I’ve always wanted to color some of my favorite scenes in the manga version of Candy Candy, and Page 147 of Volume 8 is my number one favorite. When I first read this page, it struck me that perhaps Albert wanted to kiss Candy! (Albert should be wearing a black shirt, but for some reason in this picture the color of his shirt changed. Anyway, I colored it black to match the rest of the scene.)
Coming home after some deep contemplation in the park, Albert astonishingly found that Candy had cried over the depressing news of Terry and fallen asleep on top of a pile of scattered newspapers and magazines. Believing that she must want to see Terry to comfort him, Albert carried Candy to bed and apologized for hiding the sad news from her. Meanwhile, watching her sleep, he said her name in his mind, wiped the tear stains from her cheeks and gently stroked her hair. To me, his gesture was full of love, not merely a friendly one but rather romantic. At least that was the impression I got from the drawings by the mangaka, Ms Y. Igarashi.
Having just recovered, Albert appeared far from thrilled. In fact, he looked somewhat troubled, if not afflicted, like having some inner struggles or something. Anyway, the song “Can’t help falling in love” by Elvis Presley came to my mind, and part of the lyrics is shown here:
Wise men say only fools rush in
but I can’t help falling in love with you
Shall I stay
would it be a sin
If I can’t help falling in love with you
Like a river flows surely to the sea
Darling so it goes
some things are meant to be
take my hand, take my whole life too
for I can’t help falling in love with you
…
Lately, when I re-read this page in Japanese, it seemed to suggest that Albert was in love with Candy. Why?
Because of the way he stared at her while continuing his inner monologue, remembering the hardships she had endured until now, and the thought in his mind, “君を幸せにしたい…” (I want to make you happy…)
Note that the Japanese word 幸せ carries a deeper meaning than happiness. Albert didn’t simply want to please Candy or cheer her up. Rather, he decided to do something which would make her happy and content in a sense that she got what she wanted in her life (a good example back then is when a woman was married to a man she loved and got a family with adorable children). Perhaps, Albert considered tracking Terry down (he had been missing for a long time) and somehow led Candy back to the young actor? Near the end of the manga, Albert did that finally, leading her to Rockstown, but who would have thought that Candy had no interest in reuniting with Terry?
Come to think of it, when a man wants to make a woman happy, that implies he loves her. As a matter of fact, I happened to find a love song in Japanese that says exactly this, repeatedly (like a chorus):
I love you I love you I love you 君を幸せにしたい (I want to make you happy)
After that, Albert decided to stay living with Candy, concealing the fact that he had already recovered his past memory. For your interest, please read my earliest post for Signs that show Albert was in love with Candy (Part 2).