Ayumu Shiiba
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Ayumu Shiba is a fictional character in the manga Life by Keiko Suenobu.
Background
Ayumu Shiiba first appears as a student at Sakuradani middle school, getting back bad results from a class test; her best friend, Shinozuka (whom she calls Shii-chan), studious by nature, has the highest scores.
After school, as the two are walking home, Shii-chan tells Ayumu all about her dreams of going to a high school called Nishidate. Ayumu, not wanting to be separated from her best friend, vows to try much harder with her studies and pass the Nishidate entrance exam.
Ayumu asks Shii-chan to help her study and to give her all her class notes. Shii-chan then spends much of her own time helping Ayumu study; as a result, Shii-chan's grades start to drop. Ayumu, not noticing this, continues to ask her friend to study with her; Shii-chan reluctantly agrees. They then take the entrance exam, both expecting to pass. However when the results come back, they discover that Ayumu got in and Shii-chan did not. In a fit of anger Shii-chan tells Ayumu she was always a burden and that she was annoying Shii-chan by asking her for her help. This is when Ayumu starts to become a cutter (a manga-only trait of her character).
Ayumu forges ahead with getting ready for Nishidate; however, during this time she feels hurt and guilty, even to the point that she regrets ever trying to get into Nishidate. On the first day she attempts to keep to herself, not wanting to "hurt anyone else," but is unexpectedly befriended by Manami Anzai; self-confidence restored, Ayumu starts trying to make friends again, despite a lingering paranoia of being hated. Manami's group of best friends sense this and Ayumu becomes an easy target for bullying.
Her family situation differs slightly between the manga and J-drama. In the manga she has a mother and a very intelligent little sister (the latter named Akane), who their mother is always paying attention to; in the drama the sister is exchanged for a little brother, Makoto. In the drama, the explanation for her father never being home is that he's "always out of town on business trips"; however, in the manga there is no mention of him, hinting at a possibledivorce.
Character outline
Personality
Ayumu is seen to be very aware of what other people think of her. She has a large fear of being hated by others. She does everything in her power to try to make people like her. However when she starts being bullied by the majority of her high school She starts to overcome this and build up more of a strong character. This is partly due to her Idolizing Miki Hatori who is a strong, independent girl, also a student at Nishidate.
Ayumu is also a cutter but towards the end of the manga she also starts to overcome this.
Bullying
Due to a misunderstanding with Manami about Katsumi (Manami's Boyfriend) She becomes a victim to severe bullying, by nearly the whole school. This affects Ayumu, because of her sensitivity to what others think about her. However she befriends Miki Hatori and begins to overcome this. We also start to learn that Manami is just a general bully and that she seems to be the cause of all the bullying problems.
Appearance
Ayumu is first seen with shoulder length hair, however it appears to be shorter suddenly. It is unknown if she had it cut or cut it herself due to stress. In the drama the latter is the case. She is also shown to always be wearing a sweatband or her arm to cover up her scars from her cutting
Referances
- Life volumes 1-16
External links
- http://www.tokyopop.com = English publisher