Even If This Love Disappears From the World Tonight

Overview

Even If This Love Disappears from the World Tonight is a standalone Japanese light novel and contemporary young-adult romance by Misaki Ichijo. KADOKAWA published the Japanese original on February 22, 2020. The novel won the Media Works Bunko Prize at the 26th Dengeki Novel Prize and was Ichijo’s debut. Rather than building a long series, it focuses on one high-school relationship and asks how love can be sustained when one person cannot carry yesterday’s memories into the next day.

Story and themes

Tooru Kamiya is pushed into confessing his love to Maori Hino after he stands up for a classmate being bullied. He expects the confession to be an uncomfortable gesture between two students who barely know one another. Maori agrees to date him, but lays down three rules: he must not speak to her until after school, their communications must remain concise, and he must not actually fall in love with her. Tooru accepts, but his feelings deepen and he cannot keep the final condition. When he tells Maori how he feels, she explains that she has anterograde amnesia: after sleeping, she cannot remember what happened the previous day. She uses a diary to record her life and make sense of each new day. The couple must therefore work out how to relate to one another when shared experience cannot simply accumulate in memory.

Memory is the story’s central device, but the novel uses it to explore more than the fear of forgetting. It asks whether affection depends on a continuous store of shared recollections, or whether care can be renewed through choices and actions in the present. Maori’s diary is a practical aid, while also drawing attention to the relationship between memory, written records, and a person’s sense of identity. The initial rules give the romance its particular tension: Tooru’s growing love conflicts with an agreement he made, and honesty becomes inseparable from responsibility for the other person. The book’s emotional appeal rests on the meeting of tenderness and constraint. It treats love not simply as a powerful feeling, but as attention, communication, and respect for another person’s circumstances.

Background and reception

The novel’s award-winning debut status is an important part of its publication history. Available accounts do not establish a specific personal incident that inspired Ichijo to write it, so the story’s medical condition should not be taken as autobiographical. Its compact, standalone form lets the premise remain at the center of the narrative, while its school setting gives the romance the recognizable rhythms of adolescence. The book was adapted into a Japanese feature film released in 2022 and has also received a Korean film adaptation. Those adaptations extended the story beyond its original novel form and helped keep its distinctive memory-and-romance premise in circulation. Its lasting identity is that of an accessible but reflective love story: one that turns the ordinary question of how two people remember one another into a question about what it means to keep choosing one another in the present.

About the Author

Misaki Ichijō

Background

Misaki Ichijo is a Japanese novelist born in Aichi Prefecture. The available biographical information establishes the prefecture of origin and Ichijo’s professional identity, but does not reliably specify a birth year, town, family background, or educational history. No school, university, or formative personal event can therefore be named with confidence. A responsible account should distinguish those gaps from the documented facts rather than turn details from the fiction into claims about the author’s life.

Debut and works

Ichijo received the Media Works Bunko Prize at the 26th Dengeki Novel Prize for Even If This Love Disappears from the World Tonight. KADOKAWA published the original Japanese edition on February 22, 2020, and the book is identified as Ichijo’s debut. This award-winning first novel became the work most closely associated with the author. It combines a high-school romance with a heroine’s inability to retain memories of the previous day, using that premise to consider affection, communication, and the effort required to maintain a relationship. Its Japanese film adaptation was released in 2022, and the story has also received a Korean film adaptation. These adaptations demonstrate the continued circulation of the novel, though they are screen works based on Ichijo’s writing rather than additional novels authored by Ichijo.

Bibliographic listings also refer to a further romance whose title is rendered in translation as In a World of Lies, I Had an Unforgettable Love. The material available here does not establish a dependable original-title form or first-publication date for that book. It should consequently be treated as a reported title rather than assigned an unsupported date. Among the major works for which a precise publication date can be stated, the 2020 debut novel remains the clearest documented entry. That qualification describes the limits of the available record, not necessarily the full extent of Ichijo’s writing.

