The character page for Love Me For Who I Am.
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Tetsu Iwaoka
The male protagonist whose family owns a maid cafe for "girlyboys". He takes an interest in Mogumo and introduces them to the cafe in hopes of helping them fit in (albeit not quite getting it right), and later develops feelings for them.
- Ambiguously Bi: Tetsu starts to develop feelings for Mogumo, but is unsure how to label his attraction because Mogumo isn't a guy or a girl. He hadn't identified as gay before but hadn't shown any attraction to girls either, he states explicitly he fell in love with Mogumu "regardless of gender", something that Kotone, as a lesbian, thinks is impossible for her.
- Coming Of Age Queer Romance: He starts the series thinking of himself as a straight ally to his trans sister and coworkers at the crossdressing cafe (though he doesn't start calling her "sister" until the second volume) but realizes he may not be as straight as he thought once he develops feelings for Mogumo, a nonbinary classmate.
- Establishing Character Moment: His first scene involves him approaching Mogumo and offering them a job at his sister's cafe out of a desire to help them make friends. It doesn't quite go as planned, but his intentions are good, and Mogumo does take him up on his offer.
- Innocently Insensitive: Tetsu loves his sister and accepts that she "has the soul of a woman" but still refers to her as his brother up until a bit through Volume 2, to her delight.
- In Touch with His Feminine Side: He's a gentle, easygoing guy who's good at cooking and completely supportive of his queer friends and sister.
- Nice Guy: He's a fairly friendly guy who tries to be nice to everyone and is willing to own up to his mistakes if he gets something wrong.
Ryuunosuke Mogumo
The other protagonist of the manga. They are publicly known as a boy who dresses up like a girl, but they are actually nonbinary. They go by their last name with friends, even those with whom they use their first names.
- Affectionate Nickname:
- Is called Mogu-chan by childhood friend Kotone. When a young Kotone questioned why they preferred this nickname in a flashback, Mogumo explained it's because they don't like their first name.
- Sakura would call them Ryuu-chan when the two were younger; despite her confusion over her "brother" being like a sister yet not quite a sister, she didn't think much of it at first and has always valued her beloved sibling. She uses Onii-chan (the affectionate term for older brother) in the present but starts to slip back to Ryuu-chan the more she sees them. Her backstory narration and the way her father scolds her for not calling them Onii-chan suggests she prefers using Ryuu-chan but is trying to break out of the habit thanks to family pressure.
- Closet Key: Befriending Mogumo and developing a crush on them is how Tetsu realizes he might be queer since he had always just considered himself an ally to his sister and the café's employees.
- Expressive Hair: Their twintails sometimes stick straight out in shock.
- Friendless Background: Prior to the manga, Mogumo had a hard time making friends because they're nonbinary and have difficulty trusting people. This is what makes them wish for more people to understand them in their introduction; realistically, it can be very difficult to find people who will understand nonbinary genders, and their classmates' behavior wasn't very indicative of them being open-minded.
- Girlish Pigtails: Wears their hair in pigtails. However, wearing their hair in this style likely has less to do with being feminine (as they've been shown to be uncomfortable with presenting as a woman), as it does with just liking cute things and wanting to be seen as such.
- Height Angst: Mogumo stands at 158cm (5'2"), but is scared of growing taller since they don't think they'll look as cute. They even cut down on their food intake in order to see if that could stop them from growing.
- I Just Want to Have Friends: Initially, Mogumo has trouble socialising with other people. At the start of the story, Kotone is Mogumo's only friend. Tetsu noticing Mogumo wishing for people to accept them for who they are kicks off the plot, with everyone at the cafe befriending them and supporting their nonbinary identity.
- Last-Name Basis: Even their co-workers and close friends call them by their last name or variations of it since "Ryuunosuke" is a standard masculine name that doesn't quite fit them. In a flashback, Mogumo explained that this is why they prefer Kotone to call them Mogu-chan instead of Ryuu-chan (something only Sakura is allowed to use since she shares the same surname and so would naturally get confused).
- Technicolor Eyes: Mogumo has pinkish-red eyes.
Sou "Suzu" Suzumi
One of the workers at the cafe. He's a closeted gay boy with a boyfriend.
- Affectionate Nickname: His co-workers and boyfriend call him "Suzu".
- Camp Gay: He's an androgynous-looking crossdresser who has a boyfriend.
- Curtains Match the Windows: Suzu has matching blue hair and eyes.
- Dude Looks Like a Lady: Due to his long hair, he looks feminine by default. This makes it easy for others to mistake him for a girl.
- Long-Haired Pretty Boy: He's an androgynous boy who wears his hair long.
