Cactus's Secret

Plot

Miku Yamada has liked Kyohei Fujioka since middle school, but once she gets the courage to confess, he thinks it's all a joke. To make things worse, when she gets upset, he calls her a "cactus alien" for being so prickly whenever he's around.

Characters

Miku Yamada (山田 未来, Yamada Miku)

Average high school student. She was quiet in middle school, but tried to change herself in high school to impress Fujioka, whom she has had a crush on since an encounter in middle school. She is very intelligent, being the top 23 students in her school and despite Fujioka's clueless nature and initial rejection of her feelings, she continues to pursue him and eventually becomes his girlfriend.

Kyohei Fujioka (藤岡 京平, Fujioka Kyōhei)

He is a former delinquent. He dyed his hair back to black for high school. He is incredibly dense. Upon hearing Miku's confession, he rejects her feelings saying he only sees her as a friend. However, he begins to reciprocate her feelings and confesses to her in chapter 12.

Manga

Written and drawn by Nana Haruta, the Cactus's Secret manga began serialization in Shueisha's shōjo manga magazine Ribon on December 29, 2003 in the January 2004 issue of the magazine. The series ended on April 30, 2005 in the May 2005 issue of the same magazine. At their panel at Anime Expo 2009, Viz Media announced they had licensed the series for North America as part of their Shojo Beat imprint. The series is also licensed by Sharp Point Press in Taiwan.

Reception

Deb Aoki of About.com says of the first volume that while it has a basic premise, she was "charmed" by it. She also seems to enjoy Miku's characterization, saying "Miku is a likable gal simply because she's determined to get her guy to see things her way, no matter how discouraged she gets. Sure, she cries and gets angry, but she never wallows in self-pity for long. Miku's got too much pride and self-respect for that. That's a good thing, because shojo manga really doesn't need any more whine-y doormat heroines."