with only one member left in it.

Annoucer: Since then, one unique member after other gathered.

Announcer: Today, there are 9 members and 2 teachers.

Announcer: Altogether, it has now become a club of 11 integrants.

Page 11

Announcer: Each one of them is an irreplaceable and important presence.

Announcer: The song we will play today, Harmony

Announcer: Was composed for us from scratch by our club advisor Takinami-sensei.

Page 12

Announcer: This sound is our everything.

Announcer: Please, let it reach them.

Page 13

Takezou [thoughts]: I was always scared of that very first note that was entrusted to me. Scared of a future where someone might not be there anymore.

Page 14 & 15

*No text*

Page 16 & 17

*No text*

Page 18 & 19

*All the flashbacks*

Page 20 & 21

*No text*

Page 22 & 23

*No text*

Page 24

Tsukaji [thoughts]: --It wasn't out of consideration. It wasn't a kindness.

Tsukaji[thoughts]: This is

Tsukaji [thoughts]: Sincere, straightforward and earnest to the very end.

Page 25

Tsukaji [thoughts]: That is the sound of Tokise.

Judge Tatsumi: Oh man… if you add too many sounds like this one then-

Page 26

*No text*

Page 27

Chika [memory]: I wanna join the koto club.

Page 28 & 29

*No text*

Page 30 & 31

*No text*

Page 32 & 33

*No text*

Page 34 & 35

*No text*

Page 36 & 37

*No text*

Page 38

Judge Tatsumi [thoughts]: Wait...

Judge Tatsumi[thoughts]: Wait a second.

Judge Tatsumi[thoughts]: This is--

Page 39

Tsukaji: The second solo...!

Page 40

*No text*

Page 41

*No text*

Page 42 & 43

*No text*

Page 44

Tsukaji[thoughts]: Don't cry yet!! It's still too soon!!

Tsukaji[thoughts]: We got the 1st years left!!

Tsukaji[thoughts]: Only the upperclassmen have played together up to this point, you don't want to add any unnecessary sounds to-

Page 45

*No text*

Page 46

*No text*

Page 47

*No text*

Page 48

Ousuke [thoughts]: He's tapping out the bass rythm...!?

Haru [thoughts]: So- so- so cooool----!!!!

Sentarou [thougthts]: His rythm sense is insane!!!

Page 49

Tougo [thoughts]: He's playing Yamada style, same as Kio.

Kio [thoughts]: But the strength of the sound is a bit overpowering-

Page 50 & 51

*No text*

Page 52 & 53

*No text*

Page 54 & 55

*No text*

Page 56

*No text*

Page 57

Judge Tatsumi: ----... What... is this?

Judge Kurokawa: How...

Judge Agata: Why...

Page 58

Judges [thoughts]: ...Is the level of every single member this high.!?

Page 59

*No text*

Page 60

Kifune-sensei: ...

Audience 2: Hey, I... have no idea about the koto but...

Audience 2: --Could it be that

Page 61

Audience: Tokise is... Amazing?

Side text: This is Tokise's sound!

---Kono Oto Tomare! will continue in the next issue!---

[mizunoakira]

Chapter 2: Getting married (for a house)

It is 5pm on a Friday night. Akira has finished her last lecture before the semester break, plus submitted the revised grant proposal to the department head. Her brain is currently in a half-fried state.

And she's in a truck with Takinami Suzuka, on the way to visit Suzuka's parents...to seek their approval for their upcoming marriage.

Things cannot get wilder.

"Takinami-sensei, are you sure I don't have to get changed into something better?" Akira looks at her current attire; thank goodness she'd been lecturing prior to this and as a result, had dressed in reasonably formal attire, though not very "daughter-in-law-like", because which prospective daughter-in-law visits her parents-in-law for the first time while dressed in a blazer, button-up-shirt and chiffon black pants? Is she their daughter-in-law, or grandchild's tuition teacher?!

"Please don’t worry about it," Suzuka responds as he steers the truck. "Actually, my parents will appreciate the smart get-up. After all, I come from a family of academics, and they've always wanted a daughter-in-law befitting of this lineage. This shows them that you clearly fit the bill. You can even pull out your lecture slides later if needed."

"Right," Akira smooths down her formal black pants. What he's saying makes good sense - the Takinami family is quite renowned for their work in Psychology, even if in different subfields. To have a lecturer join the family would make perfect sense, though it may also be lucky that she hasn't gotten tenure yet, because her being of a higher position may have been interpreted as a threat to the existing familial and academic hierarchy.

