Kinkyori Renai/Close Range Love Chapter 22

This Chapter is entitled Uni's Wish. We pick it up from the previous chapter. If you recall, Uni was resting in the infirmary. She asked Azusa who was beside her whether he was the one who saved her. Azusa, who was in love with her decided to lie and told her that he was the one who saved her. Uni was heart-broken as she thought that no matter how she called out for Haruka, he would not respond to her anymore...

Chapter 22 opens with Uni's academic position in school sliding down to Number 2 in her cohort. Saki is Number 1. Her good friend, Nami, expresses her disbelief. Uni stares at the grades and comments in her heart that it is her English that pulls her down. She scores 52 for English.

Haruka walks past and tells her to see him in his office later as her grades for all have remained the same except for English and he wants to talk to her.

Meanwhile, Azusa looks on and decides to speak to Kou Sensei to find out more about Haruka's behaviour. Kou is shocked to learn that Haruka has broken up with Azusa. Azusa tells Kou that he knows that Haruka is still in love with Uni but he doesn't understand why he did what he did.

Kou tells Azusa that she used to be in love with Haruka when they were in the university. He seemed so cool and distant and was always surrounded by girls. Even so, he seemed aloof and private and didn't want to talk about his past or himself. Kou heard some rumours that Haruka is estranged from his father and has been staying alone since 17 years of age. However, she noted that his personality has changed drastically since he going out with Uni. He smiles often and seems really happy.

Kou asks Azusa:" Don't you want the person you love to be really happy?"

Azusa:"You mean you want me to tell Uni the truth?"

Kou tells him she prefers he gives Haruka a punch as she believes... (the scene switches to Haruka and Uni sitting in the career counselling room).

Haruka tells Uni that he is concerned of her grades and if she has any questions she must approach him. All Uni can think of is that Haruka is smiling at her. At that moment, Azusa barged into the room and pushed Haruka to the wall. Azusa calls him a coward and that the reason for him to hide his love for her is because he is afraid that she will leave him for another person. Haruka leaves Uni first so that he can prevent himself from getting hurt in the future. Azusa confesses to Uni that Haruka was there to save her too during the sports meet.

Upon hearing that Uni assures Haruka that she will not like anyone else. Haruka maintains that he doesn't know what they are talking about and he leaves the scene.

Uni tells Haruka that she will confess her love to him everyday. (the rest of the scene depicts Uni's hilarious methods of confessing her feelings)

On the last day of school before the winter vacation, Uni goes in search of Haruka to confess her feelings. One of the staff tells her that Haruka has left for the train station to take a train back to his home town. Uni is hurt and discouraged to know that Haruka has gone home to avoid her. Azusa seeing her despondent look decides to help her get to the train station on time. With Uni sitting behind him, Azusa cycles to the train station as fast as he can. Along the way, Azusa asks her for the cat clip he has given to her. He tells her that he fell in love with the girl who was so happy to receive the clip from him. He wants to see her with that smiling face again.

Uni manages to get to the station just to see the train leaves. She rushes up to Haruka and with tears in her eyes she tells him that she loves him today and will continue to love him tomorrow. Although she cannot promise she will love him forever, but she knows that by his side she can conquer all difficulty. As the train departs, Uni shouts after it telling Haruka that she will wait for him to come back to look for her.

Days past and Uni has not received any news from Haruka. On Christmas day, Nami asks Uni to help her sell cakes to earn some part time income. Nami asks Uni whether she is will be going out with her mysterious boyfriend later on. Uni tells her that he has not contacted her for a long time. Uni thinks that Haruka has given up on her. Overwhelmed with emotion, Uni covers her face with her hands as she cries. Nami tries desperately to calm her down. Suddenly, a hand reaches out to uncover Uni's crying face. Haruka looks at Uni and tells her he is back.

Nami, unaware of their secret relationship, thinks that Haruka is here to buy cakes from them. Haruka asks Nami to be quiet and he apologises to Uni for lying to her and hurting her. He asks her to take him back into her life. Nami, in shock, stares at Uni. Uni slaps Haruka in a desperate attempt to prevent their relationship from being exposed. They start to call each other names. Nami is too shock to react. Finally, Haruka holds Uni's face in his palms and tells her that he is afraid of losing her. He did what he did because since he was born, he lost things he really wanted. He says he believes what she said and he will believe in them.

