This spicy BL manga pairs protagonist Hinata with his unrequited love’s younger brother, Toki. In bridging the gap between childhood and adult friendships, Hinata and Toki investigate what it means to be “grown up”, struggling to reconcile how we see ourselves with how we want to be seen by others: in Toki’s case, as a romantic prospect for Hinata!

When Hinata‘s best friend, Makoto—with whom he’s been in unrequited love for years—moves in with his girlfriend, Hinata is heartbroken… That is, until Makoto’s younger brother, Toki—who may or may not be harboring some unrequited feelings of his own—suddenly decides to move in with Hinata!

Toki is like a little brother to Hinata! So when Toki rolls over in his sleep and starts kissing him, Hinata assumes it’s just a fluke. Toki must have been dreaming about somebody else, right? It’s not like Toki is totally in love with Hinata and desperately jealous of his feelings for Makoto… right?

And what if it is…? Are Hinata’s growing feelings for Toki just a bandaid for his broken heart? A replacement for Makoto? Or could there be real feelings and a real future between Hinata and his best friend’s brother?

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Content warnings: explicit sexual content, intended for readers 18 years of age and over.

This is a delightful manga about two men experiencing unrequited love in their own way, and how they come together from it.

Hinata has always liked (as in, romantically), his best friend Makoto. But Makoto just announced he’s moving in with his girlfriend, and while no one’s said it out loud, marriage will probably happen eventually, too. Hinata is heartbroken.

But literally as soon as the tears start falling, Toki (Makoto’s younger brother) knocks on the door, begging to stay over with Hinata because he had a fight with his family.

Hinata reluctantly agrees, and my favorite romantic trope, ONLY ONE BED, makes its first appearance in the manga! There is no second futon, and while one of the men could sleep on the couch, Toki is insistent they share a bed, and that (through actions, not words) Hinata be his pillow.

Thus starts the ever-growing relationship between Toki and Hinata. Toki tries to make his feelings very, very obvious, by being clingy and making “jokes” about his feelings or how he pays attention to Hinata. But also, the longer he stays with Hinata, the more he contributes to the household, like rent, expenses, making food, cleaning, etc.

Then at night…Toki can’t keep his hands off of Hinata, and the relationship becomes physical. Hinata is in serious denial about why Toki is doing things to him that feel good, while Toki is living out his fantasies of finally being with Hinata.

It comes to a head when Makoto invites Hinata (and a jealous Toki) to his and his girlfriend’s house. Toki sees how Hinata still looks at Makoto and gets possessive. Makoto’s girlfriend can pick up what Toki is laying down, but both Makoto and Hinata are oblivious.

This leads to a desperate plea and confession from Toki as Hinata continually doesn’t get it.

From here on out I’m going to stop summarizing, but the overall question the plot is asking is, can these two lovers, who know what it’s like to have their love unreturned, find love in each other? Will Hinata ever get over his feelings for Makoto when someone who loves him is standing right there in front of him?

Readers, I really enjoyed this quite a bit. I wasn’t always on board with Toki–he’s bossy and clingy, which doesn’t always float my boat–but his feelings for Hinata are crystal clear and consistent, and I love how hard he blushes when he has to come right out and say stuff bluntly in order for Hinata to get where he’s coming from. Actually, he blushes pretty much through everything, even with what’s unsaid. It’s pretty cute.

I like that the will-they/won’t they isn’t drawn out for too long, and that we get a resolution that feels natural with its timing and growth. The sex scenes are pretty steamy even if the first one is kind of dubious, but they improve so much when love has been declared.

I liked the art in this one. Characters are very emotional and uniquely drawn, and both Hinata and Toki make great facial expressions. I liked Toki’s character design a lot–he looks like trouble but is actually a puppy dog.

As with many romances, this BL romance ends on an HEA that I really appreciated. I believe this is a standalone, but I think there’s enough here to develop into at least a second volume, which I would gladly read.

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I Want to See Me in Your Eyes is available for preorder now directly from TOKYOPOP and other major book retailers online. The manga releases April 14, 2026.