Following up on Hotaru’s confession, we finally got to learn how Saki began his pursuit for love! It had all started thanks to the advice of an old man who looked out for him at the park he’d hang out at during his elementary days. Saki had a good enough relationship to trust him enough to complain about the things that are hurting him, such as his parents delaying their return home, and expressing his doubts of whether they even care about him at all. And the old man did the one thing that Saki’s grandmother probably would’ve had a harder time telling him to do at this age, which was: Forget about his parents, it’s about time he live freely too. The old man gave him a beacon of hope to cling onto, and that is to find someone else that he truly loves, his soulmate.
And God damn, thank god for that old man and his grandma, otherwise Saki would have truly been alone, and god knows what would’ve happened to him if they weren’t in his life! I’m so glad that Saki had at least someone to talk to when he was little. It also appears the earrings he cherishes had either belonged to the old man, or he looked to get a matching pair. Either way, it’s an endearing thing to see.
Now we can understand why Saki has been searching so hard for love. He hopes to find his soulmate, and receive the love that his parents deprived of him.
It’s good to know that Saki’s grandmother cares for him at least. She was the one who had been raising him in his parents steed. It was Saki who had chosen to move out once he got into high school, but she would’ve been fine with him staying, and even said she would’ve dragged him back home with her if she saw he was living an unhealthy lifestyle. But for now she’s respecting his wishes of living on his own, and seems to pop in to check in on him on a fairly regular basis. Better yet, it is a relief that he and his grandma have a good relationship. Saki cared enough about her to fret over her burning herself by accident while cooking.
I’m also really glad that his grandma had explained to Hotaru more about Saki’s broken relationship with his parents, and even called them out for neglecting their own child while they go off to volunteer (that’s right: not ‘obligated’ work) helping other children in need. Like geez, it’s no wonder Saki cuts out all of the children from the photographs. The sheer audacity of his parents to even send him those! Those pictures are just a slap in the face, and only serves as a hurtful reminder of them abandoning him for their own selfish interests of ‘helping others’. Like what the hell! You can’t expect a child to be “understanding” of that sort of thing! Unbelievable. It’s no wonder Saki has such deep-rooted insecurities when it comes to relationships! And to make matters worse, he has only gotten more wounded in the process of looking for his soulmate, as he struggles to find ways to maintain his relationship, but either his desperate efforts only makes him off-putting, or his partner doesn’t care to form a deeper relationship or understanding as to why he’s so fixated of being their special person.
That’s why Saki has such a strong resolve regarding love. He’s been searching long and hard for the one, but it wasn’t until he finally met Hotaru when things just seemed to finally click in place. Up until now, no one seemed to be willing to understand him, or recognize his insecurities, or started dating him for superficial reasons such as just because he’s good looking, and then back out because he wasn’t what they bargained for.
So bearing that all in mind, it’s understandable why Saki had asked for some time away from each other after Hotaru had confessed. He wanted to give her time to be absolutely sure that she liked him, and that she’d be okay with his insecure and the possessive side of wanting to make her his alone. I do appreciate that he is being upfront about that though, as it is something to consider. However while Saki may not believe himself to be truly capable of it, Hotaru sees that contrary of what he says, he’s capable of caring for others outside of her.
And I’m glad Hotaru has such a mature outlook to love, and we do have to thank her friend Kyo for her guidance on that. Hotaru knows that her love and Saki’s love are not exactly the same, but just she still wants to form a romantic relationship with him. And I just loved how earnest her confession was to him, and how she was the one who basically ended up asking if he wanted to date her, it even made Saki cry. And the forehead kiss was the cherry on top, such a sweet way to wrap up the second confession considering Hotaru was convinced they were going to kiss on the lips haha! These two are so wholesome! AHHHHH THE FLUFF!!!! SO FLUFFY!!!
For bonus points, it is also worth mentioning that it’s really all thanks to the two having such good communication with each other that they made it this far in the first place.
Hotaru never turned a blind eye to his pain, nor ran for the hills because she doesn’t want to have to deal with his emotional trauma. She has had enough self-awareness to sense when something is off, and actually made the effort to communicate and understand the cause of his insecurities, and was also the one to teach him that it takes two to be in a relationship (and that applies to all forms of it). It’s impossible to be sustained if it’s entirely one-sided or someone is only focusing on the things the other’s preferences, rather than sharing anything about themselves.
In turn, Saki has made a lot of effort to change for the better, starting by breaking the bad habits that have stemmed from his desperation for affection. He has also begun to start caring for himself, learning to do new things like cooking and cleaning (as according to his grandmother). He has also done his part of helping Hotaru overcome her own trauma. He was very patient with her, willing to give her as much time as needed for their ‘trial’ to help her determine whether she has fallen in love or not. And whenever her trauma from elementary made her doubt herself for the lack of ‘tact’, or even her ability to even fall in love, he always gave her the reassurance to keep her head up.
And lastly, speaking of the elementary days: We learned that Saki did in-fact live in the same area as Hotaru when they were little (at his Grandma’s place). So now we just have to figure out if he went to the same elementary school, and whether he was even in the same class or not.
