Issue 75, published in Volume 8, is the 75th chapter of the manga. The tagline for this chapter reads: 'Convey those special feelings with your own words.'
Page Titles[]
- Seems Smart
- = I Love You
- The Unfulfilled Intention
- The Shocking Truth
- After You
- Heart Throb Enclosed
- Synchronized Feelings
- Me Too, Me Too
- I Want It To Directly Reach You
- Me Too, Me Too
- Compilation
- You Too?
Summary[]
Hori and Nozaki are reading shoujo manga. On one page, the boy says to his love interest "The moon is beautiful." Hori asks Nozaki what this means. Nozaki explains that it is a fad, influenced by the famous novelist Natsume Sōseki which depicts the translation of 'I love you' to 'The moon is beautiful' as being 'cool and smart'. However, Nozaki says that he would show it by having Mamiko talk about reading Sōseki instead, which Hori describes as 'a dumb conversation'. Furthermore, a close-up of the book Mamiko is holding reveals that it is not Sōseki at all, but a short story called 'Rashomon' written by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa.
Thinking to himself about the weird yet witty nature of such a line, Hori asks Nozaki how he would translate 'I love you'. Nozaki replies with "The beta is beautiful." Hori grabs Nozaki's shirt, screaming that something like that has nothing to do with romance and is just an attempt to solicit his assistants. Nozaki asks him how he would translate the line, if this is the case. Caught off-guard, Hori replies with "Your legs are beautiful...?" Sarcastically, Nozaki says that he can sense the desire in his words.
At the school library, Nozaki tells Sakura that his conversation with Hori inspired him to write his next story about a pair of fervent readers. Sakura is excited, imagining an ensuing romance, which starts off with a boy and a girl choosing the same book - and therefore brushing hands - in the library. From the corner of her eyes, she notices Nozaki reach up to take a book from a high shelf. Sakura recognizes this opportunity and attempts to grab the book at the same time. However, she is too short to reach and is left flailing her arms frantically in the book's general direction.
On the topic of library stories, Nozaki brings up the most cliche type, in which a girl notices a boy who always checks out books before her. Sakura opens a book to the last page to look at the check-out card and is shocked to see that it is not there. Nozaki is also shocked that all the portrayals in the manga have been proved wrong. They approach a library assistant and find out that there is a new system in which everyone has their own check-out card. On the other hand, the library assistant appears to be the most shocked, realizing that Nozaki and Sakura must never have borrowed a single book.
Perusing the check-out card, Nozaki suggests borrowing a few books. Sakura recognizes this trope as the one where a girl borrows a book straight after the boy she likes, in order to take note of his interests. However, the first book Nozaki borrows is titled 'Male Pose Collection', which makes Sakura question his intentions. The next book he borrows is titled 'Simple Manga Series - How To Draw Backgrounds'. Sakura exclaims that she wants to borrow this before him (so that Nozaki will appreciate her artistic diversity).
Back at Nozaki's apartment, Nozaki tells Mikoshiba about their time at the library. As it turns out, Sakura went home after borrowing the book on backgrounds. Hearing Nozaki's recollection, Mikoshiba has the idea for a plot about exchanging letters by placing them inside a book. Nozaki approves of this idea and asks Mikoshiba to help him try it, which Mikoshiba is uncertain about. Nozaki then tries to look for a book to place the letters in and settles on his library book ('Male Pose Collection'). Mikoshiba adamantly refuses.
Mikoshiba is at the library trying to think of something to write. Nozaki has advised him to 'write me a letter, I don't care about the contents.' Stuck for ideas, Mikoshiba decides to write harsh things about 'Let's Fall in Love'. For example: "Recently it's been a pain to fill the panels with flowers. Draw some people too." - "Lately you've been lazy about drawing Mamiko so be careful." - "Suzuki's clothes were pretty lame last time, so maybe you should look at a fashion magazine?" Due to the critical words, Nozaki's heart starts thumping every time he opens a letter. He compares this to the thumping heart of a girl in love.
A girl realizes that she has been noticing Mikoshiba, whom she describes as 'flashy', around the library quite often. She notices that he puts a letter in the same book every day and concludes that he is secretly in love. The girl picks up the book against her moral compass in order to see how 'the girl' responded to Mikoshiba's 'words of love'. In reality, she comes across Nozaki's letter replying to Mikoshiba's criticisms. It reads: 'My apologies. I'll take measures to prevent it from happening again.'
Sakura confronts Mikoshiba by the corridor. She claims to have heard from Nozaki about a rumor of them having been exchanging letters. Taking advantage of the situation, Sakura asks Mikoshiba to switch his letter with one she has prepared. On a piece of fancy paper, it reads: 'To Nozaki ♡ Isn't it about time you got a girlfriend? I recommend Sakura! You two sure are close! This is my request! From Mikoshiba ♡'. He tells her not to use 'such a weird curveball'. On another piece of paper, Sakura has written: 'P.S. Mamiko hasn't looked cute lately so please draw her cutely.' Mikoshiba compares the bluntness of this letter to the previous one.
Kashima is looking over Mikoshiba's shoulder at the library. He explains that Nozaki has asked him to put a letter inside a book. On the other hand, Wakamatsu notices Nozaki's worried expression and asks him whether he is tired. Nozaki says that he was hoping for a kinder letter. Afterwards, the girl who previously came across Nozaki's reply to Mikoshiba comes back for another look. She finds that the letter has 'multiplied' - there are now drama club notices and other such messages enclosed along with the original letter.
Hori asks Nozaki if he has finally given up and 'run back home'. Defeated, Nozaki admits that the library is too big of a hurdle for him. However, this does not mean it was all for nothing. Nozaki tells Hori that he has managed to create a 'newly-born Suzuki' based on 'the cool air of quietness and calmness' in the library. He presents a page featuring Suzuki, having finished reading a book, sitting in the exact same position as the man on the front cover of 'Male Pose Collection'. Hori asks him what kind of weird book he borrowed.
As Hori recalls, it all started with Sōseki's phrase 'The moon is beautiful' which is supposed to replace 'I love you'. He asks Sakura how she would say 'I love you'. Holding up her library book, Sakura replies with 'I will gladly learn backgrounds for your sake'. Hori is amazed - these confessions always come back to technique. The postscript claims that 'love will save the manuscript.'
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
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