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Ashiya finally admits her secret to the dorm heads, and Sano finally reveals he's known all along. The group agree, thanks to Nanba, to continue pretending she's a boy, but it's not long before the gossip spreads, and Ashiya has to make a choice.
While the book seems to swiftly end, and you have the lingering bittersweet feelings of the series coming to a close, it still leaves you with a smile on your face.
It's such a cute series. I'm glad I dove into the source material for the first Japanese drama I ever saw (and still one of my favorites). It's certainly one you can revisit again and again. It's a classic, and will always have a special place in my heart. :)
--Spoilers below!--
Not gonna lie, the entire time I was reading this volume, I was itching for Nakatsu's scene to show up, where he discovers the truth. And goodness, it took a while to happen x'D And to be honest, I was a bit disappointed in it. I thought it was going to go similar to either of the dramas (the remake used the manga's reveal), but how it happened here is actually...not as good, I feel. Part of what made Nakatsu my favorite character was his passion and care for his friends. Ashiya's secret didn't matter as much as protecting her did. It showed a level of seriousness and commitment he could have as a person, to put his own feelings and judgement aside to keep his best friend safe. And for Sano and Nakatsu to both know this secret together gave them further chances to bond and grow their trust in each other.
Here, he's told directly by Ashiya after he sees her binder, and while he shows support, I sort of wished there was more with him protecting and physically standing by her, like in the dramas. That said, you still see the rest of her friends struggle with the truth, but ultimately continue to stand by her side, all the way to the end.
In general, I feel like the manga's thematic message was a /little/ lost, where it's torn between being a love story and being a story about friendships where one just happens to have love. I feel like the dramas balanced that a bit better than the manga. I think the author was /too/ focused on Sano x Ashiya throughout the series.
Just like the show, gosh it ends so quickly x'D It's like 11 (maybe 11.5 lol) volumes of random antics, side plots, and such, and the last of this, if not less even, it's like--reveal, bam it's over. Like gurl plz ;o; But you still get that emotional conclusion. Seeing all the characters lined up side-by-side to see her off, oof, my heart!
The epilogue was a much needed touch that the drama lacked. The first rendition was absolutely lacking in a proper ending, where the remake gave you a /little/ more. But the manga definitely left you off feeling the fuzzy feelings and just general joy.
Despite my nit-picks, this was a good volume, hard to put down, and sad that it's over. (No doubt I'll be rewatching the dramas, again, after this, haha!)
For Japanese Learners:
As this is a series, my thoughts are the same as volume one, which you can read more about that + my thoughts on the series as a whole here: https://learnnatively.com/review/b012ff0d41/