Yubisaki to Renren Chapter 18 Discussion

tinywoodenrobot said:
THIS IS A MANGA ONLY DISCUSSION POST. DO NOT DISCUSS ANYTHING BEYOND THIS CHAPTER.
----------------------------------------
Hooray for Yuki's job interview going well! I wonder though, if she'll be able to keep up with how busy the cafe is on the weekends. I'm excited for her though.

Seems like her friend Oushi-kun decided to make it known to Yuki that he hates Itsuomi. I'm curious to see if he's actually planning on making a move, or if he's just going to lurk in the background and wait to see if things last between Yuki and Itsuomi.

The third thing is Itsuomi's friend the stylist having a hard time telling Itsuomi's ex that Itsuomi has a girlfriend now... which is subsequently making it harder for him to tell Emma that he likes her. Something tells me Emma is not going to take the news well at all.

KittenHasClaws said:


I think it's been pretty much confirmed by Kyouya in a couple of chapters that Itsuomi and Emma never dated. In chapter 4, Kyouya says to Yuki, "They're not going out. They're friends. And I don't think they'll ever date." Which to me says they never dated.

And then again in chapter 13, Kyouya and Shin have a phone conversation during which Shin says he'd always thought that "deep inside" Itsuomi liked Emma back, to which Kyouya says, "Yeah, no. I seriously don't think that's the case." So while we still don't have their full back story, according to Kyouya at least, the two never dated.

Which actually brings up something else that kinda bugs me...why is Shin so hesitant to tell Emma that Itsuomi has a girlfriend? Being nervous about confessing his feelings, I get. The girlfriend thing, not so much. While the two may not have dated, according to Kyouya (we just get all the good info from him!), Itsuomi has had previous girlfriends. So shouldn't this just be par for the course for Emma? I mean, she's liked him since high school. Unless Kyouya was referring to middle school girlfriends?

It makes me feel like there's something we don't know about yet. Not necessarily anything that may have happened between them, but more like maybe Emma's had bad reactions to him having a girlfriend in the past?

KittenHasClaws said:
Unpopular opinion (maybe?) - Oushi’s character doesn’t sit well with me at this point. Going all the way back to the first volume, there have been little red flags that just kept getting bigger to the point that his actions in this chapter really alarmed me.

1.) When he interacts with Yuki, it’s usually to tell her what she should or should not be doing, as if she can't be trusted to make decisions on her own, and sometimes even using her deafness as the reason why.

2.) He’s judgmental and immature. He decided he disliked Itsuomi based on his looks alone, and then after Itsuomi took the time to try and get to know him last chapter, Oushi still turns around and tells Yuki he hates him in this chapter. Side note: I’ve always wondered if Oushi was the one who told Yuki her speaking voice sounded weird...I mean, he had no problem insulting her appearance in chapter 11, saying for her to not get the wrong idea because he wants a “cute girlfriend”. Insulting her voice doesn’t seem like it’d be much of a leap.

3.) As of this chapter, he’s now escalated to stifling her speech - grabbing her hand so that she can’t finish her sentence seems like the equivalent of putting your hand over someone's mouth to stop them from talking. All because he doesn’t want her complimenting her own boyfriend. It's rude at best, and controlling at worst.

Remember, until very recently, he and Yuki were basically just acquaintances who knew each other as children. They never went to the same school until college, they never hung out in their free time...they didn’t even have each other’s numbers (Oh, and don’t get me started on him underhandedly getting Yuki’s number from her mother!).

If they’d grown up as BFF’s, I’d view everything above slightly different (very slightly). He’d still be overbearing, but I could at least somewhat justify it as him looking out for his friend with a little jealousy mixed in. As it stands now, he just comes across as selfish in his jealousy. He says he doesn’t want to lose to Itsuomi? He wasn’t even in the fight! He’s known her all this time and now that she’s fallen in love and is starting to expand her world, NOW he wants to throw his hat in?

I sympathize with him suddenly becoming aware of his complicated feelings for Yuki, but he has some growing up to do. He’s foreshadowed twice now about “if Itsuomi ever makes you cry”, but you know what? It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if it turns out it’s Oushi himself who makes her cry. He constantly treats her like a child and maybe one day he’ll catch her at just the wrong moment and it’ll be too much for her. Maybe then he’ll realize just how badly he’s been behaving and become an actual friend to Yuki.

KittenHasClaws said:


I think it's been pretty much confirmed by Kyouya in a couple of chapters that Itsuomi and Emma never dated. In chapter 4, Kyouya says to Yuki, "They're not going out. They're friends. And I don't think they'll ever date." Which to me says they never dated.

