muse ✨'s manga / #feels like starlight(159)

Two boys that work at a karaoke parlor become close friends and help to heal past wounds.

A man wakes up to find a hole in his chest.

A year ago, Kotaro moved to Tokyo to pursue his dream of being a hairstylist, separating him from his best friend, Kii. This story takes place in Tokyo when Kii comes to stay with Kotaro overnight for entrance exams.

Roommates who fall in love and continue to be in love and say "I love you" for about 20 chapters. No sad, all happy. This is nice to return to if you're having a bad day, and you can dive in anywhere once you've read it. A nice pick-me-up!

After his ex's harassment caused him to quit a promising job, Shima finds work at a smaller company and becomes interested in his manager...who is equally interested in him. I saw the movie first and tracked down the manga. I adore the movie adaptation, but I like the inner thoughts we get in the manga that couldn't be in the film. Shima is a lot sassier on paper.

I must've been in a mood the first time I read this, because on re-read, this is just LOVELY. It's a quiet established relationship that endures long work hours and eventually a long-distance relationship, but their bond is strong and unwavering. I also love that the MC's parents adore his boyfriend (though I am not sure they realize they're dating). ETA: On third read, I've decided the parents must know. The boys live together in Japan and the US, they have Kazushi's parents over for dinner in their apartment where they share a room (and the boyfriend cooks), Harutomo calls Kazushi's dad "dad" which seems awfully familiar? (we only do that here with in-laws; maybe I am projecting), and they joke about adopting Harutomo into the family. Also, Harutomo texts photos to Kazushi's parents. It all seems quite intimate, so I like to imagine they're very aware of the relationship!

This was a pleasant surprise, a long story about multiple people, most of whom work in graphic design. The author clearly has experience in the field (or knows someone who does), because there were too many real-life situations for it to be a coincidence. I loved it. I am struggling to say which couple was my favorite, but I think it's the long-haired designer and the American. But Akira and Kai were also so, so cute. Everyone was cute. Everything was so cute and nothing hurts.

These are good, solid one-shots. 1 - Two friends have a drunken hookup that becomes serious 2 - Childhood friends harbor feelings for each other going back to kindergarten, but are held back by societal expectations 3 - A flower wishes to meet the man who cares for him 4 - A future heir who has been sheltered his whole life is told to live for one month with a low-level employee at his grandfather's company, who shows him the world. note to self: this is the one you look for all the time with the two friends who hook up during a heat wave

OH!!! This didn't go the way I worried it would, and I am so happy. This is a side story to Yukidoke no Koi. Several years after graduation, Oushirou still harbors feelings for his childhood friend Koba, who is moving to Tokyo for work and will live nearby. One afternoon Oushirou drops his wallet. It's picked up by a regular at the bar he frequents. After talking a while, the man - Inamura - offers his contact information and drops the fact that he's gay. He figures out that Oushirou is pining for Koba and offers to be a distraction. I worried this would be a situation where the childhood friend wises up and dates the main character, but it didn't play out that way. Koba and Oushirou remained dear friends, and Oushirou began a relationship with Inamura - moving in with him five years later. Content warning: There is a reference to one-sided love between brothers, but it is only spoken. We see nothing and nothing comes of it. I WOULD LIKE TO ADD! This is the FIRST! manga I've ever read where the characters have a frank, honest discussion about sex before they have sex. And then after sex, evaluate what happened, and one reassures the other that if bottoming isn't his thing, they'll work something out - that sex isn't everything. I've never seen that and it was totally refreshing and wonderful. Thank you to this author.

Hinata worries that his relationship with Kageyama is only physical after a run-in with Turnip head. "I love you, dumbass."