One of the things I appreciate most about this game is that the other characters don't stop caring about you just because you don't romance them. In a lot of games it feels like if you don't romance a character then they wouldn't care if you live or die. This feels like a real family, and the fact that affection isn't contingent on romance makes me like the characters even more. Romance is important, but it's not the only kind of relationship. This game does a wonderful job with it's connections, romantic or otherwise, and I can't wait to see how they evolve from here.
(not to mention they do the romance part really, REALLY well)