"I do wish my family isn't as political and stuck-up like this. It's a bit better ever since my father's generation, but it's nonetheless ingrained in the way he was brought up by my grandfather. I apologise on their behalf." Suzuka isn't looking at Akira because he's still driving his truck, but she can hear that he means it. She also knows that he means it, too - he's always been a little different, plus estranged from his family, despite sharing the same line of work as well as line of study. His success had been a product of his own efforts, achieved despite not having had to stand on the shoulders of his family ties with academia, perfect proof of the actual substance he possesses as a thinker in his subfield.

"No worries." Akira is half-lying - she'd be insane to not be worried. After all, to someone she'd met just less than two months ago, with whom she'd never been in a romantic relationship, with whom she’d even hesitate to confirm that the feelings of friendship she holds are mutual…she's getting "married"...

…For a house. Doujima Akira is getting married for a house. And she’d never thought she’d find herself in such a position.

"No worries," Akira repeats, thinking of what her brother might say if he ever finds out. She resolves never to let him - the false-marriage contract will end in two years time, and it'd be like any other normal marriage, where divorce and separation are almost just a normal milestone rather than a major setback.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

When they arrive at the Takinami household, it is nightfall; they are in the outskirts of Kawasaki City, still located in Kanagawa Prefecture but quite a fair distance from Tokise University.

"I'm home," Suzuka announces, taking off his shoes at the entrance, with Akira closely following suit. He's expecting his own mother to jump on him any moment now-

"SON!" His mother buries herself in his arms. "How I've missed you! How dare you not call, only visiting once in every two months. You didn't turn up for the last blind date either-"

"Mom, meet my fiancée, Doujima-sens-” He clears he throat. “-Akira,” He beckons to Akira, who launches into a 90-degree bow.

"Good evening, madam, my name is Doujima Akira. Pleased to make your acquaintance," Akira extends a polite hand while still in the 90-degree bow.

His mother takes fifteen good seconds to process the information, motionless as she does. When she finally manages to, she starts jumping up and down while shaking Akira's hand.

"Oh my god, son, you actually managed to get yourself a girlfriend," she gasps. "And such a pretty one she is, too! Your name is Akira, you were saying? What do you do for a living?"

"I am a newly-appointed lecturer of Food Science in Tokise University," Akira whips out her laptop, showing Suzuka's mother the lecture slides used from earlier today, as discussed earlier. Suzuka stifles a laugh because he didn't expect she'd actually go as far as to do that - he actually finds it pretty cute, how seriously she takes things.

"Oh my god," his mother gasps. "Food science. That's really cool!" She runs to the back of the house, screaming something along the lines of Old man, come out here because your son has somehow managed to score himself a girlfriend, oh my god!, and Suzuka feels a bit of a headache brewing.

"Not just girlfriend - fiancée," Suzuka mutters.

(If he had to be more honest, he'd have said, "Not girlfriend - just fiancée," instead. After all, there requires no girlfriend step to be involved in a contract marriage.)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Takinami's father is way less scary than he sounds, thinks Akira. The way he's been portrayed to be a no-nonsense academic hyperfixated on hierarchy and power...she could see no semblance of that in the friendly old man, who seems really nothing other than a cat-loving elderly man.

Nonetheless, looks can be deceiving, so she decides not to let her guard down. 

After dinner, she helps to wash the dishes (alongside a Mrs Takinami cooing, such a helpful daughter-in-law! You don't know how lucky you are, silly Suzuka). They sit in front of the TV, catching the news, when Mr Takinami suddenly pulls her aside.

"Let's have a word," is what he says as he sits Akira down at the balcony, offering her a cup of sencha. Accepting it with both hands, she realises how wise it has been to not let her guard down, because "Tell me honestly, why are you marrying my son?" is what escapes his mouth right afterwards.

She doesn't say anything - not yet. Her brain still needs a while longer, to search for the most situationally appropriate answer.

"Is it for tenure? Do you think that by marrying a tenured professor, you can get tenure faster?" He smiles as he says this, and Akira feels...she feels like she's sitting for a test.

And as someone who has spent their youth taking a bunch of tests, Akira knows just what she needs to do - breathe. Calm down. Examine the problem from the perspective of the person who set the question. Come up with an answer that is as vague as possible, but as precise as needed.

