After summer trip, Japanese school-style summer vacation won’t be perfect without a summer festival. Izumi could spent his summer trip in the previous episode safely, but once back home, he suffered from severe sunburn, leaving him unable to leave his bed much. In exchange after one week rest and could only speak with Shikimori through phone calls, he invited her on a date to a nearby festival where they’ll be doing fireworks. A year before, when Izumi was still friends with Shikimori, he had considered inviting her to watch the fireworks at the same festival, but his fear of Shikimori finding out about his feeling when they were just becoming friends didn’t sit right with him and he eventually missed out his chance. This time, now that they have officially dating, Izumi has no reason to hesitate to invite her out.
Although brief, I could guess what kind of relationship that Shikimori has with her brother, and it’s the type that I had expected. They have a normal siblings relationship. Shikimori is the type who could handle and endure critics from her friends and boyfriend, but not with her brother. She didn’t like it when her brother told her off, something that I can relate to because sometimes I was like that with my brothers (^w^). Shikimori’s reaction when her brother called her clumsy was exactly the reaction I had expected, including the “Huh?” sound that Shikimori made LOL
As usual, Izumi tried to be a good boyfriend by winning a wolf plushie at a shooting booth, only to fail miserably. And again, Shikimori took over, easily winning the plushie and gave it to Izumi with the same reason as him trying to win the plushie, she won it for him, and it hilariously brought out classic shoujo-manga style reaction from Izumi and the booth owner. She even decided to try out cotton candies despite her dislike for sweets simply because she has been watching Izumi enjoying it, so she thought she should try it out so they both can enjoy it together (which sadly couldn’t happen because Shikimori still couldn’t handle the sweetness). I swear, watching them having a date like this is far too good for my thirst for romance! It would be great if one day I can find a boyfriend and go on a date like this too! XD
While there’s still little background info about Shikimori, this episode revealed more of her inner insecurity that has been hinted in previous episodes. On the outside both are having a loving relationship and there’s no denying that they both love each other deeply. On the inside, both Izumi and Shikimori were always uneasy that their lover would eventually grow bored and leave them. There’s no need to ask about Izumi since he already gave the answer in the previous episodes. In Shikimori’s case, it turned out that all her actions like impressing Izumi or avenging him in some games were more than just her expression of love. Even though Izumi always showered her with affection, it didn’t stop Shikimori from worrying that he’ll leave her. That’s why she tried her hardest to look cute, perfect, and reliable in his eyes.
I praised Shikimori’s determination, but as I have noticed in previous episodes, this tendency of hers consequently increased Shikimori’s competitive side in regards to her boyfriend, causing her to lose sight of her true purpose. In this episode, she became too focused on trying to win against Inuzuka to avenge Izumi who lost against him that she almost missed watching the fireworks from the secret spot that Izumi knew from his father. Good thing that Nekozaki and Hachimitsu were there to remind her before it was too late.
I love how this episode tackled the insecurity of every couple who is still new in a relationship. When you love someone, you’d want to look good in front of that person in hope they’ll like you back. Once you enter into a relationship, you’ll wish that relationship can stay that way, urging you to do your best to keep the relationship steady. However, sometimes, trying too hard would actually made the person you in relationship with worried or you may even push them away without realizing. Izumi always see how perfect and careful Shikimori is when she’s with him, and he loves her for it, but he also loves her silly side and won’t begrudge her to just relax without having to be afraid to embarrass herself, because he will still love her nevertheless.
I was worried when Izumi must carry Shikimori on his back and walked up the stairs, thinking of the scenario that he will fall down while carrying due to his bad luck. I’m glad that didn’t happen and they could watch the fireworks together (although, he later tripped and must be carried by his dad who also watched the fireworks with his mother and watched Izumi and Shikimori’s intimate moment that embarrassed the two). Power of love prevails here!
This week’s Shikimori episode once again gave a lesson of how a loving couple relationship should be. Both side accepted each other wholeheartedly, including their weaknesses without judging them for it, and honestly speak when there are things bothering them.
