My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

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Zheben got off his bicycle and slowly pushed it over. He was probably just going that way home from work.

"Is Hachiman waiting here to go home?"

"Ah."

She patted her bicycle rack: "Together?"

"It's too cold."

"Then let's pedal!"

Ah—I was riding a bike, right?... It seems like some eyes are on me—ah, it's a salaryman, looks like he's single... Let me translate what he's trying to say: "Stop being all lovey-dovey, or I'll kill you."

Um... I think I'll just slip away.

She walked over to the seat and patted it with her gloved hand.

"Here you go." She handed me the handlebars.

"I really don't know where to begin. That kind of thing wouldn't happen..."

He let out a slightly disappointed sigh:

"Okay, let's go then."

Huh? How did it end up being going home together...? Oh, so proactive? Although I do prefer being passive, this is... Hold on, hold on!

Actually, I don't want this kind of closeness at all.

Zheben suddenly seemed to remember something and pulled his phone out of his pocket: "Your email address... has it changed?"

"Well..."

A vague answer. It didn't want to answer "yes" or "no." The original classmate relationship wasn't particularly good to begin with, and keeping the email address would only make things awkward for myself.

But why are you suddenly asking this? The curly-haired girl walking in front of me, clearly oblivious to my surprise, said:

"There's a class reunion after Christmas, and after thinking about it, I think it would be better if everyone could see each other."

"There's no reason to go, so let's just forget about it."

"That's true," Orimoto said with a smile.

We chatted aimlessly as we walked. Sometimes there would be a sudden silence, and we'd look at each other in bewilderment. It was probably just chatting; there was no real meaning in our words, just maintaining the conversation. Most of the time I just nodded, but I didn't seem to mind the loss. This person's personality is still the same…

We stood on the overpass, speechless. I thought that was the end of it, but then, Zheben suddenly asked me with a hint of curiosity:

"By the way... really just by chance, who are you dating?"

"No."

My slightly weary reply.

"Is this so..."

He turned away as if nothing had happened.

We all fell silent; the only sounds were our footsteps and the screech of bicycle tires. But without turning around, another soft question came:

"So, which one do you like?"

This question seems similar to the one before.

I couldn't answer. I couldn't admit it, nor could I deny it. Like a fishbone stuck in my throat, words were left only in a sudden silence. Oribon unexpectedly turned around, and when he saw my face, he smiled uneasily, as if apologizing.

"Well, whatever."

Is the answer truly in my heart? Do I really know the answer?

For the rest of the time, I just nodded at what she said, leaving only the sound of two messy footsteps and the gears of a bicycle.

postscript

Hello everyone, I'm Watari.

I didn't expect to start writing a new afterword so soon; it's quite unexpected. It feels like just yesterday I started writing about My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected, it was already two years ago. Thank you everyone, and thank you to all the fans who supported the first season of the anime. Thank you for your hard work!

I thought for a long time about what to name this story—the motivation for writing this series was that there was a blank space in my timeline. I initially thought that dividing it into numbers according to timeline would be nice, but this series doesn't connect with the numbered series. Naming it with numbers would be easily misunderstood, so I decided to name it "A".

Those who have finished reading may have noticed that the plot unfolds in a rather unusual way, or rather, the way it develops from here on out will be quite different. This is a special story; the seven volumes together form a complete novella.

The bonus seven-volume series differs significantly from the officially numbered paperback content. In a sense, this series is even more substantial than the main series. Because it's difficult to officially number this series, and the story's direction is independent of the main story, it's not unreasonable to consider it a standalone main series. The seven-volume length also makes re-inclusion in a paperback publication impractical.

In any case, it would be a great honor if you could finish reading it. Thank you everyone.

Actually... I put a lot of thought into getting this slightly different project approved so that everyone could enjoy it like the main volume.

The producer asked me, "What is this 'a'?", the editor crumpled up the manuscript in a somewhat gloomy tone, and so on...