Reputation and known limits

Ichijo’s reputation is chiefly tied to the prize-winning debut and its adaptations. The novel’s memorable premise gives the author a recognizable place in contemporary Japanese romantic fiction: it makes the instability of memory part of the everyday mechanics of a young couple’s relationship, rather than merely a distant plot device. Translations and film versions have carried that premise to audiences beyond the original Japanese readership. The record consulted for this biography supplies no confirmed date of death and no reliable evidence establishing that Ichijo is deceased; the author’s life status should therefore be described as unconfirmed in these materials. In the same way, claims about education, a detailed career chronology, or private life would exceed the evidence. What can be stated securely is that Ichijo was born in Aichi Prefecture, received a major prize for a debut published in 2020, and is known internationally through the continuing life of that novel.

StoryFlow

A Fake Confession Becomes Love

Tooru Kamiya’s coerced confession turns into a rule-bound relationship, then into a love he chooses to keep private.

The Daily Reset

Maori Hino confronts the practical and emotional consequences of losing each day's memories and develops ways to keep living.

Tooru’s Moral Awakening

Tooru moves from a deliberately predictable life toward active care, difficult honesty, and a more self-directed future.

Knowledge Graph

Tooru Kamiya Maori Hino Izumi Wataya Shimokawa Keiko Nishikawa Tooru's father Sanae Kamiya

Knowledge Graph

Storylines

opening, before the main story

The Three Dating Conditions

A beautiful girl proposed that only boys who follow three rules could date her: not talk before school ends, keep brief contact, and he cannot fall in love with her. He did not understand the reason, but accepted the agreement, thus starting a relationship — one that would eventually transcend those carefully set boundaries

shortly after the new school year begins

The Bullying Begins

At [High school](entity:location-recall-location-high-school-913ded7c0305), [Tooru Kamiya](entity:character-recall-character-tooru-kamiya-55f987e19434) watches classmates harass [Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0), the boy seated in front of him. Kamiya usually keeps to himself, but he cannot tolerate seeing a decent person suffer and challenges the ringleader, making himself the bullies’ next target.

after Shimokawa begins missing school

The Bullies’ Bargain

The harassment grows more discreet and includes extorting money from [Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0). When Kamiya confronts the bullies again, their ringleader offers to stop if Kamiya performs a humiliating dare: confessing to [Maori Hino](entity:character-recall-character-maori-hino-f80c7c18ee46), a girl he barely knows.

late May, after school

A Coerced Confession

Following the dare, Kamiya stops Hino in the hallway and takes her behind the school, intending to explain later that the confession was forced. Instead of rejecting him, Hino agrees to date him under her three conditions. Kamiya surprises himself by accepting, and Hino smiles before asking his name again.

the day after the confession

The Secret Relationship

Hino tells Kamiya they are now boyfriend and girlfriend, asks him to keep their relationship private, and arranges to meet after school. The bullies are disappointed that Kamiya has not been rejected, while he wonders whether he should immediately confess that his approach began as a dare.

the morning after the confession

Kamiya’s Household Routine

At the [Kamiya family apartment](entity:location-recall-location-kamiya-family-apartm-5e0873fe8f2e), Kamiya does the laundry, prepares breakfast and lunches, and looks after his father. He maintains the routines his older sister taught him after their mother died, especially her distinction between merely looking clean and living with good sanitation.

the morning after the confession

Wataya Tests the Story

[Izumi Wataya](entity:character-recall-character-izumi-wataya-7fc1c1916ccf) comes to Kamiya’s classroom and asks whether he and Hino are truly dating. She suspects his supposed love-at-first-sight confession is insincere and explains that she is protective of Hino. Kamiya dodges the truth, exchanges contact information with her, and returns to class.

the same school day, before dismissal

Shimokawa’s Concern

[Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0) worries that the bullies forced Kamiya into approaching Hino because of him. Kamiya tells him the basic story but leaves out Hino’s dating conditions. Shimokawa is preparing to move to China, and Kamiya reassures him that they should make the most of their remaining time together.