And then again in chapter 13, Kyouya and Shin have a phone conversation during which Shin says he'd always thought that "deep inside" Itsuomi liked Emma back, to which Kyouya says, "Yeah, no. I seriously don't think that's the case." So while we still don't have their full back story, according to Kyouya at least, the two never dated.

Which actually brings up something else that kinda bugs me...why is Shin so hesitant to tell Emma that Itsuomi has a girlfriend? Being nervous about confessing his feelings, I get. The girlfriend thing, not so much. While the two may not have dated, according to Kyouya (we just get all the good info from him!), Itsuomi has had previous girlfriends. So shouldn't this just be par for the course for Emma? I mean, she's liked him since high school. Unless Kyouya was referring to middle school girlfriends?

It makes me feel like there's something we don't know about yet. Not necessarily anything that may have happened between them, but more like maybe Emma's had bad reactions to him having a girlfriend in the past?

tinywoodenrobot said:


You’re right - it hasn’t been confirmed... although based on the way Emma behaves toward Itsuomi, I kind of get the sneaking suspicion they may have slept together. Either way there’s definitely more to the story than they’ve let on, and I’m curious to know what the full deal is.

KittenHasClaws said:


I sure hope not! Considering both Itsuomi and Kyouya know about Shin's feelings for Emma, that wouldn't have been very cool of Itsuomi. I've always had the impression that he tries to discourage her/stay away from her, likely because of Shin and, I assume, the fact that he doesn't want her getting the wrong idea.

But you're right that it's a possibility and it could potentially explain why her feelings for him have lasted this long. I mean, if it's been since high school, and assuming she's also 22, that's like 5-6 years! That's some dedication (or delusion?) considering he's constantly turning her down, at least in the present day. Maybe we'll get some more back story in the next chapter.

And speaking of back story, I also wonder about Oushi's other female friend, Izumi. She appeared very briefly back in chapter 15, but she gave me the impression she might also have a one-sided crush. I wonder if she'll get more page time in the future.

StellarIceberg said:
My god pipe down guys. Just enjoy the fluff ball that is Yuki.

StellarIceberg said:
My god pipe down guys. Just enjoy the fluff ball that is Yuki.

KittenHasClaws said:
Unpopular opinion (maybe?) - Oushi’s character doesn’t sit well with me at this point. Going all the way back to the first volume, there have been little red flags that just kept getting bigger to the point that his actions in this chapter really alarmed me.

1.) When he interacts with Yuki, it’s usually to tell her what she should or should not be doing, as if she can't be trusted to make decisions on her own, and sometimes even using her deafness as the reason why.

2.) He’s judgmental and immature. He decided he disliked Itsuomi based on his looks alone, and then after Itsuomi took the time to try and get to know him last chapter, Oushi still turns around and tells Yuki he hates him in this chapter. Side note: I’ve always wondered if Oushi was the one who told Yuki her speaking voice sounded weird...I mean, he had no problem insulting her appearance in chapter 11, saying for her to not get the wrong idea because he wants a “cute girlfriend”. Insulting her voice doesn’t seem like it’d be much of a leap.

3.) As of this chapter, he’s now escalated to stifling her speech - grabbing her hand so that she can’t finish her sentence seems like the equivalent of putting your hand over someone's mouth to stop them from talking. All because he doesn’t want her complimenting her own boyfriend. It's rude at best, and controlling at worst.

Remember, until very recently, he and Yuki were basically just acquaintances who knew each other as children. They never went to the same school until college, they never hung out in their free time...they didn’t even have each other’s numbers (Oh, and don’t get me started on him underhandedly getting Yuki’s number from her mother!).

If they’d grown up as BFF’s, I’d view everything above slightly different (very slightly). He’d still be overbearing, but I could at least somewhat justify it as him looking out for his friend with a little jealousy mixed in. As it stands now, he just comes across as selfish in his jealousy. He says he doesn’t want to lose to Itsuomi? He wasn’t even in the fight! He’s known her all this time and now that she’s fallen in love and is starting to expand her world, NOW he wants to throw his hat in?

I sympathize with him suddenly becoming aware of his complicated feelings for Yuki, but he has some growing up to do. He’s foreshadowed twice now about “if Itsuomi ever makes you cry”, but you know what? It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if it turns out it’s Oushi himself who makes her cry. He constantly treats her like a child and maybe one day he’ll catch her at just the wrong moment and it’ll be too much for her. Maybe then he’ll realize just how badly he’s been behaving and become an actual friend to Yuki.