Hey, I'm trying out a new series (well, for anime fans anyway). I started reading this since last year but since I can't read Japanese nor have the means to get the books, this story had just been in the back of my head. Well, I hope you guys enjoy this anyway. Just be warned there might be some spoilers.

This picks up after the harem confronts Joro in the library and his life turns to shit.

"Feelings aren't something you can screw with!"

Kisaragi "Joro" Amatsuyu, a man who had been double crossed more times than what he can tolerate, was finally getting back at his best friend Taiyou "Sun-chan" Oga. They were at the library, accompanied by Sumireko "Pansy" Sanshokuin. Joro held Sun-chan by his collar, reprimanding him for making fun of his suitors' feelings.

"Why are you still defending them, even though they used you too?" Once Joro promised he would beat up Sun-chan if he didn't, Sun-chan accepted his fate. Once again, Joro was the better man.

"Even if that's what you see now... in the end, I still know that's not the only way to look at them. They have plenty of good points too."

"I understand... I will apologise to them..." Sun-chan forfeited.

"Good job on not causing a bloodfest in the library." Pansy immediately cut right in.

Indeed, Joro handled that situation better than anyone would expect. After experiencing a lot of shenanigans including having his romantic interests confess to him about liking his best friend, and enlisting his help in developing a romantic relationship with said best friend, only to end up being manipulated in his best friend's own romantic endeavors, culminating in Joro becoming the scumbag of the school, Joro would have been in the deepest pits of despair. Finally venting out his frustrations would have been justified, but he chose to defend his betrayers instead.

"Joro, what are you going to do now?"

"It doesn't matter. This is what I deserve." Joro weighed the situations inside his mind. If Sun-chan speaks up for him now, it would only cause more misunderstandings and most likely lose him the respect he has earned being the star of the baseball club. "So don't tell anyone what happened today."

"Is that so... once again... you..." Sun-chan was at a loss. Even in his lowest point, Joro still managed to be above him.

"You too Pansy, don't tell anyone about this."

"Ho? Are you ordering me? Or is that a request instead?" Pansy decided to tease him one more time.

"Then, let's call it... whispers of live. How's that sound?"

"Ara. If you put it like that, how can I refuse?"

"Still, Joro. I still haven't lost to you yet." Sun-chan renewed his resolve, and exited the room.

Recounting his losses, Joro explained himself to Pansy. All of his experiences, the exhausting few weeks he had building others' relationships, and his rough few days once the rumors spread that he was messing with everyone all along.

"Ho? Is that so? You have lost everything then." Pansy teased him once again.

"Yeah, I did lose everything."

"The only one you have left is ME!"

"Yep, everything." Joro forced his answer once again.

Understanding his reason for answering that way, Pansy smiled. "You are so kind."

"Coming from you, I'm not flattered at all." Joro smiled back. "Hmph, in the first place, you should be apologising to me. You're the reason I became like thi-" Pansy immediately stood up and bowed to apologise.

"That's true. I'm the reason you're suffering like this. I sincerely apologise. I want to make it up to you, so you can ask me to do anything you want."

"Anything, huh? Then don't meet me ever-"

"Rejected."

"Didn't you say anything?! Fiiinee, but I can't think of anything else though."

"Then let me request something of you."

"How does that work?"

"Hey, are you coming back to the library?"

"I don't see any reason to."

"Really?" Pansy made numerous adorable, pouty faces, constantly twirling her hair around and showing her disappointment, as if to appeal to Joro's pity. "I want to see you..." If she wasn't flat and creepy Joro wouldn't have been able to resist.

"I don't want to see you." Joro tried to be cold and looked away.

"You really really won't be coming back?" Pansy insisted.

"Don't make me say it twice!"

"Please? Don't you feel like you still owe me for helping you out and taking you in?"

Joro thought about it. No matter how you slice it, what Pansy said was still true, being the only one to stick by him, creepy as she were. "Listen, Pansy... Why don't we talk on that bench over there?" He pointed to the same bench Pansy confessed to him on.

"Ara? Is Joro-kun going to confess?" Her hopes were held high, but she knew that wasn't what he was going to do. Maybe he was going to negotiate with her regarding his visits.

Once they sat down, Joro tried to look at Pansy but couldn't, so he looked at the ground instead. "I'm switching schools." The message was short and simple, with an underlying sadness hidden in his words.

All of Pansy's excitement left. Anxiety came in and took its place. "What?!"

"Haaah. Like I said, I'm switching schools."

"Why?!" For once, Pansy didn't understand what was happening. Or maybe she didn't want to. Considering that she basically had full control over Joro's life until this point, she didn't expect this to happen. Joro was the type of man to take everythingin stride for his friends, never once complaining to anyone else, but she knew that he would always stick by his friends. Was the unfair treatment finally getting to him?

"You should know better than anyone that I have no social life left in this school." Joro quickly pointed out, as if it wasn't obvious enough already.

"I don't-"

"No one looks at me the way they did before." He kept on interrupting Pansy's retorts.

"Then what about Oga-kun? What about Akino-san and Hinata-kun?" Pansy tried to regain control of the flow of the conversation. She was playing cards she would have played later, if only to convince Joro.