late May, after classes

The First Meeting After School

Hino finds Kamiya waiting alone in his classroom and cheerfully calls him her boyfriend. She admits she wants to ask questions about dating, but Kamiya begins explaining that his confession was a dare meant to protect a bullied classmate. Rather than taking offense, Hino praises his motive and agrees that their unusual arrangement can continue.

that evening

A Father Hears the News

Kamiya tells his father that he has a girlfriend, honoring their family practice of sharing important news. His father is startled and emotional, then speaks to Kamiya’s deceased mother at the family altar. The exchange also exposes the father’s guilt about Sanae, who left home and whom he believes may have been ashamed of him.

the day after the couple’s agreement

Hino’s Interview

Hino questions Kamiya about his birthday, family, tastes, and habits, taking notes on her phone. Their exchange reveals his devotion to household work, his admiration for [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117), and his unusual emphasis on sanitation. They take a photograph together and discover they share a train line.

the first days of their relationship

Wataya Joins the Pair

Wataya joins Hino and Kamiya after school, teasing them as they trade jokes and talk about books. Hino photographs the pair, while Wataya suggests a café and offers to pay. Hino instead proposes visiting Kamiya’s home, turning their new relationship into an encounter with his private family life.

the first week of dating

The Downfallen Aristocrat

At the [Kamiya family apartment](entity:location-recall-location-kamiya-family-apartm-5e0873fe8f2e), Hino and Wataya admire the tidy rooms, books, and carefully prepared Lady Grey tea. Hino explains Kamiya’s sanitation philosophy, and the friends watch him iron laundry, jokingly dubbing him a downfallen aristocrat. Their visit briefly brightens a home that has been unchanged since Sanae left.

the evening after Hino and Wataya visit

The Drunken Mistake

Kamiya’s father comes home late and drunk after hearing that his son has a girlfriend. While Kamiya helps him prepare for bed, his father mistakes him for Sanae. The mistake confirms how strongly the father remains attached to the daughter who left and how unresolved the family’s grief still is.

the next day after school

A Visit to Wataya’s Home

Hino brings Kamiya to Wataya’s apartment, where Wataya lives with her mother, a book-jacket designer. The home is more spacious and carefully decorated than Kamiya’s, and the visit gives him a glimpse of Wataya’s family circumstances. Hino again encourages him to smile, hinting that her constant cheerfulness may conceal something difficult.

during the visit to Wataya’s home

A Hint Behind Hino’s Smile

When Hino says that people sometimes cannot smile, she quickly claims the thought came from a manga. Kamiya doubts the explanation but does not press her, instead telling her that he hopes she will confide in him if something is wrong. Their conversation marks his first conscious concern for the pain beneath her buoyant manner.

the first two weeks of dating

Love Beneath the Rules

Kamiya finds himself thinking increasingly about Hino’s smile and wondering what she hides behind it. Their after-school conversations remain light, but he wants to understand and help her. When he suggests a weekend date, Hino initially looks troubled at the mention of June, then agrees to meet him at a park.

Saturday, early June

The First Park Date

Kamiya prepares sandwiches, salad, fruit, and tea before walking to the [Park where Tooru and Maori have their first date](entity:location-recall-location-park-where-tooru-and-1ebfd2f11b65). Hino arrives late, and the pair share a picnic beneath a tree, talking comfortably even in silence. Their quiet happiness feels like something they have gradually built together, though Hino cannot explain why it feels so natural.

Saturday, early June, during the park date

The Confession and Revelation

As the wind lifts Hino’s hair, Kamiya asks if he may fall in love with her. Hino answers no and reveals that she has anterograde amnesia: when she sleeps, the day’s memories disappear. The truth reframes her rules, her photographs, and her notes as tools for living with a life that resets each morning.

the afternoon of the first park date

The Daily Reset Explained

Hino explains that she can remember events while awake, but her brain erases each day’s new memories during sleep. Her accident damaged the process of forming lasting memories, so every morning she returns to the point before the accident. She has kept the condition largely secret because of the risks of exploitation and unwanted attention.

