Real Mo Tamani Wa Uso Wo Tsuku (現実もたまには嘘をつく literally "Reality also sometimes lies", known in some fan-translation circles as "Hanging Out With A Gamer Girl") is a Pixiv manga started in 2018 by Niichi. Alternatively known as Gemuzuki No Tomodachi To Iroiro Suru Hanashi (ゲーム好きの友達と色々する話 literally "Talking about various things I do with a friend who loves games"), which may be the source of the "Hanging Our With A Game Girl" title.
Kaoru Terazaki is at a train station, practicing his apology. You see, Kaoru plays an online game and befriended Nanami over their shared love of somewhat niche character Peten-chan. Eventually they agree to meet so Nanami can see Kaoru's collection in person.
However, the problem is Kaoru plays a female character named Kaori, and fears that Nanami has gotten his hopes up that he's met a girl who shares his love of Peten-chan. When Kaoru hears Kaori's name being called, he's surprised to see a girl wearing a Peten-chan badge on her hat. As it turns out Nanami was a girl using a male avatar, the way Kaoru was using a female one.
Thus goes the first real life meeting between Kaoru and Nanami. As time goes on, the two of them grow closer over their shared love of video games and help each other grow as people as well.
A Slice of Life manga about two young teenagers, both of whom sought escape from personal problems in online video games.
Can be read in the original Japanese here
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These tropes are not lies...
- Accidental Hand-Hold: Done in Chapter 20 when Kaoru and Nanami almost get separated because of a particularly large crowd. When they emerge from the train station, they realise they're holding hands. Cue Luminescent Blush on both parts.
- All There in the Manual: On Niichi's Pixiv Fanbox page, there are several comics where they helpfully link to previous chapters for CallBacks as well as omakes that aren't included with the general releases on Pixiv itself.
- Ambiguous Situation: It's hinted with increasing frequency that Nanami's mother knows that "Kaori" is actually a boy, but it hasn't been outright stated. An example is the School Sports Festival arc, where Nanami's parents meet Kaoru face-to-face for the first time. Later in the arc, Nanami's mother thanks Kaoru for all his hard work and asks him to continue to look after Nanami. Any ambiguity goes out the window in Chapter 134, where she tricks Kaoru (disguised as Kaori) into revealing himself, and in the following chapter reveals she's been aware of his true gender for at least a year (specifically when he first stayed over at their house).
- Attractive Bent-Gender: Kaoru when in disguise as Kaori. Unlike many examples, it's pointed out that Kaoru actually has to put effort into this. Luckily he is helped by the fact he studied up on things like fashion and haircare in order to carry on conversations with Nanami (back when they only knew each other online and he pretended to be a girl).
- It's also shown that he's good, but he can't fool actual professionals or experts, as demonstrated when cosplayer Milky Way identifies him as a boy after only a short interaction.
- Bait-and-Switch: During the School Sports Festival, one of the events is a borrowing contest. As Nanami watches, one student's target item is "someone you like" which inadvertently becomes a Relationship Upgrade when the girl he approaches tells him she feels the same way. When Kaoru runs up and asks her to come with him, she's flustered and protests she's not ready for such a mind-blowing event... until the judge mentions that Kaoru's "item" was "someone with a mole on their face". An annoyed Nanami stomps away shortly after.
- Beautiful Dreamer: Both Nanami and Kaoru have been on the receiving end of this.
- Boke and Tsukkomi Routine: Kaoru and Nanami trade roles, though normally it's Kaoru as the boke and Nanami who reacts as the tsukkomi.
- Boyfriend-Blocking Dad: Kaoru is terrified that Nanami's father will beat him to a bloody pulp for getting too close to her. Since he's a very big, muscular man with a Face of a Thug (complete with a scar on his cheek), his fear is understandable. Subverted, however, when he encounters Nanami's father in an onsen, Nanami's father is actually a pretty nice guy who advises him to treasure friends he makes. Likewise, when he and Nanami's mother meet Kaoru for the first time at the school sports festival, while he does glare at Kaoru his wife easily calms him down by pointing out Kaoru had just introduced himself as Nanami's classmate.
- Brutal Honesty: Kaoru is prone to doing this when Nanami surprises him, such as the time she simply ignores an angry opponent flaming her in chat rather than go on a rant. Nanami is usually unamused.