Does the letter "a" have any special meaning? For example, the first letter of the alphabet, α, or an abbreviation of a word—I can think of at least four or five. Or perhaps "alternative"? With so many meanings, which one is most appropriate?

Wow, English is so hard! Are all the British people who can speak English so fluently geniuses?

There are a whole bunch of other words that seem quite suitable, like "answer" and "anbelievable"—wait, "anbelievable"? This word is clearly pronounced with an "ah," so why doesn't it start with "a"...?

Well, many words start with the letter 'a', so guessing them can be quite fun.

it is good--

Although I'm currently writing this novella series, I won't neglect my original novel! Why don't you read both? Why don't you read them? Ugh, why am I sounding like a primary school student right now… Reading both books would be a win-win situation… Ah, that wouldn't sound like a primary school student at all. President Yu Sheng's hand massage is making me feel like I'm flying to heaven…

The more events, the better! Whether as the original creator or a viewer, I really enjoyed the animation production of the second season.

"My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected" isn't really suited for an anime adaptation—when I was first told about the anime project, I wasn't particularly interested. How to adapt isn't my biggest concern; I'm more worried about how to begin and how to set a direction.

But the final product is still pretty cool. After all, the story mainly unfolds in one room; won't readers get bored? What kind of advanced technology does an animation studio need to produce something like this?

Surprisingly, they said that making mostly static animations was actually more interesting—I mean, I originally thought that making large-scale battle scenes would be more difficult.

There are even fewer action scenes in the second season. How can the director keep the audience from getting bored to death?

For example, the hands of the chairman of the Jade Rope Association, and so on... all sorts of small details show the director's dedication.

The biggest challenge was the time constraint. How many episodes per season, how many minutes per episode, and what content each episode should contain all needed careful consideration. Composing the music, deciding which pieces to insert, was also a major headache. The director even had to cut some dialogue to save time…cutting dialogue is painful! This won't do!

Thank you so much, everyone on the production team. Anyway, who wrote such a long post...?

The novel is written in Hachiman's first-person perspective, which makes adapting it into an anime extremely difficult, and the people around him are all incredibly troublesome. Seriously, what kind of people are they? Are they trying to ruin this anime?

I often think: Can't these people just talk properly? Can't they stop arguing?

However, I think this is the main highlight of this animation.

During the production discussion, a group of middle-aged men were struggling to discuss:

"Oh dear, I totally understand how Yui feels..."

"yes……"

"The problem Yukino was carrying, we've all forgotten about it now that we're all old enough to let it go..."

"Yes, that's right. Hachiman has similar aspects, but there are also many differences."

"That's really true."

"Even though it's completely unrelated, I absolutely love the kind where you lose money!"

"I understand...that's great."

"Hmm, not bad" or similar phrases

Although we've been working hard to discuss the characters' personalities and traits, this show is really difficult to adapt.

But in the end, it was the original creators who caused the animation company a lot of trouble by appearing on various production sets!

Upon seeing the author at the recording studio, the director must have been thinking:

"Please hurry up and start writing the bonus novel!"

The editor must also be thinking, "Hey, where's the original work?!"

We encountered so many problems, and I'm truly grateful to the production team. Thanks to them, you all got to see such a great animation. Did you all enjoy it?

Oh dear, I'm about to start talking about the first episode of the anime. I don't have much space left to write!

The author really went to great lengths to get to the event (crying). I really wish I could attend events like this...

The first episode features the usual adorable Totsuka, and also... oh right, "Ya-Hello!"

It's so heartwarming to hear that word again.

Although I wanted to stop here, the stickers on the outside of the department were so thoughtful. Remember the first season? I hope everyone feels warm!

This story takes place after the sixth volume of the original novel. Their words and actions are all hidden behind the scenes. In the next episode, you will experience something different. Look forward to it!

The main characters this time are Tobe and Ebina—they appeared in the first volume and helped the club members in the fourth volume. If Hayama Hayato were the protagonist, then these two would probably be supporting characters, right?

