I’m not sure if there’s a right or wrong choice in this situation... but somehow Kase is just rubbing me the wrong way. Kase is free to express her opinion and free to feel jealous, insecure or worried etc, but what she’s expecting if Yamada, is not the same expectations she sets on herself, and it comes across as a double standard. She complains that Yamada isn’t listening to her, but she’s not even listening to what Yamada says. Kase says “you haven’t been thinking about me at all” even though Yamada asked Kase first about going. Yamada said that she isn’t going because she wants to go to the mixer because she wants to look for someone, but because she wants to support her friend (who wants to go). I’m not sure it’s fair for Kase to judge whether Yamada’s explanation is valid either. Again, Kase it’s totally fine to express how she feels, but once she starts judging whether or not Yamada’s choice is valid it comes off as egotistical/narcissistic (especially since she neglects to tell Yamada what she is doing or ask how Yamada feels about Kase going on a trip).
I’m glad Yamada stood by her decision initially. In the end the reasons for Yamada going grew more complicated (not just to support her friend but also possibly because she was feeling neglected).
Yeah Yamada may not know exactly how mixers work, but they doesn’t mean she wants or needs Kase to save her. Part of growing up is figuring things out on your own. I can understand Kase’s desire to protect the person she loves but at the same time she also needs to respect her gf’s choice. And just because someone hits on Yamada, doesn’t mean Yamada will show interest in that person. Yamada is totally capable of saying, “NO” on her own (and in the past has been shown to be firm for certain things when pushed). Also, and more importantly, Yamada going to the mixer was just to be her friend’s wingman at a mixer (IE the friend wanted to go to a mixer (finding a date maybe implied, but not necessarily what the friend wanted ). I think being someone’s wingman at a dating event and dating someone can be mutually exclusive.
Maybe it’s because we see the series from Yamada’s point of view so we don’t know what exactly is going on through Kase’s mind... but from her actions, Kase seems to set a double standard. I would have thought Kase showing up was cool, but from her initial reaction it seems like she’s just trying to control the situation and doesn’t trust Yamada.
In the end though, they’ve still got a lot of growing to do, so hopefully the mangaka continues exploring the feelings and complications that come up. I think the mangaka has done a good job of showing growth on Yamada’s side (maybe because we seem to spend more time in her head) so hopefully we will also get to see Kase’s growth.