I appreciate that you included trigger warnings in both the itch page and the game itself. It helped me make sure I was in the right head space before playing the game.
You did a good job showing Vega's depression and treating it with care. Some of his inner thoughts and comments hit hard and felt very real. He felt like someone who was hurting and in need of help and support.
I really liked his friends. Even with their very different personalities, it was very clear how much they cared about Vega and each other. They felt like real people, with their own identities outside of their relationship with Vega.
I enjoyed the art a great deal. It did a good job of giving me an idea of the type of person each character was. The backgrounds were also nice. They set the mood and feel of the different locations.
I think the Extras page was a nice touch. I liked being able to read a little bit more about each character in the Profiles, and I look forward to seeing what else is added as the game progresses. The way the profiles are presented also leave me wondering if there is more going on in this town than meets the eyes, and has me wanting to learn more. One thing I did acknowledge as feeling a little odd to me. Aza, Val, and Leo all have their hair listed with two colors, one being what felt like their natural color and the other being their dyed/highlight color, while Vega only lists brown even though he has blue highlights.
The rhythm mini-game was fun. It was a nice way to break up some of the story with something a little more action based. My first time playing it I really only played attention to the arrows and my timing. I was aware of the words at the bottom of the screen, though I couldn't focus on reading them and maintaining my rhythm. I tried it again, with the intention of reading the text and not trying to do the game part. That time I acknowledged that my score and combos was being tracked. I think it would have been nice if at the end of the mini-game, it showed a screen with my score and highest combo before continuing to the next scene.
I found the story engaging. The way it started really drew me in and had me invested right away. From the very beginning I wanted to spend time with the characters, and that only increased as I played. I really liked the inclusion of a non-binary character and adopted siblings that behaved like siblings. I did feel like I had very little control over what happened in the game. The rhythm mini-game felt like the main thing that I could really impact, while most other things felt more like I was reading a graphic novel more than playing a video game. The story was well written enough that I didn't mind it feeling that way, and I would enjoy playing the next part of the story when it's out. That said, I think having a some more options would have been nice. Things like being able to explore more places like I could in my room and the hallway, and maybe some dialogue options could help make the player feel like they have a more active role in the story.
I think the volume could use with a little more normalization. Some of the SFX felt a little loud compared to the music, particularly on the Menu and Extras pages. I lowered the SFX volume manually, which helped. It would have been nice if there had been a SFX and Voice line played when I adjusted the setting to make it easier to balance them. The voice acting was a nice addition, and it added a nice extra to the game.
All in all, I think you did a good job with this. I look forward to seeing where the story goes next.