beta
I honestly loved this story. I think it was realistic (as realistic as a manga about a serial killer who needs a decision maker can be) in the way that it portrayed emotions and reactions, and none of the characters where black or white. I appreciate that there was no love triangle, and that the relationship between Nicolas and Luca happened organically - not to mention Luca being a surprisingly fantastic partner. Telling Nicolas he would be there when he was ready to open his heart, and making sure he wasn't doing something he didn't actually like deep down, was so sweet and respectful (despite his evident dating history). Luca looked out for Nicolas, even earlier on in roundabout ways (going in to check on him once he saw a suspicious person leaving Nico's apartment, sending the step-dad to meet Al and catch his attention to protect Nicolas, and taking responsibility for the decisions he made). I also loved that Nicolas was an honestly good soul, even though he reacted with hurt or in anger at times because of his abuse. He was a victim of his step father, and he was manipulated into unknowingly making life or death decisions for others by Al, but despite all that happened and the temptations along the way, he remained true to himself in the end. I also appreciate that Al's killings were not pictured as justified, nor him as a monster, even though we were shown the initial cause of his violent character. He murdered innocent people, but also went out of his way to kill Nicolas's father for him. I think it's super cool that Nicolas "got" to pick the way that awful man died, so that he had some satisfaction in getting revenge, while still not being responsible for making the choice to kill someone - even someone he hated - because Al did not give him that option and the guy was going to die either way. Minor side note, I like that Luca did get a small injury in his altercation with Al, because most stories let characters get off scott free even as amateurs in a knife fight, which just seems unrealistic most of the time (again, as realistic as these mangas can be).
It also made me super happy to see Nicolas be able to move on from those atrocious traumas he suffered, and eventually accept Luca both emotionally and physically in a very sweet way (and not immediately following his assaults, like in some other stories...). Anyway, it may be a very mature story, but it was continually interesting to me, and I was very satisfied with its ending.