I did read it, and very much enjoyed it, right up until the end of chapter six.
Would love to see where, prior to the bar scene, especially in "the beginning" that you mentioned, Emma says she has feelings beyond friendship for the male MC. She quite literally says exactly the opposite on a regular basis. So much so that it kind of became a running joke, and the sister and Claire's favorite thing to tease her about. It's even evident that Emma gets annoyed with them because of it, due to having no romantic feelings toward the male MC at all.
The whole story, up to chapter seven, was about a trans girl and her best friend going off to uni, and starting a new chapter in their lives as the Best Friends they had always been. There was absolutely nothing about any romantic feelings between them, and even after they had been there for months there was still nothing along those lines.
Even the dev stated early on in this thread that:
The dev reaffirms this in other posts, and goes on to say that they are trying to show the trans perspective, to make something that shows their struggles, for people who are often misunderstood and victims of prejudice. Yet has decided to make Emma into a stereotype with these latest updates: She's a woman, so she must like a guy. That's where the problem lies.
The story isn't tagged as a romance, nor is it written as one. It's more of a slice of life about two close friends, and their time at uni. Sharing their experiences, discovering what life has to offer, as supportive friends to one another. For that matter, up until the start of chapter seven, every interaction between the two protagonists, that isn't directly talking about Emma's transition, could have been any gender or sexuality, and it would have changed very little. Just two long-standing friends, with no romance between them, whatsoever. The teasing they got from friends and family could have just as easily been for any two close friends who had known each other since they were kids.
There was nothing between them beyond friendship, and it would have been great if that continued through the story. Instead we get a sharp turn away from that story, and out of nowhere a drunken hug negates Emma's sexuality; developing an instant sexual attraction to the male MC, where there previously was none, as stated several times by her, and confirmed by the devs own comments.
For some reason, it turns into something out of a bad fantasy; where someone thinks they can turn someone straight, despite every indication to the contrary.
I'm not pushing an agenda, I'm pointing out a trope that derailed the story; one that does more harm than good. It's that simple. As for what it's meant to be, I had thought based upon the first two thirds of the story, and with the author's/dev's earlier comments, it was going to be a story where we would see empathetic representation, rather than one where Emma becomes a punchline.
