Chapter 1: Encounter

Chapter 1: Encounter is the first chapter of the Breathe Deeply manga. Having developed an artificial heart, Sei thinks back to his moments with Yuko and Oishi.

Characters

 * Sei
 * Yuko
 * Oishi
 * Yuko's Father

Synopsis
Within a lecture theatre, Mr Inaba produces a polymer based artificial heart in a jar. It can help patients with weak hearts at the molecular level. Thinking to himself, Inada tells Yuko that he finally made life from plastic.

It is remembered that Sei explained that both life forms and inanimate objects share the same building blocks to Yuko when visiting her in hospital. She is happy to be hearing this, then notices a boy called Oishi join them so Yuko introduces her two friends to one another.

Later, Oishi is not pleased to see Sei again who is here having the intention to study to become a chemical engineer with making life in mind. Yuko comes across them both and takes them head outdoors to enjoy the beachfront.

Responding to Yuko and Oishi’s comments on everything being made of the same thing, Sei helps them understand the carbon link between nylon and humans.

Afterwards they wave goodbye to Yuko who is back in her room before she is overcome by fatigue.

Eating together, Oishi would like Sei to teach him some stuff since he is considering night school.

The three of them continue to enjoy their time together, with Sei and Oishi taking part in school and work activities as well.

One day Yuko is lying motionless in bed with urgent CPR being administered to her. Sei recalls a time during winter where Yuko was to head to America for tests. She was concerned with her perspective that a potential transplant would involve waiting for someone to die. Yuko articulated that if her condition deteriorated then she would want to disappear like the snow around them.

Sei is asked by Yuko’s father what her daughter wanted for herself, now that she is only kept alive by a respirator. The answer is given and with Yuko passing away, a funeral procession is held but Oishi approaches and strikes Sei blaming him for killing Yuko by pulling the plug. Sei wanted her to live more than anyone but reveals that Yuko wanted to die.

Oishi recollects a moment where Yuko shared an experience of witnessing a patient wired up to medical equipment. Although she was told by the doctors that he was dead, the man had tears in his eyes and looked alive to her. She discovered that he was cut open and had his organs removed, but even after that Yuko still wanted his heart, worryingly stating to Oishi that she was so afraid to die.

Before Sei, Oishi declares he would have given her his heart, but Sei is certain that Yuko loved him and would not lie about wanting to pass away, and tensions between them flare up once more.