If this were any other romance drama, a couple of episodes filled with emotional pain would just be seen as the writer playing tricks—holding back before delivering sweetness.
But when it came to Su Yan—
People got uneasy.
Over the past six years, Su Yan's track record was… ruthless.
A beloved heroine like Yukishiro Tomoe? Gone without hesitation.
'Your Lie in April' started as a youthful romance, didn't it? And then turned devastating.
'Puella Magi Madoka Magica' looked like a children's show at the beginning.
As for 'Kimi ni Todoke', although the first dozen episodes were pure and sweet—
If it suddenly turned tragic starting from Episode 14, that wouldn't be impossible for Su Yan.
After Episode 15 aired, the ratings rose slightly to 6.19%.
But the online sentiment—
Completely changed.
Just days ago, those praising Su Yan because of the 'Fate/stay night' promotion suddenly shifted their tone, posting more neutral—or even critical and angry—comments.
Then, in late October—
Episode 16 aired.
In truth, the biggest driving force behind 'Kimi ni Todoke' had always been one thing:
Misunderstandings.
Misunderstandings between the female lead and her friends.
Misunderstandings in her relationship with the male lead.
From Episode 1 until now, everything has revolved around this.
Whether it was Yano and Chizuru misunderstanding Sawako's intentions, or the recent episodes where the leads clearly liked each other but kept drifting apart—
It was always the same pattern.
And in Episode 16—
After being rejected by Kazehaya, Kurumizawa, who had gotten to know Miura Kento, told him many things—including the fact that Kazehaya had someone he liked.
But Miura couldn't possibly guess that the person Kazehaya liked was Sawako.
Instead, he figured out that Sawako liked Kazehaya.
And since he himself had feelings for her—
To prevent her from getting hurt, he told Sawako that Kazehaya already liked someone else, hoping she would give up on this doomed love.
This plotline drove Xia Nation viewers crazy.
Miura Kento wasn't a bad person—
Just… painfully dense.
"Can't you use your imagination for once?! What if Kazehaya actually likes Sawako?!"
When Sawako learned that Kazehaya liked someone else and walked away in tears—
Countless fans felt their hearts twist in pain.
And the most frustrating part—
Right when Miura realized he had messed up and tried to comfort Sawako—confessing to her in the process—
Kazehaya arrived and saw everything.
One misunderstanding led to another.
Sawako believed Kazehaya liked someone else—and that it definitely wasn't her.
Kazehaya believed Sawako liked Miura.
Miura believed Kazehaya didn't like Sawako, yet kept approaching her, unintentionally causing her to be targeted by other girls.
And then—
The most iconic scene of the episode appeared.
Earlier in the story, it had already been established—
Whenever Kazehaya couldn't resolve a misunderstanding, he would confront it directly.
He had done this before when Kurumizawa manipulated events to make him think Sawako liked Ryu.
And now—
He did the same again.
No beating around the bush.
"Kuronuma… do you like me?"
Sawako, tears in her eyes, nodded shyly.
"…Yes."
But because of all the prior misunderstandings—
Kazehaya misunderstood her answer.
He thought her "yes" meant liking him as a friend.
But what he meant—
Was romantic love.
So he clarified, saying:
"But… my feelings aren't the same as yours."
Hearing this—
Sawako completely believed it.
Kazehaya liked someone else.
Because in her mind, her "like" had been romantic love.
And since Kazehaya was smart enough to understand her feelings—
His words automatically translated in her mind to:
"I only see you as a friend. Nothing more."
After Episode 16 aired—
Su Yan's online reputation exploded.
Fans of 'Kimi ni Todoke' felt like their blood pressure was skyrocketing.
No one expected that—
Just by introducing Miura Kento, a series that had been pure and sweet for thirteen episodes would completely flip in just three episodes.
["So now Sawako thinks Kazehaya only likes her as a friend, and Kazehaya thinks the same about her??"]
["How did it even come to this? Isn't this supposed to be a pure romance?"]
["Does anyone understand how painful this was? Sawako cried twice this episode—I can't take it."]
["First she cried because she found out Kazehaya liked someone else, then she cried because she thought he confirmed he didn't like her… Can misunderstandings really spiral like this? They've liked each other since Episode 1! What have I been watching for four months?!"]
["This hurts so much. Su Yan, are you even human?!"]
["I'm genuinely confused by this plot."]
["It's so painful… my stomach actually hurts. Is Su Yan really turning this into a tragic story?"]
["Please don't…"]
["I was so upset after watching Episode 16 that I couldn't speak. My wife got so angry that she kicked the bathroom door—now her toenail is messed up. Su Yan, you've gone too far!"]
["Can anyone tell me—how does this situation even get resolved?"]
["There's no solution. You have to understand—the characters act according to their personalities. Now that both believe the other doesn't like them, the only way out is for one of them to clearly confess romantic feelings. But the male lead is gentle—he thinks he's already made things clear. And the female lead isn't someone who forces things… she'll probably just quietly support him from afar."]
["Wait… what?"]
["This feels even worse than watching 'Tokyo Love Story' back in the day…"]
["In terms of emotional twists, this really doesn't lose to 'Tokyo Love Story'."]
["I've always treated this as a pure romance… what do I do now?"]
["Is the next episode going to be even more painful?"]
["Please, Su Yan, stop torturing us. If you're going full tragedy, at least warn us so we can prepare mentally!"]
["At this point… all we can do is trust Su Yan."]
["Nope. I'm in Tokyo too—I'm going to wait outside the 'Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion' set tomorrow. I need to vent this frustration."]
["Everyone kept asking him to push the main plot forward. Well, now you see what the 'main plot' actually is."]
["This is definitely heading toward a tragic ending. I'm calling it now—if it doesn't end tragically, I'll—"]
In just three October episodes, 'Kimi ni Todoke' had taken a sharp turn—
From sweet, pure romance to heart-wrenching emotional drama.
But the effect was undeniable.
After a night of backlash—
Episode 16's ratings rose again.
6.23%.
Streaming numbers on SakuraNet surged.
Even those who had been waiting to binge the show could no longer sit still.
["We only paused because weekly watching was too frustrating… it's only been two or three weeks—what happened?!"]
["Is Su Yan really going to be tragic again?"]