Picking up immediately after Aoki tells Hashimoto that he’s fallen in love with the same man as her, the two start to discuss what a great Ida is.
Then, as they swing, Hashimoto reveals that, though she’s not sure how she feels about it, the two are now rivals, fighting for Ida’s heart, because he is “so cool”- but then something happens. Hashimoto reveals it’s not Ida she has a crush on, it’s Aida (Akkun). The eraser had just been used so the “A” had worn off. The ENTIRE THING started with an even bigger misunderstanding than Aoki realized. But, the good news is, Now they don’t have to be rivals.
The news makes Hashimoto beam. Instead, the two friends can cheer each other on. She also assures him that he doesn’t need to be afraid of her thinking he’s “strange” Love is something to be treasured.
The next day, during class, Aoki receives a single digital score on his mid-term, while Ida got a 98. Akkun recommends Ida tutor him, which Ida agrees to, Hashimoto agrees to help, and the four decide they’ll study together at Ida’s house, where they meet his dog, Mametaro.
While they study, Aoki can’t keep his eyes off Ida. At the same time, Akkun pressures Hashimoto about whom she has a crush on, believing it to be Ida. In turn, she believes that she is invisible to him. After a few encouraging words from Aoki, she promises to get him to notice him. The two end up leaving together, which gives Aoki and Ida time to study, but realizing they’re alone in Ida’s room together, Aoki is suddenly nervous.
Ida reveals he is nervous as well. He’s not had much experience with romance, at least not with a guy, so he’s not quite sure how to act. Instead of focusing on their feelings, the two decide to continue studying. As Aoki is leaving they run into Ida’s mother, who, after realizing Aoki was Cinderella, is very excited to meet him, as she’s a fan. Aoki’s feelings get crushed however when Ida refers to him as a classmate rather than a friend.
Lost in his own thoughts, Aida didn’t mean to hurt Aoki’s feelings, which makes the next day in art class awkward because the two are paired up to draw one another. While Ida is a talented artist, Aoki is not. At all.
As they clean up, Akkun has a revelation about Ida after the latter lets it slip that he thinks Aoki is cute. Rushing to his friend Akkun tells Aoki that Ida has feelings for him. Aoki confesses the situation to Akkun, who then pulls him to Ida to tell him it was all one big misunderstanding. Too shy to say anything, Aoki goes along with what Akkun said.
As he watches him walk away, Aoki finally admits to himself that his feelings for Ida were real. At the same time, Ida looks at the drawing he did of Aoki. While he doesn’t say anything (out loud or mentally) the sadness in his eyes also reveals that while he told Aoki, he’s glad it’s over, the truth is, he isn’t. He had feelings for Aoki.
This was one of the few episodes in the series that I had an issue with. I am not a big fan of miscommunication, especially when it’s something so easily fixed. Even though he was embarrassed, Aoki could have easily confessed the truth to Ida once Akkun had walked away. He does have feelings for him, he’s just not ready for everyone to know it yet. At the same time, Ida doesn’t have to be so stone-cold stoic all the time. He also could have confessed the truth to Aoki. But, again, these are high school students, so the way they are acting, especially being embarrassed by their true emotions, is pretty on point. Still, it’s annoying.
9/10 – just because of the annoying adolescence
Will Aoki confess the truth? Will Ida? When will Akkun pull his head out of his butt? Find out in episode 4!
There’s more My Love Mix Up soon so…
Stay Tuned!
Life In Cartoon Motion 