Thing about Hiroko is: She's very different from your typical yuri protagonist.
Most yuri protagonists are basically interchangeable with a wide class of other yuri protagonists. There are the tomboy-ish "prince" characters, the bubbly genki girls, the studious bookworms, the ice princess class presidents, and on and on.
But I've never seen a character like Hiroko. She's a breath of fresh air.
And because I am an old fart with lots of experience in both life and love, I can remember the times when I, too, crippled myself and my romantic efforts by needlessly second-guessing myself. That fear that, no matter what I do, it's probably going to be wrong and I'm gonna blow it and ruin everything.
So I can relate to what Hiroko's going through, and have a lot of sympathy and empathy for her. And I am looking forward to the moment when the wall finally cracks and reality comes rushing in. Hopefully the mangaka can pull it off with aplomb.