No One Talks About How Difficult It Is To Never Settle. They Just Say "never Settle. You Are The Icon.

Gifs from @namchyoon & @petevegas post

I can't help but wonder if these similarities were intentional.

Let's look at the couples. Both are facing a shared problem. Pat Pran are sick of their controlling parents. Puen Talay are trying to cope with the untimely demise of Joob.

Pran & Talay have a fear of patterns. Pran is afraid of his mother forcefully transferring him again. His high school heartbreak is unhealed. He's afraid that every time he gets close to Pat, fate will split them apart.

Talay has a fear of abandonment. Just a week ago Up & Aou went their separate ways. Puen disappeared entirely. Top it all Fuse & Kita graduated before him. Hardly had Friend Credits re-united when Joob passed away. His fear of abandonment resurfaced.

Pat & Puen themselves didn't have it better. Pat had gotten scolded by his father for prioritising the play over rugby. He also had to cope with his father's betrayal which caused him & Parn to be star crossed lovers.

Puen too was mourning the loss of Joob. The one in whom he saw a maternal figure. Even his own fears were likely to be triggered watching Dol regret holding back from confessing until it was too late.

Puen & Pat exhibited immense strength by not only standing tall, but also by holding their partners from collapsing.

Pat could have simply asked for a break or ended it altogether. Because from the looks of it, they both were financially dependent on their families. Instead of being practical or reckless, Pat asked Pran to run away with him until they could come up with a solution. A solution that would let them continue holding each other's hand.

Puen too, could have done anything. Confessed impulsively, cried or remained silent. He himself was shook & unsure of his fate. Moreover watching Dol regret must have added to his own insecurities. But he mustered up his last ounce of courage & confidence to reassure Talay.

"Can I hug you to sleep all night?" In this case was not "I'm in love with you" or "I will protect you" but rather a reassurance that "I'll still be holding you after you sleep & wake up. I will never disappear on you ever again. I won't abandon you."

"when death// takes my hand// i will hold you with the other// and promise to find you// in every lifetime ~ commitment, rupi kaur, The Sun and Her Flowers”

PS it's funny is that Talay technically looks like Pat & Puen like Pran in this alternate universe given the casting....like you know what I'm saying right 😂😂

Kim's chains & their possible symbolism (Special)

I suggest reading the previous 3 part series I made before this

The conflict

This is the only instances in ep 9 where Kim is conflicted when Porchay confesses. After seeing that mini shrine on his wall, hearing the love song, thinking of him during his own songwriting & now the innocent confession.

Kim stopped himself the last time when Chay serenaded him. And now Porchay has the audacity to be this cute innocent boy who promised God to risk confessing in return if he passed his college entrance exam.

Kim can't take it anymore. This is the ONLY instance until ep 12 where Kim has let his emotions get the better of him WHILE wearing a necklace.

This goes a long way to show the intensity of Kim's feelings. Considering he's somebody who suppresses his emotions with ease compared to an average person.

It can serve as symbolism for Kim letting himself indulge his emotional needs. He is removing his self imposed restrictions & involuntarily choosing to love. Choosing to be selfish in satisfying his momentary desire instead of constantly looking at the bigger picture.

And later when Kim gets a hug & hugs back. He's overwhelmed. He realises the warmth of a hug after being seemingly touch starved since years.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Seriously Talay, if what you did isn't a form of love then what else do you call it?! 😭😭😭😭

Talay be making Puen fall in love with him & then have the audacity to say he doesn't believe in love 😤😠

Thinking about how this poem referenced in Hometown Cha Cha Cha perfectly suits KimChay.💔 Quite literally 😔 considering their interactions happen near entrances 🥺 not to mention they were each other's muse 😭😭😭😭

"The Gatekeeper" by Kim Haeng Soon (tr. David Bowles)

It’s my job to say, “You can’t do that here.”

It’s my job to deny your objective.

It’s my job to deny you the next day, too.

It’s my job to wait for you the following day to deny you again.

It’s my job to wait for you the day after that and fall in love with you.

So it’s my job to deny my love.

“I won’t cry over my vocation,” I wrote.

But while writing in my diary,

I sometimes wept.

How Kim & WIK were 2 different people until Porchay came along.

Part 3/4

No thanks to Tawan for kidnapping Chay to use him as a pawn, it does in a way solidify the fact Kim hasn't & will probably never love a person like he loved Porchay. (And rightfully so)

He now sees no point in saving Porcahy from himself. (Considering Porchay's own elder brother is now Kinn's boyfriend so he's now inevitably linked to the major family & at risk for the rest of his life) This was exactly the situation he was trying to avoid in the first place. But now, it still occurred for different reasons. So he decides to do the next best thing. Follow his heart & fight for his love.

Note how Kim risks coming himself? Despite having professionals who could have done the job for him? It's not only his life that's in danger. He's risking Chay discovering his lies. He's going back to the life he tried so hard to avoid.

Kinn doesn't hesitate to shoot at Vegas, his own cousin. He came with one clear objective. Rescue the love of his life & kill everyone involved in harming him.

