Of course, the secret is still under-wraps— how? Thanks to the cloudy baths. Oh man, you’d think this would be the moment she gets exposed, yet somehow both of them are able to keep their cool enough that they aren’t acting too out of character. It’s crazy and impressive how Izumi actually manages to keep up his poker-face, but even he knows he’s at his limit. He’s not sure if he’d be able to hold-back from “officially” acknowledging the fact she’s actually a girl. And frankly, the case of Mizuki’s ‘how dense can you be’ is one to be studied, because even she should’ve figured out that he has figured out the truth already! Like goodness, you’d think that the part where he tells her to keep her spoiled vest on would maybe make her think about the correlation of it and the fact they had not just encountered each other in the baths, but she had also tripped and fell into his arms, which at this point I can’t help but shout: GURL, COME ON NOW!
And you know it’s just downright insane when Julia who’s been around for less time has already figured it out. (That said, she’s on the same level as Izumi when it comes to taking notice for things, as even he has noticed she’s onto him). How stupid is Mizuki? And the answer to that is simply: Yes. Nothing more, nothing less. Unfortunately despite how charming she is, and the goodness of her heart, considering how outrageously reckless this plan was, yeah, you have to accept she’s pretty stupid. Sheer luck and kindness are the only two reasons why this whole scheme is flying in the first place, but I digress.
But it’s fair to say ignorance has been a bliss for these two, and Izumi revealed today why he’s been set on stubbornly keeping his mouth shut about it. At the end of the day, it’s really to protect what they have right now, being roommates and comfortable with one another. The moment the two of them are on the same page, it’ll be that much harder to hide his own feelings, and vice versa.
And not to mention, Izumi’s waaaaay ahead of Mizuki when it comes to understanding his feelings towards her. Mizuki’s only starting to clue in that her platonic feelings of admiration for Izumi has evolved into a romantic one. She has been slowly becoming more conscious of the reason why she’s getting more flustered around him. The girl has been feeling silly things to be jealous about when we know and she should also know by now that Izumi would be happy to take a picture with her and so on forth. In-fact, they are so close, to everyone around them, you may as well say they are dating at this point!
Speaking of dates, well they got something as close as they’ll get of the sort in the mean time. Izumi had asked Mizuki to hang out with him so he could open up about his family situation. Yet despite the fact it was a very sober topic, Izumi was still doing very boyfriend-like things, like trying to keep Mizuki warm with his jacket, all while just barely keeping enough distance in order not to be ‘too’ intimate. (Not to mention, having been able to spend time together with Mizuki, Izumi said it was nice to make some new and better memories of the time spent in his hometown.)
That being said, Izumi’s strained family situation with not just his father, but now also his brother is really a tragic and messy one. Their dad used to be a high-jumper athlete too, and growing up it was fun to be trained by him. But after a horrific car accident where only their father, the driver survived and their mother tragically deceased, the father they once knew had died along with her. Undoubtedly ridden by survivor’s guilt, not only did his career as an athlete come to an end, but he had also changed as a person. What was once a fun bonding time of a shared passion for high-jumps with father and sons, quickly turned into a nightmare. Izumi ultimately picked-up his bags and left because he couldn’t deal with the way his father’s coaching methods had changed into being so locked into setting records. His brother, likely felt betrayed and abandoned by Izumi’s departure also turned away, and now become a problematic kid.
I feel bad for their step-mother who’s probably trying to keep the family glued together. Her husband’s in the hospital due to high-blood pressure, the youngest child is getting himself into trouble, and Izumi refuses to come home, let alone willing to visit his dad at the hospital. It’s really a depressing situation. That’s why Izumi was scolding his brother for causing problems, because he knows this kind of behaviour will only cause grief for their stepmother.
With that said, of course while it’s frustrating that the secret is somehow still not out yet, this was still a very nice episode. I must say though, (and I’ve mentioned it on and off again throughout the coverage), but the further along we get, the more I’m genuinely surprised how little I remember the original material from the manga. But it is really nice to be able to experience it freshly new all over again!
