Almost every good story starts with a misunderstanding. This is a fact for any genre, be it shoujo, shounen, or BL. A character will get the wrong idea about something and things will go downhill from there, making us cringe, averting our gaze from the screen for a few minutes so we can fight the second-hand embarrassment. Robber x Lover is a manhwa with great art and an appealing story… and like many Korean manhwa, it’s full of misunderstandings!
Starting With the Wrong Foot
When Ji Ho misses his chance to apply for the university’s dorms, he’s left to find a place on his own, but finding something near the place where he studies is not an easy task. He is talking about his problems with Hyunee, a friend from high school, when another student overhears them and offers Ji Ho a place to stay. Unable to believe his luck, Ji Ho immediately accepts and prepares everything to move to the new place.
To celebrate his first night living alone, Ji Ho goes shopping and brings back lots of food, only to realize he’s spilled the content outside without noticing! While he’s busy thinking about going back to retrieve his things, the door to the flat opens, and a mysterious man appears. Alarms start going off when Ji Ho sees that the man is carrying a knife. Is he going to get mugged… or killed? The robber doesn’t seem interested in his things, but just in case, Ji Ho locks himself in the spare room, hoping that he’ll be gone by the morning. Imagine his surprise when he wakes up the next day and finds the robber crying in the living room!
Let’s Make a Deal
With the robber still sitting in the living room, Ji Ho has no other option than to come out of his hiding spot and confront him. The robber explains that he only wanted to return all the shopping that was lying outside on the streets and he didn’t want to leave until he cleared the misunderstanding. He introduces himself as Dojin and asks Ji Ho about the notebooks that were scattered on the floor. Embarrassed, Ji Ho tells him it’s just a novel he wrote when he was in high school and that he’s throwing it away.
Dojin is outraged! He begs Ji Ho to continue writing the story and, in exchange, he’ll clean around the house and prepare food. Even though the situation is a little bit strange, Ji Ho agrees and they become roommates. Not having to deal with cooking or cleaning gives Ji Ho a lot of time to study for university, and it also allows him to go back to his hobby: writing. It’s a win-win situation for everyone.
Nothing Comes for Free in Life
At first, Ji Ho doesn’t think much about rent being so cheap even though the flat is in the middle of Seol, a place famous for being extremely expensive. But Dojin knows that something is up, so he decides to go with Ji Ho when it’s time to sign the contract. There, they discover that the place was intended to be a gift for the person the owner likes, and they also learn that the place is owned by the student who offered it to Ji Ho, Seong Yeon, who is always appearing wherever Ji Ho is.
Of course, this makes Ji Ho think that Yeon has ulterior motives to offer the place to him, and he starts being paranoid around him. After thinking about it for a while, Ji Ho decides to invite Yeon for a meal so he can ask him if he really has feelings for him. However, reality is a little bit different: Yeon is actually after Hyunee, and he wants Ji Ho to help him. Even though Ji Ho is not very convinced, he immediately decides to help when Yeon offers to lower the rent. Now we know Ji Ho’s priorities!
Final Thoughts
There are so many misunderstandings in Robber x Lover that we honestly wonder if there’ll be enough time for the author to clear them up. Either way, the story is really enjoyable, and the characters are very likable. The love story between Ji Ho and Dojin is taking its time to develop, but it’s better that way: it gives us more time to get to know the characters and root for them with all of our might.
If you enjoy a good string of misunderstandings in your BL, go read Robber x Lover!
Author: Yaz L.