Hisao feels awful due to a hangover and ignores the knocking on the door, which I had assumed was Hanako. He considers cutting class but goes anyway. It seems that everyone knows about the hangover but nobody is really going to judge. Hanako thankfully didn't rat Hisao out because she was also drunk, and it turns out that Shizune and Misha had only figured it out because they noticed that Hisao, Lily and Hanako were all absent from class at the same time. It also turns out that they were the ones who had knocked on the door and weren't at all happy that Hisao had ignored them, and that they were trying to deliver an imporant letter to him

And here we are, that part of the route where Hisao gets a letter from Iwanako. Interestingly, Hanako seems curious about who she is. I think it's possible that on a subconscious level, Hisao views Hanako as a second Iwanako, one who is on his level and therefore just as broken as he is. Hell, Iwanako and Hanako are similar names with only minor differences, and both of them have dark hair and are interested in Hisao. In no other route does Iwanako cast such a huge shadow over Hisao's relationship with another girl, and even in Lily's route, Iwanako is never mentioned unless Hisao brings her up specifically.

Little theory aside, Hisao leaves class and unlike the other routes decides to go outside and read the latter in one of the school gardens. The letters contents are summarized, and Hisao gets some closure that prevents him from being trapped in an obsessive cycle. Yuuko shows up, helps Hisao with his feelings and has her lunch before returning to work.

Sometime after this, Lily and Hisao take Hanako and Hisao to the city during the night, and eventually we end up going to a bar which has jazz music playing. This ends up being a great opportunity for Hanako and Hisao to play snooker, and also to bond. Hanako tells Hisao about her past, admitting that she lived in an orphanage before she came to Yamaku.
She in turn asks Hisao about Iwanako, which was quite interesting because she's the only girl who takes explicit interest in Iwanako. Hisao thankfully doesn't take this as an opportunity to start dumping his feelings about Iwanako onto her, because that would be really unfair for Hanako to start feeling like she has to live up to the expectations that Hisao had regarding Iwanako.

After this, Hisao declares that he'll protect Hanako, with Hanako feeling uncomfortable initially before responding that she'll be there for him too. However playing the knight in shining armour can only lead to hell, the road to which is paved with good intentions. But that will be for later. It's getting late so everyone leaves to return to Yamaku.

Beginning of the End. Never has there been a more appropriate name for the emotional pain and suffering I chose to subject myself to. But that will be important later. As of now, Hisao helps to take Lily's luggage to the entrance of the school because she's taking a taxi to the airport. Hanako and Hisao say their goodbyes and then the decision is made. I decide that we should call it a day.

I knew it was a bad idea, but I was going to have to get the Bad Ending at some point. Hanako and Hisao part ways. This is gonna be bad. Next day, class happens but Hanako is absent. I can feel the fear and anxiety mounting because I know that this cannot end well. Misha and Shizune ask Hisao out for lunch and he accepts. Hisao ends up buying them lunch too, and it's implied that they're only hanging around Hisao because they think he's lonely and totally not obsessed with Hanako, no, of course not.

Hisao is concerned about Hanako, and asks Shizune and Misha for more information on her. They do have files on her due to their status as student council members, but much like the nurse, they rightfully decline to leak that information to Hisao. Sadly neither of them seem to be calling Hisao out on his budding limerence for Hanako, and after some class time, Hisao encounters Kenji.

Kenji asks Hisao for money because he needs it for supplies for his fallout shelter. The scene goes on for a bit, and admittedly I do think its a clever trick on the game's part by having this scene here. By placing Kenji right before his fated encounter with Hanako, the game lowers the player's guard so that the last scenes in the bad ending hit all that much harder.

And here we are. Hisao hands over Hanako's schoolwork and she's currently undergoing a bout of depression. Hisao then leaves for his dorm, feeling frustrated at his inability to help her. Another day, Hanako is absent. Hisao returns to his dorm and gives Lily a phone-call. Regardless of my decision, the outcome here is the same and there is no escaping the bad ending. However, what Lily has to say about Hisao is rather revealing.
She's worried about Hisao, and feels that and Hanako are feeding into each others more worrying habits, noting that both of them didn't seem to have a proper plan when asked what they intended to do for their future, and that treating Hanako like a daughter or someone in need of special care will make the problem worse.

