#when ur aro or even just fucken weird in any way
i never thought i could relate to takahashi more than i already did before this episode. we got hints of this before, but takahashi has spent so long trying to make himself smaller and live a generic, unassuming life in the hopes that it would just make people leave him alone. his grandmother, his only family and main pillar of support, passed away, and he basically forced himself to give up on everything he ever wanted to maintain the house in her absence, as if trying to make up for what he lacks, as if it’s all he’s worth and all he is allowed to have.
and then sakuko comes along and not only makes him realize that he doesn’t actually have to be lonely (along with introducing him to eventual friends he can rely on to understand him without constantly expecting him to explain himself), but tells him he actually can in fact have it all. he can have a family in the form of sakuko, a whole support system of people, someone to watch over the house. being by yourself doesn’t have to mean you’re alone, and being alone doesn’t have to mean you’re lonely! they will still have each other even if far apart, and if he wants to quit and go back then he can, and if it ends up not working out for them then that’s okay too!
it’s such an aro thing to force yourself to be smaller, to believe no one will ever understand you so why bother, to feel like you can’t live the life you want because the path was never laid out in front of you so clearly. to force yourself into new boxes to escape the old ones, to chain yourself down to avoid being set adrift. but happiness is subjective, and family is not a place. sometimes, having a family is not having someone to live with, but having someone who understands and supports you through thick and thin. you don’t have to always sacrifice what you want in order not to be lonely! those are fake rules and we don’t abide by them here! live your life! follow your dreams! choose your own family on purpose! build your own castle! FUCK!