However, the protagonist of this novel is Hachiman Hikigaya, so no matter what, it can only be a fantasy.

However, I have indeed thought about writing a spin-off novel about Hayato Hayama... Hmm, anyone interested in reading it?

Perhaps in this episode, perhaps in the next—we'll take a deeper look at Hayama and his inner circle, and also gain a more comprehensive understanding of Tobe and Ebina. Through this request, Hachiman will gradually change and expand his thinking. For the sake of the novel's ultimate theme, this shift in his thinking is necessary.

Gradually, Yukinoshita will reveal different sides of herself, ultimately showing her full potential when they return to the hotel. How will we feel then?

Neither Hachiman nor Yukinoshita could find the words to describe it, right? If it were me, I would call that scene "budding".

It's really beautiful, isn't it?

The department remained unchanged; it was still the same familiar place. However, this did not mean that their relationship had not changed.

Look, the feelings between the boy and the girl are slowly blossoming.

Perhaps the story has only just begun. In any case, the next volume will follow, so don't forget to check it out!

As is customary, the last page contains the list of acknowledgments.

Although different from the original series, this one will have a different kind of impact. Let's witness it together.

This concludes the discussion.

Acknowledgments.

Travel

Season 2 Blu-ray Bonus: Another (n)

The online translation is from Baidu Tieba

Translation: Shinkai Makoto

Whether now or in the past, the loss has not changed.

The night gradually lost its color, and the wind direction slowly changed. We crossed the overpass on the national highway and continued on our way.

"So, which one do you like?"

After that question, we didn't say a word, just walked silently along the familiar road. Of course, afterwards, Zheben laughed it off with "Actually, it doesn't matter." But, did she really have no interest when she ended the conversation with that sentence, or was it out of her gentleness, or pity for my helpless expression?

In any case, the opportunity to answer that question has passed. And we probably won't discuss it anymore.

Actually, no matter who asks this question, I doubt my answer will change. No one has asked this question before.

Perhaps, maybe there is. There was a time when the monster inside me would occasionally whisper about it, but I could ignore what people said, and there was no need to listen to what the monster said.

To carefully consider those questions that weren't asked, and even go to the trouble of organizing them into words, is such a serious misunderstanding. I find it terrifying to even call it an excess of self-consciousness. This kind of self is so disgusting that I can't stand it.

Therefore, no answer has ever been given. Because if the question itself is invalid, the conclusion drawn is bound to be wrong.

If asked by someone else in another place, they would also be unable to give an answer that does not yet exist.

They would definitely use vague words, speak incoherently, wear a face without a smile or anger, and only utter meaningless sounds like "ah" or "uh-huh."

The chance to answer is gone forever; the question has no answer.

So, with her lips tightly pressed together and her cheeks taut in the cold wind, she just kept walking, as if trying to escape back to where she belonged. The sound of bicycles being dragged along and the whisper of the wind blew past me. I looked over there, and the headlights of oncoming cars illuminated her face. But she just squinted, watching the cars pass by impatiently.

What a straightforward person!

Even though it was the first time I'd ever seen such a loss, I had a feeling that "it should have been this way."

While we could call each other acquaintances, we weren't particularly close. Generally speaking, once junior high school classmates graduate, it's hard to see each other again. Even if we do meet again, will it be at our coming-of-age ceremony three years later? Or at our class reunion ten years later? Or perhaps just on the street, somewhere we see each other all the time?

However, no matter where we meet, it will never turn out like this, walking side by side on a highway at night.

Only someone as outgoing and easygoing as Zheben could chat so freely, even inviting me to a class reunion. Thinking about it, I don't really keep in touch with my high school classmates, especially since I confessed my feelings to them and got dumped. Considering all this, Zheben is quite something.

Lost in my memories, my gaze remained fixed on Zheben. She frowned slightly, turned to me, and asked: