Smart, athletic, attractive, and popular, Yukino and Soichiro seem like model high school students, but they each conceal a 'dark' secret. A psychotic need for praise compels Yukino Miyazawa to work like a longshoreman to succeed, to be loved by all, and to be simply the best, to attain her seemingly effortless excellence. After working so hard to become the top student at her school, a new competitor has arrived to tumble her from her self made pedestal. Her world comes crashing down when Souchiro Arima joins the school. He quickly begins to give her a run for her money, and becomes her competition. Soichiro fears he may follow his dishonest biological parents, who abandoned him as a child. Yukino and Soichiro discover the individuals behind their masks and find real affection. This well-observed romantic comedy captures the doubts, misunderstandings, self-dramatization, and bewilderment of adolescent love.