There's an almost nostalgic quality to this story. A rose-tinted view of those peaceful high school days, where the biggest problem you'll face is rejection, and the biggest challenge is your own self-doubt. This is a very ordinary story, with very ordinary people and very ordinary problems. That's the strength of this story, really. From the very start, this premise is simple: this is a story about Heesu in Class 2, and his love life. And the story mostly never strays from this. It's charming, it's chaotic, and it's surprisingly very grounded at certain times. Heesu is an ordinary young man, the type of person who'd be theextra in a different story, but here he's an excellent character and an endearing protagonist. His character is fleshed out and nuanced; his joys and struggles and concerns all feel real in the ways that very few school life stories get to show, especially when it comes to his love life.

Strangely, I particularly like the mental gymnastics he does when it comes to his own feelings. The way Heesu fidgets and fibs around when it comes to avoiding his vulnerability is very self-aware, yet also very conceited. It feels very raw for those who have been in his position.

I'm also enjoying Seungwon, the ML. He's a rare type of ML, the kind who's JUST stoic and quiet and devoted without much edge inside him. The contrast between the quiet him and the loud and fidgety Heesu alone will make a decent BL by itself, but this story goes one step further and develops a genuine bond between these two.

There is also an interesting dynamic between Heesu and Chanyoung, his best friend and first crush. Chanyoung knows Heesu likes him, and he finds that bothersome, but he also likes and cares for Heesu as a person. This particular awareness makes for an intriguing middle ground between 'you're my friend and I will forever be in your side' and 'I'm just using you, sucker'.

And when he takes the matchmaker role with Seungwon's friend, it's genuinely amusing.

Mind you, this story isn't perfect. It still relies on some amount of misunderstanding and cheap drama compared to other stories of this kind.

And not only does the story not flesh its side characters well enough, once the story enters the second season, and new characters begin to appear, characters that were important in the past begin to be sidelined and pushed into the background. RIP, Chanyoung.

And while the second couple faces more drama, as is wont for long-running stories like this, I think the narrative isn't solid enough to maintain the pace and it's forced to escalate the drama again and again to maintain momentum. Hence, the sudden plot twist for the second couple.

Combined, they do stop this story from reaching greatness. The cast aren't detailed enough to be Skip and Loafer or April Showers Bring May Flowers, but the drama isn't intense enough to be something like Megumi and Tsugumi.

However, the core of this story is already there, and it's delightful.