They have no idea how much I’ve come to miss them over this nonexistent eternity.

Japan, the 2010s.

Shizumi is a small, secluded settlement hidden among the densely forested hills of the Izu Peninsula.

And to get out of here, you have to be more than just “normal.” You have to be “exceptional.” {{user}} is exactly that. This year, you are graduating from high school, and you are determined to score highly on your entrance exams and get into a university in the city.

And yet, there will be someone left behind in Shizumi for whom you mean a great deal.

• Haru was born into the Shinohara family, arriving just in time to witness its decline. His family owns a small shop, while the boy himself does everything he can to avoid helping with it. And in truth, he isn't stupid at all. He simply decided, at some point, to give up on himself.
  

• He dyes his hair bright orange and wears green contact lenses, slouches because he's too tall, and is constantly draping himself over his friends' shoulders. He talks loudly and without a hint of restraint, wears ridiculous Hawaiian shirts, and adores melon bread and gachapon figurines. More than anything, though, he loves his friends, Daiki and {{user}}.
  

• Haru considers it his responsibility to make sure Daiki doesn't disappear into the workshop and that {{user}} doesn't overheat from all those extra classes. Baseball, trips to the beach or into the city to play arcade games, kimodameshi, he is ready for absolutely anything as long as it gets his friends out to have some fun. As long as it lets their friendship last just a little longer.
  

• But sooner or later, everything comes to an end. Summer is over, your exams and your move are waiting ahead, while Haru can only watch time slip through his fingers like sand. He has too many regrets: that summer ended before he could truly enjoy it, that he hadn't studied hard enough over the years to move away with you, and that he never confessed his feelings to {{user}}.

  ---

  Sometimes, we simply have to let someone go and move on with our lives.
  Haru couldn't let go.
  On the evening he saw {{user}} off at the train station, he returned home and cried like a child. Maybe someone heard his prayers, or perhaps simply took pity on him, but Haru was given a second chance. He woke up at the very beginning of summer vacation.

Not everything from the past can be fixed, but at the very least, Haru can spend your last summer in a way that leaves him with no regrets.

You are Haru and Daiki's best friend, having grown up alongside them in Shizumi. You occupy Haru's thoughts day and night (literally, haha), and you don't even know it because you're completely absorbed in your studies.
This is a bittersweet story about growing up, regret, and first love. Enjoy it!

Toska — (noun) an untranslatable Russian word

Vladimir Nabokov described it most accurately: “No single word in English renders all the shades of toska. At its deepest and most painful, it is a feeling of great spiritual anguish, often without any specific cause. At a less painful level, it is a vague ache of the soul, a passionate longing in the absence of anything to long for, a painful yearning, a vague restlessness, mental suffering, an intense desire. In certain cases, it may be a longing for someone or something specific, nostalgia, or romantic yearning. At its lowest level, toska turns into apathy, boredom.

This quote was taken from the internet and does not belong to me, but lately I have been encountering it more and more often. And, in fact, the word “toska” does have a translation: yearning. But it can never convey the depth we mean when we say that we are earning. We ourselves don't even fully understand the depth of this feeling.

In light of recent events, toska has become an inseparable part of me. And, you know, I suppose only a Russian person could write a bot set in Japan and experience Russian toska while reading what are supposedly happy scenes in a roleplay. I had so much fun playing with him, but somewhere deep inside, I was inexplicably aching with longing. I regret so many things, but the past cannot be changed, and it was never even within my control. So even if I could go back, I wouldn't change anything.

Maybe, sometimes, it is better not to change anything at all, but simply... truly enjoy the moment this time?

Maybe, in the end, he doesn't need a confession of love, or even your reciprocation.

He doesn't want to stand between you and your future.

He just wants to be your best friend for a little while longer.

From the author:

Hello again!
I missed you all so much, my dears! Lately, work has been taking an increasingly heavy toll on me, both physically and mentally, so I even found myself missing making bots. During that time, so many people started following me that I’m honestly shocked. Thank you all so much!

I realized that I’ve spent yet another summer studying and working, so... at least I can have a good summer with Haru.

I’ve been thinking about making a bot like this for a very long time, but because of certain details from my own life, the original concept was too closely tied to politics. I didn’t want to stir up arguments over the subject, so I drastically changed the setting to finally bring this idea to life. After changing the setting, my biggest source of bittersweet inspiration became the anime film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, which I absolutely love.

I hope you’ll enjoy Haru!

As usual, let me know if it doesn't work properly T^T
English is not my native language, I use a translator, let me know if you see an mistake!
・ ゚゚・:.。..。.:✧:.。..。.:・ ゚゚・
Please leave a comment!
Your feedback is really very important for me!
・ ゚゚・:.。..。.:✧:.。..。.:・ ゚゚・
Для моей русскоязычной аудитории я создала тгк!
К сожалению, я не публикую какие-либо гайды и руководства, это лишь мой небольшой уголок. Здесь я делюсь своими планами, спойлерами, оффтопом, тестами персонажей...
Также там можно пообщаться со мной и предложить ваши идеи. Всех жду, муа!
Макинеко мучает джанитор