the afternoon of the first park date

Kamiya’s Quiet Promise

Hino feels guilty for using Kamiya’s confession to experiment with something new despite her condition. He asks her not to write down that she revealed her amnesia or that he confessed his real feelings. He will act as though he does not know, allowing her to keep the relationship on her own terms and preventing his love from becoming a burden.

the school day after the first park date

Shimokawa’s Report

The bully tells Kamiya that [Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0) recorded the extortion and reported it to the homeroom teacher and counselor. Shimokawa acted partly because he feared the bullies would target Kamiya or other students after he moved. The revelation shows that Shimokawa has become brave enough to protect his friend, even at personal cost.

the same afternoon

The Bully’s Isolation

Kamiya learns that the ringleader has been warned by school staff and is facing repayment demands from [Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0)’s parents. His own friends have abandoned him, and he has begun looking at job listings. Kamiya recognizes that the bully has made destructive choices, but also sees a troubled student rather than a simple villain.

the day before Shimokawa moves to China

Shimokawa Returns the Money

At the station, [Shimokawa](entity:character-recall-character-shimokawa-4ea5cde666c0) tells Kamiya that the bully has repaid the extorted money, scraping it together from a part-time job and borrowing from his brother. Shimokawa regrets that reporting him may have left him isolated, revealing the compassion beneath his own insecurity. The friends exchange a heartfelt farewell before Shimokawa leaves for his new life overseas.

the Monday after Shimokawa’s departure

Wataya Questions Kamiya

Wataya confronts Kamiya because Hino seemed unusually talkative and distressed during their Saturday call. Kamiya says the date ended early but hides the confession and the amnesia revelation. He promises to check on Hino, beginning to carry the knowledge of her condition alone while Wataya remains a trusted protector.

the Monday after Shimokawa’s departure

A New Kind of Date

Kamiya greets Hino with the affectionate word “honey” and thanks her for their park date. He resolves to conceal his feelings and behave normally, then encourages her to choose their next activity. Hino proposes riding a bicycle together, and he agrees despite having previously objected that it was illegal.

the following afternoon

The Repaired Bicycle

Kamiya and Hino find an abandoned bicycle with a flat tire in the school parking area. He patches its tube with a scrap of plastic folder and double-sided tape, impressing Hino with his practical skill. The repair becomes the prelude to a reckless outing that neither would have imagined at the start of their relationship.

the following afternoon, after school

Their First Bicycle Ride

Kamiya pedals Hino along a country road while she rides on the rear rack and holds his waist. Though the bicycle may have been abandoned and riding two-up violates traffic rules, the pair laugh and shout together. Kamiya realizes that he has begun abandoning his cautious habits to give Hino experiences that can brighten her next day.

the next two afternoons

Wataya Joins the Rides

Hino wants to repeat the bicycle ride, and Kamiya gladly does it again because each day is new to her. Wataya joins them on a later outing, joking that she is the police and negotiating a turn on the rack. Their shared playfulness makes the group feel like an unlikely but increasingly close trio.

a Saturday in June, before the aquarium outing

The Bookstore Encounter

While heading to meet Hino and Wataya, Kamiya sees a crowded signing event at the [Bookstore in the downtown terminal-station mall](entity:location-recall-location-bookstore-in-the-dow-ba6e0b828a88). The author is [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117), the pen name of his estranged sister Sanae. She recognizes him from the table and arranges for him to wait until the signing ends so they can speak privately.

the same Saturday, at the planned meeting time

Kamiya Leaves the Aquarium Date

Kamiya tells Wataya that [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117) is his sister and explains that they have not seen each other in a year and a half. Wataya tells him to go meet her and agrees to explain his absence to Hino. He leaves the picnic basket with the girls, feeling guilty but unwilling to miss the chance to speak with Sanae.

the same Saturday, after the signing

A Brother and Sister Reunite

At a café, Sanae and Kamiya resume speaking with the familiar ease of family despite their long separation. She apologizes for leaving, while Kamiya tells her he never felt abandoned and is happy she pursued writing. Their conversation reveals how he encouraged her to follow her dream and learned to care for their household so she could write.

