It’s hard to deny urges to spoil ourselves when it comes to an addicting love story, such as in Like a Butterfly. The charming Shojo manga by Suu Morishita is a slow-burn story where two equally shy, awkward, yet popular teenagers develop feelings for one another. The two high schoolers in question, Suiren Shibazeki and Taichi Kawasumi, are at times taciturn but know when to pick their moments to make a meaningful turn of phrase or statement. But does Suiren end up with Taichi in Like a Butterfly?
Does Suiren Shibazeki End Up Dating Taichi Kawasumi in Like a Butterfly?
Technically Suiren Shibazeki does not end up staying in the same school as Taichi Kawasumi at the end of Like a Butterfly, but they retain their love for one another. They became a couple in Chapter 34 and kissed in Chapter 72, but due to different career aspirations despite shared feelings, they had to part ways. Suiren wants to go to patisserie school to be a pastry chef, while Taichi wants to be a doctor as revealed in Chapter 74.
Related: Review: Like a Butterfly Vol. 1
Despite this parting of ways, their feelings are made clear to one another in the final moments of the main series finale, Chapter 75. Taichi acknowledges that they must be apart for now, but when the time comes, he’d want to marry her, which she accepts. It feels less of a commitment to a long-distance relationship, and more of a commitment to return once they’re both stable in their careers.
This fits rather perfectly with how Suiren grew to perceive herself. Hearkening back to Chapter 4, Suiren’s friend Aya said that unlike Suiren’s perception as a mysterious, unattainable flower by the boys, it was better to be like a butterfly, because she could go wherever she wanted.
Taichi’s commitment to protecting her from unwanted advances while still bearing his feelings for her and respecting her wishes to live her own life plays into that well. While they’re not together in an official sense at the end of the series, it’s clear that things didn’t end between the two beyond the final chapter. If you’re hoping to read it for yourself, you can check it out digitally here!
