Chapter 19 is the 19th chapter of Kodocha, the fourth chapter of the fourth book in the Tankōbon Release, and the eighth chapter of the second book in the Kanzenban and Bunkoban releases.
Summary[]
Akito kisses Sana after their middle birthday party, which confuses her. Sana decides to accept an acting role after a conversation with Akito, and the group graduate 6th grade.
Plot[]
Still in the snow at the end of their middle birthday party, Akito is in his head about what Tsuyoshi told him (that if he doesn't directly tell Sana how he feels, she won't know). Sana is confused, given Akito clearly wants to say something but nothing is happening, when he kisses her, and runs away. Inside, Rei and her mom saw the whole thing. The two understand Akito's intentions, meanwhile Sana doesn't. At home Akito thinks he might have caught a cold from staying outside so long, and a confused Rei finds the snowman Akito made in the refrigerator.
Akito misses some school because he did catch a cold, meanwhile Sana continues to be confused at her own feelings for Akito -- as well as being confused at what the kiss means for how he feels about her. When Akito does return to school, there's an awkwardness between them that Tsuyoshi incorrectly reads as Akito having confessed his feelings (which Akito quickly clarifies). The tension between them dissipates into their usual bickering as they work on their sixth grade graduation project.
At home, Naozumi bursts into Sana's house after learning that she turned down acting in a Mikio Ono directed movie. He explains to a confused Sana that Mr. Ono is a great director, and that the lead role was written with her in mind, and that he already accepted a role in the movie. Sana initially resists, insisting she wants to focus on school, but has second thoughts.
The next morning, Sana walks the dogs in place of Shimura, and runs into Akito on a jog (which is part of his karate training, the conviction of which surprises Sana). She brings up how she's wondering if she should accept a movie role, saying she'll feel sad if she can't see everybody. Akito says that she'll be able to see her friends regardless, and this affirms to Sana that she should take the role. Sana asks if Akito ever feels suicidal these days (something he expressed in Chapter 4) and he says he's not.
Rei is happy to learn that Sana wants to accept the movie role, the class finishes their graduation project, graduates the sixth grade, and Sana gets her junior high uniform.
Characters[]
Author's Notes[]
About Character Profiles: "I get a lot of fan mail asking for my character's birthdays and other info, but I don't usually decide those things at the beginning. Because if I decide everything too early, for example, if I wanna come up with a story about someone's birthday, the season might not match. But, when they started production on the TV show of Kodocha, the producers asked me for all the characters' profiles, so I worked on it. Oh yes, I really did. Ribon Magazine printed them all already... I'll try and make extra space in volume five so that you can see them too."
About the Middle Birthday: "The middle birthday Sana and Akito celebrated in this volume was a very popular thing to do in my elementary school. I did it with a lot of friends, but I quit doing it because we also gave presents on our real birthdays - and it seemed like a big waste of money! (Hee hee!) In the comic book, I had already said Sana's birthday was March 7th and I wanted to make their middle birthday be Christmas Eve... (very flexible, aren't I?), so then I had to figure out when Akito's birthday should be... The story takes place in 1994, so I looked in a calendar, and I counted it over and over again to make sure I got it right, then made that Akito's birthday. Actually - I thought I got it right, but I made a big mistake... (To be continued)"
Trivia[]
- In both the authors notes and the chapter itself, it's stated to be 1994.
- This chapter was adapted into many episodes.
- The Special Christmas Kiss adapts the kiss shown at the beginning of this chapter.
- Karate Heart, Quitting Blues has a scene where Sana is considering quitting acting, and bumps into Akito on a jog which helps her make a decision (although the circumstances and scene are otherwise different).
- Goodbye Yesterday, Hello Tomorrow has a brief end segment similar to the end of this chapter (Sana getting her junior high uniform).