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In Koe no Katachi manga, volume 3, chapter 23, Shouko said that

> She like Ishida

Since when that Shouko feel that way about Ishida? In Volume 1, Shouko got
bullied. Did she feel this way about Ishida back in elementary school? Did the
author ever mention it on manga/anime ?


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koe-no-katachi
How did Shouko initially feel about Ishida?


## Update

From an interview with the author, we know precisely when Shoko started liking
Shoya. It is contained in the first collector's volume on page 738.

> At this point, when she couldn't see Shoya for two weeks, Shoko realizes for
> the first time she has feelings for him. [...] Some people think Shoko tells
> Shoya she loves him in reaction to Naoka's presence, but it came about
> because of the two weeks when Shoko couldn't see Shoya at the bridge, and
> the fact that her hearing had worsened. These intensified her emotional
> state.

## Introduction

We don't get to see Shoko's thoughts and feelings about anything; this is an
important theme of the story. We get other characters' perspectives and thus
we can be relatively certain of what they're thinking, but we only get to see
Shoko through the lens of these viewpoint characters. Even when the story is
told through Shoko's perspective later on, it is murky and jumbled, making it
hard to understand exactly what she's thinking. Thus, we can only ascertain
how she initially felt about Shoya through her actions and by what she says.

With this in mind, I believe there is enough evidence to indicate she did not
initially have romantic feelings towards Shoya. Firstly, let us keep in mind
that Shoko is not an oblivious idiot, as Shoya first suspected (see page 95 of
first volume). When Shoko asks Shoya for Miyoko's contact info, it becomes
apparent to both Shoya and readers that Shoko is acutely aware of what was
going on.

## Shoko's Reaction When Shoya Appears Again

At the beginning of Volume 2, we see that Shoko's initial reaction to Shoya
reappearing in her life is to run away. She decides to hear him out after he
trips, but her expressions throughout the chapter seem to indicate displeasure
or perhaps uncertainty), at least until Shoya shows that he knows sign
language. This doesn't tell us how she initially felt about him, but it does
tell us that at the end of their time together in elementary school, she
didn't like him.

## Shoko's Initial Reaction to Shoya

Just from reading Shoya's facial expressions, it seems that Shoko grows to
distrust Shoya, and perhaps even to dislike him. In greeting, she gives Shoya
the same cheery smile she gives everyone else, but this soon changes. In
_Chapter 2: Just One Of Those Things_ , there are three interactions
(identical in terms of structure) between Shoko and Shoya on pages 75, 81, and
83. In each one, Shoko's expression becomes more and more wary. In the final
one, her eyebrows slant downward ever so slightly when she notices Shoya,
perhaps conveying a hint of anger. And this is all before Shoya begins his
bullying in earnest. Getting told not to sing, having dust poured on her, and
getting her hearing aids thrown out windows is unlikely to make Shoko develop
a crush on Shoya. The normal reaction to such incidents would be a growing
fear or hatred of the perpetrator.

This was not the first time Shoko was bullied, and she caught on very quickly
to Shoya's mockery. Far from having a crush on Shoya, I think we can conclude
that Shoko didn't like him.

## Shoko Asks to Be Friends

There is an incident, just after Shoya injures Shoko by pulling on the
apparatus in her right ear, where Shoko uses sign language to ask to be
friends. This might be a singular piece of evidence supporting the idea that
Shoko has a crush on Shoya, however, the timing doesn't really make sense for
this; getting injured as she did should make this a low point in their
relationship. But this incident can also be interpreted another way.
Initially, Shoko apologizes to Shoya with her notebook, even though Shoya
should be the one apologizing to her. This may just be Shoko's attempt to
resolve her bullying situation. Her initial apology might indicate Shoko
thinks she did something to upset Shoya, and this is why he's bullying her. In
this desperate attempt, Shoko hopes to make amends and become friends so she
won't be bullied anymore.

## After Shoya Starts Getting Bullied

Which brings us to the point where Shoya starts getting bullied and why Shoko
tried to help him. As previously stated, Shoko was aware of what was
happening. She also blamed herself (we see Yuzuru speculate on this in Volume
2, page 138). She knew that her presence and her disability created a
disruption in the class. Just as in the case of Miyoko, Shoko blamed herself
for the bullying that happened to Shoya, and this is why she cleans off the
messages on his desk, and why she tries to make things right by helping him
out.

## Conclusion

Later in the series, Naoka comments on how boys pick on girls they like,
speaking as though this proves Shoko liked Shoya in elementary school, but I
believe this reflects more on Naoka's jealousy than it does on how Shoko felt
about the situation. I think it is reasonable to assume that Shoko disliked
Shoya in elementary school, and that she only grew to like him after seeing
the effort he made to correct his past mistakes.

All references are to Kodansha Comic's English version of the manga.


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