Plain and friendless by his own description, Kazuhiko Nukumizu notices things other people miss, like the fact that Anna Yanami, popular and well-liked, just got friend-zoned by the boy she's had a crush on since childhood. Anna isn't alone: Chika Komari and Lemon Yakishio are working through rejections of their own, and Nukumizu goes from silent observer to the person they all confide in. This light novel is the source material for the Makeine anime and manga adaptations.