Monkey High Volume 1 by Shouko Akira

Haruna Aizawa is the daughter of a prominent politician. That might be good, if her father was above reproach. But since he was caught in a corruption scandal, her formerly wonderful life was completely turned upside down. Unable to cope, she transferred to a new school.

But she got a very bad attitude towards school, viewing it as a mountain of monkeys jockeying for position. And her new school is no different from the one she used to attend. And when she walks into the school, she gets more proof than she expected: a boy named Macharu Yamashita who even looks like a baby monkey! Macharu's real name is Masaru, but everyone calls him Macharu because of his monkey resemblance.

But when Macharu's friend Atsuyuki becomes interested in Haruna, all the other girls in class see her as a threat to their possible relationship with Atsuyuki and start to shun her, she finds Macharu defending her, and her heart is strangely affected by his nearness. When the others find them together, they label Haruna as Macharu's girlfriend, and although she denies it, no one believes her. But when Macharu falls ill after giving her his umbrella on a rainy day, she must take his place as lead dwarf in the school production of Snow White. And yes, she does eventually agree to be his girlfriend- which the rest of the class, evesdropping, overhears. Is there any hope for Haruna but to be the Baby Monkey's girlfriend?

But Haruna has a hard time overcoming her fears, and it takes a class trip to the countryside for her to confront her feelings and wonder if what she is feeling is really love. But when her old school, and her old boyfriend, invites her new class to their Christmas party, Macharu kisses her to prove that they are really girlfriend and boyfriend. But can Haruna forgive him for making their first kiss to public and so embarrassing? Or will this be the end of their budding relationship?

This is a cute series, pairing Yin Haruna to Yang Macharu. They are so different, with Haruna being beautiful, aloof and introverted, and Macharu being goofy, outgoing and enthusiastic. Conflict between them is as natural as breathing, but their feelings for each other cannot be denied. Yes, he makes her laugh and relax, but is that enough to build a relationship on? Or will his boyish cluelessness break them apart?

While readers will find Haruna's new classmates almost unbearably intrusive, it's rather standard for a comedy manga, which is what this is, despite the romance plotline. Unlike most manga, though, the romance story is really touching, showing how two people so unalike can complement and find love in each other. I really enjoyed it.