Heartwarming / Ménage à 3

• Yuki saying that despite her phobia, she wants to try and work through it for Gary.
  • It's even better that she's willing to admit that he doesn't deserve all the crap she throws at him.
• This. It's somewhat heartwarming to see the guy designated as the unlucky virgin having two girls fight over him.
• Zii and DiDi's bonding moment.
• Another forgiveness one, this time Zii forgiving Gary for casually offering her up as a sex partner. Her little speech about it is true and Gary knowing her well enough to make a coy pun shows how much he's growing. (Also nice in that they both just discussed their problem simply without drama.)
• I found Yuki managing to resist the urge to attack Gary's "tentacle" to actually be really heartwarming, seeing as she knew this was a big risk she was taking and finally fighting off the urge to attack him seemed to really show some Character Development.
  • Alongside that was her surprisingly favorable reaction to seeing Gary's "tentacle". (Strip #520, 11/1/11)
• Gary finally deciding to put an end to the 'contest' for Yuki's sake. Of course, it's completely sidetracked by Sonya and her dildo...
  • In the next strip, while Yuki is freaking out, Gary reassures her that is going to be okay, and holds her against him in a comforting hug.
• In this strip, Gary reassuring Kiley that she didn't fail in her attempt to treat Yuki and Kiley kissing him in response.
  • In the next strip Kiley asking if Gary will take a hug and the shared look between them.
• Yuki hugging Zii and forgiving her.
• Gary's choice... the smile on Kiley's face in the last panel says it all.
• Gary easing Kiley's A-Cup Angst by saying he likes her breasts the way they are.
• Zii comforting Gary after Kiley dumped him.
  • Look closely and you can see Lita the cat comforting Gary as well.
• Yuki sleeps with a teddy bear dressed up like Gary.
• Gary and Yuki making out in his room.
• Gary goes to Amber to confess that he's given up porn once he realized she was an actual person and not just an image on a screen. She assures him that no apology is necessary. (Though, considering that she only does that to get him to eat her out)...
  • Although unlike DiDi, who seemed to only want Gary so he could give her an orgasm, and Yuki, who never reciprocates his attentions in any way, even with a hug or a kiss, Amber is shown to, despite her interest in the swirly-go-round, genuinely care for Gary's well being and for him as a person. The Fridge Brilliance Chanelle drops on her helped in that, though.
  • I actually find that the look Amber gives Gary after he said that shows that she probably REALLY fell for him at that moment.
• And a follow-up to that, both Dillon and Amber give Gary a hug (leaving him confused) when he says "Well, it's not like any other girl ever wanted to share my life".
• Strip #701, 1/29/13: Best Therapy Ever: Kiley and Matt having sex manages to be strangely sweet.
• Heartwarming for Gary, if not as flattering as he might think; he finally arrives home from his visit to Paris, expecting only Lita to have missed him. The first thing he hears from Zii, who was bordering on losing it after being alone with DiDi and having to fight off her urges?
  Don't ever leave me again!
• Yuki and Sonya can't stand each other. But they both love Zii — whether she wants them to or not — and they both have egos the size of planets. This leads to Angel making a classic error when trying to slap Zii down.
• Zii reflecting on how she used to love Yuki, and on how she may not be over Sonya but she isn't ready for that sort of relationship, and trying not to hurt either of them while keeping the band intact, could be considered heartwarming if maybe verging on the deliberately woobie-esque. The fact that Zii thought all this while stealthily crawling out of bed from between a naked Yuki and a naked Sonya, while desperately searching for her own clothes, following what she assumes was a night of drunken debauchery, might or might not qualify the effect. But she does care, it seems.
• Recently it seems as if Gary and Amber might strike up a relationship and the interactions between the two are incredibly sweet. All the awkwardness that plagued Gary's previous relationships has melted away and the two of them seem to genuinely respect each other.
• After learning that Didi has never had an orgasm, Kiley decides to make Didi her new case study, promising to fight to the last breath for her.
• Tracy helping Gary though his pain after a marathon Swirly session. She's the only girl invited who didn't try to take advantage of him and actually help him.
• Another Gary and Tracy moment: When she returns his gaming equipment she is mildly upset over a bad date and Gary immediately offers her cocoa and cookies
• Zii being flustered over Gary, who is making conversation about dating in a rather confident tone. It shows that both have changed greatly because of one another, with Gary becoming more confident and Zii denying herself the urge to ask for a Swirly because she seems to respect him.
• Peggy's relationship with Gary. She's too busy with her job to pursue a relationship, but they have no problem having casual sex together and she encourages him to stand up for himself and have other people respect his boundaries. When she moves into Zii's room, she and Gary get along surprisingly well.
• Sonya tries to pull her usual tricks by promising Didi she can give her a better orgasm than Zii. Didi refuses, knowing that her orgasm only happened because she loved Zii so much, and resolved not to hurt her feelings ever again.
• Gary being a supportive friend to Zii when she's feeling down.
• Yuki and Matt realizing they loved each other.
• Similarly, Gary quietly saying this to Peggy.
  Gary: Well, FYI, if you ever want more than just casual sex from me... I would not think of being with you as settling.

---