>>150198581
>>150198749
There is a specific point, and it's not after Lucy's jump. Volume 5 had relatively little Mike screentime, but when he did show up he was well-liked, sensitive, witty, had a bit of a chip on his shoulder, and things were generally going pretty well for him - in the few instances he seemed sad or self-loathing, it was appropriate and proportional to the situation. Pic related for an example of Mike's general attitude circa Vol. 5.
But then, a few days before school started, Mike had that stress dream that was actually a psychic premonition, and then Lucy came back - and he immediately got clingy, desperate, and started having wild mood swings and symptoms of schizophrenia. His general mood, social standing, and sympathetic/compassionate nature all dropped off, leaving him profoundly unlikable both in-universe and to many readers.
The clear trigger is Lucy's presence. Mike went through the same pattern during his falling out with her post-confession through to December. The only difference is then Mike was (usually) able to keep it together and confine his depressive hostility to Lucy specifically. There were times where he lashed out or was sullen and oversensitive, like December, but for the most part he was fine so long as Lucy wasn't either present or the topic of conversation.
