Citrus (2018)
This sultry photo comes from the citrusy series known as Citrus. It is a romance that involves two step-sisters trying to figure out their relationship as a family as well as their romantic ties to each other. Both are freshmen in high school to an all girl school, Yuzu Aihara, who is the gal stereotype of the story, and then there is Mei Aihara, who is the perfect student in every aspect; concerning education, discipline, and responsibility.
They became sisters because Yuzu's mother randomly remarried to Mei's father, which caused Yuzu to move and transfer school and caused Mei to move into her new blended family home. They lived in a huge apartment (which does not explain why these two had to share a room together). Unfortunately, their first encounter was not pleasant, they met on the first day of school. Mei confiscated Yuzu phone and forced her to conform to the school rules and regulations. In return, Yuzu caught Mei being tongued down by her fiance. As retaliation, Mei decides to kiss Yuzu, which is how everything confuses their relationship.
Yuzu Aihara is not a complex character at all. She loves fashion, make-up, and being trendy. She has never had neither a first love or first kiss. Once she has her first kiss with Mei it is pretty obvious that she has fallen in love with her. She does not fully admit verbally but she has displayed her confession physically. She makes their relationship complicated because she continues to second guess herself and her feelings. She won't allow herself to fully love Mei as both a sister and a lover (disclaimer: I am not condoning Incest, I am only dissecting the storyline). She wants to love Mei as a lover as well as a sister because throughout the entire series she picks and chooses which role she wants to play, The Big Onee-chan or The Lover. She thinks Mei needs family support and love (which she does) but she also feels she can give her more than that with her heart.
Mei, on the other hand, is a hand-full. She is hard-headed, stubborn, dishonest, and confusing. Ms. Perfect does not allow others to love and care for her. She rather is alone in a room full of people. She pushes away everyone until the very last minute to speak up for what she wants. This is in regards to not only her relationship with Yuzu, but also her father, grandfather, and friends. She does desire love and the feeling of being needed. Without either of these two, she has no motivates within relationships. If Yuzu doesn't need her, she can't return either feeling of being a sibling nor a romance.
The entire series from start to finish was full of heartfelt and teary-eyed moments. I wish it was longer to show how their relationship evolved (I did not read the manga). The 12 episodes only display the beginning of their relationship and how they concluded. The sub-characters that are introduced in the series do have an impact on both of the main characters' relationship with each other (more so Mei than Yuzu).