Bittersweet Candy Bowl

So no cheating, just falling out of love? Still traumatic for Mike, but more tame than expected.

WELP, THERE IT IS. He's gonna lose his mind

Kay so im actually really happy with this outcome!

I know everyone was expecting cheating etc and I kept hearing the creators saying sandy doesn't have a mean bone in her body! So the fact that she feels she's attracted to someone else and feels guilty over it cause of mike, well it shows some character depth (she's not perfect and is capable of being mean of course) she just mever screamed cheater to me

I’m really glad she isn’t cheating too, her behavior up until this was definitely pointing to her being unfaithful... but it would have been such a horrible gut punch for him, and a little out of character with her previously demonstrated kind nature. She hasn’t been great to Mike, but it’s a relief she didn’t go that far and is coming clean before she did!!

I agree! Everyone was saying cheating, but I figured that she was just trying to slowly phase out Mike and hoping he'd get the hint. I guess she was too afraid to officially break up with him, especially since she's not sure if her feelings for this other person will go anywhere, and was banking on the distance to do it for them.

uh oh wuh oh

my longest yeah boy EVER thank GOD we're finally getting somewhere

I’ve never clicked on a page so fast 😳

Sounds like everyone who called Sandy being involved or interested in another guy was right on the money!!!!!

No further comments from me right now, I can’t wait to see more lmao!

Oof

Simultaneously super satisfying and also pulling some empathy from me. What a build up!

LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

oh maishul, if only there was someone out there who loved you

💯

Key word: loved. I really doubt that certain someone would ever fall for Mike again

Huge oof

Im kinda glad its not cheating but still devestating for mike. Like other ppl said, its probably that francis she kept mentioning in model girlfriend.

Wow, if that were the case, that would be a really nice detail that I didn't even notice. Now I gotta check that chapter out again

I knew it and mike pushed everyone away just for her and shes ganna leave him

*shouts from the back* "break uuUUUPPP!"

I still feel like a big component is that Sandy realized she and Mike aren't that compatible after she came to visit and they had their date...even if there wasn't another person, I'd like to see Sandy have that conversation with Mike.

Tbh I think that was why she was so bitchy when she vistited about Mike's interests? She was comparing, and Mike wasn't like the guy she has interest in...

I got the vibe during that chapter that she was getting frustrated because she was hoping they'd be compatible but increasingly saw for herself that they simply are not. And having to face that unhappy reality brought out some ugly behavior from her.

Aw bud. Super sucks that you've ruined literally every friendship you've got for this but it'll be a life lesson. At least you didn't learn this by the time you went to college and the distance got worse

THE BOMB IS HEREEEE

THERE it is

Ohhhh, poor Micheal, please go to someone to talk to or someone you trust enough to talk to (Lucy or Paulo)

Unfortunately he successfully pushed both those people away. :C

Anddddddddddddddd that’s true

At least Paulo, he gonna understand Mike, I hope

I think we know that if Mike apologized to Paulo and was vulnerable with him, Paulo would be there for him. He's a good friend, better than Mike deserves rn.

MY CHEST OMG JEEZ

Poor Mike. How many times is he going to reap the consequences of learning that being a doormat literally gets you nothing in life.

Ouch, ouch, ouch, ouch no matter how much of a jerk you are, this must hurt like hell. Huge important lesson to Mike, he went to defend a girl that was not there for him, giving up friends and possibly a more stable relationship with Lucy. Now, all that is worth absolutely nothing. This deserves an F (the press F for respect, not the bad grade F)

F

Nah, Mike deserves an F in both regards, tbh

*entire classroom turns around* Say the line, Sandy!

"I think... I like... someone else."

*entire classroom cheers*

that's an oofie ouchie owie!

The way this page is illustrated and paced is So Good

She still strung him along for half a year or more and never thought to talk to him about it.

Just thought it would be fine to ignore him and string him along while she figures it out.

She was certainly being immature, but I guess that kind of comes in the territory of this being a first relationship. She kept saying that Mike is so nice and while she probably cares about him, they're just not compatible. If they had to see each other in person every day, she probably would've said something, but I think she was hoping that by becoming more distant, it would naturally just make them break away. Unfortunately, that just made Mike cling on to her harder.

Well then, looks like Sandy couldn't handle LDR which is not surprising there. Looks like Mike is going to see the harsh truth that young relationships don't last.

I think it was less that "young relationships don't last" and more "your infatuation was superficial"? Like what did they actually have? It was an elementary school crush that they held onto for FAR TOO LONG.

Emi Koizumi

it's so sad because even a few pages back she was still trying to claim that she loves him. And i think she does love him in her own way. Just not the same way as Mike feels towards her...

Sandy Route Bad End

"So a girl hundreds of miles away is more important than me?" I'm sure he'll regret the answer he gave her

That's rough buddy.

Yeah. No sympathy, honestly. Like, this sucks - But this is a natural part of growing up. You grow into different people, and that's... Just how that is.

i literally paid for this patreon because i already KNEW deep down in my heart what this page was gonna be but i had to see it NOW... i have no regrets

Now that you have tasted the fruit of early pages, good luck ever leaving... hue hue hue XD

Same

3rd

"Didn't I tell you I was leaving?" Oh dear, after this page, that phrase doesn't read favourably...!