during the café reunion

Sanae’s Sacrifice Reconsidered

Sanae recalls carrying the household after their mother died, working while secretly writing, and believing that her ambitions burdened the family. Kamiya remembers urging her not to abandon her dream and promising to take over more chores. Their reunion reframes her departure not as rejection of her brother but as a necessary step toward the life he had encouraged her to claim.

during the café reunion

Kamiya Shares His Love

Kamiya tells Sanae that he is in love with Hino and explains that she forgets each day when she sleeps. He wants to fill her journal with happy experiences so that each new version of her can face life with more courage. Sanae supports him and urges him to treat Hino with care, understanding that their relationship may be difficult.

the same Saturday afternoon

The Aquarium Without Kamiya

Hino and Wataya go to the aquarium without Kamiya, carrying his picnic basket and the lunch he prepared. They share his chirashizushi and Lady Grey tea, and Hino recognizes the tea’s fragrance without knowing why. The meal shows how his thoughtfulness reaches her even when he is absent and how sensory impressions may survive where ordinary memories do not.

during the aquarium outing

Hino Wonders About Her Future

Watching a family at the aquarium, Hino wonders whether she will ever have a family of her own or recover from her condition. Wataya answers gently that they should enjoy life as it comes, then jokes with Hino to ease the heaviness. Their friendship becomes a vital source of steadiness alongside Kamiya’s daily companionship.

August 12, during summer vacation

The Akutagawa Announcement

Kamiya waits at the library for the announcement of the literary prizes, knowing his father is also anxiously watching. Hino and Wataya join him, and together they watch the live broadcast. [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117) is named the winner of the Akutagawa Prize for her novel, a triumph that fulfills Sanae’s long pursuit of a writing career.

the evening of August 12

The Hidden Visit

To watch the award coverage, Hino invites Wataya to sleep over and proposes secretly bringing Kamiya into her room. Despite his protests, he is smuggled into the [Hino family home](entity:location-recall-location-hino-family-home-75b696f330fb) while Wataya distracts Hino’s parents. The arrangement gives Kamiya a rare glimpse into Hino’s private world and exposes the tension between their playful closeness and his concealed knowledge.

the evening of August 12, in Hino’s room

Hino Asks About Love

Before leaving Kamiya alone in her room, Hino asks whether he likes her. He denies having fallen in love, unable to admit that he already has. She makes a joke about protecting her underwear, but her brief, sad expression leaves him wondering whether she suspects his feelings or simply wants reassurance.

the evening of August 12

The Akutagawa Prize Victory

The live broadcast announces that [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117) has won the Akutagawa Prize. Hino celebrates the achievement with Kamiya and Wataya, and Kamiya leaves soon afterward to return home. He has no idea that the news will force his father to confront Sanae’s identity and the family’s long silence.

late evening on August 12

Father Recognizes Sanae

At the [Kamiya family apartment](entity:location-recall-location-kamiya-family-apartm-5e0873fe8f2e), Kamiya’s father recognizes Sanae in the televised press conference and asks whether [Keiko Nishikawa](entity:character-recall-character-keiko-nishikawa-1fa510f57117) is his daughter. Kamiya confirms that Sanae has been writing under a pen name and left to become a novelist. The revelation turns the family’s private absence into an unavoidable conversation.

late evening on August 12

The Father and Son Confront the Past

Kamiya tells his father that Sanae did not run away from the family but toward her own future. He also confronts his father’s self-pity and his apparent abandonment of the dream of submitting novels. The argument forces both men to acknowledge how they have avoided painful truths about their family and their ambitions.

the same night

The Father’s Confession

Kamiya’s father admits that he stopped submitting manuscripts because he feared learning he lacked talent. Kamiya tells him that, despite his failures as a novelist, he has worked to support the family and is still a good father. The two begin to speak honestly, and the father agrees to start helping with cooking and housework.

