I'm bothered by the fact that Kishi and Hira's relationship was built on nothing but fighting and fucking. Is there such a thing as a sex frenemy? No, kiddies, that's a hate fuck or someone you fight with so you can fuck them later to make the sex hotter. Neither of which is the basis for a healthy relationship. Hira turning tricks also doesn't bother me at all. His reason for turning tricks does though. There wasn't ANYTHING else he could do to make money or convince his parents to help with his tuition? Really? He had decent grades and could play piano, but couldn't tutor or work as a pianist at a lounge? He also fought with his parents to attend that school, only to blow it off most days because he was busy turning tricks. Sorry, Hira liked to fuck and it was easy money. That was a choice, not a pitiable situation. Therefore, although I don't dislike his character for turning tricks, I also don't pity him for his situation. In this way, his character was poorly written. For readers to identify or relate to a character, they must either be seen as having strength or needing sympathy or a progression from one to the other. Hira was written as a confusing cross between the two rather than a progression of one to the other. Readers who felt sympathy, pitied Hira and liked him. Readers who expected strength, disliked Hira for his choices. That is not how you write a protagonist, that's how you write an antagonist. So, although I also disliked the second story, I did so for different reasons.
The first story was simply to clichéd to start and to shallow at the finish.
I'm bothered by the fact that Kishi and Hira's relationship was built on nothing but fighting and fucking. Is there such a thing as a sex frenemy? No, kiddies, that's a hate fuck or someone you fight with so you can fuck them later to make the sex hotter. Neither of which is the basis for a healthy relationship. Hira turning tricks also doesn't bother me at all. His reason for turning tricks does though. There wasn't ANYTHING else he could do to make money or convince his parents to help with his tuition? Really? He had decent grades and could play piano, but couldn't tutor or work as a pianist at a lounge? He also fought with his parents to attend that school, only to blow it off most days because he was busy turning tricks. Sorry, Hira liked to fuck and it was easy money. That was a choice, not a pitiable situation. Therefore, although I don't dislike his character for turning tricks, I also don't pity him for his situation. In this way, his character was poorly written. For readers to identify or relate to a character, they must either be seen as having strength or needing sympathy or a progression from one to the other. Hira was written as a confusing cross between the two rather than a progression of one to the other. Readers who felt sympathy, pitied Hira and liked him. Readers who expected strength, disliked Hira for his choices. That is not how you write a protagonist, that's how you write an antagonist. So, although I also disliked the second story, I did so for different reasons.
The first story was simply to clichéd to start and to shallow at the finish.