That being said, this development is interesting. After all, Mike did absolutely EVERYTHING to hammer down his feelings for Lucy while being involved with Sandy. Now here's Sandy admitting to the one thing he was afraid of for *himself*. How will this play out now?

Exactly. I bet he will blow up saying something along the lines of "Do you have any idea how dedicated I am to you, how loyal I've been?"

Nico

LET'S GOOOOOOO

OH SHIT THERE IT IS

i honestly had a feeling she was thot-ing for a second there...turns out i was right!

(there's a high chance she's playing with both micheal and the other dudes hearts right now)

FINALLY, SANDY. I'm not even upset with her for it, outside of I wish she'd had the spine to be honest with him much earlier. Mike's enduring obsession with her is super unhealthy for both of them and would be even if they were still in similar places in life. It's never a good scenario when one person puts another on a pedestal the way Mike has always done to her. It gets worse considering it started when they were kids--Mike has never given himself the freedom to evolve from how he felt when he was a freaking third grader, and always assumed she never would either--and that their lives are on totally different trajectories. Of course Sandy has changed since she was a literal child, and part of that comes with change of taste in romantic partners. She hasn't handled all this as well as she should have but again, they're kids, and there's no easy way to let down someone who has been openly worshiping the idea of you almost his entire life.

I'm biased because obviously I like Sandy, I've liked her ever since To The Top, and I'm glad to see my girl finally getting the courage to do what I suspect she knew she needed to do a long time ago.

And there’s that shoe!

Cue him arguing about how loyal he has been and how he has sacrificed friendships because of that.

HEHEHEHE HOHOHOHO

So two things...

The "The Second When His Heart Rips In Half" Meme: https://youtu.be/yoD6j2V774E

Followed by this meme in Mike? https://youtu.be/wXe2DN6quMg

Although reading it again, it must hit even harder, considering how she delivered it. "It's not that I'm busy." Which sort of indicates that she realized (Or finally realizes, but I'm betting on the former) that she was ghosting him with almost never responding, I mean even a late text is better than *no* text really. Shows that you care enough to at least respond, even if it's with some Sorry for missing it followed by a string of emojis.

So how long till Mike's eyes transforms like Lucy's?

https://i.ibb.co/2cFKP3R/Image7.png

Looks like Mike’s going through his own December now. I feel for him, hearing that someone no longer cares for you the same way is terribly rough.

Well damn. I mean everyone was thinking that was it but I thought maybe there’d be another kind of twist.

You know, when I think about what Mike likes about Sandy, I find myself thinking of Madam Zeroni from Holes.

"I love her, she's so beautiful."

"So is a flower pot!"

Seriously though, Sandy's "niceness" has always struck me as a surface level, selfish kind of thing. I don't think she's some kind of evil scheming manipulative bitch, but she's pretty self absorbed. She's happy to be all pleasant and sweet when things are going her way but is quick to throw a tantrum or just starting crying and going, "Why are you so mean~" when challenged. I don't she intends to hurt Mike with her behavior, but it's much easier for her to just ghost him than be honest. I don't like her, but I appreciate how her character is written.

And The other shoe drops. Looks like Micheal's World could be Shattering like Stained Glass.

......whelp

BUM BUM BUMMMM!!!!

And he's left standing there, wearing the scarf that she gave him.

Ha! I didn't think about that! His blue one from Lucy is ruined, and Sandy took the striped one Tess gave him. I wonder if he'll continue wearing it.

I was betting on something darker and I'm actually VERY relieved to see this outcome. Some of her previous reactions still struck me as... not normal? Like, if they seemed to come from some trauma. But these don't need to be because of abuse (as I thought) but because of her constant pressure. I actually hope she liking this somebody else is the whole truth and there's nothing dark behind.

Anyways, I like Sandy. Her stringing him along was awfully selfish but fits her age and character. She didn't do it because she is mean but because she was confused. She is still, we can tell. I don't think she's lying when she says she loves Mike. But I do think she is, as any teenager, learning what different feelings look like.

I knew she was interested in somone else, thankfully she hasn't seeming acted on it, but she's been absolutely awful to him either way, stringing him along and ignoring him. Mike has been awful, but no one deserves this.

🎵I can see clearly now. The rain has gone🎵

This music is perfect for Mike's death stare: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7FNFOFjar0

I’m just thinking about her looking at him that kinda way before kissing him and then crying like she was wishing it was someone else oof

Was she just going to gradually ghost him?? Did she seriously think that would solve the problem? I figured she was cheating, so I suppose this isn't as bad

As much as Sandy likes to pretend she is a grown-up she is still childish in many ways. During her last trip she got a huge wakeup call, and that was she and Mike are not compatible. Sandy still cares about him and as she puts it he's "A really nice" guy, but I guess she figured that if they both aren't really clicking in person if maybe she steps back they'd naturally just break up.

The situation is extremely awkward for Sandy. Since they were kids she's only seen him twice, even though they've been dating for years. During her last visit she got to meet Mike's friends, have dinner with his family etc. This adds a lot of pressure on Sandy. I mean, Mike already places her on a pedestal. A week or two later to say "Yeah, no, wasn't feeling it." is certainly not something she felt comfortable doing, especially considering there wasn't anything really WRONG. They've just grown up to be different people.

I guess she wanted the distance to do the job for her but it made Mike just cling on to her harder.

UH OH BROS

I wonder if she's sugarcoating here.