"I'm marrying Takinami-san because of love." Honesty aside, she’d thought was the most situationally appropriate answer. She didn't even have the time to process just how embarassing that sounded. "There is no other reason to get married, except for love. He is amongst the kindest people I know."

Perhaps except for the last statement, everything she has said in this string of utterances has been a fat lie. And she knows it.

So does he, Takinami Suzuka, the man at the other end of the contract marriage.

And the thing is, they’re both okay with it. More-than-okay with it, to be precise. Because it’s the way it’s supposed to be - big, fat, white lie, created to benefit both parties, according to Clause 5 of the contract.

Things cannot get wilder.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Suzuka overhears what Akira says when his father accuses her of marrying him for the sake of tenure.

"I'm marrying Takinami-san because of love. There is no other reason to get married, except for love. He is the amongst the kindest people I know."

Nice save, Suzuka cheers inwardly. This lady is definitely even smarter than she looks. He knows that answer's sure to score with his dad.

And sure it does, because his dad says nothing. Takes a sip of tea. Turns to leave, but before he enters the living room, he says something to Akira without facing her straight-on -

"Don't let him get in the way of your success, then."

Suzuka glances at his mother in the living room - if not for his grandparents' fulfilled wish to domesticate her, she may well have been a tenured professor herself. Before their marriage, she and Old Takinami, her then-fiancé were both lecturers in the same university. Fearing that their daughter-in-law might eventually supersede their son in terms of power, Old Takinami's parents had forced her to quit her lecturer job in the university. Mrs Suzuka may have swallowed it and lived it down, but her husband never has. Not one day has he woken up without being shrouded by a sense of guilt and apology at having imprisoned his wife, would-be superstar in the Child Psychology academic universe, in the old misogynistic stronghold of traditional Japanese society. It is why Suzuka fully understands why his father had said what he did, as well as why he'd asked the question he'd asked to Akira - to let her know that this marriage may well break her academic career, instead of make it.

Well...pretty sure that won't happen, as long as it's this Old Mr Takinami approving the marriage this time round. Plus, the contract's supposedly ending in two years - most likely not enough time to "break" an academic career. Or so he hopes.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

"That was quite well-played, sensei,” Suzuka says to Akira on the way home. "You have a way with words."

Akira pauses for a bit, realising that Takinami-sensei had heard what she said. Her face starts to heat up slightly at the recollection of what embarrassing things had escaped her mouth, but she quickly soothes the blush down by reminding herself of her current role - a pretend wife.

And pretend, was exactly what she was doing, as expertly as she could have in that moment that could have been a crisis averted.

"Thank you. I actually feel really bad for lying. After all, they're already getting old."

Akira glances at the man in the driver’s seat, and she thinks she catches a faint smile, but she can’t be sure in the scant light of the surrounding traffic.

"It's okay, you’re most definitely not at any fault. It was my idea to begin with.” He looks at her, and she can see that he’s definitely smiling, but it’s a smile she can’t exactly read. “Though you did agree after all, so we're in this together."

Akira smiles. She would never have thought she'd feel so assured about the prospect of telling lies together with a man she'd just met almost two months ago - the kindest man she knows, yes, but nonetheless a man she'd just met almost two months ago. Who'd simply been kind enough to provide her with free coffee, and now, a free house.

Indeed, she would never have thought she'd feel so assured about the prospect of getting married…

…For a house.

[kotos-and-smiles]

Ch.108 Analysis and Rambling

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR CH.108 OF KOT!

Read ch.108 HERE if you haven’t already

Oh my god, I love this chapter!!! Like 2 pages into it and I already couldn’t handle it, which isn’t unusual but this manga is just too incredible. Chika getting all the love and support he deserves from not only his friends but also the adults in his life, the return of the principal and vice-principal, Tetsuki once again being mvp (seriously what would we have done without him?), righteously angry Takezou, smiling Momoya, the parallels, the callbacks, this chapter had so much! One thing it did not have was much of a Chika and Satowa interaction, but honestly I’m so happy getting this resolution for the plot-based aspects of the story and first dealing with the possible repercussions for the club, which feels realistic because everyone would be worried about that first and foremost (and hey, I was worried about it, too) before we get into specifically resolving stuff with Chika and Satowa. I also think Chika needs to process some other feelings before we can quite get into some of the confession stuff, so I loved seeing that in this chapter (my boy is so loved and he’s finally realizing it. Like, “Oh, everyone in my life was super, super worried about me and didn’t want me to do this alone? Maybe I should let them support me instead of just feeling guilty.”) Believe me, I’m dying to see them talk to each other one on one, but I’m also happy they resolved some of the other events and put emphasis on the culmination of other emotions first before getting to the aftermath of specifically the confession.