- Mistaken for Cheating: His boyfriend spots him hanging out with Tetsu and assumes Tetsu is stealing him. He's immediately corrected by Suzu.
- Transplant: Suzu was the protagonist of a one-shot doujin by the author, which was created prior to the series. Here, he plays a supporting role.
- Secret Relationship: He has a boyfriend but hides it from his friends since they fear their reactions.
- Wholesome Crossdresser: Enjoys dressing in feminine outfits at the maid cafe despite being a cis boy. He uses it as an outlet to be able to openly talk about his boyfriend.
Tenmaru "Ten" Inui
One of the workers at the cafe. An energetic boy who's in his third year of high school and likes cosplaying.
- Animal Motif: Ten is associated with cats and often sports a cat grin.
- Camp Straight: He's effeminate and likes to crossdress. When asked by Mogumo whether he likes girls, he says that he's had a few crushes.
- In Touch with His Feminine Side: Ten is a high school boy who likes to design, sew, and wear feminine clothing and cosplay as female characters.
- Keet: Ten is energetic and perky.
- Smart People Wear Glasses: Ten considered a prodigy by his co-workers and helps tutors them when a few forget to do their summer homework. He wears glasses, but only when not cosplaying.
- Verbal Tic: Ten uses cat puns like nyan/"meow" a lot.
- Wholesome Crossdresser: He's a perky boy who likes crossdressing and cosplaying, and does a good job at it.
Mei Tatebayashi
One of the workers at the cafe. She is introduced as a crossdressing boy but is revealed to be a closeted trans girl. After some encouragement from her co-workers, she embraces her femininity in public.
- Ambiguously Bi: Mei gets heart symbols along with the other cafe members when Ten impresses her and Ten teases her on the possibility of her having a crush on Suzu in the prequel, but she also seems slightly infatuated with Kotone after meeting her.
- Girlish Pigtails: Mei wears her hair in pigtails, and is the most feminine of the cafe's employees (which makes sense, as she's the only one who identifies as a girl besides Satori).
- Good Parents: Mei mentions in chapter 24 that her parents accept her being transgender and fully support her presenting as female.
- LGBT Awakening: Though she already identified as a girl, it was Mogumo's hiring that allowed Mei to realize she was allowed to consider herself a girl and not just a girlyboy. Encouragement from the café's other employees also helped.
- Significant Green-Eyed Redhead: Mei's a green-eyed and redheaded major character.
- Sobriquet Sex Switch: Her deadname is "Akira" but she goes by "Mei", which is an alternative reading of the same kanji, at the cafe. She eventually begins using it full-time.
Satori Iwaoka
The owner of the maid cafe. She's a trans woman and also Tetsu's older sister.
- Affectionate Nickname: She is called "Sacchan" by people at the cafe, who all adore her.
- Cool Big Sis: A good older sister to Tetsu, and she also takes good care of the other café employees.
- Mentor in Queerness: Satori's only sibling is Tetsu, but she often acts like a Cool Big Sis to the whole staff of Café Question. In particular, when Mogumo's presence in the first volume leads to a rift between the staff over their standard "I'm a guy dressed as a girl" introduction, she encourages all of them to share their point of view on the issue to come to a compromise. This eventually resolves in Mogumo being able to stay in the cafe without compromising their identity and helps Mei realize she was a closeted trans girl.
- Universally Beloved Leader: She's in charge of the cafe and everyone there loves her (most especially her younger brother).
Mogumo's Family
Sakura Mogumo
Mogumo's younger sister.
- Boyish Short Hair: Downplayed. A flashback shows she got her hair cut short since it's easier to play soccer, a sport she loves to play. This infuriated her father, who demanded that she start acting more feminine.
- Childhood Friends: She befriended Kotone when they were kids and played with her a lot alongside Mogumo. They're still on friendly terms in the present.
- Genki Girl: Full of energy and has a sunny disposition at a glance.
- It's All My Fault: When Mogumo explains how much they suffered from gender dysphoria ever since they were little back at home, Sakura feels guilty that she never understood what they went through and apologises for not being able to help them, even though Mogumo reassures her that none of it is her fault.
- My God, What Have I Done?: She holds a knife at her throat while at Mogumo's apartment, partly to mimic what they did years ago and partly out of despair (since she has to look after her depressed mother while putting up with her bigoted father). Their attempt to stop her results in their hand getting injured. Mogumo gets successfully treated at the hospital, but Sakura is mortified and tearfully hugs her sibling once they're discharged.
- Passionate Sports Girl: She loved soccer and even cut her hair so it would be easier to play. However, her father's bigoted views on women playing sport lead to her quitting the team in the present timeline, which troubles her mother since she knows how much her daughter loved playing.
