Summary
Warning: The following contains spoilers for Rent-a-Girlfriend Season 3, Episode 11, “Girlfriend and Boyfriend,” now streaming onCrunchyroll.
After a long hiatus on Kazuya and Chizuru’s rental dates,Rent-a-Girlfriendhas finally landed back to its original premise. This time, however, the stakes are different as the date isn’t meant to satiate Kazuya’s lack of intimacy or his embarrassing attempts at getting closer to Chizuru. Instead, he planned out the entire date with a noble intent – making Chizuru feel better.
Despiterecently losing her grandmother, Chizuru still remains hell-bent on keeping up her cheery facade. The date has to go perfectly for Kazuya to tear through her walls, and he has prepared for every single possible contingency. Even though Kazuya resorts to his simp-like antics throughout the episode, it still serves as a much-needed break after a row of gloomy episodes.
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Back to Rental Dates
No matter how much effort Kazuya may put into legitimizing his relationship, he always ends up with a rental date.The movie-making projectmarked the end of Kazuya and Chizuru’s rental relationship, butRent-a-Girlfriendhas retracted that notion as the two are back on another rental date. While Kazuya’s intentions may be pure with this date, it still doesn’t negate the fact that this rental date is a setback to his progress over the entirety of Season 3.
If relapsing wasn’t enough, Kazuya is prepared to go knee-deep into the date in terms of spending money, especially since he booked Chizuru for the entire day. The date itself has a smooth start, with Kazuya buying Chizuru a new dress right away. As a rental girlfriend, she insists that she wants to wear the new dress the entire day, an act of hers that sent Kazuya over the moon. The dress itself is rather revealing, and Chizuru sporting it made matters worse forKazuya and his uncontrollable hormones.
The long-hauled date has many stops, from a fancy restaurant to the in-doors Bouldering place, yet one thing remains consistent – Kazuya’s ogling. He even states that he chose Bouldering specifically because he wanted to see Chizuru in athletic wear, since the tight apparel would make her body even more appealing. It’s obvious that Kazuya had ulterior motives of his own with the date, and thathis creepy anticshaven’t changed despite the long pause in their rental dates.
Chizuru Sees Right Through Kazuya’s Plans
During their lunch,Chizuru straight up confronts Kazuyaand asserts that the date has to do with the passing of her grandmother. While she was dead-on, Kazuya tries to play it off that he had other reasons for booking the rental date. Chizuru reiterates that she is perfectly fine and her grandmother’s passing hasn’t affected her that much. She keeps the same facade and maintains her unfazed demeanor, though she pivots the conversation back to thanking Kazuya for his kindness.
Due to Kazuya’s timely actions, Grandma Sayuri was able to catch a glimpse of the movie before she could pass on to the next world. Even though she couldn’t witness Chizuru up on the big screens, she was still able to see what her granddaughter is capable of and the success that awaits her as an actor. Kazuya’s heart warms up over the thought of his actions meaning so much to Chizuru. Even if it doesn’t bring the two closer,Kazuya still seems contentwith the fact that he was able to ward off any regrets that Chizuru would have had.
Splurging on a Rental
Kazuya makes it a point to mention how heavy the date is on his wallet constantly, with Chizuru worrying if he can even afford it. However, he still remains adamant in offering Chizuru a good time and reassures her that there is nothing to worry about. For someone going out of his way to make another person feel better, Kazuya’s behavior is rather odd as he constantly goes back to the financial burden of the date.
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This could go either way for him as one side presents him as a creep who keeps on mentioning the price tag despite making it clear that he wants Chizuru to feel better. On the other hand, it goes to show how much he cares about Chizuru and is willing to deplete his financial reserves just to show her a good time. No matter what his intention may be, there is no denying that this erratic behavior of his fits right inwith his awkward personage.
A Sentimental Conclusion to the Date
Kazuya had already laid out a blueprint for the date, and the final part was supposed to be fireworks. Chizuru lights up a sparkler and watches it slowly burn, an act that resurfaces an old memory of hers. She suddenly remembers playing with a sparkler next to her grandparents, a thought that sends her into a trembling state.
Kazuya comes back to find Chizuru sobbing, and while the episode ends on a cliffhanger, it’s safe to say that this will be her breaking point. Kazuya has finally managed to tear through her walls and bring down her resilient facade. While this doesn’t guarantee that she would accept Kazuya as her boyfriend, it still serves as a stepping stone for the two to eventuallyend up as a real couple.
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