It all started as an accidental call. But it was actually a phone call from three years in the future!
Masaki had finally gotten her life back together after a devastating breakup with her boyfriend, who severely mistreated her. Then, one night, she received an accidental call on her supposedly broken phone. Why does it only work with him?! Although it started as a mistake, they began calling each other more and more. What started as something light and casual has grown into a bond of healing for Masaki. Now she wants to meet Kanzaki, but there's one big problem...
What in the world is going on? Could this be destiny? A stunning story of love filled with twists and turns, born from a paradox in time!
Suddenly, her life was turned upside-down.... Kinaho lived alone until one day, her boyfriend Akito brought with him two young relatives: a pair of brothers who had just lost their parents. All at once, Kinaho finds herself living under one roof with not just Akito, but serious-to-a-fault eighth grader Toma and innocent five-year-old Haruhi. As the days pass in confusion, this group starts to forge a new relationship: a family... or something like it.
Kiri and her husband, both in their 30s, have been happily married for several years. They don't have any children yet, and Kiri knows that at her age they'll need to start trying soon if they ever want to. Yet she can't seem to take that first step, knowing that once she makes a decision, she won't be able to turn back. While Kiri agonizes, feeling more drained with every pregnancy announcement she hears, her husband seems awfully detached and casual about the whole thing...? In a sudden rush of motivation, Kiri takes the plunge and manages to get pregnant, only to face a world of new, unfamiliar challenges as a first-time mom-to-be. This story of one woman's journey into motherhood is for the women also struggling to decide, for those already expecting, for long-time mothers reminiscing about their own pregnancies, and of course for the men in all their lives. It's a story anyone and everyone can enjoy.
Jun (35) and Takeyori Sumisu (39) have been married for 8 years with no children. Since Jun quit her full-time job, she's more or less become a housewife, spending her days quietly. But when she realizes that 5 years have gone by since the couple last had sex, frustration begins to surface. "It's not like we don't get along... I just miss the way things used to be when we had first started going out." With her newfound motivation, she's determined to make a change, and begins job hunting again. However, when spring arrives and her new job begins, new encounters and experiences abound for both Jun and her husband.
Although Kazuyo is a pro at what she does, her life is plagued with nothing but problems. From cleaning up messes left behind by her incompetent coworkers, to having to take care of Yuriko, the new temp worker, Kazuyo is left sighing her days away in frustration. Having to show everyone she encounters how to be better is an exhausting task, and her only solace is her secret love affair with Hakamada, a member of the sales department. But what will come of her desire to treat herself to these dangerous nightly pleasures?
They made a vow to always be honest with each other. They were supposed to live happily ever after. But fast forward to two years later, their relationship has become strained. Kenya's attitude towards Rin has made a complete one-eighty. Day after day, Rin puts up with his derisive comments about her appearance, all because of her weight gain. When she discovers that he's even been cheating on her, it seems they've reached the point of no return. The story of a woman's journey to discover independence after facing betrayal by the man she once loved.
Meiko has the perfect life. Kentaro is the perfect husband. He supports the family with his high-salary job at the bank, helps around the house, and is the perfect father to their son, Kota. On his days off, he even volunteers at their son's daycare. Little does she know that he is having an affair with none other than one of Kota's daycare workers. Devastated, how will Meiko handle this affair?
Pregnant and stuck at home with her emotionally abusive husband and self-serving in-laws, Sekka tried to grin and bear it by holding onto the hope that he would change once the baby came. Then she finds out he's been cheating...and while she's still reeling from that news, he deliberately sets her beloved pet cockatiel loose, which finally pushes her past the breaking point. Unable to stand by and watch her suffer anymore, her twin sister Rikka makes an offer: "I'll take your place and get revenge on your husband!"
"I can't have kids. It's impossible for me because I don't want to be a mother." Asa and Tetsuya Kanazawa are "DINKs." A married couple that both work and make the conscious choice to never have children. Even after 3 years of marriage, that hasn't changed. One day, Asa is invited to her high school class reunion. Not only is she unable to join in her former classmates' conversation as they talk about raising kids, but she also overhears them talking about her being childless behind her back, making the whole night extremely uncomfortable for Asa. After getting home, a depressed Asa is comforted by Tetsu's words, "We don't have to have kids." But behind those words Tetsu harbors secret feelings and Asa has no way to know...!!
I worked alongside 3 beautiful women, making some sort of unbalanced relationship of looks. No matter how that really worked, we always understood each other. We always made the best team around... until that one incident. Marimo Satake is 29 years old, plump, plain, and working in an office. She's struggled with her looks for a while but at least she's starting to feel her glow up. She's got someone she's seeing, and 3 amazing friends who always have her back. However, the 4 of them have their lives changed forever after a disastrous girls' trip...!
Have you ever cried while looking in the mirror...? "With this face, if I talked about fashion or went out to buy cosmetics, I'd be a total joke." Living with such thoughts, pitifully ugly office worker Tachibana Rin passed the days miserable and taunted by fate since she shares a first name with the most beautiful woman at her company, Kaizuka Rin. But that's just how it had to be. After all, for ugly girls, life's over before it begins... Then one day, Rin wins 11,910,000 yen in the lottery!! "Life's over for ugly girls, but for me this is just the beginning."