- Stepford Smiler: She puts on a cheery facade for everyone, including her family members. However, being around her troubled parents at home takes a toll on her and she's incredibly stressed over how broken the family's become.
Mr. Mogumo
Mogumo and Sakura's father. A serious businessman who is often away from home, and wants a traditional family.
- Heel–Face Turn: He's the closest thing the narrative has to a true antagonist, and his Heteronormative Crusader tendencies play a huge part in Mogumo's strained relationship with their family. However, by the end of the story, he finally decides to improve for the better and accepts that Mogumo is nonbinary.
- Heteronormative Crusader: He has a very rigid, binaristic view of gender roles and has zero tolerance for any kind of variation in gender or sexual identity. This, of course, leads not only to an incredibly strained relationship with his nonbinary child, Mogumo, but also takes a toll on his daughter Sakura (who is cisgender but has an interest in sports) and his wife, who wants to support Mogumo and Sakura but is pressured into complying with her husband. By the end of the story, due to pushback from his family and Mogumo wanting to fix the relationship, he finally concedes and starts to accept Mogumo as they are, albeit acknowledging he has a lot to learn.
- Love-Obstructing Parents: Due to his persistent queerphobia, it's no surprise he immediately disapproves of Mogumo's and Tetsu's relationship, even making homophobic remarks about them.
- Wanted a Gender-Conforming Child: Is shown in flashbacks to be very eager to have a son after Mogumo was born, and was raised to very limited ideas of a man's role by his father. Discourages Mogumo from doing anything feminine, and pressures Sakura to be more feminine, forcing her to quit the soccer team to focus on housework as a means to force her to conform to a strict gender role.
Mrs. Mogumo
Mogumo and Sakura's mother. A sickly woman who is unable to care for her kids.
- Feminine Mother, Tomboyish Daughter: She's a regular, gender-conforming mom, but her daughter Sakura is a Passionate Sports Girl who loves playing soccer. Despite the pressure from her husband, she supports Sakura's interest in sports.
- Open-Minded Parent: While it's true that she did hope Mogumo's femininity was just a phase, she was also much more open than her husband to Mogumo's gender non-conformity early on. When Mogumo was a child, she reached out to a transgender man who helped educate her on gender diversity - this lead to her understanding Mogumo better and giving them space to express themself.
- Wanted a Gender-Conforming Child: While less aggressive than her husband, she hopes that Mogumo's interest in feminine things is a phase. Although, considering she gave Mogumo their first set of feminine clothes (a pair of girl's pajamas), she may be being pressured by her husband.
Other Characters
Kotone Mizunoe
Mogumo's friend since childhood who frequently drops by their place to help them out. She appears to accept Mogumo for who they are at first.
- Childhood Friend Romance: She's attached to her childhood friend Mogumo, despite being a lesbian, and isn't quite happy that they have a crush on Tetsu. It's later revealed that, due to pressure from society to marry a man and internalized homophobia, she feels possessive of Mogumo; not only are they the one legally male person she feels comfortable around, but she also sees them as a girl and therefore can imagine marrying them. She gets over her possessive nature and accepts that Mogumo isn't a guy nor a girl as the series goes on.
- Gayngst: Kotone has struggled with her sexuality since she was little. She tried to blend in with her straight friends in elementary school. In middle school, she fell for a friend but the friend got a boyfriend. That only caused Kotone to go deeper into the closet.
- Does Not Like Men: She's had a distaste for men ever since childhood, and has trouble befriending the maid cafe workers at first, though she was okay with the trans girl Mei. Since Mogumo is nonbinary, she was able to be friends with them, but it's later revealed she's been trying to use Mogumo as a substitute for a girl.
- Lipstick Lesbian: Kotone dresses in a typical feminine style (including long-styled hair and dresses) and is a closeted lesbian. She's known that she has wanted to marry a woman since she was five, but she has hidden it ever since her mother told her that it's strange for her to want a bride.
- Only Friend: Kotone starts off as Mogumo's only friend at the start of the manga. In turn, Mogumo was her only friend during middle school (even though they went to separate schools).
Haruto
Suzu's secret boyfriend, who's mentioned several times to the maid cafe workers prior to his introduction.
- Girlfriend in Canada: Tetsu assumes Haruto's fictional until their meeting since Suzu never mentions his boyfriend's name up to that point. Suzu is not amused.
- Green-Eyed Monster: Short-lived. Seeing Suzu hang out with Tetsu a lot leads to him misunderstanding their relationship and angrily confronting Tetsu. He's mortified and apologises when he finds out the truth.
- Secret Relationship: He hides his relationship with Suzu from their friends out of fear that Suzu may get hurt or uncomfortable.