Uni is touched. She asks Haruka:"Nami is in shock now. Is it alright for her to know about us?"

Haruka:"I'm ok. Come here."

Both Uni and Haruka hug while a shocked Nami looks on.

Ok. That ends chapter 22. A sweet chapter. I like it that Haruka, a cool guy on the exterior, can lose confident when it comes to relationship. I like it that he has opened up to Uni and is beginning to tell Uni about his past. I believe Haruka's past will be an obstacle for them both in the later chapters. I like Uni's straightforwardness in expressing her feelings towards Haruka. I like Azusa's sweetness too. : ) I like this chapter.

迷雾中的蝴蝶/Kanojo wa Uso wo Aishisugiteru Chapter 17

Isn't this cover page cute? I like the slogan. "No Mush, No Life." : )

Narration by Aki: My ears are good and sensitive at picking sounds... therefore...

...I expected the sound coming from the TV in the living room to be audible...

The compare in the TV:" The last song for this evening, performed by Mari, is 'Missing'." One of the Crude Play member asks if she will really sing the song tonight (suggesting that she doesn't sing live and her songs are usually edited).

One of the Crude Play members is surprised that she is singing live without editing. He thought she dislike her songs unedited.

Shinya comments that Mari seems strong but she is acutally rather cowardly. Shinya wonders what stress Mari has faced to force her to sing live. Shun comments sarcastically that the very person who stressed her is talking nonsense. Shinya responds that as usual Shun sees everything. Others respond that they are impressed by her quality of voice...

Fans were impressed... Shinya comments that Mari will have difficulty singing the next bar. He wonders what will happen... Shun stares at Shinya...

Suddenly, Mari stops singing... They wonder whether she has forgotten the lyrics...

Shun stands up and comments: "Someone has to be responsible for finding fault in her work and pushes her to improve." He walks towards Mari...

Scene switches back to Aki and Riko... Aki pulls apart from Riko and stops kissing...

Aki:"I did not do what I promised (that is to keep to one kiss)... I seriously very much want to kiss you..." Riko blushes.

Riko:"It is good you can't do without it..." Aki is surprised at Riko's honesty. He sighs... (I think he is going to have a serious issue in controlling).

Scene switches back to Mari. Mari faints in Shun's arms.

Narration: Live broadcast studio is about 6 km from my home. It takes about 14 mins to reach there by train. At the same time when Mari faints, and my friend makes a move for my sake, I'm at home indulging in kissing Riko.

Takagi telling the reporters :"It is low blood pressure. Not to worry."

Reporter:"Is she pregnant?"

Takagi thought reporter was talking about Mari having Shun's child and he told him the thought is too ridiculous. Reporter flashes a photo of Mari with Aki at the restaurant and asks why they have a meeting in such an open place. He asks:"Isn't that Crude Play's Aki?"

In a serious note, Takagi tells the reporter that the truth of matter is simply that Mari fainted and Shun moved in immediately to help her. He tells the reporter that he is relying on him to report this.

Scene switches to Shun and Mari at the hospital.

Mari: "This is the worst..." Mari tries to light her cigarette but she can't. Shun offers to light hers using his.

Shun:"Are you still going out with him?"

Mari:"Well."

Shun:" Let's get married?"

Mari tells him in a serious tone that she refuses to talk about her private life. Shun replies that she seemed very scary. Mari retorts that since Aki likes her, she cannot be that disagreeable. Shun reminds her that currently, Aki has "mushroom" in his life and she is his new girlfriend. Mari insists that she is the one Aki loves.

Shun grabs Mari by the hand...

Scene switches to Shinya and the rest of Crude Play in their vehicle. Shinya tells them that Aki's face is likely to appear in tomorrow's paper if not for Shun who appear to help Mari. One of them asks why. The other explains that a photo of Mari and Aki meeting was taken and Takagi san didn't try hard enough to stop the reporter from reporting.

Shinya thinks that things will get interesting as there will also be rumours about Shun and Mari. He thinks that rumours will fly thick in the air as Shun, a member of Crude Play with Mari is more sensational than Mari with an unknown man. However, Shinya thinks that this, (Crude Play's Frontman's love affairs) will have an effect on Crude Play's popularity as Shun is the poster boy for Crude Play.

