I really can't see his friend being anything more than just humour. Maybe, I hope I'm wrong? But I feel like he's gonna fumble it so hard and she's gonna just end up ignoring him and this causes maybe a pause on this situation and an escape for the time being on this idea.
I think we still need her to be a source of conflict and development in this manga. Because if they wrap it up now, I can see it continuing with trope-y 'next person up' characters that you see in a lot of other manga that are used to build relationships and provide character development.