Lovers since their early days, Momoka and Shirou were always together. When they entered high school, they started dating, but nothing beyond that. A couple with only their closeness between them, many wonder if they are in fact in love, but the two of them know what they mean to each other. In their last year of high school, they face new obstacles, and as new romantic rivals appear, the two’s love is tested. Momoka, spurred on by her experienced friend Ruko, is advised to seal the deal quickly with Shirou, or risk losing him forever. Thus, the two of them slowly but surely begin to get more and more intimate, physically of course.

Throughout the series, the ecchi scenes slowly build, and as the two reaffirm their love for each other, the scenes escalate in a dramatic fashion. If you read towards the end of this series, you will be stunned to actually see where the title drop comes in, confirming that you have just witnessed one of those most lovey-dovey, lewd romance ecchi manga ever written.

Sakamoto Rinnosuke has just lost his deadbeat father, leaving him an orphan with no relatives in the world. With his father’s debts piling up and his only option seemingly to quit school and work to survive, his future is uncertain. Suddenly, a hole opens up in the middle of his house, and falling from it comes a naked, beautiful young woman. She claims to be Sakamoto Marina, and she has traveled from the future to comfort the now 16-year-old Rinnosuke, her future husband.

Rinnosuke and Marina have a very awkward dynamic at first. Marina knows everything about him from their life together in the future, but he knows nothing about her. He’s wary about time travel, and even more about her. Her love seems decidedly one sided, but as he comes to rely on her, the two grow to become as close as they are in the future. It’s very rare to be able to fall in love with the same person twice, but for these two it happens seamlessly.

Saitou Akira and Kawana Subaru were childhood friends, but life got in their way and they grew apart. Subaru being a rich heiress to her father’s multi-million-dollar corporation, and Akira belonging to an average family, it seemed they were destined to be separated, as they were forced to attend different schools. Akira, however, studied his hardest and got a scholarship to attend her upper-class high school. However, upon meeting again, she coldly and utterly rejected him. Hearing a rumor that praying to the Obverse God would grant any wish, he wishes that his room would connect to hers. The wish is granted, but it bears a cost. In exchange, Subaru is robbed of her self control, and her true nature surfaces. She has secretly loved him to an obscene level for years, and without anything to restrain her, she nearly forces herself onto Akira. Thus, the days of sex, sex, and more sex begin in this manga that explores how young lovers react when nothing is there to stop them.

Akira and Subaru feel very strongly about each other and have for years, to the point that these revelations aren’t as shocking as they would be for many others. While they come together, their circumstances haven’t changed. Subaru’s family will never approve of them, so they’re forced to work and make sacrifices in order to not just stay together, but be together in the long run. This story was on hiatus at several points over the years, but has just recently ended. It’s a very short read of 13 issues, but it's almost refreshing to see a couple that understands the need for physical compatibility as well, if not an aggressively lewd read.

Fantasizing about his childhood friend, Chigusa Nana, has preoccupied most of Sugimura Kaoru’s time. Fortunately for him, it’s about to pay off. The perfect and exemplary Nana is something of an idol at their school, giving rise to awkward looks whenever she interacts with the seemingly useless Kaoru. However, when it’s revealed that Nana suffers from severe stress due to the pressure to perform, the two come to a strange agreement. Kaoru will “educate” Nana on his S&M fantasies and she will bring them to life. Together, acting outside of her comfort zone, they will reduce her stress level, one awkward fetish play at a time.

What begins as an awkward discovery becomes an even more awkward agreement. The two who had been close as children are growing closer as they discovered different sides of themselves. It goes from being about stress and lust, and becomes about love. If you want to see one of the more unconventional romance developments in manga, definitely check out Nana to Kaoru.

Katagiri has had one of the roughest childhoods you can imagine. With his mother dead and his father in prison, he has worked since middle school to support his younger sister and himself. After being passed over for a promotion at his factory job, he decides to enroll with his sister at an alternative high school. There, he meets the seemingly sheltered princess Rio, and instantly, the two have a disagreement.

The two seem to be destined to hate each other, but when she witnesses him rushing to rescue his sister from being raped, she begins to see him in a new light. As the two from different backgrounds begin to see each other for what they really are, they find that they are far more alike than they realized. If you want to see a couple grow closer slowly amidst a tragic background, this is a fantastic manga to read.

Naoto Yanagi was always popular, smart, and his family is rich; but he’s not satisfied with just that. Ever since grade school, he has been tormented by the thought of losing to his school mate Mikoto Kujou, who was seemingly the exact opposite of him in every way. Once she entered his life, she outdid him in everything from test scores to sports. Now in college, he wants revenge on Mikoto by tricking her into falling in love with him, then dumping her. Unfortunately for him, he finds himself hopelessly falling for her for real.

Throughout the series, the two start off at odds, even though Kujou has no real idea who he even is. The romance builds, and Yanagi suffers for it in his attempt at forcing it, but they end up growing closer. If you want to see a mismatched couple coming together, Last Game is a very interesting shoujo read.

Kuronuma Sawako is completely misunderstood at school. She’s quiet and shy, but her name and appearance have her classmates referring to her as Sadako from the horror film The Ring. The only one who treats her normally is the popular class idol Kazehaya Shouta. The two of them begin talking casually, and then she begins to realize that the apparently one sided interest of hers is mutual.

It’s a slow but steadily-growing romance that transcends the social norms of typical school life. As a slice of life with an ongoing 29 volumes, the romance between these two, as well as the romance between this manga and its readers, is the real deal.

As the student council president of the prestigious Shuchiin Academy, Shirogane Miyuki has the highest grades in all of Japan. There, he works with his vice president Shinomiya Kaguya, a wealthy heiress to the most powerful conglomerate in the country. The two have a secret, They’re both madly in love with each other. However, at the pinnacle of society, they can’t just confess and be done with it. Whoever confesses first would lose leverage over the other, and it would hurt their positions, or so they believe.

The two of them hopelessly and hilariously attempt to trick the other into confessing with a series of highly complex mind games. The other characters are usually none the wiser, and they often get so wound up that they themselves get confused in their own schemes. However, it’s clear that love is in the air for Shirogane and Kaguya. It’s only a matter of when they’ll finally accept it. If you’re looking for one of the funniest romances without even a confession, this a must read.

All Nishikata knows about his seat neighbor Takagi is that she teases him daily in class. With a coy smile, she either says or does something that turns his face beet red. Feeling emasculated, he feels the need to do push ups in the safety of his own room as a punishment game he imposes on himself. If he wasn’t your average, dense middle schooler, he might just realize she likes him.

This couple is fantastic, and what starts as playful banter causes Nishikata to slowly realize that he does like Takagi in a serious way. In a spin-off manga from the series, they are actually married! There, he spends his days being teased by both her and their young daughter. Even if life isn’t tease-free for Nishikata, it’s a hilarious and smile-inducing read you should not miss.

Gouda Takeo is a monstrously tall and well-built first year high school student. His physique is so imposing he’s often mistaken for a bear, even though he’s one of the sweetest and nicest people you’ll ever meet. When he saves Yamato Rinko from a groper on a packed train, it’s love at first sight. Initially thinking she was only around him because she was in love with his handsome best friend, the two begin dating at light speed.

They are, without any other way to put it, the cutest couple you will ever see. The big and frightening Takeo, and the small, cute Rinko are adorable together. Both each other’s first love, they can’t help but be awkward and unsure of themselves. But throughout their story, they have surpassed the expectations of everyone around them. A shoujo that proves it’s what’s on the inside that matters, Ore Monogatari is one of the best couple romances you will ever read.