Scene switches back to Shun and Mari. Shun kissing Mari. Shun:"Let's get married."

Mari slaps Shun.

She tells him not to belittle her.

Scene switches back to Aki and Riko. Riko is talking on the phone with her parents. She tells them she is going home now. As Riko is talking, Aiki silently apologises to her by putting his palms together. (I like the wink)

After Riko hangs up, Aki apologises to her again. He tells her he will send her back and explain to her parents.

Riko suddenly shouts:"It is unnecessary!"

Confused, Aki asks why.

Riko: "What to say? I'm late because we kissed?"

Aki:"I can't say that. "

Riko:"Then what are you going to say?"

Aki:"I want to greet them formally and say that I am Ogasawara and I am dating your daughter. Ogasawara Aki."

Finally, I got this out. Thank you 腐女子for correcting my mistakes.

Many things happened in this chapter. Most importantly, Aki has told Riko who he is. I wonder whether Mari is pregnant and with whose child. I hope she is not or this can get quite complicated. Moreover, Aki's identity will be made known to the public. How will he deal with that? Also, I wonder what feelings does Shun have for Mari. I don't understand and see the need of him kissing her. Perhaps he is angry with her insisting that Aki likes her and not wanting to face reality or see him as a potential partner?

Tell me your thoughts.

My Creation

Summer sales and colourful, bright ensembles have tickled my creative juices. My recent shopping spree yields pretty pieces that beg for accessories to enhance them.

Beading, and making jewelry is one of my many hobbies. : ) Thus, I sat down and created this pretty ring. It reminds me of the sea and the beautiful corals. Sigh... this is indeed a therapeutic exercise. : ))

Junai Labyrinth/ Pure Love Labyrinth

This series is serialised in LaLa. I did not read it carefully until recently as its drawing style didn't appeal to me. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I decided to read through it carefully. I love the story. Funny and it has enough dramatic elements to make me come back for more.

Ogiwara Umi is a typical 16 years old high school girl. Her mum is hungarian and her father is a very busy producer in the TV station. Personally, I would think that having a hungarian mum is not so typical in Japan, right? Anyways, let us continue. However, Umi has a not so typical older brother, Ogiwara Haruto. He is good-looking as well as an up and coming star actor. What is not so common in this otherwise typical shoujou manga is that Umi is in love with her own brother. She drools over him like many of the teenage girls. She keeps sneaking into his room and sleeps on the same bed with him (nothing indecent happened but the mangaka intends for us to know that by the side of Haruto is where Umi feels most comfortable). She daydreams about going on dates with him. Interestingly, Haruto loves Umi too. Haruto, on the otherhand, tries to hide his intense feelings towards Umi. He has been feeling very guilty about these feelings. In one of the chapters, he was staring at the sleeping profile of Umi and feels a sudden tenderness towards her. Without thinking, he bent over and kissed her lips. Their grandma saw him and Haruto was shocked. However, Grandma told Haruto that she wanted to be kissed too! (Yes, this manga's shock elements make the manga rather hilarious). Grandma, went back to bed and quietly asked herself whether he knows. This made me think that Haruto and Umi may not be blood-related. (Dramatic, right?)

Enters Kishima Reira. He is the other bishounen in this manga. He was introduced into the series as the next door neighbour of the Ogiwara household. Reira is also in showbiz. He is also an up and coming star. He is a singer. Needless to say, Reira's character grows to find Umi attractive and that got Haruto jealous.

Reira and Haruto could not get along. They behave like natural enemies when they meet. However, during one performance, both Haruto and Reira were made to sing together. Fans went crazy. That was the first time, Haruto sang in public. Not only was his singing well-received, the fans like to see two of them together. Hehehe... of course this allows for more opportunities for Reira to show his interest towards Umi and getting Haruto all jealous.

Currently, this series is at chapter 14. I will start summarising Chapter 15. Look out for it.

Faster Than A Kiss Chapter 36

For the fans of Faster Than A Kiss. This is a very brief summary of Chapter 36, the latest chapter of the series. I like this chapter. Hilarious and I like to see Ma kun losing self-control and getting all jealous.

