A somewhat unusual Slice of Life romance, Koharu no Hibi ("Days of Koharu") is a manga by Youkou Ooshiro, which ran in the seinen magazine good! Afternoon from 2009 to 2012.
See also Sachiare by the same author.
This series provides examples of:
- Armor-Piercing Question: "What do you love about him?"
- Because You Were Nice to Me: The reason Koharu gears her deep affection towards Akira, and the reason he decides to reciprocate.
- Book Ends: The manga ends with Hinata (Akira and Koharu's daughter), stalking a fellow senior, much in the same way Koharu did with Akira.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Against inanimate objects. Also when she finds out he already had his first kiss, she's not happy.
- Disproportionate Retribution: After Akira says that he's bothered by the sheer number of texts Koharu sends him, she tries to break her phone in half.
- Elopement: At the end of the manga, Akira moves to study college and Koharu follows him.
- Expy: Koharu is brunnette and rather short for her age. Combined with her uniform, it makes her look like Yuno from Hidamari Sketch, maintaining her soft-spoken and friendly attitude, but now a total yandere.
- Foil: Akira is an Ordinary High-School Student. He interacts with Natsuki's insistance that he presses forward in his 'romance' with Koharu, and Koharu's constant obsessive actions.
- Get A Hold Of Yourself Man: After Mika sent Koharu a message to come to the park so they could talk, after the infamous first-kiss incident. When Mika told her that Akira was suffering believing that the first kiss incident was his fault, Koharu was rather happy, since that meant that Akira was thinking about her causing Mika to put some sense into her by nearly punching her and telling her that Akira truly loves Koharu and that's why he is depressed, while pinching her cheeks rather painfully. Surprisingly, it works, ending with a crowning moment of Defeat Means Friendship.
- Heartbeat Soundtrack: And how! It's insane how many "Ba-dump"s the manga contains.
- I Ate WHAT?!: Akira's reaction after he eats the lunch Koharu made him after she mention filling it with her "love" and that the food was "stuffed". "What...What did she have me eat!?"
- I Drank WHAT?!: Akira decides to be the one to choose the drinks, because he's afraid she'll spike the drink with something.
- If You Ever Do Anything To Hurt Him: Mika warns this to Koharu.
- Indirect Kiss: Invoked, in the first chapter, Koharu drinks the saliva out of his recorder and takes every bottle he drinks out of to keep at home.
- Invisible Parents: Koharu's parents. It is heavily implied that they are Sickeningly Sweethearts, her mother has the same tendencies as Koharu and neglects her daughter because of that. Confirmed in the ending, when Akira and Koharu do exactly the same to their daughter Hinata, who does not seem to mind. It runs in the family, apparently.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Koharu, to rather yandere extremes. Also, Mika, who has a crush on Akira, but decides to hold it for his sake.
- Lack of Empathy: Koharu, with some moments of subversion, such as consoling Mika after their confrontation.
- Official Couple: Akira and Koharu. Later, they are Happily Married.
- Satellite Love Interest: Deconstructed. Koharu became extremely agitated when Mika made her realize that her love for Akira, however obsessive, was built on thin air. Not that it had any lasting effect and she gets better later.
- Stalker with a Crush: Koharu, as one of the appeals of the series. Koharu's actions vary from affectionate (wanting to hold hands constantly) to creepy (the infamous recorder sucking scene) to downright bizarre (being disappointed that their literal viewpoints are not exactly the same)
- And later, her daughter Hinata, in the last chapter.
- Stalker Shrine: Koharu's of course, combined with her room covered with photos, personal objects of him and a rather disturbing pillow with Akira's face on it.
- Stalking Is Funny if It Is Female After Male: Zigzagged. Akira's horror whenever she does something weird (like gluing their hands together) is sometimes Played for Drama, but just as often its played as endearing and quirky, and the two end up married by the end.
- Status Quo Is God: Chapter 17 ends with Akira breaking up with Koharu for sexually assaulting Mika, and both want nothing to do with her, a massive change in the status quo. The very next chapter has Koharu be Easily Forgiven by both of them and back together with Akira.
- Strong Family Resemblance: Koharu and her daughter Hinata. Physically, Hinata is a long-haired Koharu — even with some of Koharu's tics and yandere tendencies.
- Through His Stomach: Akira is reluctant to eat Koharu's food, after she mentioned that she "packed it with her love", as he is unsure whether this is a euphemism for something else.
- Would Hit a Girl: Akira has absolutely no problems beating Natsuki for her more annoying actions and slaps Koharu full force across the face after she forced herself on Mika.
- Virginity Makes You Stupid: Mika is rather grossed out by Koharu's actions, but she is also unconfortable with them holding hands, texting each other, kissing and their latter First-Name Basis. Not that her jealousy makes it better...
- Yandere: As far as the first two volumes go, it's debatable whether Koharu's behavior is simply an awkward crush or proto-yandere love. However, she does show shades of this when she states that he's spent too much time with his glasses. In the later chapters, she starts acting very possessive when the inevitable third party comes in. It's also shown that to comfort herself, she licks the picture of him she has on her phone.
- And in chapter 15 Dull Eyes of Unhappiness after another bad meeting with The Rival. "I guess I'll have to love you full force from now on..."
- As of chapter 16, She seems to have gone off the deep end. We see her covering her walls in pictures of Akira, and she sports her Dull Eyes of Unhappiness the entire chapter except when using her Death Glare to scare The Rival frozen in her shoes so bad she takes on an Oh, Crap! expression through most of her encounters with Koharu.
- Koharu later gropes and kisses Mika in order to "regain" Akira's first kiss, leading to his What the Hell, Hero? moment and dumping her. They get back together and Mika forgives her a couple of chapters later.
