| Japanese name: |
浅葉 秀明 |
| Nickname: |
Asapin |
Hideaki Asaba is Yukino and Soichiro's lazy and girl-crazy friend, very handsome and popular. Although bright enough to be accepted to the selective Hokuei High School, Hideaki is a terrible student, and spends most of his time surfing or chasing girls. Hideaki and Soichiro are considered the two most handsome boys in school, but while Soichiro is largely indifferent to the attention, Hideaki makes the most of it. During their school's annual culture-fest, Hideaki's class mounts a "Hideaki Asaba Dinner Show" which is a big hit with all the girls, but gives Yukino and Soichiro the creeps. Despite his easygoing nature, Hideaki had a tumultuous homelife before moving into his own apartment. He frquently argued with his father and was shunned by him, due in part that Hideaki's nature was too similar to his abusive grandfather. His father never hesitated to exclude him from family outings, even taking joy in it. Due to this dark past, Hideaki is one of the few people who truly understands Soichiro's dark side. In fact he frequently states that he would love to marry Sochiro, if only Sochiro was a girl. During Yukino and Soichiro's relationship crisis during their senior year, Asaba tells her that only she could reconcile Soichiro's heart. At the end of the series, Hideaki has become a famous painter, specializing in drawing female portraits in which the subject appears five times prettier. Maho realizes that this is because Hideaki truly sees women to be five times prettier than they actually are — which explains why he is so in love with all of them. Despite loving women in general, Hideaki has never settled down or married, waiting for someone. When he learns Yukino is pregnant, he declares the baby will be the girl he has been waiting for. Sixteen years later, Hideaki is the surrogate father of the three Arima children, and the child was indeed a girl, their oldest daughter Sakura. In volume 21, the first chapter is narrated by an unnamed character, who loves him. His father is often sneering at him, and his first kiss is the unnamed character. Hideaki is torn about his father-like relationship to her as well as her young age, however Sakura takes the initiative and confesses her love for him and her intention to be his. In the anime television series, Hideaki Asaba is voiced by Atsushi Kisaichi in Japanese and Liam O'Brien in English.
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