- In Chapter 114, Kaoru's father mentions that Kaoru has actually mellowed ever since he and Nanami met off-line, something Nanami realises when she thinks back to how he spoke to her back when they first met and compares it to how he speaks to her now.
- Call-Back: Whenever Nanami is meeting Kaoru (as opposed to Kaori), she'll often wear the shirt Kaoru gave her for her birthday.
- Chekhov's Gun: In Chapters 135 and 136, Nanami's mother explains how she realised Kaori was actually Kaoru.
- Way back in Chapter 34 (the first time "Kaori" stayed over at the Ousaka house), Nanami's mother asked if "Kaori" was "her" real name. She intially wondered if "Kaori" was simply a username or handle name, but "Kaori" seemed so relieved that she became suspicious.
- In Chapter 68 (when Nanami approached her mother about going to school again), Nanami initially claims that "Kaori" invited her to go to "her" school, but when her mother asks what she wants to do Nanami didn't realise she'd said "I want to go to school with Kaoru". Nanami's mother notes in the omake to Chapter 136 that Nanami had actually referred to "Kaoru" instead of "Kaori" several times over the past year, but that was the first time.
- Clingy Jealous Girl: Played with. Nanami sometimes acts like this (for example, when her Cuddlebug of a cousin glomped "Kaori"), but overall isn't very fussed, even when she becomes unsure whether her feelings for Kaoru have changed from "he's a good friend" to "how do I want him to feel about me?" That said, she sometimes plays this straight, like when she ran into Kaoru at a flower shop and he bought flowers for someone. Despite her claims she was simply curious, she quietly follows him to find out who he's giving flowers to. It turns out to be his deceased mother.
- Daddy Didn't Show: During the school's sports festival, Kaoru's father neither shows up for lunch nor for the parent/child three-legged race. Kaoru puts on a brave front, but it's pretty clear he was at least hoping that his father would be there.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Something happened to Nanami in high school that caused her to simply stop attending, but all Nanami says on the matter is that she and what-she-tried-to-think-of-as-friends were too different and eventually she wound up no longer being sure what she liked anymore.
- It's also possible this has something to do with why she warns Kaoru about her father, as well as why he glares at any boy who gets close to Nanami.
- It's revealed that a big part of the reason Kaoru refuses to act on his and Nanami's mutual attraction is fear of opening his heart to her only to lose her. The source of this trauma is the passing of his mother, and how badly his father was affected by her death. Kaoru's father is aware of this, and sincerely regrets not being able to actually do anything about it.
- Didn't Think This Through: In one of the additional chapters, Nanami's cousin Izumi asks her and Kaoru to work at the beachside restaurant she's working at. Kaoru excitedly agrees and promises to convince Nanami to join in too, only to be reminded that he's currently in disguise as Kaori when Nanami's cousin reminds them to wear cute swimsuits.
- Erotic Dream: Nanami has a dream where she makes and passes lunch to Kaoru, who wishes her luck with her game tournament and promises to make dinner when he comes home from work. Dream Nanami in turn wishes him good luck with his presentation, and is about to call him "dear" when a flustered Nanami wakes up and checks her finger to see if the wedding ring from her dream is there.
- Everyone Can See It: Nearly everyone who sees Kaoru and Nanami interacting assume they're a couple. It's very difficult to fault them, since the two of them are clearly very comfortable with each other, and Kaoru often acts like a doting boyfriend. For example, Shimizu-san, an assistant manager at the net cafe they frequent thinks they're a pair of Sickening Sweethearts and is jealous because she took a job at a net cafe hoping to meet someone who shared her interests.
- In Chapter 113, Kaoru's father immediately notices that Nanami reacts poorly to Kaoru's insistence that she's "a precious friend".
- Face of a Thug: Nanami's father Toshio is a big, muscular man with a scar on his cheek.
- First-Name Basis: Kaoru and Nanami are on first name basis since their first IRL meeting. The fact that they address and refer to each other by first name and without honorifics even after Nanami transfers to Kaoru's school and joins his class is a big part of the reason why several of their classmates think they're a couple.
- Foolish Husband, Responsible Wife: Downplayed in the case of Nanami's parents. Her mother sometimes has to reign her father in when his overprotective tendencies cause him to want to dote on Nanami, but her mother cautions him that being too smothering will just make Nanami resent him.
