From those 3 friends one did not age at all for 7 years and was invisible to everyone.
Let's see why, it's very intriguing!

Middle school x university student is a bit too much for me if this where it's going

Kabocha hasn't done age gap in the past so it's a little hard for me to believe that'll be the ending. Then again, the explicit comparison of Koto and Aya to Orihime and Hikoboshi [...] suggests that it will. Maybe we'll get some more time travel shenanigans to resolve this? On the other hand, the title of the manga is How to Break a Triangle, so Erika will presumably play a large role in the story as well, as something more than just "the friend with a crush on the MC who loses." Impossible to say right now, the manga is deliberately avoiding common storytelling conventions.

Well, If we rule out the age gap theory, the triangle has already been successfully broken. Perhaps it's Aya returning to be the spirit guide for Erika/Koto to find love in each other? Though I'm not sure if being so dense that your childhood friend returns from the dead to go "Kiss, you dummies!" really suits the tone so far...

I wanted to like this, but I just don't feel this one.

Calling this original would be a stretch, there are quite a few manga out there where the protagonist meets a past version of his/her love (Ashita Dorobou would be one), and this one feels very rushed, and the time travel just feels forced.

I'll keep an eye on the next chapter, maybe it'll win me over, but so far It just feels like an inferior copy.

Excuse me?

Oooooooohhhh time travel????

this is probably a time travel thingy
not a tragedy where a ghost of the past come back, hopefully
i guess this will be a age gap thing

Before we saw Aya I was sure Erika was going to be responsible for Koto disappearing somehow. I still think she is going to be the antagonist somehow.

her daughter i assume?

her daughter i assume?

Aya disappeared seven years ago not having had a child yet, her daughter could not be a middle school girl even if she'd had one the moment she disappeared.

last edited at Sep 5, 2023 3:52PM

As of now, Erika is totally my type of character. If she turns out to be the villian... I'll support your wrongs girl!

I was kinda hoping it was gonna be the love triangle where they all have unrequited loves, but that ending makes me think it won't be :(

Ok ok

First speculations, maybe Aya passed through some shrine that made her time travel to the future and thats why she disappeared and reappeared 7 years laters

She obviously pulled the Master Sword from the Pedestal of Time! She also opened the Sacred Realm, but that is another story.

As a nerd I feel obligated to point out that Link still aged when he did that.

NNNEEEERRRRDDD!!!!

You're right though. ^_^

Okay, time to join in the first chapter speculation, lol.

I'm going for Aya is now a ghost, she died on the night of the festival and has lingering regrets ... I'm also going with:

Koto loves Aya (we know that from the confessions).

Erika loves Koto and was jealous of Eirka/Aya (the annoyance with Aya and that bit where we saw someone - assumed Erika - leaving after seeing Koto and Aya, pg 35) .

Annnnnd ... Aya actually loved Erika but never got chance to express her feelings (and you are right, I have absolutely no basis for this whatsoever! But this is 1st chapter guesswork here).

Chikaon posted:

As of now, Erika is totally my type of character. If she turns out to be the villian... I'll support your wrongs girl!

I was kinda hoping it was gonna be the love triangle where they all have unrequited loves, but that ending makes me think it won't be :(

Nooo... that'd be a repeat of Nanashi no Asterism.

Chikaon posted:

As of now, Erika is totally my type of character. If she turns out to be the villian... I'll support your wrongs girl!

I was kinda hoping it was gonna be the love triangle where they all have unrequited loves, but that ending makes me think it won't be :(

Nooo... that'd be a repeat of Nanashi no Asterism.

Noooooo, not that! I was getting a tiny hit of that series here because of the astronomy thing, too.

