“Are we nothing but a collection of memories?”

It's been a while since a shojo manga rendered me speechless. If I could warn my 15-year-old self who started this series thinking it would be your typical slice-of-life, high school romance, I'd tell her to think twice. An extra package of tissue boxes would also be welcome. Yes, before I knew it, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with We Were There. What was supposed to be your average sweet, clumsy love story turned out a surpringly mature read exploring heavy themes such as grief, suicide and depression. Forget the fluff, the rainbow and the unicorns. The pure, humorous tone of the storytelling in the first volumes soon made room for mental agony later in the series. “What did I get myself into?” I told myself as I flipped through the pages, a muffled sob escaping my lips.

While I first thought the blurb couldn't seem more cliché, I found myself enticed by the fleshed-out characters and their tortuous struggles. Aside from the cheerful, naive Nana and a tormented Yano who builds up a wall of empty, deceitful smiles that fool everyone but never reach his eyes, even the secondary characters were given enough descriptions and development for the readers to form an opinion on them. Takeuchi, Sengenji, Yuri; they all have a huge impact on the main characters' journey as their paths meet and their destinies intertwine. The complex characterization in We Were There made it particularly hard to hate anyone despite their wrongs and the terrible way they handled some situations. Hidden secrets and warped pasts, angst and pent up tension, this series and its characters kept me guessing. Unpredictable and predictable. Sorrowful and full of ecstasy. Slow and full of action. It's a wonderful picture of life.

“Let's make our past fade into comparison with the present.”

I thought it was interesting that Obata decided to take the story into the future as early as she did. It was nice to see the characters moving into adulthood in a way that wasn't just an epilogue sort of deal. The time-gap only added more depth to the story altogether and allowed us to to see the characters grow individually, heal separately and find their way, which felt like a much more realistic and satisfying ending than what shoujo series usually offer.

“We didn't make mistakes. We didn't lie. We didn't fail. We did everything possible that seventeen-year-olds could do. But time distorts feelings and recollections. The promise I made turned to tears. The vow I made has become a sharp pain in my chest. And my beloved is forevermore a memory.”

Yet, what I liked the most about it is that relationships meander rather than being categorical: nobody actually lives 'happily ever after' (you wish!). The characters have to go through moments where they question themselves and their love for each other, dry spells where they don't see each other much, breaking up, getting back together, and other very human problems that relationships face. Yuki Obata's shiver-inducing writing and expressive artwork effectively get the characters' feelings across, perfectly capturing the emotions of teenage angst, but also the happiness and melancholy that go along with it throughout each chapter.

“With his face shimmering brightly in pitch black darkness and his eyes shining like the stars gathering in the sky as one, he told me that eternity does exist.”

I can't talk about the relationships without bringing up Takeuchi. My sweet, noble, selfless child deserves all the praise in the world and so much more. Regardless of my unconditional love and support for Yano and Nana, I can't deny that the love triangle in We Were There is among my all-time favorites. You read that right. The self-proclaimed anti-love-triangle-bullsh*t that I am was embarrassingly swooning over both sides. The circumstances, however, are very peculiar in this situation where one thing leads to another and Take is entrusted with Nanami's happiness by his dearest friend. Sounds familiar? It wasn't the deep love they both shared for the protagonist itself that made me so emotional, it was the beautiful, unbreakable, childhood bond between Yano and Take that made it impossible not to feel a lump in my throat.

“He'd say it while I was still hesitating. He'd act while I was figuring it out. He got everything I couldn't. I kept telling myself that I was just being me. Yet I couldn't help but envy him back then. I knew... if I had been born a girl... I would have fallen in love with him too.” – Takeuchi

“Meeting you was the greatest thing that happened to me. You know, if I had been born a girl, it's you I would've married.” – Yano

We Were There moved me like very few manga series have. My heart, soul and body were captured by Yuki Obata's poignant storytelling before I realized what was happening. The gleeful laughter and the impending doom. The genuine smiles and the inevitable heartbreaks. The happiest moments and the unescapable hardships. I will cherish the memory of these characters for whom I rooted, and their long, difficult journey to my grave. I will remember them in all their human vulnerability, how they fell and rose again, how they learned to confront their inner demons, how they braved the cruelty of fate with an admirable courage that never failed to make me cry. Just like life and love, Nana and Yano's story is tender, sour, boring, exciting, bittersweet and many things that are difficult to put into words. Wistful and hopeful, this final volume beautifully wraps it up and makes one believe in redemption and fresh starts.

“In only your words I have always believed. That is the only thing that hasn't changed during these past 5 years. Say, do you know? You are my compass.”