is a Japanese shōjo manga series by Kaho Miyasaka. It was originally serialized in Shōjo Comic from March 2002 to August 2004, and the individual chapters were published in ten tankōbon volumes by Shogakukan from September 2002 to December 2004. It focuses on the romance between the seemingly plain, shy Karin and the cool Aoi Kiriya, as they experience their first love.
The series is licensed for English-language release in North America by Viz Media, which released the first volume in September 2004 and the last in December 2006. It is also licensed for regional language releases in France by Panini Comics under its Génération Comics imprint, in Spain by Panini Comics, in Germany by Egmont Manga & Anime, in Denmark by Mangismo Danmark, in Sweden by Mangismo Sverige and in Taiwan by Ever Glory Publishing.
The manga has sold over 4.5 million copies in Japan. The manga have had positive response from critics for its art, however it has been criticized for not going beyond the shōjo manga boundaries.
Plot
Karin Karino is a bespectacled and shy girl who is riding a bus with three boys from a local boys' only high school. One, Aoi Kiriya, is taking pictures of girls on the bus and the three initially make snide remarks about Karin. When he realizes she is reading a photography book called Blue by a photographer named Yuji, Kiriya approaches her, but she ignores him. As she moves to leave the bus at her stop, Karin drops her book and Kiriya accidentally lifts Karin's skirt while retrieving it for her. The skirt-lifting, combined with the fact that Kiriya still has his camera in his hand, causes Karin to think that Kiriya is "upskirting" her. Karin hits Kiriya and runs away. At school it is revealed that Karin has low self-esteem, and her "friend", Yuka Ishikawa, exploits Karin for free answers to homework and other favors.
Kiriya waits outside of her school to return the book and Yuka coerces Karin into arranging a group date. Karin arrives in her uniform, having no "date" clothes, so while the others go ahead Kiriya takes her to a clothing store and buys her a new outfit. During the date, Yuka decides she wants Kiriya, but Kiriya is only interested in Karin. When Karin gets drunk, he takes her to his place to sleep it off. In the morning, he is surprised to discover how beautiful Karin is without her glasses, though he also likes her with them on. When Yuka realizes Karin has Kiriya's attention, she grows jealous and begins bullying Karin. Karin's new, and real, friend Nanri alerts Kiriya to what is going on, after Karin stops speaking to him. He puts an end to it and Karin confirms she is attracted to him too. When Karin passed out Kiriya took her to his apartment, when she wakes up she takes off her glasses and it turns that she isn't bad looking he takes her first kiss.
They begin dating, but their relationship has its ups and down. They fight over Kiriya's pushing Karin to sex, Karin's father disapproves of the relationship and bans Karin from leaving the house for a while, and Kiriya struggles to deal with his own family having left them to support himself after the death of his big brother. In the end, they always forgive each other after a fight and make-up.
His big brother is in fact Yuji the photographer and he died in an accident underwater. Kiriya was with him that day. Kiriya thinks that his parents blame him for his brother's death.
Characters
Karin is considered a plain-looking girl by most people, due to her wearing glasses and her tendency to dress conservatively. She meets Kiriya on the bus, and he is able to see past that to realize she is an attractive girl. Karin has low self-esteem at first and is unable to say the things she really wants to when being used by her so-called friend Yuka and say the things she really wants to say. Due to her self-image, she initially doubt Kiriya's compliments and thinks he's just teasing her. Through her relationship with Kiriya, and her new friendship with Nanri she finds her self-confidence. At the end of the series Kiriya proposes to her and they get married.