NOO BUT ALSO YES BUT ALSO NO BUT ALS-

Perfect combination of avatar and sentiment.

Am I confused? Probably. This situation has nothing to do with a gay-perceived straight relationship. These girls are married. They present to the entire world as a lesbian couple. Even if they don’t think of themselves as anything but two people, they have explicitly put themselves on record as thinking that a same-sex relationship is fine and normal.
So why the slap? It seems totally out of character for Ruriko. And now I get confused, because I am unable to differentiate what I think Ruriko’s reaction should be and what mine would be. If I were in this situation, and was suddenly kissed by the woman I love, I would certainly not hit her. More likely would be that I would collapse in maelstrom of tears of happiness-confusion-fear of it not being real.
The conclusion. It’s a painful and unpleasant plot device.

Seriously. These people bringing up ultra-repressed scared lesbian shit make no sense. It's like they forgot which manga they're reading.

Thing is, they don't actually present as a lesbian couple. Like, Kurumi is literally writing about her experiences as a result of platonically marrying a friend. They included provisions for if they fell in love with someone else, but not each other. That sort of thing.

To be honest if my best friends kiss me without any warning, I;m still ok with it. The worst situation to me would be me being kissed by an intoxicated friend. It actually would be a good vibe. But then I myself live in an environment that romantic love tongue kisses are acceptable as something plutonic, or as samples of pure joy, slapping is alien to me. I do not care whether the kisser is male or female, being kissed to me is always a good thing. It does not have to be mouth to mouth, but mouth to mouth is better. Ruriko definitely has some serious issues going on.

Personally If I was her I could see getting smacked in my face as a reasonable reaction. Now why I would think she did it would be a whole other can of worms. Then again I've never been in a relationship (and barely any friendships at all and only if you count gradeschool) so maybe I'm just weird/don't know what I'm talking about. Conversely I'd probably judge myself a lot harsher if I'd done the slapping.

I'm gonna take the post irony reaction here and say this is great drama.

last edited at Jul 11, 2023 12:22AM

Actually, the easiest explanation would be that Ruriko didn't want to seem into it, or that by denying it for so long she was like "No this isn't real" or "I can't let this happen because she's drunk or can't let it happen cause she doesn't mean it". But yeah the slap was harsh in a way. But in a way I'm glad cause usually when drunk kisses happen they're on the lips. And two they're accepted. So I'm just glad it wasn't the usual route of "oh I kissed you drunk? I don't remember (but they secretly do remember)" I freakin' HATE that trope. I hate it. I HATE IT. SOOOOO much! So I'm glad it was like a twist even if right now it seems illogical. Cause I never slapped anyone for hugging me. Not even when I had bullies in my face did I strike them. But slapping a friend and your crush?? Does seem weird... and it was a kiss on the cheek. Like bruh what is that gonna do to you?? Nothing man. It should've been handled like "Hey, enough. Drink this water and go to bed." Or maybe the shock was just too much for Ruriko cause she thinks that Kurumi with never like her back. She is more of the depressed side even though she likes her cause she thinks she's the only one. And depressed people they tend to lash out so they won't get hurt, or when they're caught off guard. Ruriko because she's trying to hold herself back, she's in the closet, she's in denial, she's scared of what life would be like if they stopped living together, and she thinks one day Kurumi will leave her. So I mean yeah I can see how it could've been different. But Kurumi lately has been pushing the envelope a bit. More affection. The gifts. She keeps saying "I love you" even in like a public place. And since Kurumi didn't elaborate which kind of love.. that left Ruriko confused and she assumed it was as a friend since either of them have stated they're in a 'real' relationship. I'm just again glad it was a kiss on the cheek. Thank God for that.

I also get the impression that the author is under a lot of stress because this chapter looked really simple. Not much in the background. Hardly any toner or textures. It isn't rushed but it seems barren in a way. Simple. Perhaps that was on purpose so the chapter would be more impactful? Either way. I was surprised with the lack of backgrounds and details.
don't listen to me I'm full of shit LOL
But yeah it just seemed off somehow?

last edited at Jul 20, 2023 12:28AM

Still don't get the slap in the previous chapter, at least a normal reaction should have been a push, shucks

Just get a freaking divorce thenಠಿ⁠_⁠ಠ

I do like that this chapter draws the connection to domestic violence with the tv programm on in the background. Gives me some hope that the slap will actually properly be adressed aswell

After some considering I personally think Ruriko's slap was not that out of character for her. She has been in love with her friend for a long time, always believed and trying not to get high hopes for it. Suppressing her own feelings and suddenly her friend aka the one she loves kiss her. A lot of emotions could be going on in that moment, normally in story they could push away considering slapping represents some violence. But in reality it's not rare to happen, I also like the comment they said that was her "defense mechanism"

last edited at Aug 5, 2023 9:11AM

I do like that this chapter draws the connection to domestic violence with the tv programm on in the background. Gives me some hope that the slap will actually properly be adressed aswell

I feel like she was more worried about her forced drunken kiss.

