kei_k's manga / #Bittersweet(10)

1. Yuma x Suwa (unrequited love for Kajima sensei, who already has a fiancee.). Yuma liked being on the same train as Kajima despite being risked of having men grope her because it was a time when they "share the same aura." She went out with Suwa but she wasn't really satisfied because the one she really liked was Kajima. She went on pestering Kajima, but he was resolute. He already has a fiancee and didn't consider her. She ends up just asking regards to the fiancee since she realized that there are a lot of girls like her who could only crush on him (earlier she was wondering why not a lot of people notice him when he stands out for her a lot). She goes back to Suwa. 2. Kanna x Haruta (Kanna x Haruta are childhood friends who ended up being friends with "friends since middle school" Asami x Mayama. Kanna liked Haruta but she was insecure about how he truly felt for her because he continued flirting with others, and when a convo about the motorcycle went like this, H: I'm going to let the girl I love ride on it. K: But I'm scared of motorcycles... H: Who said it would be you? So yeah, that made her feel like maybe he didn't really feel that way for her. So when Mayama asked her out, she went with him and kissed him. But then Haruta died the same night when he was hit by a truck while riding his bike, texting Kanna that he's coming (bec earlier, Kanna said not to barge into her room suddenly, and should at least send a text).. So yeah, Asami liked Haruta and confessed during the fireworks (this is also the time when Mayama made a move on Kanna) but he rejected her because he liked Kanna. Basically, they were going around in circles. Asami liked Haruta and knew he liked Kanna, but she pretended not to know and wanted Kanna to feel that things with them 4 shouldn't change... Mayama liked Kanna and knew Haruta liked her, too, but he pretended not to know, so when he knew Asami liked Haruta, he kind of pushed them to be together so he can get Kanna. Kanna felt that Haruta liked her because it was natural for them to be together and he was giving her sweet little kisses, but she was conflicted because he doesn't confess to her and instead goes on flirting with other girls. It's a heavy case for all of them so it was hard to move on. After he died, they just went on their separate ways because they felt like they were at fault. Eventually, they got together as friends again. 3. Mizuki x Kajima. The story of how Kajima met his fiancee. Started in hs. Mizuki was a 3rd year, who had unrequited love for her sensei who was getting married, while Kajima was a 1st year. They ended up being together, but since graduation was near and she's going far away, Kajima didn't want to be in and LDR. Mizuki asked him to come see her only if he's really serious about her. Six years have passed, he never once came. Mizuki came back and Kajima became a student teacher in their alma mater. They were somehow reunited by her niece. Seeing a guy with Mizuki in the hospital when visiting her dad, he assumed she had a bf so when asked, he told her he has a gf (w/c was later denied by her niece who liked him). After seeing Mizuki's guy friend (whom he thought was her bf) with another girl, he realized he misunderstood her and comes to her while she was sharing her regrets of letting him go just like that before. Anyway, they voiced out their concerns about that and went to his house to "see his dog" just like when they first did it. 4. Ai x Mayama. This is the same Mayama from #2. He was in her neighbors unit, taking care of his friend's goldfish while he was away. Anyway, they had sex, but Mayama couldn't completely get serious because he hasn't completel gotten over their past. It was implied in the end that he was conflicted of being with Kanna since they shared the same past but at the same time, wanted to somehow forget and move on. It's like he's a bit ready to move on with Ai, but he can't, at least until Kanna becomes happy with someone else again.

finished reading before, but latest re-read: FIN: 05/12/20

Really liked the main story.. Not a fan of the one shot stories though. 1st oneshot: Well, they could be using each other.. Like, the uke knew what he did when he somehow used the seme as replacement for his unrequited love, then the seme intentionally got the uke drunk to get some action again.. 2nd one shot: It's very realistic. Both Asaya and Yuu were worried about being rejected and all the complications when they were students so they didn't confess their feelings.. So when they met again a decade later, feelings re-emerge, but unfortunately, Asaya already had a family and Yuu was living with his girlfriend/fiancee.. Asaya tried to make "them" happen since he could no longer control himself, but thankfully, Yuu got back to reality soon enough and clarified that it's already too late for them since there are more people directly involved if they pursued their "mutual unrequited love" if that makes sense. Ugh. Well, sometimes, love really requires timing.. Too bad for them, but even though I like Shounen Ai/Yaoi so much, I still wouldn't tolerate it if they cheated. Well, I mean, basically, they already did cheat because they made out but I can only be thankful it didn't go further. For others, it may not have been a big deal with the other party being the same sex as their partner who "cheated," but for me, the gender or sexual orientation doesn't really matter. Cheating is still cheating. Forgiving cheating is almost impossible in my case, but of course, that would still depend on the character of my lover. If the good things about him outweigh that mistake and he can swear not to do it again (and if he does, it's over, no questions asked), then go.

Those scenes of Vivi with other women kind of put me off, but I enjoyed it overall...

Would've liked to know more about the concept of how he's there though.. It's a sad love story and while I'm solid against cheating, in this case, I can somehow tolerate it because it was clearly a political marriage and it wasn't clear if her husband truly loves her as well.. Anyways... Got brokenhearted when he said he got married and his wife's pregnant though I knew it had to be a lie to let go of their "what could've been"...