Kusunoki-san wa Koukou Debut ni Shippai Shite Iru - Vol. 4 Ch. 28 - I felt awkward and ended up avoiding you

[StuffedP]

alright im stopping here
this just feels like a pain in the ass to read trying to tolerate the mc's personality

 

[69funynumber]

The tomboy is right there...🙁

 

[SupremeDoc]

i see we're all drinking today

I find it quite amusing how people are judging the MC’s actions when, every time he tries to test the waters, she responds with "we are friends after all." It's not that she doesn’t love him romantically; it's simply that she doesn’t understand those feelings yet, as many have already pointed out. She’s never experienced romantic love before, while he has, even though it ended badly, leaving him with the emotional scars he carries now. She has put a significant barrier between them, making it even harder for him to confess, and he, in turn, has built his own barriers. He constantly goes out of his way to help her, and she’s fully aware of this, which is why she trusts him so much.

The friend zone concept isn’t new, but at this point, the MC realized his true feelings for her a couple of chapters ago. Now, he feels an even deeper sense of being stuck in the friend zone because he believes that if he tried to confess, he’d be rejected and would probably ruin their friendship. Even though we, as readers, know it’s unlikely, he doesn’t, and his trauma complicates things. It's easy for us to judge when we have all the information, but what would you do in his shoes, considering both the fear of confessing and the weight of past trauma?

We know she loves him. She’s already shown she wants to spend more time alone with him than with others, and she’s felt jealous before, like in the cafeteria scene. However, she doesn't yet understand those feelings. How will this develop? I don’t know, but if it starts to drag on, it could become tedious. While character development is good, too much drama can be overwhelming. In my opinion, if the author avoids making the MC overly melodramatic, that would be a plus. Just let things flow naturally. It’s not just about the MC growing; she needs to grow too. They’re alike and perfect for each other, but they both need to understand what truly matters to them. Right now, she’s comfortable with their relationship because there’s no "danger" of losing him or their time together, so she can’t fully realize how much he means to her. She’s protective of his feelings but doesn’t yet see him as a romantic partner. That’s not entirely his fault, nor hers. She just hasn’t experienced romantic love to recognize it yet.

So, chill, guys. There’s too much hate on the MC, though I agree he needs to develop more and work through his trauma.

holy shit someone with a brain under these comments. good analysis

I agree with this sentiment. It would be a lot better for the story for them to progress their friendship forward into a naturally romantic one. And during that time period, they both help each other out in overcoming their own internal demons.

I mean, at the end of the day we need to remember that in our own relationships. At some point that honeymoon phase ends, so you need to fall back on a solid foundation of friendship.

another person with a brain. that part of having a gf that you can also call a best friend is key.

 

[Thefox3201]

Emotional damage

 

[waandwe]

Kusunoki clearly doesn't have any intentions to move past being friends with him... It is shown very clearly here... I feel for the guy but he better just move on and find another girl instead... otherwise if they really want to become friends falling in love with her is a mistake and if he can't help it then I don't see this friendship to last very long... poor guy though

 

[Raynn77]

Is there such thing as friend between boy and girl ? 😔

 

[shinji_aether]

Aw bro got friedzoned 😭

 

[thatNEET_]

Yes, the "surprisingly" really was necessary. We were all thinking it too, considering how much he gawks at you, lol

 

[secondBLUE]

offf, that gotta hit hard

 

[FlyintotheBlue]

Guys don't be too hard on the MC, you all see now. He is facing a gaint wall of Friendzone.