later that night

Sanae Calls Home

After Kamiya’s father answers the rarely used landline, Sanae calls. He apologizes and congratulates her on the prize while Kamiya quietly opens a window to let in the night air. The call begins repairing a relationship that had been frozen by grief, guilt, and years of silence.

about ten days after the prize announcement

Sanae Returns Home

Sanae visits the family apartment and finds her father and Kamiya sharing household work. Her father says he will pause writing until he can face himself honestly, while Sanae explains that her own writing grew from what she learned by watching him. Their reconciliation is imperfect, but the family members can finally recognize one another’s sacrifices and move forward.

late June, during finals preparation

Drawing as a Way Forward

While studying in the library, Hino sketches Kamiya instead of working. He researches memory and explains the difference between declarative and procedural memory, suggesting that learned physical skills may persist despite her amnesia. Hino is encouraged by the possibility and starts drawing again, giving her a practice that can develop from one day to the next.

the weeks before summer vacation

Kamiya’s Plan for Tomorrow

Kamiya increasingly plans outings that Hino can enjoy even though she will forget them. He wants her journal to give each next-day version of Hino reasons to feel hopeful. Wataya recognizes his devotion but warns him not to push himself past his limits, while agreeing to preserve their secret around Hino.

early July, after finals

The Amusement Park

The three friends finally visit an amusement park after Kamiya has had to postpone the outing. Hino and Wataya make him ride a roller coaster repeatedly, and he blurts out that he wants to keep finding ways to make Hino happy. His earnestness embarrasses them, but the day confirms how much he has changed since their first awkward meeting.

the beginning of July

Summer’s Arrival

As summer vacation approaches, Kamiya worries that Hino will face long empty days without the structure of school. He hopes drawing can give her a project that accumulates through practice. The three friends talk about festivals and fireworks, and Hino agrees faintly, aware that the season will advance even when her own memories do not.

August 4, summer vacation

Hino’s Summer Sketches

Hino reads her notes and discovers that she has been drawing daily, gradually improving through procedural memory. She follows the art guidance Kamiya has collected, practices quick sketches from films, and realizes that her past selves have left real skill behind. The drawings offer proof that development remains possible even when autobiographical memory resets.

early August, during summer vacation

The Straw Hat Outing

Hino meets Kamiya at the library and asks to look at straw hats. She refuses his offer to buy one, and their attempt at a shared bicycle ride becomes an awkward “princess ride” when he walks her on the bike and catches her as she wobbles. They laugh together, but the next morning Hino will not remember the outing or the hat they chose.

August 12, before the award broadcast

The Prize Announcement Approaches

Kamiya spends the day waiting for news about Sanae’s nominated novel, while Hino arrives early to keep him company. He recognizes her new straw hat from their outing, but she has bought it independently and does not remember choosing it with him. Kamiya hides his disappointment and lets her enjoy the day without confronting her about the lost memory.

August 26, summer vacation

The End-of-Summer Invitation

Hino reads that she and Kamiya plan to attend the final fireworks show of summer. She has invited him and suggested that he bring Sanae, who is visiting home. Kamiya gives Hino a fake sunflower decoration for her straw hat, and her journal records that she may be falling in love with him.

August 31, late afternoon

The Fireworks Date

Hino dresses in a borrowed yukata and travels to meet Kamiya for the fireworks. They joke in a café, then hold hands as they enter the crowded festival, allowing their relationship to feel real rather than merely contractual. Hino is acutely aware that she will lose the day’s memories, yet chooses to embrace the experience without holding back.

August 31, early evening

Meeting the Kamiya Family

At the festival, Hino meets Sanae and, unexpectedly, Kamiya’s father, who has come along as Sanae’s escort. The father is nervous around her, while the siblings speak warmly about his efforts to face the family’s past. Sanae gives the couple space to continue their date, and Hino learns that Kamiya’s family is beginning to repair itself.