This parallel, this right here killed me. Takinami isn’t exactly a father figure (Chika had his grandpa for that) but he’s still an adult who cares and was the one called down to the police station. Chika being so worried that Takinami would just be mad at him and scold him and have no sympathy, like his father, and then, yes, getting smacked on the back of the head, because Takinami was a bit mad, but then getting a head pat and having someone express that they’re glad he’s okay. Like, with Chika’s father it was only ever about the bad thing Chika had done, never about the reasons or how scared he was, his father was just angry that he had to deal with him. Any anger with Takinami comes from the fact that Chika tried to go off and deal with things on his own. The most important thing to Takinami though, because of course it is, is that Chika and everyone else are okay, and so that’s basically the first thing he says. Just the fact that Chika, who has just been through A LOT, was so scared that Takinami would be mad at him only to be shown caring is such a big deal and I love it so much.

All of the facial expressions in this chapter, whether they were funny or serious, were just so on point, like they always are but it was great. Anyway, then everyone except Momoya goes back to the school where they all go to the principal’s office. Isaki is there and just seeing how much she cares about Chika and was so worried about him, like of course she was but also I just really love their relationship. They obviously weren’t very close when Chika first started staying with her, but instead of it just being a relationship in which she let him live with her and staying distant, she genuinely supports and cares about him so much. She doesn’t act like it’s a burden, she just wants him to be okay and happy. Also, her saying that she’s lost years of her life because of this was great and a bit relatable. With yet another person, Chika is told to rely on them before anything ever gets this bad again. Akira is also there and I love seeing how worried she was, too. Basically, everyone was worried and showed how much they cared and I just love stuff like this. I also loved the amount of humor in this chapter. Like, things are still really emotional and we’re still dealing with serious things, but now that no one is in immediate danger anymore there was also more humor and I really appreciate that. I need all my babies smiling more.

Going into the principal’s office, Chika was very worried because he thinks that, like always, no one will give him a break and that he or, even worse, everyone in the club will be blamed for what happened. So he tries to explain before anyone else can say anything and the principal just stops him to say that it must’ve been hard. An adult, a symbol of authority, isn’t immediately placing blame on Chika. In fact, he’s coming from a place of understanding and sympathy, which is definitely not something Chika was expecting. He doesn’t even need to defend himself first. The principal has always seemed like a nice guy, but this just made me love him. Chika has been through so much, obviously the last thing he’d need was more people to attack him in some way or make him feel like he was in danger or putting the club in danger. After all the realizations and growth Chika has had that day, it would be horrible to see him treated the same way he was always treated.  But instead, he gets an acknowledgment that it must’ve been hard and realizes that he can finally let his guard down and just be with the club without worrying about it so much.

Then we see just how much of a plan Tetsuki really had. Thank god Chika and the club had Tetsuki there to help them, or else they probably really woulda been screwed. Tetsuki realized that if anything happened, they’d need the help of adults, and so he went to them without telling the club because he didn’t want them to have to worry about it with Nationals going on. He said he’d go to Takezou first if anything happened, which is exactly what he did. Even the vice-principal believed Tetsuki, and even looked worried about it, as Tetsuki asked for help in protecting Chika. The amount of times in this arc that Chika has looked surprised and even shocked by how much people love and care about him kind of breaks my heart. At least I think he’s finally realizing that people will stand by his side no matter what and that he doesn’t have to apologize or feel guilty for pulling them into anything because they want to support him. I hope Chika sees himself, or will begin to see himself, as worthy of their acts of love. I love how everyone was so touched by hearing what Tetsuki did.

