Doushitemo Furetakunai (どうしても触れたくない, roughly translated as "No Touching At All") is a 2008 Drama Yaoi manga by Yoneda Kou.
On his first day at his new job, Shima meets a hangover foul-smelling man in the elevator that turns out to be his new boss, Togawa. Shima is an isolated, quiet man that is trying to get away from his past in his new job, while Togawa is a quirky, outgoing guy. The two end up starting a shaky relationship when Togawa grows curious about him.
The manga's extras contain a spin-off called "After 9 Hours" that follow Onoda, a friend of the two main characters, a little while after the end of the main story. This spin-off became it's own manga called Soredemo, Yasashii Koi o Suru (それでも、やさしい恋をする, roughly translated as "Even So, I'll Love You Tenderly"), which includes a prequel to the spin-off following Deguchi, Onoda's gay friend that is in love with him, the extras from the original manga, two other doujinshis from this spin-off called "The World In Color" and one sequel chapter.
The manga has a Drama CD and a live-action movie adaptation that follows Shima and Togawa's romance, of which DVD came with another extra chapter.
Tropes
- Armored Closet Gay: Shima's ex hated the fact he was gay and desperate to hide the fact he was in a relationship, he would publicly harass Shima a work and accuse him of being obsessed with him, only to come to Shima afterwards and beg for forgiveness and occasionally even blame Shima himself for this treatment, saying he was too kind for his own good.
- Breakout Character: In the author's notes, she says that one thing that prompted making an entire spin-off focused on Onoda was the fact that he was such a popular character with fans.
- Call-Back: In the spin-off, Shima's ex approaches Onoda and asks him about Shima, saying that when talking to the phone, it felt like he was with someone very rude, which Onoda immediately understands to be Togawa. This is a call back to a chapter where Shima's ex tries to call him, but Togawa pics up and says they're having sex then and tells him to never call again.
- Catchphrase: "Liar", which Togawa says whenever he notices someone isn't being truthful to him.
- Central Theme:
- Not letting your past define you or weigh you down.
- Life is full of uncertainty.
- Character Development: Over the course of his relationship with Shima, Togawa starts drinking less and even tries to start quit smoking (with mixed results). Shima, meanwhile learns to not let his past weigh him down.
- Chekhov's Gun: At one point, after being scolded by Onoda for smoking in the office again, Togawa decides that it is about time he gives up smoking, so he picks a new pack he just bought and writes "Forbidden" (in the form of the kanji 禁) in it and gives it to Shima, who now has to guard it away from him. About a month after their breakup, when he is rummaging through his stuff trying to find a business card for Onoda, Shima finds the pack of cigarettes and breaks down crying, which prompts Onoda to talk to him and later, him making up with Togawa.
- Closet Key: Onoda finds out he is actually attracted to men after he started developing an attraction to Shima.
- Dark and Troubled Past:
- Shima was in a terrible relationship with a man who would publicly harass him at work and blame him for work mistakes in order to hide the fact they were in a relationship.
- Togawa's father died in a car crash, which prompted his mother to go crazy and eventually set her house on fire in an attempt to kill herself and her children, but Togawa and herself survived, though not his little brother. 5 years later, Togawa's mother would kill herself when she left jail leaving Togawa alone with his grandparents.
- The Faceless: Shima's ex's face never appears when he shows up in Shima's flashbacks. Even when he actually appears and interacts with Onoda in the spin-off, his face still doesn't show up.
- Gayngst: Shima had a troubled relationship with a closeted man who harassed him at work to hide the fact they are a couple, this made him permanently close himself to love, and believe any man he dates will eventually leave him for a more socially acceptable relationship.
- If It's You, It's Okay:
- Deconstructed. Togawa's interest for men is limited to Shima, and it's part of the reason why Shima is so insecure about the relationship and certain that, Togawa is just experimenting and will eventually leave him, especially since his previous relationship was with an emotionally abusive partner that left him messed up. However, reconstructed in the end confirms that Togawa is genuinely in love with him, and the two start a steady relationship, with Shima being the only man Togawa is attracted to.
- Togawa, in an extra, mentions that he is jealous of women that might be interested in Shima, because if he could fall for a man, it's possible that Shima might fall for a woman, so he is wary of anyone that is interested in him.
- Important Haircut: Following their breakup, Shima cuts his hair, and he mentions to have finally understood why people cut their hair after relationships.
- Long-Distance Relationship: At the end, Togawa is transferred to Kyoto, and Shima breaks up with him, but get back together and start dating long distance because Shima decides to stay in Tokyo since he thinks it would be bad to quit two jobs so close to one another.
- Meaningful Name: Shima's name is the kanji for "Island"(嶋), which implies his insular attitude.
- Minimalist Cast: For the most part, the manga has basically three characters: Shima, Togawa and Onoda, with Togawa's boss showing up twice in the middle of the manga and Shima's ex mentioned multiple times but never named or appearing until the spin-off, for a total of 5 relevant characters, out of which the reader will spend most of the time with only two or three. The spin-off adds Deguchi to the mix and it's about that.
- Pretty Boy: Shima is largely described as such, though Yoneda Kou's style is much less traditionally pretty than most yaoi artists.
- Rule of Symbolism: When Shima first visits Togawa's place, he notices there's a picture that is always down on its shelf, which is a picture of Togawa with his family. As their relationship progresses, the picture is often propped up in the shelf, showing that the relationship has helped Togawa heal some old wounds.