- Freudian Slip: In Chapter 104, while trying to comfort Kaoru note , Nanami points out how if he marries, "you'd say "I'm home" to m- to your wife".
- In Chapter 110, when Ri-chan asks if she and Kaoru really are a couple (the two were at Ri-chan's house making chocolate for Valentine's Day), Nanami doesn't notice that she says, "Nothing like that is between us yet!"
- Gamer Chick: Nanami. She plays and enjoys a wide range of games, including hack-and-slash and shooting games.
- She also sometimes inserts gaming terms into her speech, like when complaining that a crowd was more numerous than anything in the Musou series. When Kaoru is forced to admit to his father that he's been cross-dressing in order to get permission for Nanami to visit his house, in response to Kaoru's lament that "to think a day would come that I'd have to show my father a picture of me cross-dressing" she says, "If life had achievement trophies, this would probably count as a Rare."
- When she and Kaoru visit an observation deck during a school trip, she stares at the clear night sky and gushes that it's as beautiful as an MMORPG on max graphics.
- Genre Savvy:
- In Chapter 11 when 'Kaori' joins Nanami and her parents at a hot spring resort, Nanami expresses annoyance that Kaoru didn't see such a Dating Sim-like event coming.
- In Chapter 22, Kaoru catches Nanami when she rolls off a couch she's sleeping on and his hand brushes against her chest. When he tells her what happens after she wakes up, he fully expects her to explode at him. Instead, she brushes it off as a harmless accident.
- That said, she makes a mental note to cut down on all-nighters so something like that doesn't happen again...
- When tending to a sick Kaoru, she responds to his asking if she knows how to cook with, "I'm not going to feed you something without tasting it myself first."
- In Chapter 86 Nanami is forced to take shelter at Kaoru's apartment due to a sudden storm making it too dangerous to try to make her way home. Both Nanami and Kaoru are pretty awkward about it, since both of them are aware of the kind of thing that could happen when two teenagers of opposite gender wind up alone together all night without any parental supervision.
- In Chapter 101, Nanami is baking cookies alongside her friends when one of them tastes one and points out Nanami mixed up sugar and salt. Nanami has an internal breakdown, mentally screaming, "It's finally happened! That worst case scenario! That cliche! The one I swore I'd never fall into!"
- When Nanami learns that letter writing to communicate is now a trend, she tries replying to her class president's invitation to hang out with a letter while also writing one to Kaoru expressing her wish to go out and eat takoyaki with him again. To her horror, she realises she delivered them to the wrong recipient when a confused Kaoru shows her the letter she gave him, which used keigo rather than the casual way she normally talks to him. Meanwhile, while her friends are confused at her "I want to go out and eat takoyaki again" reply (since they can't remember taking her out to eat takoyaki", the class president immediately realises they weren't the intended recipient.
- The Ghost: Kaoru's father, who is mentioned several times but not actually seen. Even Kaoru's deceased mother has appeared via flashbacks.
- He finally makes an appearance in Chapter 112 when he unexpectedly arrives home, freaking out Nanami when someone she doesn't know casually walks into Kaoru's apartment.
- Hikkikomori: Nanami is a very downplayed example. She apparently hasn't attended school in some time and seemed to spend all her time playing video games, but she's mentioned accompanying her mother out to do shopping. She's awkward and socially anxious, but nowhere near as bad as some examples of this trope.
- When Nanami tries to thank Kaoru for helping her change for the better (after she meets a new friend who shares her interest in Peten-chan), Kaoru himself points out that she was the one who took that first step by agreeing to meet him at the train station where they first face-to-face. He helped, sure, but Nanami was the one who wanted to change.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: Each chapter is named "Gemuzuki No Tomodachi (verb clause) Hanashi", roughly meaning "(verb clause) with my game-loving friend".
- Invoked Trope: Nanami and Kaoru's guild member Mike pulls this in chapter 75, invoking Gender Reveal and Loose Lips when fellow guild member Usuhime reveals Mike (despite playing a cute cat girl) is actually "an old geezer". When Usuhime points out that Mike had previously said it was fine to tell other people, he chuckles that perfecting one's reaction upon being exposed was important for old men who play cat girls.
- It Can't Be Helped: How Kaoru reacts during the school sports festival arc when his father fails to show up for lunch or to participate in the parent/child three-legged race. The resigned manner with which he speaks makes it clear he wasn't expecting his father to show, but he kind of hoped...
