Synopsis
Ever since she was a little girl, the protagonist, Makoto, has always idealized the “homemaker” lifestyle—having the perfect husband, raising a family, cooking, cleaning, etc. She’s especially fond of children, hoping to become an elementary school teacher someday. So when a handsome, young single father suddenly moves into Makoto’s neighborhood with his son during the last few months of her final year of high school, her interest is instantly piqued; and due to a series of certain events, she can’t help but end up involved in both of their lives. But while Makoto might be enjoying her newfound situation “playing house” more than she probably should, not everyone seems to share in her sentiments.
Characters
Makoto
The protagonist. Responsible and always helping out whenever she can. She's more or less "The Mom Friend" to her two best friends, Hitomi and Ryuu. She loves children and wants to become an elementary school teacher. Has a soft spot for seeing fathers interacting with their kids, and is particularly interested in more "established and responsible" types of guys.
Hitomi
The protagonist’s female best friend. Long blonde-ish hair. Often butting heads with Ryuu over “hoarding Makoto.” Hitomi finds Ryuu to be obnoxiously annoying and way Too Much, but actually does find him to be a bit cute. Not necessarily into the same “homemaker lifestyle” that Makoto loves so much (she’s more of a lone wolf type), but is supportive nonetheless. Hitomi is super cheerful and friendly, and loves talking about boys with Makoto (when she can steal her away from Ryuu for more than 5 minutes).
Ryuusuke
Potential suitor. Ryuu is the childhood best friend of the protagonist. He has messy reddish-pink hair, freckles, and stands at about 5’6’’. He’s loud, irresponsible, and full of lofty ideas and hot air; he’s also the protagonist's self-proclaimed “boyfriend.” He’s always been in love with them, but since he’s quite the joker, nobody takes him seriously. He works in his family’s kitchen but he dreams of owning his own bakery—too bad he’s terrible at baking.
Takashi
Potential suitor. The young single father (24-26) who moves into the protagonist's neighborhood. He has brown hair, stands at about 6’’, and always has a tiny bit of stubble. His wife died about a year ago, and he’s still trying to manage raising his son while also working full-time. Takashi is responsible and always exhausted from being stretched so thin all the time. He’s having trouble getting over his dead wife. The protag initially helps out by cooking for him and his son, and also regularly picking up and dropping off his son at daycare. Takashi and his son both grow incredibly close to the protag over the course of the story.
Rin
Takashi's son, about 4 or 5 years old. He's a sweet kid but very shy, and is especially having trouble adjusting to life without his mother -- with Takashi working a lot prior to her death, Rin was pretty much on his mother's hip 24/7, so it's safe to say that Rin was much closer to her than Takashi. He has a good relationship with his father, but is still somewhat reserved with him; it doesn't help that Takashi isn't sure how to go about connecting better with Rin, either. However, Rin warms up to Makoto quite easily and grows attached to her.
Shouta
Potential suitor. Shouta works as an assistant at the daycare that Takashi’s son attends, about a year or two older than the protagonist. He’s very friendly and sweet, and a bit innocent. He stands at about 5’9’’ with blonde hair and blue eyes. Shouta also seems to have attachment issues to some degree, which may or may not have the potential to develop into more yandere tendencies. Shouta loves kids nearly as much or more than the protagonist. He seems to be keeping some sort of secret.
Hiro
Potential suitor. Hiro used to pick on the protagonist when they were kids a lot, to the point that Ryuu would stand up to him for her. Even now in their final year of high school, Hiro tends to mock the protag and her interests quite a bit. He hates children and finds Ryuu to be “an annoying runt.” Hiro stands at about 5’10’’ with black hair. Hiro has always found the protag to be cute and may even harbor a very small crush on her, but vocally insists that he simply finds her to be “pathetic.”
Ayako
Potential suitor. Class president. Artist. Smooth, cool, and very supportive. Light, pale blue hair (maybe?). Knows what she wants and is not afraid to go for it, but not in an overbearing or creepy way. Always lowkey flirting and giving the protag compliments that might be overlooked as simply being nice by most (especially since she’s a girl) but get the protag a bit flustered. Has always found the protagonist’s earnest interest in being a homemaker to be adorable. Coerced the protag into joining the student council prior to story.
So I hope all of that helps to give you an idea of the type of story I'll be going for, and I apologize for the wordiness -- brevity has never been my strong point, nor writing competent story summaries, haha.
As of right now, I'm currently working on fleshing out the story outline and getting character concept art finished. I'll be sure to post the concept art here when possible! I'm pouring my own money into getting things together to the point that I can perhaps create a kickstarter. The story will be pretty big, with 15 different endings (3 endings per route, of which there are 5), and some features such as unlockable prologue stories for each suitor character upon playthrough. I'm also considering the possibility of some H scenes, but I'm not entirely sure yet.
So -- what I'd like to know!
1. Is the plot cliche? Interesting? Boring?
2. How do you feel about the characters? Any critique? Favorite?
3. Is this something you'd be interested in playing, assuming you enjoy otome games?
4. Any other comments you might want to add!
PS: If this is something you'd be interested in partnering up with me to write and act as a sounding board, please let me know! I do intent to go the commercial route, so we can talk about profit sharing, assuming things go well. I'd love to have someone equally as passionate to work together with 1. Is the plot cliche? Interesting? Boring?
2. How do you feel about the characters? Any critique? Favorite?
3. Is this something you'd be interested in playing, assuming you enjoy otome games?
4. Any other comments you might want to add!
