Character Relationship Map: Lost in Time

Characters

• Yae Sawada (played by Sayuri Yoshinaga) — protagonist

  A paper-craft artist who moves from Tokyo to Hakodate after surgery for Crohn’s disease, Yae tries to build a quiet life while her health deteriorates. She is Kiyoko’s longtime friend and shares a com...

• Kiyoko Torigai (played by Shima Iwashita) — supporting

  A reporter in Hakodate and Yae’s longtime college friend, Kiyoko welcomes Yae and encourages Kosuke in his work. She and Yae both loved Shinichiro, and their shared history continues to shape their bo...

• Kosuke Takao (played by Koji Tamaki) — supporting

  Kiyoko’s junior colleague, Kosuke meets Yae while helping cover her work and becomes drawn to her. Their growing closeness offers tenderness in Yae’s lonely life. Kiyoko encourages him to take on new...

• Mitsuo Torigai (played by Koji Yamamoto) — supporting

  Kiyoko’s son, Mitsuo learns more about his father and confronts Yae because the adults have kept the truth from him. He grows emotionally close to Yae, a closeness that troubles Kiyoko. In the closing...

• Miyamoto (played by Tetsuya Chikushi) — supporting

  Miyamoto appears in Kiyoko’s story when she encounters him and he reminds her of Shinichiro Awaji, a man from their shared past. His encounter prompts Kiyoko to explain the history linking herself, Ya...

• Shinichiro Awaji (played by Ryūzō Hayashi) — minor

  A man from Kiyoko and Yae’s shared past, Shinichiro was loved by both women, whose relationship was complicated by their refusal to claim ownership of one another. He later became Mitsuo’s father. Tho...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Kiyoko Torigai → Shinichiro Awaji (Romantic Former Love) — Kiyoko's past love for Shinichiro is part of the complicated history she shares with Yae.

  Kiyoko explains that she and Yae both loved Shinichiro.

• Yae Sawada → Shinichiro Awaji (Romantic Former Love) — Yae's love for Shinichiro remains part of the shared history that affects her friendship with Kiyoko and Mitsuo's understanding of his father.

  Kiyoko explains that she and Yae both loved Shinichiro, and Yae admits that she has loved both Kiyoko and Shinichiro.

• Shinichiro Awaji → Mitsuo Torigai (Family Father And Son) — Mitsuo's discovery of more about his father exposes a concealed part of his family history and leads him to confront Yae.

  The synopsis states that Shinichiro later became Mitsuo Torigai's father.

• Kiyoko Torigai → Mitsuo Torigai (Family Mother And Son) — Their family bond is strained when Mitsuo learns about his father and confronts Yae over the adults' decision to keep the truth from him.

  The synopsis identifies Mitsuo as Kiyoko's son.

• Kiyoko Torigai → Kosuke Takao (Professional Senior Colleague And Mentor) — Kiyoko guides Kosuke's reporting work, including encouraging him to interview Yae and cover her work.

  Kiyoko is a reporter and Kosuke is her junior colleague. She encourages him to take on new assignments and to interview Yae.

• Yae Sawada → Kosuke Takao (Growing Romantic Closeness) — Kosuke's growing affection offers Yae tenderness during her illness, and their bond culminates in her expression of gratitude as she says she is going.

  Kosuke becomes drawn to Yae after meeting her, and the synopsis describes their closeness as bringing tenderness into Yae's lonely life. Yae expresses...

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Kiyoko Torigai → Miyamoto (Social Past Acquaintances) — Their encounter brings Shinichiro and the women's shared past back to Kiyoko's attention.

  Kiyoko encounters Miyamoto, who reminds her of Shinichiro Awaji.

• Yae Sawada → Mitsuo Torigai (Social Emotional Confidante) — Their closeness develops amid Mitsuo's anger over the concealed truth, and Yae's presence becomes meaningful support to him.

  Mitsuo confronts Yae after learning about his father, and the synopsis says he grows emotionally close to her. He later tells her that she has already...

• Yae Sawada → Kiyoko Torigai (Social Longtime Friend With Shared Love) — Their enduring friendship is bound up with their shared past with Shinichiro, creating both attachment and pain. Near the end, Yae asks Kiyoko to forgive her.

  Kiyoko is described as Yae's longtime college friend. Kiyoko explains that they both loved Shinichiro and that their relationship was shaped by their...

Story Analysis

Yae's fragile new life brings affection, illness, and buried truths into the complicated bonds linking her, Kiyoko, and Mitsuo.

Plot Progression

1. A New Life in Hakodate — After surgery for Crohn's disease, Yae moves from Tokyo to Hakodate, where Kiyoko welcomes her. Yae begins a quiet life centered on her art while continuing to struggle with her illness.
2. Tenderness Through Art — Kosuke meets Yae while helping with Kiyoko's work and becomes drawn to her. Kiyoko encourages him to interview Yae, whose art and dyeing process reveal her thoughtful outlook.
3. Illness and Old Memories — Yae develops a fever and receives worrying test results, though she believes she may recover. Kiyoko's encounter with Miyamoto brings Shinichiro and the women's shared past back into view.
4. The Family Truth Emerges — Mitsuo learns more about Shinichiro, his father, and confronts Yae over the truth that was kept from him. Yae acknowledges her love for both Kiyoko and Shinichiro, exposing the pain and attachment in...
5. Forgiveness and Farewell — Mitsuo grows emotionally close to Yae, while Kiyoko struggles with that intimacy. As her condition worsens, Yae asks Kiyoko for forgiveness, thanks Kosuke, and hears Mitsuo tell her that she has alrea...