Fumino has not told Ma kun about Shouma's kiss. She has decided that she will not tell Ma kun about it. She chooses to see the whole incident as a childish prank.

Whilst Fumino is in class during Ma kun's lesson, Shouma appears and asks her for a date. Fumino is shocked. Not knowing how to handle the situation and fearing that Ma kun will be affected, Fumino grabs hold of Shouma and runs, shouting (at the same time) that it is hot and they shall go to the library.

Alone with Shouma, Fumino tells Shouma to quit harassing her as this will affect her relationship with Ma kun. Choosing not to respond to that, Shouma tells Fumino he has tickets to the amusement park. Fumino is frustrated that Shouma doesn't seem to understand that she doesn't want him around her. She tells him she is not going.

Shouma expresses his surprise that she has not let Ma Kun know about their kiss. Fumino tells him that she has no intention of letting him know.

Shouma tells Fumino that one day, she will be by his side. (He seems very optimistic).

Fumino laments that Shouma doesn't understand at all.

Meanwhile, back home, Fumino and Teppei welcome Ma kun back home. Ma kun pins Fumino to the ground and asks her about the date with Shouma. She tells him that he suggested to go to the amusement park. Ma kun wonders what weakness she holds towards Shouma...

Fumino feels trapped. She can't tell Ma kun what happened. Seeing her expression, Ma kun gently kisses her forehead and tells Teppei that they are going to the amusement park. Teppei is very excited. He suggests that Megu chan and Shouma come along. Fumino hesitates...

At the park, Ma kun thank Shouma for the invitation. Fumino feels extremely uncomfortable. Shouma asks Fumino who suggests and how did the date become a group meeting. Both Shouma and Ma kun grab Fumino's hands at the same time. Shouma looks at Ma kun and tells him that the amusement park is near school. He loudly proclaims that Ma Kun is holding his student's hands. That comes as a shock to all and Shouma takes the opportunity to run away with Fumino.

Throughout, Shouma tries to keep Fumino with him and away from Ma kun. Out of frustration, Ma kun expresses that he observes that Megu chan seems rather calm given the situation. Megu chan replies that she agrees and it is obvious that Shouma is in love.

Megu chan tells Ma kun that she thinks he is amazing to remain quiet seeing all these.

Ma kun replies that it is not true at least since knowing about his wife's kissing incident.

Shouma takes Fumino to the haunted house...

Ma kun finds out from his students that Fumino has entered the haunted house. The house is set up to help couples come together or to make couples. On hearing that, Ma kun's face turns dark. Ma kun asks Megu chan to take care of Teppei...

Ma kun shouts for Fumino. Shouma tries to hide her behind him and prevents Ma kun from getting her.

Somehow, Ma kun reaches behind Shouma and carries Fumino away... He opens a cabinet and tells the actor (who hides there to scare visitors) he needs to borrow the place. Ma kun's facial expression is much more scary than any of the actors or props of the haunted house.

In the cabinet, Ma kun tells Fumino that he is angry that she does not sense Shouma's feelings even though they are often in contact. Fumino wonders whether he is angry and upset with her.

He tells her she is not to put on Shouma's T-shirt (I suppose that means when Shouma hid her behind him in his shirt), she is not to be surrounded by him...

...She is not to be kissed by him! Fumino realises that Ma kun knows about the kiss.

Fumino cries thinking that Ma kun must be so hurt... Ma kun sees her tears and apologises to her. He tells her gently that they will go somewhere...

Shouma thinks to put an end to his feelings for Fumino...

I think the next chapter should be an interesting one. Finally, Fumino's and Ma kun's relationship will progress to the next level. : )

Sukitte Iwaseru Houhou/ Make you say, "I love you" Brief Summary of Chapter 1-6

Hi All,

I have promised to give a brief summary of the chapters thus far and give a more detailed writeup on Chapter 7.

Nanoka is a pretty girl but deep down inside she is insecure. To confirm her popularity and attractiveness, she tries hard to make an impression on guys. She would pay them attention and smile sweetly at them so that they would like her. This also resulted in many guys confessing their feelings to her.

In the oneshot story, Nanoka used her "get popular" tactics to get Haruto, the president of the cooking club to like her. Finally, he reciprocated her feelings. The series started with them getting to know each other as boyfriend and girlfriend. She is very possessive of Haruto and worries about girls being near him. However, she tries hard not to let Haruto know about her true feelings as she thinks that Haruto will not like her for that.

