Le troisième été

The transitions felt very authentic, but I'm curious if that was based on personal experience or pure imagination. Did the author have a specific message about change in mind?

Their ups and downs felt very real, and I kept wondering how much of their experiences were drawn from real life. Were the characters inspired by real people?

The pants seem to carry so much meaning—comfort, identity, change. I'm curious whether this symbol evolved during writing or was planned from the start.