When last we left our confused high schoolers, they’d reached some clarity about who has a crush on who. Now that they’ve cleared it up, it’ll all go well! Or not.
Not that Atom and Mudmee aren’t an amazing team
Mudmee reassures Atom he isn’t weird for liking Kongthap and gives advice for pursuing Kongthap. An art class portrait assignment means he can pair with Kongthap and stare at each other’s faces. Also, he writes Kongthap’s name on an eraser.
Atom’s terrible grades, and Half’s, give them another chance to get closer to their crushes. Kongthap and Mudmee have better grades, so it’s time for some tutoring!
Kongthap lives in the same house as Oongsa’s from 23.5, so that’s fun. Half recognizes the rescue cat and they get some cat PPL in before studying. Except Atom is distracted by being in Kongthap’s room. Then by seeing how Half and Mudmee look like a perfect couple. And thinking he and Kongthap don’t.
Time for another love mix-up though, because Half thinks Mudmee likes Kongthap. Poor Mudmee. Still, she and Atom will not give up!
But the show has ‘mix-up’ in the title for a reason
Atom gets Mudmee and Half to leave together. Then, he belatedly realizes that he’s alone with Kongthap and is flustered. Atom admits being around the guy he confessed to has thrown him off. Kongthap says he’s also distracted and thinking about Atom all the time.
On his way out, Atom meets Kongthap’s mom. She’s got a picture of Kongthap catching him in the play on her phone and recognizes him. She asks about them being close and Kongthap says they’re classmates. Atom is hurt and Kongthap makes it worse by asking if Atom thinks they’re friends.
The next day Atom’s mood grows worse when he sees Kongthap’s drawing is great. His isn’t. He crumples it and storms off.
Kongthap is still working on his feelings and asks Half about finding Atom cute. Half teases Kongthap about liking Atom and then panics because he thinks Kongthap likes Atom. He runs to warn Atom.
Atom explains the eraser mix-up, but not that he likes Kongthap now. He’s protecting Kongthap by explaining why he asked that weird question. But Half wants Atom to tell Kongthap the truth.
Atom puts Half off but stresses about Kongthap all night, gets sick, and misses school.
But then things start to go right, for a short while anyway
Even though Atom is wearing a shirt that says “If you like my ornaments you should see my box”. Isn’t that a bit racy for this show? But Kongthap says nothing about it when he stops by to check on him.
They need to finish the portraits so it’s back to staring at each other. Atom is anxious about his drawing so Kongthap lightens the mood by playing guitar and singing. Atom shares his drawing and it’s not fantastic, but it’s better.
It’s also late. Atom insists Kongthap spend the night. As they struggle to sleep, Atom tells Kongthap that the guitar is a gift from his dad, who left one day. No one made his mom laugh or cry like his dad did, and Atom thinks that’s scary.
Atom’s mom comes in, and Kongthap introduces himself as a friend. Once she leaves, Kongthap explains that he wasn’t sure how Atom felt, that’s why he said classmates earlier. But he’s thought of Atom as a friend for a long time. Then he realizes Atom must think of him as more than a friend.
At that, Atom hides under the covers. He thinks about how Kongthap kept him awake the night before but also gives him sweet dreams tonight. Is this love?
Yes, Mudmee says, this is love. And the power of the eraser.
Now that we have that clear, Half mixes things up again
Half drags Atom to the roof to force him to explain the truth to Kongthap. Kongthap feels bad for taking it seriously and is glad it was a misunderstanding.
Atom tells Mudmee he wants to end the eraser alliance and runs away. Mudmee is horrified and chases after him, only to run into Half. Half sees himself as a hero and is so self-righteous that Mudmee gives him an epic slap.
Now Atom avoids Kongthap and Half thinks Mudmee likes Atom. The seating for their class is changed, taking Atom away from Kongthap but still near Half. Half notices Atom staring at Kongthap.
Konthap’s teammate notices he’s in a mood. Kongthap explains the confusing situation without naming names. The teammate suggests that Kongthap likes this person, but Kongthap isn’t sure.
This school is the worst
First Atom gets accused of cheating because his math score improved. Kongthap clears that up. So then, they make Atom the temporary basketball team manager. Being manager requires running errands and drinking PPL with Kongthap.
Half is still solving the mystery of his mix-up. He goes to Mudmee and after another near misunderstanding, explains that he’s embarrassed by his behavior. Then he tells Atoms and he supports his crush on Kongthap. He passes along the eraser from Mudmee and the message that she wants the alliance to keep going. Half has no idea what any of this means.
There will be one more mix-up before this episode is over
Because the basketball team is at Kongthap’s old school for a sports ball thing. There we meet Kongtha’s old teammate/friend, Claire. Who Atom is told has a crush on Kongthap. Atom is not thrilled. Especially since she gets along great with Kongthap and can accurately predict his basketball moves. Which proves something. Atom wants to give Kongthap a new towel, but stops when he learns the old towel was from Claire.
Things come to a head when Kongthap stays behind after the game. Atom is told it’s so he can play against Claire. If she wins, she’ll confess to Kongthap. Atom panics and runs to find them, harnessing the power of the eraser to interrupt the match.
But she doesn’t like Kongthap. She likes Kongthap’s teammate. The guy who kept telling Atom that Claire liked Kongthap. The match was to force Kongthap to help her. Claire decides that the vibe is ruined and she’ll pursue her crush on her own. That’s really for the best.
On the bus, Kongthap stares at Atom until he’s flustered. Atom won’t tell him why he interrupted the match but gives him the towel. It has a white cat like his on it. That’s the best.
Atom is overwhelmed by Kongthap and pulls his hood over his head. Kongthap remembers asking Claire about how she knew she liked someone. She explains it doesn’t have to be butterflies in the stomach, his heart will tell him.
Atom falls asleep on Kongthap’s shoulder, and Kongthap can feel his heart beating!
Here’s a silly thing
In the Japanese version, I missed that the other-coach-crush plot was another mix-up. Probably because in that version the other-coach has a crush on a teacher. Even though the teacher appropriately turned her down, I think I was distracted by the inappropriateness.
Another thing I see clearly in this version is that Atom is protecting Kongthap by telling Half what happened with the eraser. He doesn’t want Kongthap to be seen as “weird”. He wants Half to understand it’s his fault and Kongthap is being nice. It goes along with Atom worrying repeatedly about being weird for liking Kongthap or them being a weird pairing.
This is why I enjoy seeing different versions of the same show because I can catch things I miss or get a fresh perspective.
Also, I think it’s hysterical that in this school you can be forced to be a lead in Cinderella or be a team manager. It’s like my worst nightmare but it’s a comedy so it’s funnny.