Haruto, on the other hand, is a nice guy. He is nice to everyone and that makes Nanoka even more nervous. One day, an exchange student, Nakagawa Akari joins the cooking club. She is beautiful but quite unlike Nanoka, she expresses her dislike very openly. At first, she seemed to have a deep prejudice against the male sex. Akari was unhappy when she realised that Haruto is the president of the cooking club.

During a chanced meeting, Akari realizes that Haruto is a sincere person who is truly passionate about becoming a pastry chef. Her impression towards him changes. You can imagine Nanoka's discomfort when she realises that.

In Chapter 6, Akari was upset when she met up with her dad (a chef). Akari's parents are divorced. Her father has a girlfriend that is half his age. Akari resented that and also her father's busy schedule. One day, Haruto saw Akari alone in a park, Akari was upset having met up with her father. She confided in Haruto who listened and provided a source of support for her. Akari was touched.

The next day in school, when asked, Haruto did not dare to tell Nanoka that he was with Akari as he was afraid that she would be upset. The chapter ended with Nanoka suggesting to help Akari find a boyfriend, and Akari confiding to Nanoka that Haruto was with her and comforted her!

Nanoka was jealous and shocked to say the least. That is the brief summary of chapters 1-6. The drawing is quite cute especially Nanoka's sulking and angry expressions. The character development is interesting too. Nanoka presents herself as a sweet and easy-going girl but inside she is very possessive and gets angry easily. Haruto seems to know her well. Akari, on the other hand, seems like a very nice girl. So the next few chapters, we will see how Nanoka tries to make sense of this. Look out for Chapter 7.

Sukitte Iwaseru Houhou/ Make you say, "I love you"

Make You Say, "I Love You"

Hi all.

I have been reading this series serialised in Betsuma. It started off as a oneshot by mangaka Masami Nagata. It is a shoujo love story about a girl who is in love with the president of the baking club (yummy!). Currently, it is in its 7th chapter.

I just love the drawing style. Beautiful. I will try to give a brief summary of the other chapters and give a more detailed latest chapter. Look out for it.

CODE BLUE Season 2

Some of you may realised that I have not been blogging as frequently as in the past. Apart from work (which keeps me very busy), I have been watching Code Blue Season 2. Sigh... I was a fan of Code Blue thus naturally, when Code Blue 2 was available in DVD, I could not resist it. I was not let down. Each episode is realistic and fast pace. It is like the Japanese version of "ER" except that it is centered around the doctor helicopter system where doctors are dispatched to the patients via the helicopter. Of course, one of the key reason I love this series is Yamashita Tomohisa. He is HOT!!!

Kamisama Hajimemashita Chapter 21

Hi Fans of Kamisama Hajimemashita,

This is chapter 21.

Nanami feeling despondent, has lost her appeitite cos Tomoe "rejected" her in the previous chapter. It is the start of summer vacation but Nanami cannot bring herself to feel excited over it. Mei (Nanami's classmate) asks Nanami whether she would like to go to the beach during the summer vacation. Nonchalantly, she expresses that it is a great idea. Mei tries to get Nanami to wake up. Nanami thinks that even if she wants to sort out her feelings, it is near impossible as Tomoe is always around...

Tomoe enters the class and stares at Nanami. He scolds her for not eating well. He asks whether she is trying to diet. Weakly, Nanami protests that she has no appetite. Tomoe insists that Nanami has to force herself to eat. Mei, in her bid to protect Nanami, tells Tomoe that Nanami's condition is his fault. She is depressed as Tomoe has rejected her feelings.

Nanami laments that her heart cannot quieten down. Tomoe sees Nanami's expression and throws a fuss. He pushes Mei away and threatens to stuff food down Nanami's throat.

As Tomoe bends to open Nanami's mouth, he cannot. (In the last chapter, Nanami commands Tomoe not to touch her anymore and as Nanami is Tomoe's god, he has to listen to her commands). Looking at Tomoe's response, Nanami thinks that she is the only one who is affected by the incident. She alone feels that she has no control of her emotions. To her, she thinks Tomoe seems unaffected. The only difference she notes is that Tomoe does not touch her anymore. Nanami wonders whether he does it on purpose. (Nanami seems to have forgotten about her commands to Tomoe).

