Yes, yes it is cheating? Even if we assume that the fmc was polyamorous, instead of just a shitty human which her face implied in the cheating reveal page. What kind of stupid argumeny is that? If you had STD and didn't mention it to other party when having sex, you wouldnt call it a miscommunication. You would call ot being a horny asshole.

Exactly. Overall just poor writing tbh. Sucks cuz the arts rlly nice

man. this is too bitter

That why you castrated the cats :(

I kinda like the subtle hints here though, how the cat looks distressed like hikaru when they had sex. The mentioning of Mao becoming more distant (huge red flag for cheating, they didn't see each other for over a week), meeting the cat alone afterwards but she's fine cause it's just a cat. Meanwhile the human is devastated.

last edited at Mar 4, 2023 7:02AM

Yes, yes it is cheating? Even if we assume that the fmc was polyamorous, instead of just a shitty human which her face implied in the cheating reveal page. What kind of stupid argumeny is that? If you had STD and didn't mention it to other party when having sex, you wouldnt call it a miscommunication. You would call ot being a horny asshole.

yes to all of this

seriously even if Mao was poly, she should have told the MC or talked about it first. Having sex with another girl first before telling the MC was cheating.

anw the "Cat Love" title is probably a word play on Mao, because Mao means cat in Chinese.

last edited at Mar 4, 2023 8:15AM

Well, thanks, not like I needed a heart anyway...

What a ho

Don't get sad; get to stealing her new girlfriend! The start of a gloriously toxic relationship.

um i feel kind of hurt over the lack of analysis over the manga? not sure if i'm over thinking it... i thought this piece was a pretty decent (and hurtful) analysis of vulnerability? from my pov, it seemed as though the cheating tag didn't exactly feel right given the situation, though i totally understand that's where most of the outrage stemmed from.

i read it as "girl gets attached after a few one night stands" given that there's no explicit mention of a relationship mentioned? the title of "cat love" also seemed like a pun to me given the cat = bottom motif in japan, and how mc was the sex recipient in the manga sort of parallels. that + mao says a whole bunch of adoring stuff, takes care of the mc, and even offers to hook up multiple times, it really does seem that mc thinks that it's a courtship given that's the typical norms (you make advances + say nice things to people you like, and mao makes that 'clear' when she cooked breakfast for mc). despite that, it really was just mao doing whatever she liked, which mc couldn't tell/read, because all of the signs of being taken care of seems like the ideal image for a "bottom" -> cat love. you can tell mc even regrets wishing hatred on mao despite finding out the player scenario because she genuinely believed in that sort of romance.

yeah, it's got to hurt being in a postion like that for mc, and yeah maybe there isn't enough information being given, and yeah it's a story about cheating which usually gets flack on this site (i get it!) but isn't in-between-the-lines also an appropriate vehicle for story-telling? i think it was a nice read, and maybe the nuances of the story aren't being interpreted correctly. the wistful mood, mc's reflection and character parallels to the cats wasn't exactly for naught.

I never read any of them asking the other to have a relationship, I mean, you can cheat only if you have some sort of well-established relationship, in my book. So, I don't think it's cheating, it's just you may need to take time to sit down and ask what kinda relationship you have, want to have, and the model the other person wants too. I'm monogamous and would need to have the "so will you be my girlfriend" moment and then ask what that entitle to the other girrrrl.

I'm with other people in thinking that it wasn't actually cheating, but a difference of expectations and a lack of communication on Mao's part.

Just because Mao loves other women doesn't mean she didn't genuinely love Hikaru. Some people do be like that. Their feelings are not necessarily shallow, but they have a lot to share and don't feel like limiting themselves to a single person.

Saying "I love you" doesn't mean "I love you exclusively" in my book.

It reminds me of Tsuzuki in Brides of Iberis, who was in an open relationship with two men, and would have had no problem adding a woman. But Kashiwai was more of a monogamous person, so they broke things amicably in the end.

The only thing we can reproach to Mao here is that she didn't make things clear from the start.

That’s still cheating, though. If you enter into a sexual/romantic relationship with someone, while already being in a similar relationship with someone else, you’re cheating unless you’ve already talked it through with the other parties and gotten their okay. Without having discussed it first, being poly is not an excuse. Wanting to just be fuck-buddies is not an excuse. Being unclear about it, and then casually mentioning it once you’re about to be caught, is not an excuse. It’s just callous, selfish, shitty behavior.

Shit, now you’ve got me preaching. Long story short, there’s more than a few things about Mao that are worthy of reproach here.

