Characters/Ami Arakawa
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“It’s disgusting. You should be ashamed. Please stop.” SPOILERS AHEAD! This page contains a lot of information in later events or versions. You may inevitably spoil yourself. |
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| Personal Information | |
|---|---|
| Surname Name | Arakawa Ami |
| Birthday (Age) | August 31st (n/a) |
| Type of Character | Main |
| Additional Information | |
| Hair Color | Red |
| Eye Color | Ruby Red |
| Height | 5′2′′ (157cm) |
| Job(s) | Maid at Maid Cafe (Chap. 2) |
| Hobby(s) |
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| Like(s) |
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| Dislike(s) |
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| Family |
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| Affiliation | |
| First Appearance | Every Day I Grow Some More |
'A lovely young girl I've known ever since she was born. We've always been close. After the tragic passing of my brother and his wife, I've been looking after her.[...]'— Sensei's notes
Ami Arakawa is part of the Main Cast of in Lessons In Love. She is part of the original ten girls in Sensei's class, and is his niece. She lives in Room 5 with Maya Makinami.
Background
Ami is the only daughter of Sekai and Nozumu Arakawa, raised by them until their untimely deaths. Afterward, she was adopted by Sensei, who would raise her for the majority of her life. At first, the pair were despondent from the tragedy, subsisting on bread and soda until eventually 'snapping out of it', but she managed to keep the two of them afloat through her positivity.
During middle school, she met Ayane and Maya, and began to bring them over to Sensei's to play. She also, supposedly, met Noriko years earlier, but has no memory of this.
She's part of the manga club, along with Maya, Futaba Fukuyama, Molly MacCormack, Rin Rokuhara.
Characteristics
Due to his decision to adopt her, and the resulting trauma from witnessing her parent's death, Ami has an intense love for Sensei. She clings to him every moment she can and adores every aspect of him, even the parts he's ashamed of. She actively refuses the idea of sharing him with anyone else, actively fighting Ayane's casual flirting, and harboring a rivalry with Makoto. In addition, she is deeply afraid of Sensei abandoning her, wanting him to be as dependent on her as possible. As such, she's willing to do anything for him. Ami barely tries to hide this part of her, with most people immediately seeing past any attempts she makes at subtlety.
While brief, and often hidden behind a smile, the restraint with her love has been shown to have limits. At times, she snaps into shouts or passive-aggressive rants, usually at people who pry into her and Sensei's past. She may also snap at Sensei himself, if certain decisions are made.
Beyond her love for Sensei, she's shown to be a deeply compassionate and happy girl, often seen smiling and hanging out with her friends. She cares deeply for her classmates, even those she doesn't know or dislikes, such as Makoto. Often, she is the first to encourage the other students to be open about their feelings. She's also very emotional, openly crying around the class without embarrassment, and bawling nearly incomprehensibly at her mother's grave.
She's shown to be somewhat insecure about her body, becoming upset from insinuations about her petite stature.
Relationships
Sensei
Having adopted her after her parent's death, Ami holds a deep love and veneration for Sensei. She strives to be the best niece she can for him and has dedicated a large majority of her life to pleasing him. She's willing to do anything for him and usually complains about his attempts to make her more independent.
Her love for him most likely derives from her parent's death, wanting to cling to the last bits of family she can and keep them safe in fear that they'll be snatched away unexpectedly.
Ayane
Ami views Ayane as the main threat to her and Sensei's family structure, often competing with her to please him. Any attempts Ayane makes at publicly displaying her love for Sensei are usually quickly met with Ami's loud disapproval.
In spite of this, the two are best friends, caring deeply about each other. While Ayane often shrugs off her emotions, Ami is among the first to pry further. The two are part of the 'Sensei Love Squad', a duo dedicated to keeping Sensei's affections away from newcomers.
Maya
Ami is the only one in class that Maya is able to get along with, and the two often spend class together, talking about whatever comes to mind. She's one of the few people Ami openly confides in about her feelings for Sensei, much to Maya's chagrin.
Despite her own openness, Maya doesn't extend the same vulnerabilities. Even after knowing each other for years, Ami is still left in the dark as to Maya's family, past, or true thoughts on Sensei. Though she does suspect Maya likes him more than she lets on, expressing jealousy when the two hang out alone.
Makoto
Makoto position as student council president, and self-appointed assistant, causes Ami a great deal of jealousy. As such, she often teases her by making fun of her appearance or dismissing her intelligence as unimportant. This bickering is mostly superficial, though, as Ami was quick to offer her a shoulder to cry on after the death of her father, and even invted her over so they could talk about their pain.
Noriko
Noriko's openness about her feelings for Sensei is an immediate threat to Ami. Her emotional introduction to the class causes Ami to cry in confusion about Noriko's relevance and importance to Sensei, and from then on Ami's extremely territorial towards her. Much to her own annoyance, Ami finds it hard to actually hate Noriko due to her overwhelming kindness, and Noriko's own attempts to pander towards her.
Memorable Quotes
- "PLEASE DON'T DIE! I CAN'T REACH THE TOP SHELF YET!"
- "Without me, you'll starve! None of your clothes would ever be washed!"
- "A room full of sunshine- that’s my life with you."
Trivia
- There is Lessons in Love forum thread open on her computer in dorms
- Ami has the tendency to explain away the weird or surreal actions of the girls as 'cute girl magic'.
- In Walking on Air, if the player asks her to call him 'Daddy' the game glitches and asks for another name with a corrupted version of the title screen in the background.
- In the game/modification of Lessons in Love, The Legend of the Huggy Boy, Ami is repeatedly referred to as being Sensei's accountant.
