[Atobe x face-blind, deadpan-cute heroine] (inner monologue full of snark)
Hosokawa Rio never told anyone that she was severely face-blind.
So when her best friend asked her to bring water to her cousin, she hesitated for a long time.
"He's playing a match at the courts around now. He's kind of cute, and the guy surrounded by the most girls is him!"
Hosokawa Rio had been worried she wouldn't be able to find him, but when she followed her friend's directions to the courts, she recognized the cousin at a glance.
There was no other reason. He was just that popular.
The courts were packed three rows deep, and not only girls but plenty of boys were crowded around, cheering.
During a break, Hosokawa Rio squeezed through the crowd and handed a bottle of water to the most popular guy there. With a blank expression, she added the saccharine line her friend had told her to say.
"Good luck, Ishihara-senpai."
The crowd fell silent.
Whatever. Pressure doesn't get to her.
But the next moment, the handsome guy gritted his teeth and spoke.
"Hosokawa Rio, look carefully before you start talking!"
Good news: the handsome guy knew her.
Bad news: she'd probably mistaken him for someone else.
So Hosokawa Rio snatched back the bottle and delivered the one line that worked in any situation.
"Sorry, classmate. I must have mistaken you for someone else."
The handsome guy looked even angrier.
Seriously, could someone explain that our cousin was at the basketball court, not the tennis court?!
*
The first time Atobe met Hosokawa Rio, she was the daughter of a business partner of his family. She had a cold expression, and nothing anyone said could get through to her.
Later, he found out she was face-blind and treated everyone the same way because she was afraid of mistaking them for someone else.
So Atobe, who had been dazzling and confident since childhood, made up his mind to become the first person Hosokawa Rio could recognize!
He spent the entire summer taking her here and there, playing with her and teasing her. At last, as summer came to an end, Rio's expression softened a little, and she said something sweet:
"Goodbye, Big Brother Atobe. I'll miss you."
Standing to one side, Atobe watched the two of them say their reluctant goodbyes and said, his face blank with displeasure:
"Who are you calling Big Brother Atobe?!"
*The heroine is deadpan-cute, with a snarky inner monologue. Deadpan-cute girls, rise up!
*She's face-blind. She can see faces and tell whether someone's handsome, but she'll forget what they look like as soon as she turns away. She can recognize people she sees every day.
*Everyone is assumed to be old enough to date. Age differences are ignored.
*There's not much of a career plot. It's mostly romance! Long live romance!!!
*Ship however you like.
Theme: Even Atobe has to fall in love in secret!