I'm not sure why some people think Aya liked Erika. No one liked Erika. lol

I think it's pretty clear Aya liked Koto but she had some emotional issues to deal with, or more like existential issues. If you pay attention to the dialog between Aya and Koto, Aya seems to question about her place in the world, which is pretty heavy stuff to talk about between school girls:

https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/how_to_break_a_triangle_ch01#19
https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/how_to_break_a_triangle_ch01#20
https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/how_to_break_a_triangle_ch01#21
https://dynasty-scans.com/chapters/how_to_break_a_triangle_ch01#30

I think this implies she feels she doesn't have a place to belong to or something. This is why I thought she had run away from home at first. That ended up being a wrong assumption, but maybe her time travel is related to those feelings somehow.

And no, I don't think she's a ghost. This is definitely time travel imo.

last edited at Aug 23, 2023 5:45PM

I was watching a crime documentary before reading this and my first thought when she was missing for 7 years was she got mu-

I'm not sure why some people think Aya liked Erika. No one liked Erika. lol

Don't know about anyone else but for me it was just wishful thinking with no basis whatsoever... It just circles the triangle, so to speak.

I'm not sure why some people think Aya liked Erika. No one liked Erika. lol

Maybe they should just call the series everyone hates Erika. I would read it.

I wanted to like this, but I just don't feel this one.

Calling this original would be a stretch, there are quite a few manga out there where the protagonist meets a past version of his/her love (Ashita Dorobou would be one), and this one feels very rushed, and the time travel just feels forced.

Fam already decided its time travel, rushed, forced and inferior to other mangas from a single chapter lmfao

last edited at Aug 25, 2023 5:31PM

I wanted to like this, but I just don't feel this one.

Calling this original would be a stretch, there are quite a few manga out there where the protagonist meets a past version of his/her love (Ashita Dorobou would be one), and this one feels very rushed, and the time travel just feels forced.

Fam already decided its time travel, rushed, forced and inferior to other mangas from a single chapter lmfao

It's very possible for a single chapter to be rushed/forced, I just don't see how that criticism applies to this chapter. It spent a great deal of time establishing the characters and their relationships. The time travel (or ghost or whatever it is) was revealed at the very end because that's the cliffhanger/plot twist/hook.

Is somewhere mentioned a name of the book from which Aya is reciting to Koto?

That scene seems to be important giving some clue about that secret place where Aya probably disappeared for 7 years of our time, but it's very strange that name of the book is missing if it is a clue.

My first reaction to Aya's disappearance was: "Erika killed her!"

Because Erika saw the other two in the library kissing and talking about going to Tanabata festival together, so she had a motive (jealousy) and she knew when and where to meet Aya alone (at night, on the way to the festival).

I still think it's a definite possibility.

Finally some original yuri story

I figured it would happen but it was still surprising~Was waiting for the supernatural twist :O And I knew it! So this WAS the same author who did "the girl through the viewfinder" ~ recognized the art style and I rlly loved that one too. Hajime and Kei were their names i think.

last edited at Aug 28, 2023 5:20PM

Huh, I don't agree with all those interpretations of it being time travel. I see it more as she's always been stuck in that position, which was what caused her to not want to be in a relationship. And all those things about tanabata, the story of orihime and that guy, with one person waiting for the other for ten years, can also be seen in these themes. She wasn't just there for the 2nd year of middle school, it can be seen she was also in the 1st year at least, so, yeah, maybe a ghost that died on the day? But I feel like she knew it would happen, which is why she was so hesitant, so maybe she was predestined to not be able to continue?
Ah, I want to see the next chapter.

Edit:
Yeah, she specifically points out, with a somewhat wistful look that "You are able to say how you feel", which I think is supposed to be that she can't herself say how she feels? She also took up the whole second to last page, not looking surprised, but looking somewhat resigned to being there, walking the path, and then looks shocked once called out to. I don't think... Aya will be a mainstay. I think she's doomed, won't have a chance to be with her crush, and will ultimately end up breaking the triangle by forever disappearing, she is not in for a happy time, at least that's my interpretation for now.

last edited at Aug 30, 2023 1:59AM