We Must Never Fall in Love! volume 7 is what I bet most people hoped volume 6 would be.
Kaede and Sakura had been in a hazy situation since Sakura wanted to pause their relationship. Then there was Ryo the wildcard, who definitely is willing to step up if the position of Sakura’s boyfriend needed filling. Volume 6 ended with the stepsiblings being told they’re going to share a room, and this seem liked another opportunity for tension to rise up just as they did while studying in Kaede’s room earlier.
Sakura is confuzzled before and after the trip, but in the end, it makes her realize she doesn’t want to spend the next two years being Kaede’s sister 24/7. The two end up on their first real date just after the start of the new school year.
I kind of alluded to this in the last volume, but Kaede is really stealing the spotlight lately. He’s a great balance of adorkableness, gentleness, and hormonal teenage male. For example, he takes Sakura aside to find out what’s wrong. When he finds out Sakura is acting weird because she liked being held by him, Kaede’s response comes out a little louder than he probably wanted.
But the highlight of volume 7 comes after the date, when the two have some alone time at home. Things get a little heated, and shoujo romance lovers will be squeeing in delight, but Kaede manages to stop before things get out of hand and keep his promise to Sakura. He also ends up agreeing to limit their activities until they can tell their parents, but his panicked red face as he begs to have some boyfriend/girlfriend time is comedic and cute.
With the new school year, the gang finds their classroom assignments shuffled. Kaede and Sakura are separated, but guess who’s also in Sakura’s class? Hatano. Sensing an opportunity (and knowing she’s not looking his way), Hatano and a spaced-out Sakura end up as class representatives. There’s no mention or indication of her heart pounding, so maybe that won’t grow into another misunderstanding or wavering heart. Sakura appears more excited now to be with Kaede than in volume 6, which was good to see. Not saying she wasn’t right to say they should exercise some caution and prove this isn’t some fling — and Kaede agrees with her — but now it feels like a mutual decision instead of Sakura covering her screw-ups.
Finally, Kaede tries to summon the courage to call Sakura’s mom “Mom”. A little strange, I must admit when he wants to date her daughter, not see her as a sister. With the cliffhanger of this volume, volume 8 may be forced to dive into the family dynamics a little more. I loved the (overall) blossoming romantic days for Sakura and Kaede in volume 7, and readers better enjoy it while it lasts! I have a feeling the fluff is not going to continue much into the next.