When last we left the hairdresser and his “bully”, they had a romantic kiss on the floor!
Natsuo would like another
But Hiro is shy, and hugs him. An intense hug, though.
Thankfully, unlike some people, the next morning Hiro knows it wasn’t a dream. But he’s distracted at work, so maybe he wishes it were.
Then, a guy who looks just like he did in high school walks in. The guy over-explains that he wants to look good for someone who might have had a thing for him.
On cue, Natsuo arrives and recognizes the guy, Oribe.
Hiro does not like Oribe
He correctly guesses that Natsuo was the one with a crush, which Natsuo says was one-sided. Hiro thinks Natsuo’s got strange tastes. Hiro is being slow to connect dots.
But his mood improves because Natsuo is there to see his face after they kiss. Later, his mood is un-improved when he sees Natsuo looking at matching shirts with Oribe. Then he doesn’t let Natsuo introduce him as his boyfriend, and repeatedly urges Oribe not to let Natsuo force him into things.
Oribe repays Hiro’s kindness by uninviting him to a meal with Oribe and Natsuo.
Poor Hiro is his own Worst Enemy
Plant POV! Hiro is pissed. Natsuo calls him to explain that he wants to support Oribe, who is struggling at work. Hiro urges him not to get too involved. Natsuo says Oribe is weak, not like Hiro, who is strong. This upsets Hiro.
Hiro chills out at a plant store. Then he comes across Oribe bragging to someone about how he’s fooling some stupid, clueless guy. Turns out, Oribe is part of a pyramid scheme, and that’s why he’s approached Natsuo.
Oribe mocks Hiro and Natsuo, calling Natsuo stupid and wondering if Hiro really is seeing him. Hiro shoves Oribe down some stairs, and here’s Natsuo on cue. Natsuo treats Oribe like a victim, and Hiro gets pissed and walks off.
Later, Natsuo rings and knocks at Hiro’s door. Once let in, he apologizes. He understands now that Hiro was protecting him because he was too stupid to see what Oribe was doing.
Hiro is done being a jerk and says it’s not Natsuo’s fault that Oribe betrayed him. But Natsuo needs to value himself more. He doesn’t deserve to be used.
Later, Natsuo admits Oribe reminds him of his first love in High School. He has a picture from High School on his phone, and for a moment, notices the similarities and asks if Hiro is the same guy…
But there are 3 episodes left, so Hiro says nope
Natuso agrees they’re nothing alike. Womp womp.
We see the bullying that Hiro endured from Natsuo’s side, and it’s a lot more flirty and sincere. Natsuo was going to confess his love on that roof before the jerks showed up.
Hiro is stunned.
Poor Hiro, Natsuo is really affecting his work. He takes a social media picture of the floor for his “kyun” customer, and loses/confuses customers by randomly saying “confession”. His coworker steps in and tries to get him to rest. He trips and hurts his wrist instead.
He calls Natsuo to tell him about it, but also that it’s fine and nothing to worry about.
But he struggles to do things one-handed at home
Not that, don’t be dirty. Natsuo comes over and takes care of him, including some shopping.
On the way back, Natsuo sees the apartment lights on. Hiro is happy that Natsuo got him extra things, and Natsuo is happy that someone was waiting for him. Since his parents worked all the time, he’s never experienced it before.
But they have a sweet, domestic little skewer dinner.
Hiro lets Natsuo stay over
They share a tiny bed, and Hiro puts a belt between them to mark their sides. If that’s his barrier, he really does trust Natsuo. They’re both shy and sweet when they wake up in the morning.
At work, Hiro’s co-worker mentions that he seems more human lately. He makes mistakes and gets carried away. Like he’s in love! Hiro quickly and firmly denies it.
The domestic bliss continues. Hiro gets weird breakfast hand-fed to him. They eat chocolate in their matching shirts. Hiro gets shy about Natsuo seeing his underwear in the laundry. And they sleep with the silly belt between them.
Natsuo bikes over, and Hiro comes out to see him arrive
More creepy plant POV! They’re both excited because of a flower! And in their matching shirts!
And then Hiro is better! But… not happy. He tells Natsuo he’s fine, but acts strangely. Natsuo worries about him instead of sleeping.
Natsuo’s boss warns a sleepy Natsuo to be careful at work, reminding him about a co-worker with an injured hand. Natsuo worries more, but then he sees Hiro at work using his hand without any bandage or trouble.
At home, Natsuo confronts him, wanting to know why he lied and made him worry.
Hiro didn’t want to be better because Natsuo would return to his place. Natsuo is so happy that it seems like he might push him down for a hot kiss, but he collapses in exhaustion instead.
Hiro starts to say something about his feelings… and gives sleeping Natsuo a hug.
The Delphinium is in full bloom! Like their relationship!
Did Hiro hate Oribe because of how much he hated his high school self? Or was it more jealousy?
Seeing Oribe go through the “Natsuo date” that Hiro had gone through must have stung. I think that was jealousy. I think he was also still vaguely thinking of revenge, which is why he didn’t let Natsuo call him his boyfriend. But his actions in the end were all about protecting Natsuo, both from the pyramid scheme and from blaming himself.
Hiro is really, really, really bad at revenge. But he’s also shown himself to be an arrogant guy who talks big to cover a lack of confidence. Eventually, though, he does the right thing. Like how he handled the competition at the salon.
The same is happening here. He talked big about revenge, but as between protecting him from Oribe and their domestic bliss, he seems to have forgotten about it.
Their domestic time together is my drama catnip, or sushi. They’re both so obviously lonely and so obviously enjoying being together. It’s not just about falling in love. It’s about the pleasure of their day-to-day lives together.
So it’s not a revenge story, it’s a story of two guys happy to see each other when they get home at night.
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