Honestly not even sure I'd call this cheating? It seems like a big lack of communication on what each other want in the relationship. Mao seemed to want something open, Hikaru wanted and thought it was more. Like, she didn't even hide it. She just brought it up with a "oh hey there's someone else here btw" like, that's not a thing a cheater does.

I dunno if I'd call it "cat love" either, but maybe it fits. Mao was acting in love to pleasure herself without as much care about the other partner's wants and feelings so I guess it fits. But cheating, I dunno. Almost didn't even look like they were dating, just fuck buddies and Hikaru wanted/expected it to be more.

Full disclosure that I myself, am polyamorous so my viewpoints on this might be a bit different than most people who aren't polyam (though if others agree with me I'd be curious!). But also if I'm doing ANYTHING with someone I let them know my boundaries, expectations, and what I'm polyam lol. Like, that's important.

It all goes down if Mao ever told Hikaru that she wouldnt be the only one, if she didnt then yeah its cheating bc she wasnt being honest

Knew that the artstyle was oddly familiar. It's the same author from that one shot about the crazy obsessed yandere

My main point is that while I know the story is a short I'm taking issue with the author here, because nothing is fleshed out so it can be sad due to the lack of communication. The one woman doesn't say at the start that she wants to have numerous partners, and we don't get the exchange of what happens between them when the other woman finds out about the other partner. She just goes home and cries, there's no actual conversation between them shown or trying to work out the situation. We're just told to be sad because she's heart broken.

How can I be sad when neither character actually communicates anything and the entire situation feels hastily rigged by the author in an attempt to make the audience sad? I'm often pretty or even very forgiving of short stories, it's just something like this wants me to feel sad about the situation, when the whole thing doesn't really make sense in my opinion. That said, I'd love a sequel where they both find happiness and actually communicate with whoever their partner(s) is in the future.

I don't know why you would blame the author. Lack of communication does happen in real life.
I've seen tragic lack of communication before. A friend of mine started hooking up with one of their exes. They thought of it as friends with benefits. The ex took it as they were back together. It ended in tears and screaming. All it would have taken was one single honest conversation about what the change meant for their relationship to avoid it all. Not exactly the same but the same basic concept.

last edited at Mar 4, 2023 4:51PM

My main point is that while I know the story is a short I'm taking issue with the author here, because nothing is fleshed out so it can be sad due to the lack of communication. The one woman doesn't say at the start that she wants to have numerous partners, and we don't get the exchange of what happens between them when the other woman finds out about the other partner. She just goes home and cries, there's no actual conversation between them shown or trying to work out the situation. We're just told to be sad because she's heart broken.

How can I be sad when neither character actually communicates anything and the entire situation feels hastily rigged by the author in an attempt to make the audience sad? I'm often pretty or even very forgiving of short stories, it's just something like this wants me to feel sad about the situation, when the whole thing doesn't really make sense in my opinion. That said, I'd love a sequel where they both find happiness and actually communicate with whoever their partner(s) is in the future.

I don't know why you would blame the author. Lack of communication does happen in real life.
I've seen tragic lack of communication before. A friend of mine started hooking up with one of their exes. They thought of it as friends with benefits. The ex took it as they were back together. It ended in tears and screaming. All it would have taken was one single honest conversation about what the change meant for their relationship to avoid it all. Not exactly the same but the same basic concept.

I know miscommunication and lack of communication happens in real life. I'm blaming the author here because that aspect of the story feels poorly handled and written here to me. Due to that I don't feel the sad emotion that the author wants me to feel. If you disagree with me and the author's delivery worked for you, that's good and I'm glad that the story works better for you than it does me.

I only read it because it said Cat. ;_;

I almost did for that same reason, until I read your comment.

I don't know why you would blame the author. Lack of communication does happen in real life.
I've seen tragic lack of communication before. A friend of mine started hooking up with one of their exes. They thought of it as friends with benefits. The ex took it as they were back together. It ended in tears and screaming. All it would have taken was one single honest conversation about what the change meant for their relationship to avoid it all. Not exactly the same but the same basic concept.

I know miscommunication and lack of communication happens in real life. I'm blaming the author here because that aspect of the story feels poorly handled and written here to me. Due to that I don't feel the sad emotion that the author wants me to feel. If you disagree with me and the author's delivery worked for you, that's good and I'm glad that the story works better for you than it does me.

Well I'm not sure the author was going for a strong emotional response here. Like you said It was hastily done. You don't get to know the characters well enough to really get invested in them. I think the author was going for a simple "dick move cheater girl" or a "well that sucks" Kind of reaction.

