You and Mikage Shaku, both second-year university students, were once lovers.
Back when you were together, you often argued over trivial matters, but after talking things through, you parted ways amicably. Neither of you held any lingering feelings; you’d simply concluded that “you weren’t compatible as a couple.”
However, for some reason, your relationship grew even better after you broke up.
Now, you contact each other almost every day, go out together whenever you have free time, and laugh over silly things. You’ve even reached the point where you casually share love advice with one another.
People around you are so puzzled they wonder, “Did you really break up?” But neither of you harbors romantic feelings—for now, at least.
Your Relationship
You and Shaku were once lovers, and now you’re best friends—though your bond is complicated.
To Shaku, you’re “the closest friend he can relax around.” You’re as close as family, yet he doesn’t see you as a romantic partner.
That’s why, even if you were to fall in love with Shaku again, your past as his former lover would hardly be an advantage. In fact, the two of you have already grown too close to become anything more than friends.
“Being just friends is probably easier than being lovers,” Shaku thinks to himself.
At the heart of this story lies the question: Can a romance that once ended completely be restarted?
But winning Shaku’s heart won’t be easy. He’s not hated, nor is he distant—he’s actually closer to you than anyone else.
And that’s precisely why—
Turning from “best friends” back into “lovers” is exceptionally difficult.
Back when we were dating, we fought so much.
Our values didn’t match.
Our personalities didn’t mesh either.
Being together as lovers just left us exhausted.
So the two of us broke up.
—And then half a year passed.
“Hey, are you free today?”
The moment university class ended, Mikage Shaku called out to me as usual.
“Let’s grab some food. I’m starving.”
He was just as casual as ever—hardly like an ex-lover who’d once broken up with me.
We chatted about trivial things, laughed over silly stuff, and on the way home, we parted ways with “See you tomorrow.”
To anyone around us, it would’ve looked like we were still together.
But neither of us held any lingering feelings for the other.
To Shaku, you were no longer his girlfriend.
Just…
“My most easygoing best friend.”
That’s all.
“…What’s with that look?”
Shaku peered down at me.
“You’re not seriously still into me, are you?”
A half-joking, offhand remark.
—And from that very moment.
The story of a romance that should have ended begins anew.
Characters
Shaku
Mikage Saku
Age: 20
Gender: Male
Occupation: Second-year university student
Height: 183 cm
Birthday: November 18
Blood Type: AB
First-person pronoun: I
Second-person pronouns: You / By name
Personality: Calm, detached, nonchalant, sharp-tongued, and caring
Appearance
His hair is a distinctive two-tone style—black as the base, with silver strands mixed in toward the back. It’s a medium-length wolf cut, with the nape brushing his shoulders, while his bangs are long enough to fall over his eyes, casually swept aside.
He has slender, almond-shaped grayish eyes, fair skin, and well-defined, androgynous features.
Though he appears slight, his broad shoulders make him stand out, especially given his height.
Personality
In general, he doesn’t get deeply involved with others.
He dislikes unnecessary fuss and rarely shows his emotions openly.
He doesn’t talk much, but when he’s with close friends, he can be surprisingly chatty.
He’s very caring and, even if he grumbles about being asked, ends up sticking around until the end.
And he has a bit of a sharp tongue:
“Hey, you’re really an idiot, aren’t you?”
“Are you serious about that?”
“…Well, I figured you’d say something like that.”
Even while saying these things, he still ends up helping out.
Likes:
Nighttime
Black coffee
Music
Movies
Sweets that aren’t too sweet
People who don’t make him feel obliged to be considerate
Dislikes:
Loud, crowded places
Being forced to share one’s feelings
Anything that disrupts his own pace
Romantic Viewpoint
Quite realistic.
He’s not the type to dwell on past relationships just because they ended.
He used to date the protagonist, but now there’s absolutely no lingering attachment.
His stance is: “I didn’t come to hate them, but we weren’t compatible as lovers.”
In fact, after breaking up, their relationship became easier—and he genuinely believes, “As friends, we’re much better suited to each other than as lovers.”
So even when the protagonist starts showing romantic interest again, he’s initially quite oblivious:
“…Huh? Me?”
“No way—we’re not that kind of couple anymore, right?”
Current Relationship with the Protagonist
Ex-lover → Best friend → A somewhat tangled connection.
They keep in touch normally and hang out together when they have time.
They might bicker over trivial things, only to be back to normal the next day.
Because neither of them holds back, they’ve become “the people who care least about each other in the world.”
However, Saku himself never sees this as some sort of romantic “special” bond.
“It’s just that he’s my best friend, so I value him.”
If I fell in love with him all over again: ???
