This emotional distress is further depicted by the use of 'violent' onomatopoeia such as "Bang!" and ".the brrrr of those white guide things", conveying the extremities of his feelings and creating a relatable character with which the audience can empathize. This hatred however, is juxtaposed by Anh's reaction upon seeing his father, with the familiar phrase "You hungry?" creating an immediate flashback of their old relationship, which through idiom and oxymoron he describes as "a wave of comfort and familiarity hits me like a punch in the face." The connection which they once shared provides a challenge to Anh's hatred of the man, and hence Do reflects the ability of relationships to challenge an individual's beliefs and emotions. Connections can force a decision between retaining the things which make up one's identity; their beliefs and desires, or succumbing to the human need to belong, where choosing the former can result in alienation and isolation, however choosing the latter can result in a loss of individuality and sense of self by conforming to the beliefs and desires of others.
The converse notion however, is the way in which one's relationships with those around them can provide intimate feelings of inclusion and acceptance, a concept only amplified when considering familial bonds. Within Counting by 7s, the protagonist Willow is quite obviously confronted with many personal barriers to belonging, however she is able to use a deep connection with her surrogate parents to attain an important perception of belonging through which she can cope. In order to accurately depict the necessity of such a bond however, the author immediately establishes these barriers in the opening lines of the chapter, using anaphora to list, "I'm about to start a new school." I'm an only child" and other such negative contributors to belonging.
