Abe is a minor but significant character who appears in the childhood flashback sequences of the film. He is introduced as a new boy who joins Taeko Okajima's fifth-grade class, immediately standing out as different from his peers. Abe comes from a poor family, and Taeko remembers him as being unkempt, with noticeably filthy shoes that marked him as an outsider among the other children. His family's financial struggles and his apparent lack of proper care set him apart in a classroom environment where conformity and appearance were important.

In terms of personality, Abe is portrayed as ill-mannered, unpleasant, and confrontational. He engages in bullying behavior directed specifically at Taeko, who sits beside him in class. His actions are typical of a boy his age who seeks to assert power and dominance over others, as explained later in the film by the character Toshio, who notes that normal boys like Abe enjoy bullying because it makes them feel powerful. Despite his tough exterior, there are hints of a more vulnerable side. He is acutely aware that Taeko, unlike her peers, empathizes with his difficult situation, yet he remains especially guarded around her. He pretends to be tough and unaffected by how the world treats him, and it is important to him that Taeko does not see his weakness.

Abe's role in the story is not as a fully developed character in his own right but as a pivotal figure in Taeko's childhood memories. He represents an unresolved emotional conflict from her past. The key incident involving Abe occurs when his family prepares to leave Tokyo. The class expects Taeko to shake his hand as a gesture of farewell, but she refuses, unable to overcome her hatred for him and the suffering he caused her through his bullying. This moment of childhood cruelty, in which she turned away from someone in need of kindness, haunts her into adulthood. She later feels a deep sense of guilt about her reaction, recognizing that she failed to show compassion to a boy who was likely acting out because of his own hardships.

The relationship between Abe and Taeko is therefore defined by a complex dynamic of bully and victim, but with an undercurrent of mutual recognition. Abe singles Taeko out among all her classmates, and the adult Taeko comes to understand that this targeting may have carried deeper meaning. As she reflects on the memory during a rainy night in the countryside, she sees Abe's face clearly against the rain, cold and lonely, swearing at the world. This apparition serves as a mirror, forcing her to confront her own patterns of behavior. She realizes that she has grown up with a sense of worthlessness and has concealed her vulnerability behind a facade of strength, just as Abe did. In this way, Abe functions as a catalyst for Taeko's self-understanding, helping her recognize how she has denied herself love and relationships by pretending to be strong.

In terms of development, Abe himself does not change within the narrative, as he appears only in memories. However, Taeko's understanding of him evolves significantly. As a child, she saw him only as a despicable tormentor. As an adult, she reinterprets his behavior through a more empathetic lens, acknowledging the loneliness and pain that likely drove his actions. The film suggests through Toshio's perspective that Abe might have even liked Taeko, a common explanation for childhood bullying, but the adult Taeko finds this interpretation too simplistic, preferring a more nuanced understanding of his behavior.

Abe has no notable abilities or special talents. He is presented as an ordinary, troubled boy whose significance lies entirely in the emotional impact he had on Taeko and the moral questions his memory raises about compassion, guilt, and the complexity of human relationships. His filthy shoes and poor appearance are the most distinctive physical details associated with him, serving as visual shorthand for his family's poverty and his status as an outsider.