[chapters 263 and 264] A New Story of Mami Nanami
Hi, how are you doing? I hope you are enjoying Kanokari. It's been a while. This is Kourakuone.
Recently, there have been a lot of fun events such as the World Cup soccer tournament and the release of the new Pokemon game.
As for Kanokari, the lovey-dovey life of Chizuru and Kazuya is continuing, and they have regained the peace after the storm. Well, but that's from the reader's perspective. I know that Chizuru and Kazuya's hearts are about to explode every day with their unprecedented sudden closeness to the people they love, lol. Meanwhile, I took a break from the blog for a while because I had less and less to analyze and share with you.
◆Mami meets Kazuya for the first time in a long time (263)
Now, the topic of this article is Mami-chan. Mami contacted Kazuya after the battle in Hawaiians. Many readers were worried that she might be planning something evil again, and that she might be going to disturb Chizuru and Kazuya. On the other hand, for readers who were tired of Kazuya and Chizuru's peaceful daily episodes, Mami's appearance must have given them a sense of anticipation. That's Mami-chan, isn't it? Just having tea with Kazuya at a café stired up so much anxiety in readers.
I have been writing fanfiction for several years now, and the "fun" in a story is how well it arouses the reader's (viewer's) emotions. The more anxious, relieved, sad, or happy the readers feel, they judge it as the more entertaining drama. So, most stories begin with the readers' expectations not being met (stirring their anxiety and frustration), once their expectations are met (they are filled with relief and joy), once their expectations are not met again, and once their expectations are met again. It is a repetition of feelings of anxiety and relief, disappointment and satisfaction, in other words, 'I don't want this to happen' and 'I'm glad it happened the way I wanted it to. It is precisely because things don't quite turn out as expected that we turn the pages of the manga, hoping for the wonderful future that will one day come. In that sense, Mami Nanami's influence and contribution to the story is tremendous, as she tries to destroy the relationship between Chizuru and Kazuya and stirs up a sense of anxiety and danger in the reader just by appearing.
However, this does not necessarily mean that Mami will be portrayed as an antagonist to Chizuru and Kazuya in the future. I feel such expectations from the last few chapters that a new story of Mami Nanami may begin here. In this article, I will try to organize where Mami Nanami is now.
Restoring the Relationship with Kazuya
In chapter 263, Mami meets Kazuya. They just had tea. But considering Mami's current situation, it must have taken courage just to ask him out. Because Mami did something that Kazuya should have disliked and kept away from her.
◆Mami tried to make Chizuru look bad (222)
Mami exposed the fact that Chizuru was working as a rental girlfriend at Hawaiians and made Chizuru out to be the bad guy who has been deceiving the Kinoshita family. Although it is obvious that Chizuru and Kazuya are at fault for continuing to lie and Mami makes it seem as if she did by accident (by dropping her phone), it is true that she tried to undermine someone special to Kazuya. Mami must have been worried because she didn't know how Kazuya would perceive what she did, and it is natural that she thought he disliked her. When she contacted him on Line app (Chapter 262), she must have fully considered the possibility that he would ignore her.
◆Kazuya apologizes to Mami (263)
Kazuya did not realize Mami's true intentions (she was jealous of Chizuru and wanted to end their relationship) and he did not blame her. Rather, he apologizes for continuing the lie. I think Mami must have been relieved to know that Kazuya was not angry with her. It should be much easier for her to see him in the future. Let's look forward to Mami's future activities.
Mami Was Missing Him
Considering that Mami was in a situation where Kazuya could blame her, she must have felt quite uncomfortable contacting Kazuya. Kazuya also felt that he had humiliated Mami and had a hard time meeting her (Chapter 263), but so did Mami.
Still, Mami was prepared to risk being blamed by Kazuya, so she contacted him and tried to meet him. And as a result, they were able to restore their relationship to the point where they could meet and talk calmly. This means that she must have had a strong motivation to meet Kazuya/restore the relationship.
I don't know why Mami wanted to meet with Kazuya, or what her motive was. She possibly had a clear purpose, such as to get back together with Kazuya. But for now, I think she was simply missing him. She may have not known what to do about this loneliness herself and subconsciously tried to investigate whether there was a possibility to get Kazuya back (how far the relationship between Chizuru and Kazuya had progressed).
◆Mami anxiously holding a cushion in her room (264)
Mami is alone in her room with a cushion and an anxious look on her face. She remembers what Chizuru said to her. The truth is that she was missing Kazuya.
MAMI-SAN, AREN'T YOU THE ONE...
...WHO'S LYING TO HERSELF ABOUT HER FEELINGS?
DON'T YOU THINK THAT BEING THIS OBSESSED WITH KAZUYA-SAN...
...IS WEIRD?
IT'S NOT TO LATE TO REEXAMIN... HOW YOU FEEL.
It's natural she does not want to accept what the woman she hates said to her, even if she wills it. Also, if she admits that she really wants to fall in love and be loved by someone, it will only make it more difficult for Mami, who believes that love is unattainable. It is natural that she has a hard time admitting it. But what Chizuru pointed out to her is the undeniable truth. Mami, too, wants to be in love, to be loved by someone, and to be lonely after breaking up with Kazuya. Probably Mami is already aware of this in some corner of her mind.
The Beginning of a New Story
◆Falling in love is just painfull.
The obstacles in front of Mami are so high that she is not in a position to move forward. She is not allowed to fall in love freely due to pressure from her father, and she is afraid of falling in love due to the trauma of her love with Taro-kun ([ch 215] Mami's Past Finally Revealed). Furthermore, from Mami's point of view, Kazuya's feelings have long been toward Chizuru and she is aware of Chizuru's love for Kazuya ([ch 195] A Promise that Mami Forced upon Chizuru). The two could become real lovers at any moment, and she can see that she will lose. In this situation, it would be impossible for her to try to find a new love, much less decide to get back together with Kazuya. In fact, the situation surrounding Mami has not changed since the time when she could not win back Kazuya's feelings at the sea in Shimoda (Chapter 20).
The only thing that has changed is that Mami is no longer able to end the "playing lovers" between Chizuru and Kazuya. Chizuru found out at Hawaiians that Mami's obsession with Kazuya and her attempts to expose the lie were all because she couldn't forget him (and was jealous that Chizuru was in love with him) (Chapter 230). If she tries to do anything more to them, it is as if she is exposing her secret feelings by herself.
Until now, she might have been able to cover up her sadness by trying to end the "playing lovers". But that is no longer possible. The only way for Mami now to fill the huge hole in her heart may be to accept her true feelings and find a new love.
As I discussed earlier, Mami's situation has not changed since Chapter 20. However, from a different perspective, "things will change from here." Mami remembering Chizuru's words was enough to make me have such expectations. Let us hope that Mami will overcome her family problems and trauma. It would be great if Kazuya and Chizuru would then do their best for Mami.
So, that's how I look back on chapters 263 and 264. Let's keep an eye on what Kazuya will give Chizuru for her birthday along with Mami's future lol.
See you in the next post!