Sukitte Ii na Yo

A high school/slice of life manga and anime which I came across by watching the anime when it was a new release, Say I Love You is based on Tachibana Mei, a 16 year old who doesn't have any friends. After being the target of those she thought were her friends when it came to putting the blame on someone at a younger age, Mei has drifted away from the idea of socialising with others, feeling that the way to get by in life now is to deal with things on her own. She becomes someone of interest to Kurosawa Yamato (the most popular male student in the school) after kicking him down some stairs by accident and, as a result, slowly becomes someone of interest to him.



This takes on a different formula to the whole "girl meets boy and they fall in love" concept, as Mei has to deal with becoming known to other students due to being with Yamato whilst trying to become more confident in herself and in trusting others so she can make friends. The anime is what made me find and read the manga, and to me is one of those that I'd watch again because of the quality of the steady paced story. But to find out what happens to Mei as things change between her and Yamato, the manga is the next stop. It continues on the steady pace whilst introducing other characters as Yamato and Mei get on with their school lives and their plans for the future.

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Summary:

A girl who is used to being alone becomes the love interest of the most popular guy in school
Anything else: Yamato is really sweet