The principal not only listened to Tetsuki, but actually acted on what he said and tried his best to protect the club even before anything happened, the vice-principal and Takinami helping as well. I know Takinami has been doing a lot for the club ever since the end of the Kuon arc, but I still love seeing how much he cares for the club and how much he’s willing to do to help these kids. I’m so relieved that the school is going to help the club actually be able to go to Nationals. I knew they wouldn’t be entirely banned from Nationals, because this is a story about music and we’ve been building up to this basically since the beginning, but it’s still nice to have the story confront the topic as well. Takinami told Chika to leave it to the adults back in ch.104 (which is set on the same day as this chapter) but I didn’t realize how much the adults were well and truly handling it before Chika just ran off on his own, or at least tried to. This was in that same conversation in ch.104

Chika goes from truly thinking everyone will still blame him, thinking that he’d ruin everyone’s chance at nationals, thinking that the koto club, as a thing that his grandfather left behind, needed to be preserved more than his place in it. Hearing what the principal had to say in ch.108 was meaningful for everyone in the club, as they all thought they’d be alone in defending Chika, but especially for Chika to hear from these adults that “hey, it’s alright, we understand, it must’ve been scary for you and you’ve been through a lot, but you’ve worked really hard to get where you are so we’re going to support you because you deserve to go to nationals with pride” is a huge deal. I don’t think Chika has ever heard that coming from an adult, not until very recently. Takinami, Satowa, and everyone have been telling him that he doesn’t have to do everything on his own, everyone has been trying to support him, but what the principal says to him is validation that things aren’t like they were before. People have started to see Chika differently, he doesn’t need to carry the blame and guilt for it, he doesn’t need to end up alone to handle everything. There are people who will share his burdens and help him with them. And that’s when Chika breaks down. He truly thought he’d have to face everything alone and was so afraid of putting the club in harm’s way that he thought he’d have to leave it, only to now see that everyone is there to support him. He can finally feel relieved.

I love how everyone is standing there and Tetsuki’s just smiling proudly like “you guys deserve it” because he’s not in the club but obviously he’s very invested and wants the best for them. Everyone’s reactions to Chika breaking down are also great. Like, I love that most of them are crying with him. I especially love Satowa’s expression, because she’s started to cry but she also has such a big smile on her face.

Then of course we have Tetsuki just smiling to the side when Chika grabs his shirt and thanks him. What an amazing friendship.

Meanwhile, Isaki and Akira are also crying their eyes out, and even the vice-principal gets a little emotional.

I like that, after everything that’s happened, Takezou still brings up the fact that Chika was going to try to withdraw from the club. Like, so much has happened, but Chika’s still not getting off the hook for that one. Once again, I love everyone’s reactions. Everyone looks pretty shocked, and Satowa just looks pissed. Takezou then literally slaps some sense into Chika. Which was great, but also can people please stop hitting Chika? But, yes, thank you Takezou for telling Chika straight up to never try sacrificing himself ever again. He really needed to hear that. Chika changes from apologizing to getting everyone involved to apologizing for trying to sacrifice himself. I love so much that this was a serious moment, Takezou is fuming, and then Tetsuki just bursts out laughing. Again, what an amazing friendship. It’s so cute how Sane was like “nah one hit isn’t enough” and they start playfully pulling on him and stuff. But my favorite part of that was that Yoshinaga joined in playfully hitting Chika. I don’t feel he always would’ve done that, but everyone’s close enough now that he feels comfortable doing it. Meanwhile, Satowa’s just off to the side like “yeah, Kudo doesn’t put enough faith in us.”

Takezou bringing up something Chika said all the way back from ch.1 and just the whole moment between them of concluding that the most important thing isn’t the club or the koto but the people in it is just so amazing. The moment of realization between the two of just how much these people mean to them, like truly the thing that matters most is the friends we’ve made along the way. They’re all so cute and precious! I loved Chika’s tearful smile. Like, gosh, this has been such a huge, emotional day for Chika, at least he’s smiling now.

The last page seeing the cute group picture they sent Momoya and Momoya just smiling at it was so cute. While I do want to see some resolution with Momoya and Uzuki, I also hope the next chapter isn’t entirely about that. It was so, so nice to not see Uzuki or Abiko’s face this entire chapter. So while I know we’re probably not quite done with Uzuki yet, I still kinda hope there isn’t a whole chapter dedicated only to Uzuki and Momoya because I want to see more stuff with the club (and Chika and Satowa). This was such a great chapter, though! All of the flashbacks to ch.1 really got me and show just how well built this entire story and all the character arcs are. There’s been so much progression and it is so significant to the characters as well as the reader.

