Hana and Shinichi getting into harmless spats every now and then isn’t anything new, but we might have a couple of new challengers.

— Shinichi has a nightmare in the middle of class, but only Hana notices it. She proceeds to tease him in their next class… which is kinda odd, don’t you think? How come they share so many classes together? He’s a junior and she’s a sophomore. Shouldn’t they be neck-deep into their respective fields of study by now? Or did they coordinate this somehow? I dunno, seems kinda fishy to me… When I was in college, I never shared a class with any of my friends.

— We’re eventually introduced to Itsuhito, one of Shinichi’s male friends… er, perhaps Shinichi’s only male friend. He claims that he has more than one, but it’s not like we ever get to meet them. Hell, Hana is always keeping an eye on him whenever they’re within 100m of each other, and yet she’s somehow surprised by Itsuhito’s sudden appearance.

— Itsuhito gets on Shinichi’s case for living a “dull” life, but hey, to each their own. I guess my life right now kinda resembles Shinichi’s. I play a lot of games, and until the COVID-19 stuff ruined everything, I also went to the movies mostly by myself. The only thing that separates us (besides me not going to college anymore) is that I also like to waste too much money at fancy restaurants.

— In any case, Itsuhito quickly changes his tune when he sees the special dynamic between Hana and Shinichi. Honestly, everyone sees it but those two. But unlike Ami and her father, Itsuhito isn’t content to just sit idly by and observe; he wants his buddy to get some action. To be fair, however, Hana and Shinichi already do couple-y things. They just don’t put a label on it. Plus, since we never see these two spend time with members of the opposite sex, it’s not one of those “you snooze, you lose” situations. They have all the time in the world to realize their true feelings for each other.

— Oddly enough, Hana tells Shinichi that if he hangs out with Itsuhito too much, people will gossip about the two young men. Does she not realize that people might gossip about them as well? Or does she just assume that everyone would simply brush it off? Sure, Hana thinks that Shinichi would never make a move, but that has no bearing on what outsiders think.

— These two really love video games. I do too, but honestly, I’d never do it on campus. I’d at least go home first.

— When Itsuhito bugs Shinichi enough to make the latter invite Hana out to get some ice cream, Ami drops by. I guess she’s also stalking our couple at college. Sheesh, these people have nothing better to do.

— Well, the discussion soon gets rather contentious. Itsuhito wants to keep poking the sleeping bear until it wakes up and admits the obvious. Ami, on the other hand, thinks that you’ll only scare the bear away. I actually don’t agree with her. Hana and Shinichi might eventually get somewhat self-conscious about their friendship, but they also enjoy each other’s company too much. I can’t see Hana avoiding Shinichi just because she’s embarrassed (she’s also a bit oblivious at times). And similarly, I can’t see him ever shutting down her attempts to hang out with him. She’ll just wear him down until he gives in like always. If I had to pick a side, I bet Itsuhito’s interventionist policies are more correct.

— Well, this post is titled “Bickering couples,” so that’s what we keep seeing. Hana teasing Shinichi about his dreams in the middle of class was just the amuse bouche. Ami confronting Itsuhito was the appetizer. We now get to see Hana go on a complete rant when Shinichi dares to suggest that chocolate mint tastes like toothpaste. I mean, it kinda does, but toothpaste legit tastes good… just don’t swallow it.

— Seriously, this is what she’s passionate about. Hana cares so much about chocolate mint that she’s about to throw hands.

— But towards the end of her fiery speech, she becomes solemn, and this somehow earns her a rousing applause from bystanders.

— This silly scene, however, is just one long setup for yet another “indirect kissu” moment in anime. Once again, Hana is wearing down Shinichi’s defenses. Without her, he would never consider even trying chocolate mints (apparently, there’s a childhood trauma behind this aversion), but now he has to… with her hand-feeding him. And when she goes for the last bite, she is suddenly not so oblivious anymore.

— Elsewhere, Ami and Itsuhito are still bickering. Maybe when Hana and Shinichi finally hook up, these two can join them on a double date. Or maybe not.