Deft-Monkey wrote...
Personally, I believe that Kyle's academic, creative and athletic abilities are not present without reason. There are people who become like this(maybe not quite so to the bone) as a kind of compensation for past emotional damage.
From my recollection of the prologue(or was it Chapter 1 - whatever had the rape in it), Kyle didn't come across as being a perfectionist in all areas like he does currently. After 'losing' Sanae, Kyle's determination would not let him to give up on her, and as a result he has honed his skills in most every field because he strives to make something of himself in the eye's of Sanae.
I wouldn't say that Kyle lacks common sense and social skills. Nor should I think he is clueless around girls. Kyle is popular, but oh-so arrogant(or so I would believe), and he has not the time nor the patience to deal with those of little importance to him. His thoughts are almost always on Sanae(although decreasingly so, it would seem), so why should others matter, particularly? I think that in his case, common sense, social skills, and appropriate behaviour around girls, is superceded by his own ambitions.
I'm not sure whether or not you have noticed, but he behaves normally and appropriately around Alia most of the time. I think any outbursts would be due to her constant pestering, her bad timing, or simply some fault on her half(eg. Not sure if Raze deleted this part, but in Chapter 2 she tells Kyle how Sanae hates him - and she has such a way with words that happen to aggravate Kyle).
Perfect. Perfect. It's as if you took the words out of my head. This is exactly what I intended Kyle to be. He's a naturally gifted and talented person, but the drive and impetus for becoming almost impossible perfect and radiant is Sanae.
He wants her to recognize him, because since he raped her it's like he doesn't exist to her. This is why he showed off the best he could during that basketball game in Chapter 1. This is something I did myself in my high school days: I worked hard at excelling so that a certain girl would notice me... call it lame, but that's what I did. And it worked, but attracted all the wrong girls. I guess that's life for you.
Nor does he lack social skills etc. He just doesn't want to be seen as close to other girls when Sanae's around. As Deft-Monkey pointed out, Sanae is always present in person or as a subject whenever he makes a mistake. If Sanae were simply removed from this world, Kyle would still be talented and smart, but not overbearingly so.
About that second half of Chapter 2 where Kyle slaps Alia, yes, it's because Alia shoved the fact that Sanae hated Kyle in his face, causing him to lose it. I definitely overdramatised this however (like I said, this was not in my original plan), since Kyle and Alia are indeed duet partners, and he is fully aware that Alia is interested in him. Slapping her in front of the whole school isn't something I think someone as smart as him would do. Another reason I took it out is that there will be a similar scene soon, but of far greater magnitude, and I was worried it would look boringly repetitive.
Deft-Monkey wrote...
Also, in response to changing things earlier on rather than later on, I think that it would be better to do it near the end. But that I suppose would be if he were to get it published. My reasoning for this is that as the story progresses, better ideas than the original may come up and make the writer want to change some things that occur earlier on in the novel. With your comment about the last part of Chapter 2 which has now been deleted and is once again under construction, I think it's evident that things can easily change no matter at any point in time. Mmm... Well, really, there's no need to pay heed to what I've said in this paragraph, just a consideration.
Yeah, going back and changing parts of the beginning is definitely a must in a well-polished work. Indeed, I need to add something about Sanae in Chapter 2, about how she's seen in the school before the second half starts.