Well I'm not sure the author was going for a strong emotional response here. Like you said It was hastily done. You don't get to know the characters well enough to really get invested in them. I think the author was going for a simple "dick move cheater girl" or a "well that sucks" Kind of reaction.

Maybe that's the kind of reaction the author was going for over a sad one, either way none of those possibilities clicked with me personally. I thought afterwards only how it'd be nice to get a happier sequel, and one that handles the subjects better.

Well I'm not sure the author was going for a strong emotional response here. Like you said It was hastily done. You don't get to know the characters well enough to really get invested in them. I think the author was going for a simple "dick move cheater girl" or a "well that sucks" Kind of reaction.

Maybe that's the kind of reaction the author was going for over a sad one, either way none of those possibilities clicked with me personally. I thought afterwards only how it'd be nice to get a happier sequel, and one that handles the subjects better.

To me, it didn't feel rushed, or like something was missing. It just felt generic. As if the author used archetypes of characters, instead of actual characters. Almost like the story was a visual outline, or a proof of concept for a bigger story the author has kicking around in their head.
Or maybe the author just hasn't learned how to write fleshed out characters yet. Who knows.

Hikaru Chan just drop the ho and grab yourself a pussy.
True cat love

We all knew what's coming but dang... Feelsbadman

This author really needs to make a longer manga, all these oneshots are so good

I find it so weird that what is clearly supposed to be a short story about a unsympathetic cheater becomes controversial.

Based on what little we saw Mao gave the impression that they where starting a relationship. Most people would think so if they found themselves in the shoes of the protagonist. Especially as Mao told the protagonist that she loved her. She lead her on and cheated, simple as that.

That there are some people who have this deviant point of view that is not shared by most people is not particularly relevant. Most people do not share this point of view.

I'm in the camp of it not being cheating. They weren't in a relationship in the first place. Maybe it's just me and my cohorts but exclusive relationship isn't exactly the default. Most people hooking up after meeting each other in a bar are just that... hooking up. Hells, I've had partners before who I've told explicitly upfront that I'm not looking for an exclusive relationship turn around and act like I led them on or betrayed them. Communication doesn't always make the difference. Sometimes feelings just happen even despite warnings. I remember feeling annoyed but I couldn't exactly discount what they were feeling either.

What strikes me the most here is that we don't really see Mao say I love you. We only hear about it from Hikaru, who assumed they were in an exclusive relationship. Did Mao really say it in that way or was "I like you" and similar sweet actions interpreted differently? She's absolutely smitten ever since the beginning. Then there's also "I totally wanted to get serious with her" which tells me they weren't serious at that point or hadn't explicitly made that distinction yet. Makes me wonder if I had said words to my previous partners that sounded innocent and friendly to me but felt like the beginnings of romance for them.

Bit of a jumbled ramble. Anyway, final thoughts is that Mao wasn't cheating but Hikaru is still valid for feeling hurt.

I'm in the camp of it not being cheating. They weren't in a relationship in the first place. Maybe it's just me and my cohorts but exclusive relationship isn't exactly the default. Most people hooking up after meeting each other in a bar are just that... hooking up. Hells, I've had partners before who I've told explicitly upfront that I'm not looking for an exclusive relationship turn around and act like I led them on or betrayed them. Communication doesn't always make the difference. Sometimes feelings just happen even despite warnings. I remember feeling annoyed but I couldn't exactly discount what they were feeling either.

What strikes me the most here is that we don't really see Mao say I love you. We only hear about it from Hikaru, who assumed they were in an exclusive relationship. Did Mao really say it in that way or was "I like you" and similar sweet actions interpreted differently? She's absolutely smitten ever since the beginning. Then there's also "I totally wanted to get serious with her" which tells me they weren't serious at that point or hadn't explicitly made that distinction yet. Makes me wonder if I had said words to my previous partners that sounded innocent and friendly to me but felt like the beginnings of romance for them.

Bit of a jumbled ramble. Anyway, final thoughts is that Mao wasn't cheating but Hikaru is still valid for feeling hurt.

then try to live in a more open circles? like this is cheating for the majority of the world you know?

your also taking the idea that Mao didn’t say I love you in the kind the MC perceived as! how do you know that? and that gives your garbage excuse to say it was not cheating LMAO any one that starts with love confessions and DOES not tell others that they are not in a monogamy relationship takes advantage of how the world works, and that not many people WANNA be in a open relationship, this is manipulation like wtf? how are you excusing such behaivour?