One of the beloved tropes in the world of anime is when the female lead falls in love with the male lead at first sight, but unfortunately for her, it takes quite a bit of chasing to make him fall in love with him too. As their bonding grows, the male character falls for the female lead even more. In some of these anime, it is shown that the female lead has to work hard to win over her love interest.
If you’re looking for anime where the FL fell first but the ML fell harder, here are 10 recommendations you might enjoy!
My love story with Yamada-kun at lv999
It’s a love story that follows the daily life of Akane Kinoshita, who’s a college student. She got dumped by her boyfriend because he found someone else from the game that she used to play with her boyfriend. And even after that, she continued to play the game FOS, which she played with her boyfriend. And there a twist comes, and out of it comes the emotionless and handsome Akito Yamada, who’s a high schooler whom she met through the same game, FOS.
Kamisama Hajimemashita
The story follows a young high school girl named Nanami. Her father abandoned her and ran away because of gambling debts. Nanami meets a strange guy named Mikage, who is scared of dogs. After helping him, they start talking, and Nanami opens up about her problem. When he heard her story, the man offered her to stay at his home, as he wasn’t going to live there anyway. But when she finds out that said home is a rundown shrine, she tries to leave but is caught by two shrine spirits and a familiar fox named Tomoe.
My Happy Marriage
My Happy Marriage is a fairly classic take on the Cinderella story. This anime is about an unhappy girl named Miyo Saimori. Who grows up feeling worthless and without any supernatural talents? She is treated like a servant by her stepmother and half-sister. When she reached the age of marriage, she was forced into marrying Kiyoko Kudou. He was a renowned commander known for his cold nature.
Lovely Complex
The story revolves around a tall girl, Koizumi, who’s taller than any average girl, and a short guy, Otani, who’s shorter than an average boy. Due to their antics, they are usually seen as a comedy duo. But as they spend more time together, Koizumi’s view of him changes.
A Sign of Affection
The story is about a deaf college student named Yuki, who has been deaf her whole life, who falls in love with a senior from her college. But she doesn’t let her disability stop her from enjoying life. When a foreigner asks for directions, she nearly panics until a handsome man steps in to help her. She starts having a crush on him after that incident; later on, it turns out it’s an upperclassman in her college.
Horimiya
This story revolves around a beautiful girl named Hori, who was the school topper but fell in love with a low-spirited loner named Miyamura. They slowly transition from strangers to discovering each other’s true selves and fall madly in love. They go through many trials and errors, but they have a heartwarming feeling for them.
Kono Oto Tomare
Takezou Kurata, as the sole remaining member of his beloved Koto (traditional Japanese string instrument) club, must find new members or it will be closed down. Despite the three having completely dissimilar backgrounds and very different motivations, this Koto club is the place where their paths intersect. This is their story.
Tomo-chan is a Girl
“Tomo-chan is a Girl” is about two childhood friends, Tomo Aizawa, who is a tomboy, and Junchiro Kubota, who doesn’t seem to see Tomo as a girl because of her appearance. And he doesn’t seem to have a romantic interest in her.
He treats her as a boy, which makes Tomo Chan angry because she secretly has a crush on him and cannot confess her feelings to Junchiro.
My Dress-Up Darling
The story is about a loner boy, Gojo, and a popular high school girl, Marin. When they find out their similar interests in cosplay, their bond and friendship start to get stronger. One likes to make cosplay outfits, and the other goes to cosplay festivals to perform cosplay. As soon as she finds out about his talent, she asks him to make cosplay outfits for her.
Toradora!
The story revolves around Ryuuji Takasu. Regardless of his kind personality, he has an intimidating face, which often makes him labeled as delinquent. However, there’s this small girl, Taiga Aisaka, who looks very cute, but in reality, she’s quite the opposite.