"I drew this before I even knew your name," he says. "At C77. You were sitting alone, fixing someone else's broken binding. You didn't even know me, and you fixed my comic's spine when I wasn't looking."
"Let's make Bakulove Vol. 2 . At C79."
Haruki, who has never blushed in his adult life, looks like a boiled octopus. C78 Bakuman Bakulove 1 Linda Pro Extra Quality
They don't kiss. Not yet. But they hold hands — awkwardly, ink-stained, perfectly — and the next page of their story begins. "Linda Pro + Black Quill present: BAKULOVE VOL. 2 — Coming to Comiket 79. Now with 40% more confessions." "I drew this before I even knew your name," he says
— 23, pen name "Linda Pro" — stares at her newly printed doujinshi. Bakulove Vol.1: Pages of the Heart. It's a Bakuman fan comic focusing on the untold romance between two rival manga creators (not the main canon couple). She's proud of the crisp lines, the "extra quality" glossy cover, the 36 pages of pure emotional tension. You didn't even know me, and you fixed
"Excuse me?" Haruki says.
Then appears.
