Normally, I wouldn't ask for it if the progression between paired characters is going well enough ... but after THIS?
Yeah, as shallow and territorial it may sound, some competition may actually be necessary here, because she's just that obnoxious.
Sorata also needs to (and deserves to) learn what it's like to be truly & actually valued, expressed to his face. Miyuki hasn't done that; arguably the
only person who has is Takaomi, and I'm pretty certain we're not swerving into BL with this series, as much as I think it would actually improve things.
But Sorata's gotten the short end of the stick since way back when they were kids; not only was his future decided for him by a couple old farts, he still earnestly put his all into trying to learn about Miyuki and make her happy, and we're now more than a decade on and he's been reduced to:
- enduring constant low-level harassment from all of their peers at school who at best don't believe they're engaged, and at worst actively deride him and his poor showing compared to her superhuman capability;
- being vilified by Merry/Mary, who ostensibly should have warmed up to him more by now, but is still met with hostility whenever she deludes herself into thinking Miyuki's being hurt by Sorata;
- being effectively conditioned and manipulated by Ayano into believing that Miyuki despises him, and that everything she says to him is a backhanded insult because of the dialect issue;
- putting himself down and working himself to the bone to try and measure up to Miyuki, because everyone around him (save Takaomi) tells him he's not good enough. Even when they were at the cafe in Kyoto and Miyuki's old friends showed up being like "surely this wimp isn't your boyfriend, also why did you go to such a shitty school?" and he had to stand up for Miyuki, while she said nothing in his defense.
Sorata doesn't have the allies he should in this series, as even Takaomi only ever really tries to help him when they're alone, and gets run over by both Miyuki and Merry otherwise...plus, he has his own stuff to deal with, being a child actor who gets recognized and accosted whenever they go somewhere together.
I'm not a fan of romantic rivals, but that's because they're generally there to shove drama into a narrative that doesn't often need it in that specific manner. But here?
Sorata should have someone who sees him for all the good that he is and does, and who will validate him to his face in no uncertain terms. I'm not going to be an idiot and wish for Miyuki to actually
lose in the romance game being played, because that is a fool's errand what with how perfect she's written and how hopelessly in love with her Sorata is. But I fully admit that I want her to suffer watching Sorata be happy around someone else who isn't afraid to say what they mean and treat him with actual respect and dignity, even if the end result is Miyuki finally pulling her head out of her asshole and making up her mind as to whether Sorata actually means anything to her, and then acting like it's the case.