On some level, I wasn't sure if Hanako was supposed to be a potential girlfriend or a daughter character and this feeling. It's confusing. It reminds me of the last few years of the Aeonian Night regarding Bloom Seymour and how confusing it was, because I had theorized that she wasn't actually a child and was an adult pretending to be one. And in a way, I was right. And yet, Bloom, Kurumi and some of the other sockpuppets such as Charlotte/Ariana/Dianke etc were never intended to be the same person acting through several different accounts along with 3 of her friends doing the same thing for some unknown purpose.

My feelings regarding Bloom were confused. I remember that I had a very poor understanding about platonic love, and I don't think I realized that I loved her in that way until after the Aeonian Night ended. I'm not sure why I gravitated so strongly to her compared to the other sockpuppets but in the end I'm glad I did. I'm glad I met her, and I'm glad that despite my mistakes, the one thing I did right with her was treating her like a multifaceted human being instead of something to be pedestalized.

This is where the wheels come off for Hisao. The moment where after a few minutes of waiting to be finally let in, he's going to grip the Idiot Ball with industrial strength as his nascent friendship with Hanako is going to crash and burn in the hardest way possible. Most of my reactions to this scene could be summed up as "Please stop, Hisao" or "Hisao, please stop making this about you" amidst the backdrop of anxiety, fear, and rage on Hanako's behalf.

 I am convinced that Hisao comes off as someone with limerence for Hanako, and it's painful to watch him try to get Hanako to leave her room while her responses imply that she's uninterested at best or uncomfortable at worst. It actually reminds me of my own former limerent crush on Hollie, and I'm starting to think that Hisao's behavior is exactly what I must've sounded like to her during my second year in college. It's been years since I've actually met her, and even now, I still think about her everyday and I hate it. I hate it so much. I feel that if I try to talk to other women in the real world, Hollie is always there in the back of my mind whenever they reject me. I'm still not sure if I've actually moved on from her.

Ugh, I'm sorry. Hanako's route has awoken a lot of strong feelings within me. I'll try to stay on topic here. It upsets me that Hisao comes off as so pushy and oblivious to Hanako's disinterest. Hanako makes it clear that she doesn't want Hisao here, but he keeps pushing and you know what? Hanako's rage is completely justified. She's not some weak sad girl who needs to be fixed.

Several weeks of spending time with Hanako wasn't going to erase years of emotional trauma, and even if Lily was right about Hisao, she can't claim the high ground because for all I know, she was just using him as a means to "fix" Hanako and she spends a good chunk of her time mothering Hanako while doing little to actually encourage Hanako to become independent.

But I suppose for all my attempts at separating myself from Hisao, I must accept that he is my puppet and I drove him down that path. I feel awful for Hanako and want to give her a hug, but I don't think that will be enough to make her feel better. As I've said before, Hanako doesn't need a boyfriend. She also doesn't need two students trying to be her parents and reminding her of what she lost.

Hell, I think Shizune was better for Hanako and she was only there to help Hanako during her panic attack. Hanako says she hates Lily, and my god so do I. Lily had good intentions, but ultimately she was holding Hanako back from being independent and living her life on her own terms without being dependant on Lily.

I want to do right by Hanako, and to do that, she and I are going into the city. Hanako lights up at this, likely because it'll allow her to get her mind off Lily's departure. We make it to the city, and Hisao suggests looking at a few bookstores, though eventually he asks Hanako if she intends to learn how to drive, though she's clearly never considered it. It's a minor thing, but I appreciate that Hisao actually asked Hanako wanted to learn a skill that would greatly introduce her independence.

She also shows a knowledge about how bookstores don't make much money due to the advent of the internet. Hanako then wants to go the  store where she got her birthday gifts, nessessitating a return to Orthello's Store. We look around for a bit, and Hanako likes the place but she doesn't have any money to buy anything so we leave. Some time later, we return to Yamaku and begin the next scene.