Sleeps In Sunbeams's manga / #Opposites attract(35)

Proudly out, gay university student Mukai Tsumugi enjoys spending his time on a gay social site where he shares his hobby of creating cute things. It’s also the perfect pickup place for the cute “Bee” (as he is known on the site). One of his favourite people to talk to is Chiitan, and the two eventually set up a meeting. But the man who turns up is nothing like Bee expected. This towering, intensely intimidating man must be a yakuza! And so begins this wonderful story of opposites attract; a beautiful young man with a bit of a slutty nature and a scary faced man with a heart of gold. I loved it!

A wonderful Yaoi that ticks all the boxes for adorable characters, great art, romance, sexy scenes and still having a fluffy, wholesome vibe. Socially awkward and a classic nerd, Enoki is anxiously recruiting for his engineering club. The short little 1st year student catches the attention of the school heartthrob, fellow 1st year Shirataki who was seeking something new. The tall, sporty “normie” joins the club and an unlikely friendship based on mutual admiration slowly develops between these polar opposites as Enoki’s bubbly kindness breaks through Shirataki’s aloofness. It’s really a great story with some lol moments sprinkled throughout. Highly recommended.

25yo playboy Ren, has given up on his career as a musician in order to take up the responsibility of teaching at his family’s kindergarten. The adjustment is made easier by the presence of fellow teacher, the earnestly serious and attractive Kiichi-kun, although the two got off to an awkward start. This cute story is full of sweet moments. I liked the dad, he was obviously someone Ren rebelled from but he was surprisingly understanding and accepting of his son. Lovely art too, this was a great little yaoi.

28yo clean freak Katase specializes in the traditional, intricate art of yuzen dyeing. When 32yo half American Fujinami Jouji visited the workshop to learn the skill, the attractive designer was partnered with Katase. The clash of opposites with the untidy, extroverted and confident Fujinami, sharing the space of minimalist loner and germophobe Katase, is the foundation of this romance. The art was beautiful and the story was nice, but it fell a little short for me with their connection. The falling in love and sex was too fast, it really didn’t have any authenticity. What was it about the serious Katase that attracted Fujinami so immediately? There is so much potential between this odd couple but all the power was with Fujinami. He was super successful, super good looking, outskilled Katase on his intricate and unique skill set almost immediately. Surrounded by people and even seemed to ignore Katase at times when surrounded by others. That all kind of bothered me. But that’s just me, and it’s not that it was bad. It just fell a bit short of being satisfying.

This was a great story that centred around the cheerful and naive Kotaro. This college student had spent his childhood raising 3 rambunctious and adorable triplet brothers following the death of his father. His mom was nice, but a workaholic and as the oldest brother with a natural caretaker streaker a mile wide Kotaro busily cooked, cleaned and cared for his family. When Kotaro was asked to help his mothers relative as a housekeeper, he was thrilled to be able to see again the kind older boy he met as a child. Someone whose impactful first meeting had always comforted him that he had a big brother out there. But the 32yo Ayumi was nothing like he remembered. The reclusive writer was unshaven and unkempt, his house a mess and his diet deplorable. And his expressionless face had a gaze that followed him increasingly. Obviously this man needed Kotaro! And so these two seemingly mismatched men started down the path to love. Understanding Kotaro’s history and nature do a lot for this story because the mangaka used them effectively for character motivation, from his flaws (eg taking on too much, not wanting to bother others with problems he felt were his responsibility, naïveté) to his warm nature and positive outlook that drew others to him. I loved all the supporting characters (especially the triplets) because they weren’t one dimensional. They were all complex in their own ways and really helped to make this a special story.

Delightfully fluffy and warm, this story tells of a pair of opposites who unexpectedly fall for each other. Tall yet remarkably ordinary, Fukawa was a temporary staff member who was used to being taken for granted and overlooked. When he was approached by his office senior, the aloof and professional Subada Rinji, to work full time in his new business venture, Fukawa was astonished yet delighted to accept. Working closely with his new boss, Fukawa quickly became aware of the extraordinary effect that Rinji had on those around him. And as circumstances bought them closer together he found himself falling for his unnervingly direct boss. But did that make him just another who made Rinji uncomfortable?

*Because I’m Your Senior: Gloomy-looking high school student Takama and new employee at the store, the lively college student Senba. Opposites attract but sometimes saying the wrong thing can set you apart. *Boring Ninomiya: Cram school teacher Ninomiya, has just been dumped again for being boring. A night out drowning his sorrows leads to a one night stand with the flirtatious Sada, and a chance to step into some excitement and perhaps even love. *Rooftop Heaven: For Gino Sasahara, being born with two sets of ears is a torment. His cat ears are normal, but on the side of his head he has “monkey” ears that are deaf except to ghostly voices. Being different made him a target for endless bullying. One day as he ran from his bullies, Gino found a ghost who was just as beaten as he was. A solid ghost. With only monkey ears! Nakano Kouji thought that he had run into a cosplayer when he stumbled upon the boy with cat ears and a tail. But for both boys, something had bought them together from separate universes. And for all their differences, their connection of being abused for years is like a magnet of comfort and understanding. Their story was bittersweet and I would have loved for the mangaka to have been able to devote a full series on their story. The ending was lovely but I wanted their journey.

It’s a cute story but I would have liked more relationship development between these mismatched lovers. Shion has a past as a vampire that would seem at odds with him being poor, jobless and hooking up with random people for blood. Satou Shinobu’s a very sweet pushover who adores kids. Their connection was based on blood and sex which seemed greatly at odds for Satouks character. Still, the story was good overall and I do love a vampire romance.

Two student teachers find love. The first with his former sensei who encouraged him to be true to himself. The second with a prickly tempered man who found himself bewildered by the sunny spirited and social young sensei. I probably liked the second couple more, but both stories were sweet reads.

This is the kind of story that you want to take your time with and enjoy. Single father, Oosawa had known his regular restaurant customer Yoshioka, for a long time now. He had seen the openly gay salary man go through relationships with a variety of partners and couldn’t help but be a little judgemental at the string of broken hearts left in his wake. But when he gets to know the now single Yoshii outside of work, the two become unexpected friends (although Yoshioka cheerfully pursued the straight man for something more) and each learns to depend on the other in an unlikely romance. Their story makes sense, the characters have well developed histories that make their relationship feel authentic, and it’s all just very sweet.