Meanwhile, Mei tries to encourage Nanami to cheer up...

Mei tries to encourage Nanami to go to the beach as she feels that the beach will do some good to her. Nanami agrees to meet them on Saturday at the beach.

Meanwhile, back at the temple, Mizuki enters to see Nanami and Tomoe quarreling. Tomoe forbids Nanami to go to the beach and she refuses to obey.

Tomoe tells Nanami that the sea is full of monsters and she is his god thus he cannot let her encounter any danger. Moreover, he cannot go into water thus he will not be able to protect her. Nanami tells Tomoe that her friends will be there. Tomoe disagrees as he feels that her friends will not be able to protect her.

Misuki who has been quietly listening to the conversation interrupts and says that he can accompany her to the beach.

At the beach, Nanami thinks that her mood will improve seeing the blue sky and the beautiful beach.

Nanami expresses that it has been a long time since she came to the beach. Her friend, however, is rather upset that Tomoe and Mizuki are tagging along. She tells Tomoe to keep his distance as she is her to make more male friends. She didn't want the potential suitors to think that Tomoe or Mizuki is her boyfriend.

The girls change into their swim suit. Nanami's friends tells her that she looks good in her suit. They encourage her to walk over to where Tomoe and Mizuki are sitting to see their reactions. However, Nanami feels self-conscious when Tomoe casts a glance at her. Not knowing how to handle her discomfort, Nanami suggests that they go into the sea for a swim.

Looking at Nanami's and her friends' departing figures, Mizuki comments that girls of this generation have no sense of modesty when it comes to their dress sense. He feels that male humans subjected to such a sight will naturally turn into a lecherous monster.

On a more serious note, Mizuki expresses his curiosity as to why Tomoe bothers to turn up at the beach. He tells Tomoe that he knows Tomoe is happy to be here at the beach but he is surprised that Tomoe actually turned up. Mizuki tells him that he knows the reason why Tomoe cannot go into the sea. He tells Tomoe he will keep the secret from Nanami.

After that comment, Mizuki calls out to Nanami and runs into the sea to join them.

From the beach, Tomoe is observing Nanami. He looks at her as she smiles and enjoys herself. Nanami finds a pretty sea shell and runs to Tomoe enthusiastically to show it to him. In a bid to control himself, Tomoe responds nonchalantly to Nanami. Seeing her disappointment, Mizuki puts his hand on her shoulder and tells her to leave Tomoe alone as he hates the sea.
Tomoe stares angrily after the couple and frustratingly expresses his displeasure towards Mizuki. Tomoe:" That idiotic snake (Mizuki)! I can't touch Nanami and he can do so as he pleases!!"

Mei tells Nanami that she is happy that Nanami looks happier.

Suddenly, a huge wave crashes into them. Mei disappears into the waves. Nanami:" Mei! Mei!"

As a wet Mizuki approaches Tomoe, he notices Tomoe looks irritated. Mizuki:"What's wrong with you?"

Suddenly, one of Nanami's friends runs towards them and shouts:"Tomoe, Mei and Nanami..."

At that moment, Nanami gets out of the sea. She is shivering and coughing.

Tomoe:"Are you ok, Nanami?"

Nanami:"Tomoe, Mei has disappeared. She doesn't know how to swim. Tomoe, I beg of you, please help her!"

Tomoe tells Nanami:"Leave it to me."

Tomoe heads into the sea. Mizuki is suprised and asks Tomoe whether he is sure he wants to go into the sea. Tomoe tells Mizuki that since Nanami asked him, he will go.

Tomoe saves Mei. Nanami smiles appreciatively at him:" Thank you, Tomoe."

Suddenly, another voice echoes:" Thank you, Tomoe..."

Nanami sees beyond Tomoe...

A hideous monster rose out of the sea:"... Thank you for coming into the sea. Because of that, I've found you, Tomoe."

That concludes Chapter 21. This chapter we can see Tomoe feeling jealous when other male person (Mizuki) pays attention to Nanami or gets close to her. He will go to all length for Nanami's sake, including putting himself at risk. I'm hoping that Nanami will note this in the next few chapters.