August 31, during the fireworks

Hino’s Tears Beneath the Fireworks

Hino and Kamiya enjoy festival food and games before watching the fireworks together. The thought that the night will vanish from her memory overwhelms Hino, and she cries that she does not want to forget. Kamiya promises that he will remember and tells her that no memory disappears completely, giving her a fragile sense that their bond can outlast the daily reset.

from the fall semester through high school graduation

Wataya’s Account of Their Years

Wataya watches Hino and Kamiya remain together through the school festival, fall, and winter. Hino’s distress rises as she confronts the future she cannot easily pursue, but Kamiya’s company helps her regain calm. Hino begins knitting, and the couple build small seasonal rituals that give continuity to days she cannot consciously retain.

winter of their second year

Wataya Reflects on Love

Wataya asks Kamiya why he keeps trying so hard for Hino. He says he does not do the impossible; he does what he can and is happy to make an extra effort for someone he loves. His answer challenges Wataya’s guarded understanding of love, shaped by her parents’ separation, and reveals how much Hino has changed his sense of himself.

spring, before the new school year

The Third-Year Arrangement

As Hino and Wataya move into their final year, Kamiya arranges for Hino to be placed in his class. This gives them more time together during the school day, while Wataya becomes busier with university preparation. Hino is astonished to find herself a third-year student with a boyfriend in her own classroom.

the following spring, after their third year

Graduation Despite Amnesia

Hino, Kamiya, and Wataya graduate from high school. Kamiya has passed a civil-service examination and will begin work at city hall, while Hino plans to continue art lessons and Wataya is headed toward university. Wataya believes Hino can manage the next stage because she has a journal, drawing practice, and Kamiya’s support.

spring vacation after high school graduation

Kamiya’s First Collapse

After a day out, Kamiya tells Wataya that he fainted while riding his bicycle and may have a heart problem. He has tests scheduled and admits that his mother died from a heart condition, which has made the possibility especially frightening to his family. He asks Wataya to erase him from Hino’s records if he dies, so Hino will not be left with the knowledge of his death.

the day before Kamiya’s death

The Last Request

Kamiya explains to Wataya that Hino knew almost nothing about him before her accident, so removing his name from her records could make their relationship seem never to have happened. He fears that learning of his death could harm her mental health. Wataya cannot agree or refuse, but she understands that he is entrusting her with a decision that will shape Hino’s future.

the night after his hospital tests

Kamiya’s Sudden Death

Although the tests reveal no obvious heart abnormality, Kamiya collapses at home after returning from the hospital and dies of heart failure. Wataya learns the news when Sanae answers his phone. The sudden loss turns Kamiya’s hypothetical request into an immediate moral burden for Wataya and leaves Hino unaware that the person she is expecting to see is gone.

the following afternoon

Hino Learns of the Death

Wataya tells Hino that her boyfriend, [Tooru Kamiya](entity:character-recall-character-tooru-kamiya-55f987e19434), has died. Although Hino has no conscious memories of him, she begins crying and cannot understand why the loss hurts so much. Wataya assures her that the two truly loved one another and tells her about their life together, making the absence more vivid even as she tries to comfort her friend.

the same afternoon

Sanae Explains the Final Days

Wataya and Hino visit the [Kamiya family home](entity:location-recall-location-kamiya-family-home-ec3cb8d427ef), where Sanae recounts the hospital tests and her brother’s sudden collapse during dinner preparations. Sanae reveals that Kamiya had spoken often about Hino and that he knew about her amnesia while pretending otherwise. Hino explains their rules and confesses that Kamiya’s promise to make tomorrow enjoyable had sustained her.

the day of the wake

Wataya Accepts the Choice

Wataya returns to Sanae and asks for advice about Kamiya’s request to be erased from Hino’s records. Sanae refuses to declare one course objectively right, explaining that every choice carries uncertain consequences. She offers to help if Wataya decides to proceed, leaving the final decision with the friend to whom Kamiya entrusted it.

the evening of the day after Kamiya’s death

The Wake and the Records

Wataya decides to carry out Kamiya’s request and makes copies of Hino’s binder and journals. At the wake, Hino stands before the open casket, grieving a boyfriend whose face she knows mostly through photographs and written notes. Wataya gives the copies to Sanae, who begins revising Hino’s records to remove Kamiya and substitute Wataya in their place.