Finally, I want to discuss the meaning of the chapter name [I]. I could be completely wrong in my interpretation, but if this is supposed to refer to the song “I” then it could have a lot of tie ins with the chapter, especially if we look back to the discussion of the song in ch.104. This chapter once again highlighted the need for everyone to be there as part of the club, which is something that “I” also emphasizes. Many of the things in this chapter also acted as a catalyst for better understanding of what Chika means to everyone else and his realization of who he is to them. The song “I” is supposed to help everyone realize who they are to each other. Everyone had their own place in this chapter as they will in “I”, they had their own reactions, but were also one whole who all supported each other. [I] as a chapter I think is supposed to bring awareness to mainly Chika as to who he is as an individual within this group and just who he is as a person now, surrounded by light and people who care about him. We’re reminded with Takezou that the thing that’s to be treasured about the club is the people themselves, so [I] could also refer to the collective koto club, as in this is all of who they are, one group, one family, who all cares about each other. I don’t know if that last one made sense, but kind of the sense that they’re all different people but have this one collective identity as a group as well, and there’s a oneness to it.

I feel like this was a bit more of a summary than usual, but a lot happened and it was kind of hard to connect when talking about it. I also feel like this time this post was just a list of things I loved, but that’s why I call it a ramble because not all of it’s an analysis. I had zero self-control when it came to pictures (as if I ever have self control). Finally, I really don’t know if the part about the chapter title makes any sense at all, but I felt I couldn’t just not talk about it. If this chapter is kinda referring to the song “I” though, I wonder what they’ll call the chapter at Nationals later when they’re playing this song, because usually we get a chapter that shares the title with the song they’re playing. Maybe that one will be called peace? I don’t know, I could be wrong about literally everything when it comes to the title of the chapter, but once again that’s why it’s just me rambling about it.

p.s. Chika deserves all the hugs and head pats, so I’m glad he’s getting some.

[tokisehighkotoclub]

From Amyuu-Sensei’s Twitter

[suzuka-akira]

we finally meet

Happy Birthday, Takinami Suzuka! (28.9.22) (feel free to read this on ao3 if you prefer!)

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Which is strange, because he’s not the one brewing it. And as far as he knows, he’s the only one who uses this office pantry.

It’s definitely not the type of coffee he’s used to smelling - this one seems to be a tad more acidic.

Maybe they have a new colleague?

(When he gets to the pantry, there’s no new colleague in sight; only an empty pot that he doesn’t recognise, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee.)

--

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He does, every day, because it is liquid fuel for his existence. Deprive him of it, and he will cease to function, in senses both literal and metaphorical.

(He fills the machine with the beans. Cranks it up. Waits.)

It isn’t like it’s his fault. Insomnia is a real problem for some. Maybe it is a problem too, for their new colleague?

He leaves some coffee in the pot, just in case the new colleague has a problem with insomnia, too, and would like some, too.

(He walks back to his office room, coffee cup in hand, thinking perhaps there hadn’t been a new colleague, after all.)

----

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

Apparently, they probably do have a new colleague, because this time, again, Suzuka isn’t the one brewing it.

When he gets to the pantry, he realises there are two pots of coffee. One of them, the half-filled one he’d left there yesterday, is as cold as the winter air. The other half-filled one is still steaming, imparting to the pantry air a relatively unfamiliar scent.

There’s a handwritten note on the hot pot of coffee; the one that isn’t his.

Your coffee has turned cold. If you don’t mind, you could have some of this.

(Suzuka makes a mental note to leave a physical note in future.)

------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d even set an alarm for this - he can’t put a finger to the feelings he's experiencing, but something in the deep of his gut is urging him to be the one who brews it this time. And anyway, he figures he still prefers the familiar taste that is his own coffee; the one he’s been drinking everyday for years. So, he figures, he’d better make it to the pantry early.

He does, luckily, and there are two empty pots this time. He brews his coffee, fills his cup and leaves his pot half empty.

(This time, he doesn’t forget to write his intended recipient a note.)

--------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He still has no idea who’s brewing it. A new colleague? An acquaintance who has recently realised the pantry exists?

In either case, it’s not his coffee, that much he knows.

(As he sips his new coffee, he realises it’s an acquired taste.)

----------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d woken up even earlier, this time, just to make sure he gets first dibs to the coffee-brewing. Not that it’s some kind of competition...but still. Who knows - perhaps there may really be some sort of competitive spirit in him, egging him on to feed his favourite brand of coffee to his long-distance mystery coffee partner.