"What about them?"

"Don't you think they deserve to know the truth?" Pansy insisted. No matter how you slice it, it was unhealthy to keep this intense of a secret all by herself. Not that she was going to, anyway.

"What truth is there to tell?" Joro remained unconvinced. His sorrow creeping its way up his face.

"That you're not at fault!"

"Is that what you think?" Joro smirked at her. His "dark side", as it were, was showing itself. He was obviously unhappy, and it looked like he was forcing himself.

"Yes!"

"Even though I'm the scumbag of the school?"

"I know better than to call you that."

"No you don't. I'm the scumbag of the school and that's not changing." Joro was letting more and more of his despair show itself. He had apparently accepted his fate, and decided to leave altogether.

"Perhaps if people knew the truth, that might change." Pansy wanted to let him know that there was still hope.

"You believe that will happen?"

"Yes! We'll tell Hinata-kun and Akino-san!" Pansy eagerly informed him.

"Ha. So that was your plan?" Joro's reply confirmed Pansy's fears. Joro wasn't accepting her plan anytime soon.

"If we tell them you won't have to switch-"

"Pansy, that's enough. I'll be switching schools soon."

"But we won't know unless we try."

"Haaahhh... This is the reason why I didn't want anyone to know."

"We'll explain to everyone. You're a kind person, and no one should believe otherwise. We're going to help you!"

"... Maybe... But what's going to happen then?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"If you try to paint me as a good guy, then who will end up as the bad guy?" Joro already weighed what will happen. He knew that redemption came at a cost. And the ones paying for it won't be him.

"You don't mean..."

"I'm the scumbag that masterminded everything. I'm the one that used Himawari, Cosmos, and Sun-chan for my own goals. This is just me getting my just desserts."

"But-"

"You know, there's a reason I thought I liked both Cosmos and Himawari. They're good women, and I liked them because of that. Even though you could say they used me, in the end they were just victims of love." Joro didn't want to let anyone else to take the blame for such a messy situation. Indeed, only one person being harmed was far and away more favorable than three, and he was dead set on taking the brunt of the damage.

"But if you do this, everyone will just keep on hating you!"

"And I deserve it. After all, I played around with their feelings. Besides, if I do this, their reputations won't be at risk." Joro played it off as if he was actually a villain.

"And you're fine with just leaving it at that? Letting them hate you?" Pansy's tears kept flowing, and her voice was cracking under the intense grief of hearing his words.

"Sure. At this point I couldn't care less what they think of me. I don't deserve them anyway."

"But Joro-kun... there's a limit on how nice you can be." Pansy pulled on his shirt with one hand and held his wrist with the other.

"It's fine. If I do this, everyone wins." Joro insisted. From his point of view, everyone wouldn't lose, everyone except him. Which was why he was taking himself away from that setting.

"What about me then? How am I winning? Wouldn't you stay to protect me?" Pansy's tears flowed non-stop. Even Joro was moved. Her words sounded desperate, and her face was red.

"Protect you from what? Sun-chan now wouldn't dare lay a finger on you. You didn't even need me. With how cleverly you have set up everything, I'm sure you have what it takes to protect yourself. If anything, I'm protecting myself by moving." Joro tried once more to play it off. It didn't work, however, only worsening Pansy's cries.

"Joro-kun... won't you stay?"

"..." Pansy's last question was met with silence. Joro just couldn't answer her anymore.

Suddenly, Pansy's grip tightened. Before he knew it, one of his hands was already placed on her chest, and lips were already on top of hers. "Please... don't leave me... I don't want to be alone..." Pansy has never been so feminine. If this wasn't Pansy, he would have pushed her down on the spot.

"..." Joro's first kiss was just taken, yet he couldn't react. A mix of guilt and melancholy flowed over him.

"You still owe me, Joro-kun. Please stay... at least until the week ends, please stay. I'll take you in if anything happens." Pansy let go of his hand.

"..." Joro gulped. "Fine..." Joro exited the library, leaving Pansy alone. As he was walking down the hallway, he whispered to himself. "I'm sorry Pansy... sayonara."

Meanwhile, Pansy was crying her heart out on the bench. "Joro-kun, you meanie... Please come back..." As she recomposed herself, she walked down to a corner of the library. Tears still flowing down her face, she talked to two figures. "People in the normal seats... Joro-kun just left... The man I love left, all to protect his friends..." As she wiped her tears, she looked at them. "So now you see, that's the Joro-kun I fell in love with." Pansy tried to boast with a smile to hide her despair.

A girl with red hair was crying on the chest of another girl with light pink hair, who was also tearing up. "Joro-kun is willing to go that far..." Cosmos cried at her.

"We're going to get Joro back! *sniff* We have to!" Himawari claimed as she wiped her tears.

The next day, Kisaragi Amatsuyu did not show up in school.

So yeah, I like this series and was stoked when I found out it was getting an anime. So far I feel the adaptation is really well done, and I am stoked to get to know more of the story. If you guys know where and how to read the light novels, I would appreciate if you hit me up about it.

Also, please help me in emailing so that we can get Ore wo Suki its own category. That's all for now, thanks.