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Both Nanami and Kaoru have shown they're quite willing to give up things they enjoy or take part in hardship if it means the other will be happy. It's part of the reason so many people who've seen them interact assume they're either a couple already or they ought to be.
- Iyashikei
- Living Emotional Crutch: It's pretty clear early on that Kaoru becomes this to Nanami and is the only person she interacts with outside of her family (specifically her parents and her cousin Izumi). However, Nanami herself tries to overcome this, doing things like offering to order at a fast food restaurant (despite becoming socially anxious when dealing with strangers). Kaoru does his best to support her, sometimes stepping in when he sees she really can't cope and sometimes letting her try to handle things on her own. She succeeds in befriending some of her classmates, even going out to do things with them without Kaoru around.
- Nanami appears to be becoming one to Kaoru as well, as she's the only one in his life aware of how much of a Stepford Smiler he is.
- In Chapter 135, Nanami's mother explains to Kaoru that a big part of the reason she kept quiet about "Kaori"'s true identity is because she's eternally grateful to him for bringing Nanami back out of her shell. She specifically notes that after that first time she went out to meet him, Nanami's been much, much happier than she's been in a long time and she'll always be grateful to Kaoru for that. In Chapter 136, she reiterates this, but also notes that she really can't let Nanami stay over at his place anymore, especially since they're now a couple. An embarrassed Kaoru completely understands.
- Love Epiphany: Nanami has a few smaller ones throughout the series as she realises that her feelings for Kaoru have grown from friendship into something much stronger.
- In Chapter 110, she recognises her friend Ri-chan's situation (i.e. being happiest alongside a boy who has been at her side for a long time) as being painfully similar to her own relationship with Kaoru.
- Missing Mom: Kaoru's mother has passed away. It's sometimes suggested this has something to do with why his father is so rarely home.
- Mouth of Sauron: When Nanami decides to start attending school again and transfers to Kaoru's, he seems to develop this reputation among their classmates. He helps them understand that Nanami isn't good with people (especially boys), and other students quickly realise that if they need to let Nanami know about something, it's a good idea to get Kaoru to come along to help make sure there are no misunderstandings. It becomes downplayed as time goes on and Nanami makes more friends.
- Nice Guy: Kaoru, easily. He not only goes along with almost anything Nanami wants to do (something she notices and is genuinely grateful for), he also does his best to help her get better at social interaction. When she transfers to his school, he prepares a list of textbooks and other materials she'll need. He also steps in to clear up misunderstandings (for example, when she jolted away when a male classmate walked up to her to give her some notes). It's not hard to see why some of their classmates assume they're an item.
- Kaoru's friend Ryuuji develops a crush on "Kaori", Kaoru's "sister". Due to a complicated series of events, "Kaori" agrees to meet Ryuuji (so Ryuuji can thank "her" for finding his wallet). He initially asked for Kaoru and Nanami to also be present, but on the day of the meet-up when he's told by "Kaori" that Kaoru is staying home because he's unwell, he abandons his date plan and suggests they head to Kaoru's place to keep him company.
- Not What It Looks Like: During the school trip, Nanami has trouble sleeping and so goes out to the lobby for a bit. Kaoru happens to be there as well, having taken a phone call from his father. The two intend to chat for a bit, but Nanami gets so sleepy she flops down and inadvertently uses Kaoru as a lap pillow. Unfortunately for the duo, a patrolling teacher happens upon them. They immediately apologise, because there's no other explanation for a girl lying on a boy's lap late at night together that would make sense to the teacher.
- In the next chapter, Ri-chan reveals that she saw them as well, and assures Nanami that's she'll keep their relationship a secret. Nanami desperately assures her that there is no secret and they really aren't dating, but Ri-chan is clearly not buying it.
- Otaku: Both Nanami and Kaoru, especially in regards to Peten-chan.
- Parental Neglect: Kaoru's father is apparently almost never home, with Kaoru mentioning on a few occasions he's away on business trips. His sheer loneliness is apparently why he got into the online RPG where he and Nanami met.
- In one extra chapter, Nanami expresses disbelief that a bedridden and very sick Kaoru has been left home alone with no one to care for him. This prompts her to go out to tend to him (and also leads to her discovery that Kaoru's mother has passed away).
