Oh my gosh this episode was so chaotic and wholesome! I knew this newfound group would be a joy to watch. This time we got the study session, and it was hilarious. From the shock of the fact the boys are using the very text-books the girls used in middle school, to Saku revealing he’s even smarter than the boys gave him credit for (as he was the one to solve the problems in Kiyko’s textbooks)… except with one caveat: He’s absolutely terrible at explaining things. So nobody would get it anyways! Poor guy was absolutely mortified when he was confronted with the truth. He really tried so hard to help the others with their studies, only for it to be in vain of his own shortcoming.
As one would expect, considering both Rintaro and Kaoruko has been anything but subtle about their feelings to each other, naturally Shohei, Saku and Ayato have all been quite aware of it. The only difference was that Saku and Ayato had the tact not to call him out on it, meanwhile Shohei just bluntly asks him if he’s already dating Kaoruko. Gosh, that left me wheezing from laughing so hard! Poor Rintaro, he was SOOOOOOO EMBARRASSED! Now he’s extra self-conscious of the idea Kaoruko might have noticed! But gosh, he kind of set himself up for that one because he was completely in daze of seeing Kaoruko with her classmates across the street. He was lucky that none of his classmates seemingly noticed, unless they are showing enough tact not to ask about it too hahahaha. Heck, it appears he didn’t even notice Shohei was about to call out to the girls, but thankfully Saku moved fast enough to clamp his mouth shut and remind him they are supposed to be discreet! It was also really funny to see Saku and Ayato to keep Shohei in check and reassure Rintaro they won’t tell a soul about it! That said, it was adorable how Saku and Ayato gave each other a knowing when they noticed how Rintaro was gazing at Kaoruko during the study session!
It’s been nice to see Rintaro have some nice one on once talk with Saku and Shohei, and finally we got to see him do the same with Ayato. It was very wholesome to see Rintaro muster up the courage to consult him about ‘what it means to be dating’. It’s something that’s been on his mind ever since his first date outing with Kaoruko to the aquarium. While the boys have noticed he’s been acting strangel, they’ve been very patient in waiting for him to talk about it himself. That’s why this was yet another big step forward in their relationship, as Rintaro’s increasingly growing more comfortable with opening himself to his friends. Although Ayato couldn’t be fully helpful in that regard since he has never dated either, he did reassure Rintaro that it’s okay not to totally get it. That said, he did wisely point out not to ask this question to their classmates, as yes, he would 100% be interrogated by them, not to mention it would draw unwanted attention while they are all trying to lay low for Kaoruko’s sake.
Speaking of Ayato: I absolutely love how how he’s portrayed as this character who is sweet and quiet, but when he’s ready to kick someone’s ass or knock them down a peg, his whole vibe completely changes and I’m here for it. With the exception of Saku, who was like: “why are you guys being this way” Shohei and their team were on a gloating with the presumption they had the win in the bag. Well, they certainly got ahead of themselves, as just by acting like that prompted Ayato to turn to Rintaro and be like: I think we should pay him (Shohei) back, and Rintaro was right on board!
Next episode, it’s finally time to enjoy summer vacation, and there’s a bonus event to prepare for! Kaoruko’s birthday!
NOTICE: Due to an upcoming site maintenance that’s expected to potentially take us offline for a day or few, I’m considering postponing the release of Ep 11 entry. As long as I don’t encounter more hiccups (caused from being sick last week), I’m preparing to post an announcement later this week regarding an upcoming maintenance that may put us offline for a few days starting on September 15th. So I think it would be wiser for me to just hold off writing the entry and do it after I get that done. Please keep an eye out for that notice! If not, then I’ll release the entry on Sunday as scheduled! Thanks for understanding!
UPDATE 09/12/2025: I’ll be posting an entry on Sunday as scheduled. The maintenance plans have been postponed due problems I need to sort out first that popped up at the last minute (ugh). Until that’s resolved, everything will continue to be posted as schedule until I announce the maintenance date.
