does Takamine ever change her expression?

I guess Sakura reminds me of Chitose from Yuru Yuri in general demeanor and appearance and I had the sudden realization that I've been reading all of her lines in my head with a soft Kansai drawl during this chapter XD It kinda fits her , I guess I won't fight it :P The brain does weird things sometimes.

Ooof, give her hugs and kiss away her tears, glasses girl! (⁠´⁠；⁠ω⁠；⁠｀⁠)

does Takamine ever change her expression?

she has the perpetual ರ⁠_⁠ರ face

Well what I'm getting is that she's getting tired with the books, because she likes Sakura and how she gets excited talking about what she likes but doesn't mean she can like books the same way she does, that's just an excuse right now,

I just hope that Takamine doesn't turn out to be another Adachi and she'll find something worth pursuing in her life outside of one girl. I do enjoy the story of self-growth, but there's always a small chance it'll conclude with none.

As a voracious bibliophile, I love the idea of finding books together.

Now I'm curious, how do Japanese folks find new books in bookstores if things aren't genre sorted? I'm guessing that the imprint serves as a shorthand for genres, like how Harlequin is all romance novels? How does that work for huge companies that publish tons of different genres?

I just hope that Takamine doesn't turn out to be another Adachi and she'll find something worth pursuing in her life outside of one girl. I do enjoy the story of self-growth, but there's always a small chance it'll conclude with none.

She seems to have something of a basic social life, plus an implied interest in sports (or at the very least volleyball), that's already two things more than Adachi !

does Takamine ever change her expression?

she has the perpetual ರ⁠_⁠ರ face

keyword: kuudere

The quiet tension between these two is crazy.

I don't mind a little angst being introduced but I do hope this ultimately leans more towards healing and fluff rather than going too far in the drama direction.

The quiet tension between these two is crazy.

I don't mind a little angst being introduced but I do hope this ultimately leans more towards healing and fluff rather than going too far in the drama direction.

Exactly what I thought!!!

the framing of this shit is impeccible

You know your yuri story is fantastic when you realize you’re content to hear about the character’s struggles that are completely separate from romance. This is simply high quality character drama of a flavor so different than what you usually see in yuri.

You know your yuri story is fantastic when you realize you’re content to hear about the character’s struggles that are completely separate from romance. This is simply high quality character drama of a flavor so different than what you usually see in yuri.

Agree with this. I get the feeling that most stories would position both Takamine’s decision to try volleyball for her friend and her decision to quit because of what she overheard as problems/indications of a character flaw. But Sakura puts those things in a very plausible positive light.

For all the angsty internal brooding this is very sweet.

the vibes of this manga just gets me.

I just love how soft and delicate everything is once again in this chapter. This pace really suits them best as characters, you can see them slowly understand each other more and start making an actual genuine connection. Takamine reminds me of Shimamura quite a bit, the ''going with the flow'' type who's actually quite introspective and sensitive deep down. She sees herself as someone who's just naturally lazy, but the truth is she's quite fragile and afraid to get hurt in the end. I'm looking forward to learn a lot more about her (and Sakura too of course!).

1. chapter spoke to me. I also feel that "I've just kind of existed" without anything that I would be excited about.

This was such a sweet and satisfying chapter. I have so many things I want to comment about and I can't find the words for any of them.

I love how tangible the character-building and growth are. Takamine going from saying she "...just kind of existed" to admitting that she always wanted to shine like those she looked up to was so incredibly satisfying, especially since those feelings she was describing are incredibly relatable. I don't think I've ever seen the notion that trying something one might not be interested in (or comfortable with) is incredible in and of itself brought up like this, and this is absolutely some level of projection on my end, but how this new perspective gave Takamine the legitimacy or context to come to the conclusion that she wants to have that "something" as well felt incredibly satisfying and organic. Like, I intended initially to start with a joke about how Takamine was going in the span of four pages a whole process that it took me 6 and still counting years of therapy to achieve, but no joke, this is exactly that, pretty much verbatim, too.

"The whole reason we're here today is because there's something you're looking for, isn't it?". I also love this. Both as a sentence in the context of the chapter's events and as an idea, a notion similar to the one about going out of your comfort zone. I don't think I've seen this used to "contrast" the idea that one's life is empty, definitely not in such a grounded and relatable manner. I feel that contrast isn't a fitting word, it wasn't there to go against what Takamine said she feels but rather to offer a different perspective to the one Takamine has.

I also just adore Sakura. I love how clumsily she started when she shared her perspective, and how once she got over the first hurdle she spoke openly and sincerely. You see that kind of reversed at the end, too, when she openly says how much she enjoyed herself and how she wanted to get closer to Takamine, but then got all clumsy when she tried saying they should do it again. I also love how it is contrasted by the straight and to-the-point response by Takamine. Also just page 25 with the beaming, excited smile. So cute.

I don't know if it makes sense, and I can't explain it, but those two feel like much more whole characters than in other stories to me. I'm guessing what I'm saying is that I agree with the comment above, this is high-quality character drama. I love this so much.

last edited at Aug 19, 2023 10:33AM

These two are just so adorable. Just a direct shot a sugar to my bloodstream

I just hope that Takamine doesn't turn out to be another Adachi and she'll find something worth pursuing in her life outside of one girl. I do enjoy the story of self-growth, but there's always a small chance it'll conclude with none.

Takamine has friends, she knows enough social cues to feel bad/uncomfortable with the volleyball club's situation and quit because she felt guilty. She's also actively trying to find something that she genuinely enjoys and wants to devote her time and effort into.

idk how you even think she will be another Adachi, she's like the opposite of Adachi.

I love how gently affirming she is! I can't wait until they fall in love.

I got a feeling that hirose likes Tsukasa

Very good slice of life so far. Nice art, realistic characters.
A sentimental education as well as a coming of age story. This is the kind of stories I like the most.

being the volleyball girl is suffering