- When Kaoru's father appears at last, he mentions finally being able to take some time off and tried to inform Kaoru he was on his way home before boarding his plane. While he flies off again a few chapters later, he does tell Kaoru that he should be transferred back to the local office soon.
- Parental Substitute: Nanami's mother Shouko seems to take a shine to "Kaori", especially when she becomes aware "she" is often home alone. She encourages "Kaori" to join them for meals whenever she wants.
- Done literally when she takes the place of Kaoru's father during the parent/child three-legged race in Chapter 84, since Kaoru's father didn't show.
- In Chapter 135, it's strongly hinted that her reason for this is because she is fully aware that Kaori/Kaoru is responsible for helping Nanami come out of her shell and want to interact with people again, and so wants to repay that kindness.
- Parents as People: When Nanami tells her mother Shouko she wants to start attending school again, her mother is so happy she quietly cries to herself once she's alone.
- When "Kaori" first sleeps over at the Ousaka house in Chapters 33 and 34, her father Toshio awkwardly shows them a deck of cards. He admits that he's completely clueless when it comes to video games, but he still tried to find something they could all play together. Despite being initially being terrified that his ruse had been discovered, Kaoru is happy at the gesture.
- In Chapter 114, Nanami and Kaoru's father have a short chat where he assures her not to be too down that Kaoru insisted that they were "just friends", noting Kaoru himself probably hasn't realised just how important she is to him. When Nanami mentions that she worries that her and Kaoru's relationship is all take and no give on her part (due to Kaoru often going out of his way to support her), he tells her that in truth, he's noticed that Kaoru's been happier than he's been for a long time. He chalks that up to Nanami's influence.
- Chapter 115 reveals that Kaoru's father feels immense guilt that Kaoru refuses to see Nanami as anything more than a friend, despite their obvious compatibility. This is because he took the passing of Kaoru's mother so badly Kaoru became outright terrified to ever open his heart so fully to someone.
- Plausible Deniability: When Kaoru is forced to meet Nanami's parents as "Kaori", he's very worried about his voice giving the game away. Nanami assures him that she's already told her parents that "Kaori" has a bit of a complex about "her" surprisingly deep voice.
- Promoted to Parent: In Chapter 21 Kaoru and Nanami encounter a little girl who was separated from her parents in the game arcade they frequent. The little girl winds up calling them "Papa" and "Mama" respectively, causing them to draw awkward stares due to the implications.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: Despite his fearsome reputation (thanks to Nanami), her father Toshio can pretty easily be calmed down. When he happens upon Kaoru's friend Ryuuji talking to Nanami and "Kaori", for example, despite trying to be intimidating he quickly realises Ryuuji isn't trying to hit on the girls and is merely an acquaintance. He also seems to recognise that deferring to his wife is best when handling Nanami, since she's a housewife and spends more time with Nanami than he does.
- When he finally appears, Kaoru's father turns out to be this when he unexpectedly arrives home at night to find Nanami and Kaoru cleaning up after dinner. He understandably asks if Nanami's parents are aware that she's at Kaoru's apartment at this time of night, and when the duo admit they kind of sorta told a lie to get permission he simply accepts that they must have a reason for it and just asks them to prepare themselves to tell Nanami's parents the truth. He even offers to accompany them if it becomes necessary.
- Relationship Upgrade: During their school trip in Chapter 131 onwards, Ri-chan reveals to the others that she confessed to the boy she liked back during Valentine's Day, and he replied positively to her confession on White Day. Nanami is happy for her, and wishes she was brave enough to confess her feelings for Kaoru.
- Nanami gets her wish in Chapter 132, where she is able to tell Kaoru she likes him, and he in turn tells her he likes her as well.
- Sad Clown: During the School Sports Festival arc, Kaoru's father doesn't show up for the parent/child three-legged race. Kaoru jokes about how he "probably should've said something to the teachers earlier", but Nanami can tell that on some level, he was hoping that his father would be there.
- Earlier, during the break for lunch Kaoru stands alone while he and Nanami's classmates go off with their respective parents. When Nanami's father comes to fetch her, Kaoru cheerfully waves goodbye. Despite this, Nanami feels so guilty that she asks her parents' permission to "go eat with her friends". Her mother allows it and Nanami goes off to find Kaoru.
- She Is Not My Girlfriend: Nanami's response when her and Kaoru's classmates outright ask if they're a couple.