I want to be loved, as a person, and as a woman. - Misaki Nakamichi (35) is a teacher who has been married for 5 years to her attractive husband. She appears to have a life that many would be envious of. However, the truth is that she has been concerned about her marriage due to the lack of intimacy - Her husband only sleeps with her once a year, on the day of their wedding anniversary. As she continues to question her husband's sexual desire for her, their next anniversary arrives... and she receives a shocking confession from him!
"I'm living on the green side of the grass." Successful career woman Sono never let envy drag her down. She had everything she ever wanted, and she'd gotten it all through her own hard work. On top of her growing list of accomplishments at work, her relationship with her boss (and live-in boyfriend) Taiya was going great, with a proposal right on the horizon...until one unexpected twist brought her whole perfect life tumbling down around her. Heartbroken and needing an escape, Sono moved to a run-down little apartment, only to realize it had a secret hole in the wall that looked straight into the neighboring apartment. When she sees what the neighbor is getting up to, she can't seem to look away, and as the days pass she finds herself more and more obsessed with peeking in on her neighbor... A mature love story about a career woman intent on being "strong and independent," the mysterious boy next door, and their slowly intertwining lives.
Diana, daughter of the notorious Count Cresta, unwillingly enters the Palace Harem as "Lady Crimson Rose," the primary candidate for the queen consort. But, due to her "villainous face" and beauty that is said to be able to manipulate the hearts of men, she is hated by the King, caught in power struggles between concubines, and misunderstood in every way! "I wish I could meet someone who sees me, not for my appearance, but for who I truly am!" The chronicles of a "villainous-looking" young lady's struggles in the Palace Harem and how she finds her own way to persevere... no matter what!
Ryo, my husband of six months, has become distant lately. Every time I speak to him, he seems irritated and responds with sharp words. Our strained relationship has taken a significant mental toll on me, but thankfully, I can lean on my best friend Miku. She's someone truly precious whom I trust and can confide in about anything. One day, I decide to surprise Miku with a visit, only to find my husband's car parked outside her apartment. He'd told me he was heading out for golf with his boss early that morning, but it turns out he was lying. The truth? He's been sleeping with my best friend behind my back! And as if that weren't enough, he showers her with affection he never shows me while also trash-talking me. As I grapple with my disbelief, a dark resolve forms within me, urging me to get rid of both my husband and best friend.
"Didn't they teach you in school? If you don't have something nice to say, don't say it at all." Aya Sakurai is your average office worker who likes to mind her own business, but she can never get across the things she wants to say... until Shun Serizawa comes along. After transferring to her department, he's got a lot to say regarding a mean boyfriend, workplace bothers, and all the other things she can't manage to confront!
Ayumi Suzuki was having a hard time. Between her husband Takuya's backhanded compliments and the loud parties he insisted on hosting at their house, she could barely keep her head above water. Takuya seemed to be trying to relive his glory days by inviting over the usual group of old high school friends to sing and drink all night, while Ayumi was stuck cooking and pouring their drinks. Hard as that was, she still stayed devoted to her husband... And then she found out he had been having an affair with a woman from that "usual group" of party friends! As she listens to them having sex and badmouthing her like the insults were their pillow talk, Ayumi finally hits her limit. Now she has a new party to plan: an Affair Expose Party!
Ayako's a stay-at-home mom, living a happy life with her husband Yusuke, who works at a design firm, and their 4-year-old son Daichi. They've been married for 6 years now, and her husband has been very proactive with both his job, housework, cooking, and taking care of their son. However, there is just one thing... it seems that the two can never have a full conversation together! Up until their son was born, they would sit down and talk about all sorts of things. Is something changing in their relationship? Can they figure out what might be wrong? Another day goes by without any chance to just talk...
"This is my punishment - someone as hideous as me falling for someone as good-looking as you..." Yumeko had a mountain of complexes about herself. Then, a terrible accident befalls her. Though somehow saved from the brink of death, Yumeko wakes up a completely different person. "Is this...me...?! I'm SUPER cute!!" Those around her can't hide their surprise and wonderment at this 180-degree change... But Yumeko's new hyper-positive attitude starts to change her surroundings, too. Worries and complexes can affect anyone, and Yumeko will chop right through those of her various supporting characters!! In love, work, friendship... And an attempted murder case?! This frenzied romantic comedy will leave you bubbling with energy!
*This volume compiles ch. 1-5 of "Plus-sized Misadventures in Love!"
You're great just the way you are. Even though Miku is 25 years old, she hasn't learned a thing about how to do her own makeup -- but her boyfriend, Haru, tells her that he prefers her that way. Miku and Haru live together, after all, and they might get married, in which case she'll just quit her job anyway, so it's probably fine never to learn... At least, that's what she tells herself. One day, a boy with a special love for makeup suddenly appears in her life. The beautiful stranger does Miku up gorgeously and Haru's reaction to her new look is almost unbelievable--? A story of starting anew and taking one's life back through makeup!