He’s been using the exact same type of beans for years. A real creature of habit, he is. Maybe if he kicks the habit of coffee-drinking, he’ll kick his insomnia away, too...not happening. Coffee happens to be one of the most important comforts in his existence, and he figures that the lack of it will ironically cause him to lose sleep, out of pining. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg problem.)

(He hangs around the pantry 5 minutes longer than usual, wondering if said long-distance coffee partner will appear. They don’t, so he disappears, too, leaving nothing but a lukewarm half-pot of coffee in his trail.)

------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s not the one he’s most used to, though it’s the one he’s getting used to.

He’d forgotten to set his alarm clock yesterday - today morning at 4am to be precise, but yesterday night in terms of normalised time.

What is normal? Suzuka doesn’t know. Maybe he will, someday.

What he does know, however, is that he doesn’t care whether sleeping in his office room is normal. And what he does care about, is that doing this helps save time on commuting to work, which then helps reserve time for work, which then gives him more time for sleep. (Talk about a real chicken-and-egg solution.)

Being a tenured professor has its problems, such as stacks of work, including administrative duties, teaching duties, research duties, or in his case, assisting with police investigations. But it also does have its perks, and having a solo office room to himself is his favourite of them all.

He grabs a cup, fills it, returns to his office room, and sits in the sofabed he’d brought from home, sipping the gift of coffee he has just received.

(As he does, he realises his favourite brand of coffee now has a competitor.)

--------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He’d set his alarm way very early this time, so “wakes up”, here, is almost as literal as it is metaphorical. He really wanted to get first dibs on the coffee-making, because he reckons must convert his coffee partner to his favourite brand of coffee, instead of it being the other way round.

That’s a lie, though, and he knows it. He’d really just wanted to attempt to wait around for his coffee partner, out of curiosity.

Unfortunately, his handphone dings multiple times, telling him that the emails have started to come rolling in.

(He abandons the half-pot of coffee as he walks back to his office to answer the steadily increasing workpile naggingly summoning him, telling the half-pot of coffee to accost his coffee comrade for him, telling himself that the day they meet will come.)

----------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

He can recognise that it isn’t his coffee, so he rushes to the pantry, hoping to catch his newfound coffee companion in action.

Unfortunately, he arrives a tad too late, because all there is in the pantry is a half-pot of coffee, lying in wait for him. (At least, he infers is in wait for him - they’ve been keeping this exchange up for a while and they no longer leave sticky notes for each other telling the other party that they are free to drink it, treating it as assumed information instead. Better for the trees, that way.)

(He sips his coffee on the sofabed in his office, and realises that he’s acquired the taste already.)

 ------------------

Suzuka wakes up to the smell of coffee.

It’s his own beans this time, because he has won - well, he has won the race to the pantry, but his beans have lost, because he has found a new favourite brand in the form of the other coffee he alternates between, these days. Or maybe it’s a tie.

Doesn’t matter anyway, because what matters is that he gets to meet his fellow coffee maker. If the insomnia doesn’t kill him, this curiosity will.

So he waits, and the insomnia almost kills him, because the smell of coffee fails to wake him up fully this time, and he almost dozes off while standing up, propped against the kitchen counter in the pantry.

Before he does, he is saved by a tap on the shoulder. He jolts awake, slightly confused, almost forgetting why he’s there.

“Excuse me, sorry, but I am trying to get my pot of coffee into my mug, and you are sort of in the way.”

Suzuka looks up, and almost forgets to breathe for a moment. What he remembers, though, is why he’s there in the first place.

Pale skin. Chin-length hair. Large, round eyes. Tiny nose, tiny mouth.

These are what Suzuka sees when he looks up, but these are all nondescript characteristics, really, because what he sees cannot be described with any word, phrase, or sentence; the only possible description is that it's a taste he probably doesn't even need any time to acquire.

He finally remembers to breathe, fully awake by now.

"Coffee?" is the only thing he says, a question in ways more than one.

"Yes," is the only thing she says, an answer, also in ways more than one.

[graphics-net]

KONO OTO TOMARE! CHIBI 200 X 200 ICONS

[choujinx]

KONO OTO TOMARE! (2012-?) by sakura amyuu

[dailykot]

Happy Birthday, Suzuka! (28.9.22)

[sweetbrier2908]

cw: kot! spoilers

how many time has he laughed like this? he's really proud of his children omg 😭😭😭

[lilium-dragomir]

[apparently-artless]

Kono Oto Tomare! Ch 108 - Kudou and Takinami