- Kaoru also has this reaction in Chapter 58 when his friend Ryuuji mentions seeing him and Nanami at the net café they frequent and comes to the (logical) conclusion that they're dating.
- After Kaoru's father comes home in Chapter 112, in Chapter 113 when he insinuates that his arrival home was interrupting them Kaoru insistently informs him that Nanami is "an important F.R.I.E.N.D." Kaoru's father notices Nanami reacts badly to just how strongly Kaoru insisted, enough that in the following chapter he takes a moment to assure her not to be too down about it.
- Shout-Out:
- In one chapter, Nanami complains that a massive crowd of people is more numerous than anything in the Musou series, better known in the west as Dynasty Warriors.
- Kaoru and Nanami are sometimes seen playing games resembling Mario Kart and Fall Guys.
- In Chapter 133, Nanami isn't sure if she and Kaoru confessing their feelings for each other the previous night was a dream or not, and then starts wondering if the entire trip they're on was a dream. A Dragon Quest-style speech bubble pops out announcing, "Nanami is confused!"
- Shipper on Deck: Several of Nanami and Kaoru's classmates (especially their class rep and her two friends) can't believe that the two of them are "just friends." Not when they're so perfect for each other!
- It really doesn't help that an easy way to get Nanami to go along with something like baking cookies or making chocolate is to ask, "Don't you want to give some to Terazaki-kun?"
- The morning after an unexpected storm, the class rep and her friends are walking around enjoying the after-storm air when they notice Nanami leaving Kaoru's apartment (even overhearing him ask if she's sure she doesn't want him to escort her home). They quickly intercept her to demand to know why she was leaving Kaoru's apartment in the morning and what they got up to.
- In Chapter 136, Nanami's mother reveals herself to be one as well, much to both Kaoru and Nanami's embarrassment. Almost as soon as Kaoru sits down to join them at a cafe, she immediately starts peppering him with questions about who confessed first and what was said.
- Shotgun Wedding: Played for laughs in Chapter 120, when Nanami realises that the reason she's put on weight is because of how often she eats over at Kaoru's place (and how he keeps piling food on her plate because he enjoys how much she loves his cooking). She demands he "take responsibility" before she realises that her wording made it sound like he'd gotten her pregnant and she wanted him to properly marry her. Fortunately, this happened while they were having dinner at Kaoru's apartment.
- Sickening Sweethearts: Part of the reason people can't believe Kaoru and Nanami are "just friends" is because of how much they act like a loving couple, with the happiness of the other generally being their highest priority. When Nanami is on the verge of giving up making cookies, for example, her class rep asks if that means she doesn't want to give them to Kaoru. She concedes she does, and so gives it one more try.
- In Chapter 110, Nanami visits Ri-chan's home to make Valentine's Day chocolate. Despite Ri-chan being far less of a blatant Shipper on Deck than their class rep, when Nanami mentions that last Valentine's she just gave Kaoru store-bought chocolate but wants to make them by hand this year even she can't help asking Nanami if she and Kaoru really are a couple.
- In Chapter 112, Nanami is doing the dishes after having dinner at Kaoru's apartment when she realises that it almost feels like routine for her to do the dishes (since Kaoru cooked dinner) while Kaoru wipes the table. While she recognises this is the kind of thing a couple living together or newlyweds would do, she steadfastly refuses to think along those lines... though she does allow herself the luxury of wondering what kind of feelings if any Kaoru has for her.
- As of Chapter 133 Kaoru and Nanami are a couple, with Nanami spending the chapter wondering what could possible be different between them since they were already doing things like going out, holding hands and even staying over at each other's homes. She's more then taken aback when Kaoru takes her hand, and she's immediately feels her heart speed up from that simple gesture.
- Sink or Swim Mentor: Kaoru sometimes ignores Nanami when she is having trouble interacting with strangers (e.g. cashiers), but if it's clear she can't cope he'll step in.
- Stupid Sexy Friend: While normally not an issue, sometimes Kaoru is reminded that Nanami is actually a rather attractive girl, who is also a dear friend. For example, in Chapter 86 he and Nanami are caught in the rain and take shelter at his house. He's unable to look at Nanami directly because her clothes are soaked and clinging very tightly to her body, even as he points her in the direction of the bathroom. He also hurriedly tries to keep busy when he hears the shower running, because that means that Nanami is now...