It just occurred to me but Ruriko is pretty much quintessential "I don't know, I never thought I'd get this far"

well.... that was certainly a whole lot of nothing, what a way to waste all that built up tension from the last chapter.

well.... that was certainly a whole lot of nothing, what a way to waste all that built up tension from the last chapter.

a) storm's eye, a classical narrative trope, you have a conflict, an aparent calm with no conflict resolution, and the return of the conflict (usually in the other direction).

b) Not "nothing". We got comparing yuri with a sandwich (NOT a tuna sandwich, because this is a tasteful yuri manga)

It just occurred to me but Ruriko is pretty much quintessential "I don't know, I never thought I'd get this far"

This exactly. God i wish they would just talk yo eachother. Clearly for once.

The last two chapters really annoyed me. Last one because it really is a dumb way to squeeze in extra content into your story. And I know WHY it's done, I just disagree with it. I hate it. The story so far was nice with both of them growing closer and I'm not sure WHY we needed to go into a more stereotypical "But things will change" course. And I'm not saying this doesn't deserve some drama. There was some drama before and it fit in with the "unique" aspects of this story and didn't have to use your more "standardized" drama tropes

Second, that little comment in this (29) chapter with the domestic violence. Like I REALLY hope we're not going there. As stupid as the slap was or as idiotic as that kiss out of nowhere was, it really shouldn't be taken in the context of domestic violence of any kind.

Outside of that, this is a nothingburger that serves as a calm before the storm. And I really hope this isn't this author's way of having another meh ending to their manga.

Well one of two things happens now. One, they both recoil back into their shells and avoid eachother or what happened, setting back months of build up and progression between them.. Or Two, they actually sit down and discuss what happened, what it means and what happens next. The secret third route is that, they talk about it but instead of being fully honest with eachother, they just hide the truth.

It's going pretty much as expected tbh and I think that's okay. This was always gonna be one of the more slower burners, with romance.. I don't know if that's the right term but yh (or maybe love is a better term.) anyway, the end goal is basically for them to realise what their feelings are ig. Rn it seems like an affectionate love story and just wanting to be together, more than a normal "romantic" love, idk, it's hard to explain, all I can say is that obviously this all budding and new to them. I believe that this is supposed to be a different take on "love" and that's tripping some up, that are expecting a progression to a more conventional romance and personally, I am not much getting that vibe as much as of yet.

This comment was atrociously structured but I am really confused on how to explain the way I feel their relationship is with eachother, at least on a deeper level and where I think things are going. I just don't believe that it's supposed to be as conventional as some seem to be angling at, I could be wrong though, or even overthinking it.

last edited at Aug 5, 2023 1:03PM

That domestic violence report on TV got a chortle out of me, how convenient that she just got slapped yesterday :P I don't believe it's a sign of anything though, unless you expect Kurumi to call police on Ruriko so she can be arrested for this horrible abuse.

Suddenly, Kurumi realized she's craving clam!

That feeling you both had is love ☺️<3

Suddenly, Kurumi realized she's craving clam!

A nitpick: Kurumi says it's "cold clam soup" she's drinking, but her bowl is releasing clouds of steam. In both panels where the bowl appears, we see that the soup is steaming! That's not a cold soup. I think there was a small error somewhere in the translation.

Your honour I want a divorce, my wife went and KISSED me!

Kurumi doesn't seem to even remember the slap, which is an odd storytelling choice.

I hope we see them being wifes for real and this manga doesn't end in chap 40 or something like that.

A nitpick: Kurumi says it's "cold clam soup" she's drinking, but her bowl is releasing clouds of steam. In both panels where the bowl appears, we see that the soup is steaming! That's not a cold soup. I think there was a small error somewhere in the translation.

Boy, I sure hope someone was fired for that blunder.