ShiroHachi said:The story is mostly told from 8man's perspective especially LN where he's literally the narrator, there is a reason we know so much about Yukino from her family matters to her past etc while we don't know much about Yui at all until the last season/volumes and most of that because of her OWN interludes. Hachiman thinks he doesn't know much about Yukino but then proceeds to list so many things about her. in fact both 8man and Yuki don't know much about Yui. The whole LN is evidence of his crush and then love for Yukinon since day one.
LIST:
1. (LN) The countless times he poetically describes/praises her, he just doesn't do that for others at all, the only times it even seems similar for others are when they wear beautiful dresses. He describes Yukino in normal uniform casually pouring tea in more glorious way than when he sees Yui in a prom dress and her dance with her.
2. (LN) He praises her randomly. A conversation is going on and in his head he thinks how good her lips look, how good her hair looks etc. All these praises and descriptions also imply that he is looking at her during that which means he stares at Yukino a lot.
3. (LN) Only character for whom hachiman mentions how time stops and he wanted this to last forever when he looks at her. (number of times hachiman has done this... Can't even count lmao)
4. For some reason, all the conversations with her feels refreshing to him.
5. (LN) Getting pissed off by rumors about hayama and her
6. (LN) When haruno said that yukino once gave chocolates to hayama, his hand turned into a fist and he got this terrible feeling in his stomach as if his intestines were getting churned..
7. Protecting her from any harm:
- Helped rumi because he could see yukino in her(admitted by him in vol 12)
- Destroyed sagami for her..
- Tried to preserve the club because it is the only thing that connects him with her.. (even this was an instance of him hurting her not helping)
- When he found out that he might have hurt yukino in someway by preventing yukino from running for student council president(LN)....he took iroha's req on his own..
- Stopped Yui's attempt to take it all and force Yukino into submitting because he saw that's not what she wants.
8. When yukino asked him to save her someday..
This is how hachiman described it in the LN: it was as if something took a hold of my heart and I was visited by this sensation that I would keep falling forever..
9. Literally 20seconds staring competition (infirmary scene)
10. Getting flustered near Yukino, this is only clearly seen in his monologue in the light novel, for some reason Hachiman in the anime always puts on a poker face.
11. Even when yukino asked him to not to help her.. He still came to help her.. (using the excuse that he promised to save her someday...)
This was going through his head(LN): codependecy can form the structure of relationship, but it has nothing to do with feelings.
12. People around him can sense it...
- Yui's reaction when he went to save yukino..
- Sensei's reaction..
- Iroha described the conversation b/w hachiman and yukino as: lover's quarrel/confession/talk about breaking up.
This is how important it is to adapt Hachiman's monologue. You won't feel that harem atmosphere in the LN. Yukino's screentime in season 3 so far has been lacking, but on LN you can read how Hachiman keeps thinking about her. Like how boring his life was when he couldn't communicate with her because there was no club activity. He wants to talk to her but he's a stubborn guy who acts when there's a logical reason.