Ep 8. E 8

When Ritsu Onodera first joined the shoujo manga department at Marukawa Publishing, he never expected to cross paths with his first love, much less work under him. But fate has a funny way of bringing people together, and Ritsu soon finds himself struggling to come to terms with the fact that his boss, Masamune Takano, is actually his former high school classmate.

In episode 8 of Sekai Ichi Hatsukoi - World's Greatest First Love, we delve deeper into Ritsu and Masamune's complicated past as their relationship continues to evolve. After a heated confrontation in the previous episode, Ritsu is left feeling conflicted about whether or not he should confess his true feelings to Masamune. On one hand, he's afraid of getting hurt again, but on the other, holding back his emotions is only causing him further distress.

As Ritsu grapples with his feelings, the rest of the Marukawa team is preparing for an upcoming book fair. While everyone else is busy with their respective tasks, Ritsu finds himself paired up with the free-spirited editor Yoshiyuki Hatori. Despite Hatori's easygoing nature, Ritsu can't help but feel a sense of unease around him. Perhaps it's because he knows Hatori has had feelings for him in the past, or maybe it's just the way Hatori seems to understand Ritsu better than anyone else.

Meanwhile, Masamune is dealing with his own troubles. After pushing Ritsu away, he's resigned himself to the fact that the younger man will never reciprocate his feelings. But as fate would have it, the two end up alone together at the office, and Masamune can't resist reaching out to Ritsu one last time. The resulting conversation is both tender and heartbreaking, as the two men try to come to terms with their complicated feelings for one another.

As the book fair draws nearer, tensions begin to rise within the Marukawa team. No one seems to agree on what the booth should look like, and everyone has their own ideas about what will sell the most copies. But amidst the chaos, Ritsu and Masamune manage to steal a few quiet moments together. Though it's clear that there's still a lot of unresolved tension between them, there's also a sense of comfort in their familiarity with one another.

In the end, episode 8 of Sekai Ichi Hatsukoi - World's Greatest First Love leaves us with more questions than answers. Will Ritsu ever be able to admit his true feelings to Masamune? And if he does, what will happen to their relationship? Only time will tell, but one thing's for sure: this show has us absolutely hooked.