Bittersweet Candy Bowl

Double Down on the fact that feelings change over time?

Mickles actually looks a bit upset about this. Is he thinking about what could have been?

"dang, i was gonna try macking on you to cope, too"

Deep in hate, aren't ya?

Glad to confirm she's been able to move on. Though, her expression does worry me a bit. I hope she doesn't feel any regret/guilt on herself for not being able to get over Michael while in the relationship with Abbey.

And, again, I'm just so happy she's able to be this open and honest about her feelings.

YES!!!!! Double Down on your feelings changing!!! But I think Mike should really have a heart to heart with Sandy on how their relationship isn’t good for either of them.

NO FUCKIN WAY…..

Are we finally going to see what healing looks like?

Good on Daisy. I always saw what she felt for Mike as more of an obsession. Loving someone and desiring them are two completely different things.

How she acts around Paulo with a crush vs how she acted around Mike with a crush really shows the difference.

Daisy moving on from mike and paulo moving on from lucy. Look at all this growth!

This is reminding me that we're nearing the end of the story after all these years.

Are we really? Has there been a confirmed ending point? Please say no.

If I remember correctly Vero said it was set to end right after they finish their Junior year.... which means in universe they only have a semester left D:

What Fiver said

Just remember that a single night can last for over an entire year comic wise, so we probably have a few more until its over over

I’m glad that Mike and Lucy are finally beginning to realize that they have friends who aren’t in it for a relationship.

Good for her, I‘m really glad.

Oh my gosh I’m so happy for Daisy ❤️

YES I AM ALL FOR THIS GROWTH

I used to hate Dasiy but she has grown so much over the last year. Healthy friendships all around please 😄

good for her!!!!!

His eyes when she says she doesn’t have feelings anymore…..

“I don’t even *like* you any more, dude”

I really love this because I am really hoping that now that Mike knows Daisy wont obsess over him anymore that he can finally have an actual FRIEND to rely on and not a fangirl or someone with romantic motives. Someone he can open up to without worrying about getting insulted or walking on eggshells. Paulo is great and all, but he's certainly brash and sometimes thats not what Mike really needs.

I’m also so proud of Daisy. She’s showing so much growth and giving really good, genuine, and REALISTIC advice about how feelings work. They don’t always go away just because you want them to! But as she said they can change over time. I’m hoping this piece of advice will be the catalyst that helps end Mikes relationship with Sandy once and for all.

My mature, growing queen!!! Love seeing her and Paulo get over their longtime one-sided crushes and move onto healthier relationships, platonic and romantic. Excited to see both of them ready to be fully single and ready to mingle...with each other...👀

Two smackdowns in one chapter, even if it's a good thing it still hurts empathetically lmfao ... idk why. Obviously it's great for both of them that she moved on! So why does it still feel like he got rejected?

To be honest his reaction in the last couple of panels seem so...lackluster to me so I can see why you ask that. The way he averts his eyes and makes a simple statement of "That's great." seems so underwhelming for someone who's been trying to stanchly fight off the obessive affections of his friend for years?

Mike: That's... great [thinking: dammit]

No one says "that's great! :) :)" to someone getting over you too late to save their relationship. I don't think he regrets it at all, he /opened/ with "sorry I couldn't return your feelings." Mike's just sitting with his friend in a tough moment.

Also... this is a beautiful page. BCB has never had better pacing.. or panels! Incredible work.

Lots of discussion over what his unconvincing 'thats great' here really means but my take is that it's more complicated than Mike regretting that this ship has sailed. He knows he never returned those feelings and he did just say so, but I also think that part of him enjoyed the attention and validation of Daisy's crush sometimes, and it maaaay have been the kind of thing he wished a little bit he could still count on. Especially right now when he's probably thinking 'wow I've been so insufferable even DAISY doesn't want me anymore...'

Just speculation on my part ofc regarding his thoughts. But I think it's meant to mirror Lucy's response when Paolo declared himself over her earlier. I don't think either Mike or Lucy aren't 100% stoked to hear it because they regret saying no or mean to use them, it just hits them both a bit where it hurts because they're kids who are both having massive self worth and esteem issues right now so even a whiff of rejection might sting a bit.

I honestly think this is a great point! My initial thought of his reaction here was that while he didn't return Daisy feelings, it probably is nice (at least on a sub conscious level) to know that someone still finds you desirable enough to want to have a crush on you. Between a failing relationship thats sucking the life out of him and burning so many bridges with the people around him I'm positive that Daisy confessing that she no longer has a crush on him has its own toll?

Daisy: Because I always hated you.

Mike: That’s great as well.

the "that's great" is definitely not because he was looking to get together

given his headspace it's probably more of "then why are you even puting up with me?"

As a non-native English speaker, could someone give me a quick rundown of the term „double down“? I can‘t seem to find a good translation/explanation and I‘ve been wondering about it since the chapter started

To “double down” is the opposite of “back down” - in response to a challenge, or maybe in an argument, you express double your effort or adamance on your belief.

A: “I think it will rain”

B: “The forecast says it will be sunny”

A: “Screw the forecast, I can smell it. I’m grabbing my coat”

A just doubled down

Thanks a lot pexl!! Now that’s something I can work with :) a very interesting title for this chapter then…

I'm so proud of you Daisy!!