the third day after Kamiya’s funeral

The Altered Phone and Sketchbooks

Wataya replaces Hino’s old phone and transfers a rewritten digital journal that contains no trace of Kamiya. She removes his drawings from the sketchbooks and replaces Hino’s handwritten reminder notes with typed versions. While changing one note, she discovers a hidden message urging Hino to remember Kamiya if she ever recovers.

the days after the records are replaced

A New Promise to Tomorrow

Hino notices that her old messages are gone and feels bereft without knowing why. Wataya hugs her and promises that they will create new happy experiences together. Hino gradually regains her footing, while Wataya continues to visit and support her through the months after Kamiya’s death.

about three months before the later account

Hino’s Recovery

After roughly three years of daily memory loss, Hino wakes one morning and remembers the day before. Her parents confirm the memories, and a doctor observes her gradual recovery. The ordinary continuity of one day into the next feels miraculous, and Hino begins preparing for university entrance while continuing to draw.

the fall after Hino’s recovery

A Hidden Sketchbook

While cleaning her room, Hino discovers a sketchbook hidden behind a bookcase. It contains many drawings of an unfamiliar boy, and seeing him makes her heart race despite her lack of conscious recognition. She suspects she may have hidden the drawings because the boy mattered to her, but cannot explain why.

the fall after Hino’s recovery

Wataya Reveals the Boy

Hino shows Wataya the drawings and asks who the boy is. Wataya initially claims he was only someone Hino saw at the library, but the hidden sketchbook and Hino’s questions break through her resolve. She finally tells Hino that the boy was her boyfriend and that he died.

immediately after Wataya’s revelation

Hino Reclaims the Records

Wataya gives Hino the original journals, binder, and drawings she had kept, apologizing for withholding her most important memories. Hino does not blame her; she understands the fear that guided their choices and thanks her for protecting her. She returns home and begins reading the accounts of her relationship with Kamiya.

the first evening after learning the truth

A Voice from the Past

Hino reads the records and learns how consistently Kamiya cared for her. Rather than looking at the photographs, she listens to an audio recording that Wataya sends from an old video. Hearing their voices and the wind from a bicycle ride lets her begin to recover a sensory fragment of their shared life.

the days after the revelation

Hino Investigates Her Past

Hino contacts former classmates and asks about her relationship with Kamiya. They recall how happy the couple seemed and how naturally they called one another boyfriend and girlfriend. She also hears from the former bully, who explains the dare that began their relationship and how Kamiya’s intervention helped him reconsider his life.

the days after the revelation

Sanae’s Blessing

Hino meets Sanae, who tells her that Kamiya was happy with her and asks her not to make grief a prison. Sanae hopes Hino will eventually build a new life and love again, while Hino insists that she wants to remember what she lost. She chooses to seek her memories without abandoning the present Kamiya tried to protect.

the following spring, at the cherry-blossom park

A Fragrance Opens Memory

After Hino passes university entrance exams, she shares a picnic with Wataya at the cherry-blossom park. The scent of Lady Grey tea recalls a day at the aquarium with Kamiya, when he had packed chirashizushi for them. A fragment of his voice and words rises from within Hino, confirming that her effort to remember is beginning to reach beyond the written record.

three years after Hino’s recovery

Wataya’s Later Account

Wataya, now a working adult, meets Hino at the cherry-blossom park. Hino has spent years revisiting places and activities from her journals, gradually recovering pieces of Kamiya. She is also living fully in the present, sharing food and conversation with university friends as her search continues.

the same spring day, at the cherry-blossom park

The Final Portrait

While walking among the trees, Hino recalls the story of [“May sickness”](entity:expression-recall-expression-may-sickness-4e76b84b23c7) and begins drawing beneath the blossoms. Wataya sees a portrait of Kamiya rendered not as the shy figure in the old sketches but as Hino remembers him looking at her with tenderness. Hino says she loved him and still feels warmth alongside grief, while accepting that she can someday love again.