- On a couple of occasions, Nanami has mentioned Kaoru is cute.
- In Chapter 135, Nanami insists on having a "how to explain to my father that I'm now dating Kaoru" brainstorming at her house, due to fearing that if she went over to Kaoru's house the fact their feelings are now out in the open might cause them to do something stupid. She believes that at least she won't feel the need to gush about how cute Kaoru is if he's in disguise as Kaori, but to her shock she finds the sight of Kaori sipping a drink through a straw so absolutely adorable she is forced to excuse herself.
- Sure, Let's Go with That: When Ryuuji (Kaoru's friend and classmate) talks to Kaoru about his crush, a girl he saw with Nanami a while back, he starts noticing similarities between the girl and Kaoru. Things like their height and hair colour, even similar faces. He then asks Kaoru if he has a sister. Kaoru (who was actually the girl in question) quickly says yes.
- Through His Stomach: Part of the reason Nanami is able to admit she's completely smitten with Kaoru is because she realises just how much she enjoys his cooking.
- Tsundere: Nanami acts like this sometimes. This can at least partially be chalked up to her lack of social ability.
- In Chapter 2 when she and Kaoru meet up at an arcade she tells him she wants to go take pictures at the photo club machines. Kaoru admits surprise, prompting her to snap at him ("What, is there something weird about wanting to take pictures?") but when he points out he expected she wanted to meet there to play games, she meekly concedes the point. She also shyly adds that she'd read online that taking pictures is what friends do, so she wanted to give it a try with Kaoru.
- When she encounters Kaoru at a flower shop, he asks her what kind of flowers she likes. She lets him know, but is then surprised when he buys the flowers she suggests and leaves. Not liking the idea of Kaoru giving someone else flowers, she opts to follow him.
- Kaoru also acts like this sometimes, thanks to his blunt personality combined with his genuine kindness and affection for Nanami.
- Twice Shy: Kaoru and Nanami are very considerate of each other. So considerate, it actually embarrasses them at times because they feel so touched.
- In Chapter 4, Kaoru takes Nanami to a crepe place. Nanami is annoyed when she realises that there's a lot of normies present, and Kaoru admits he hadn't realised it was a popular date spot. When he explains that he took Nanami there because he remembered she likes sweet things and thought she might enjoy the crepes there, she blushes and mentally refers to him as a flirt.
- When Nanami later pushes herself to order for herself and Kaoru at a fast food place, he's surprised that she ordered the same thing he did the last time they were there. She admits that since she noticed Kaoru ordered it automatically, she guessed he liked that particular set. Kaoru blushes when he realises that Nanami paid such close attention, and Nanami blushes when she realises what he's thinking.
- On a more serious note, Chapter 115 reveals that part of the reason Kaoru outright refuses to see Nanami as a potential lover is because he saw how badly his mother's passing affected his father and became terrified of loving someone as much as his parents loved each other.
- Wham Episode: Chapter 66 has Kaoru discover Nanami's old school uniform and textbooks in her closet when he opens it while helping to clean her room. Chapter 67 has Nanami going into some detail about why she doesn't go to school anymore, and ends with Kaoru convincing her to transfer to his school (and also reveals that Nanami is almost 18 while Kaoru has only just turned 16). Chapter 68 has Nanami talking to her mother about transferring.
- Chapter 134 ends with Nanami's mother discovering the truth about Kaori. Chapters 135 and 136 reveals she's known for quite some time (at least a year in-universe).
- Wholesome Crossdresser: Kaoru is forced into doing this when Nanami's cousin Izumi Takekawa insists on meeting the girl Nanami is such good friends with. Later on, he does it whenever he visits Nanami's house, as Nanami warns that her father may just beat up any boy who gets close to her.
- Women Are Wiser: Nanami sometimes tries to invoke this to mixed success. Her biggest success by far was when she was forced to stay at Kaoru's place overnight thanks for a sudden typhoon which struck in Chapter 86. Kaoru is all awkward at the idea of the two of them spending the night together with no adult supervision, but Nanami scolds him for acting all weird and walks off to see what's in the fridge. Kaoru thinks to himself that at times like this Nanami shows how she's older and wiser than him, not knowing that at that very moment Nanami is using the fridge to hide her face due to having a freakout of her own.