Kim is successful in not only saving Porchay but also in protecting his identity from him. He seems to hate confrontation & would rather ghost than dump somebody (which frankly makes him a big jerk but it's a show about criminals so)

Once Kim learns some ugly truth (which I think hasn't been completely disclosed as of ep12) & the fact that Porchay is now living in the main house; he is assured Porchay is going to be safe from physical harm. So he chooses to focus on his plan. He's still a little gentle in turning down when he could've been snarky & ended it sooner. But he's still a jerk :))

What happens next is interesting. While Porchay starts losing his innocence owing to heartbreak (He's Good boy gone bad y'all!!! Any MOAs in the house?!!) Kim stops separating WIK from himself.

It's like they're apart, but they're still growing together. Porchay is learning that love is not just roses but also the thorns while Kim is realising the rose's beauty & fragrance is worth the blood & thorns.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 4

being single in your late 20s & 30s is so fucking wild bc on one hand it's fun and flirty and you skip a lot of the bullshit because you know what you're looking for and you know how to spot a red flag from a mile away and you've learned to set boundaries and communicate your own and be upfront about your needs and most of the time they've learned it too - and if they haven't, you can tell after the second date that they haven't been to therapy

and every time you feel lonely and dried up and an ugly husk there's a whole community of other single people out there who are just as unhinged and want to hang out with you because they just need a plus-one like you do and you get introduced to like. people in their 60's and 70's and 80's who are all like - nope, single life is my choice and i love it and you feel warm and seen and like okay, it's not the end of the world if i'm not seeing anybody. and yeah it's hard and sometimes exhausting but part of getting better is that you do make like so many friends and do so much wild shit because you made a promise to yourself that you'll actually get out there and try shit and actually work on your hobbies and skills and friendships because to be honest in relationships you wouldn't push yourself this hard and it's actually been super rewarding because it came from you and from what you wanted

and yes of course the apps such and dating in general can suck but after one of the bad dates you go back to your apartment and call up those friends you made and make jokes about what the other person said and it rolls right off your back and you have plans for self-care in the morning. you prioritize yourself and your happiness and you really actually don't mind it, a lot of the time, unless it's like at a wedding and they're doing one of those couples-related things. most of the time it's not even a problem except when you can tell people pity you for it and you're like - i'm actually fine, babe, even without a partner i am still, like a person and yes of course it would be nice to have a partner but you have established yourself as a person and as an adult in a way that feels really hard-won and well-earned and you're protective of that and of the life you're living and honestly you're pretty happy, all things considered

and at the same time you do have to tell your father that you are single on purpose right now and that, yes, believe it or not, they're letting women be single past the age of 30 these days without burning us at the stake (can you imagine!) and you have to kind of sit pretty while people make jokes about how you're losing your marriageability and you're like, a little too old for the bars and the clubs and whatever but you do still want to go out dancing and it's like. the other day you went to a board game party and had the time of your life and then your mom calls you and says she's worried because what if you never find the one, shouldn't you be spending more time looking? and you're like - trying to balance this place where you're actually, like, perfectly okay? except you hear this thing over and over and over - oh no. that's so sad. i hope you find your lover. and you weren't really upset about it until someone suggested that you're running out of time and until someone said that it's so miserable that you live without someone to kiss and you're like why can't anyone believe that i'm genuinely happy. like. joy. like. bliss.

and then they look at you and they look at their partner and the look passes between them that says - poor thing. you're just lying to yourself about this.

sotus and sotus s were kinda way ahead of their time and nobody is ready for this conversation

Yes it did receive appreciation for being a trendsetter of university setting in BLs but the criticisms on lack of intimacy is getting on my nerves.

First of all, the main focus seems to be on the senior-junior struggle with hazing and the characters' internal struggles. THE AIM WAS NOT FANSERVICE AT ALL.

With that being said, it is completely normal for them to NOT be all over each other on screen even in season 2. Portraying emotional intimacy is harder than physical & it's done beautifully. They are two boys trying to graduate and do well in their jobs, it's absurd for them to come home and be all energetic in bed.

The relationship is actually balanced in its own way. Arthit gets a lot of hate for not communicating enough. When it actually does not seem like the case. Because in s2 he tells Kong "We can normally talk about anything, right?" That actually shows they are close enough to have tough conversations without jeopardising their relationship. Arthit knows since s1 that Kong is a rich kid, only he never know who exactly his father was.

Moreover Arthit's introversion & mysteriousness is what seems to draw Kong to him. We see how possessive Kong is - he cannot stand anyone else knowing little details such as pink milk & Aioon. I bet he'd not like him if Arthit was an easily likeable popular extrovert. The fact that Arthit is visibly shy is enough for Kong. And the fact that Arthit does not say "I love you" or "You are my world" regularly is what makes his words more valuable. Because Kong knows that it means beyond the surface in a situation when he says it.

It's good that Arthit continues to be shy & silent even in s2. Because that shatters the most common misconception that people change. He himself says that he loves Kong regardless, and saying it everyday would only reduce its importance. (Also, he's shy & that's how he is. Kongpob can accept it so it's all good innit?) Despite taking a long time to deal with his inner struggles he always comes back. He doesn't go around announcing about his relationship, but he does not keep it a secret forever either.

And the fear of society is actually well portrayed. University & workplace is different. Your sexual orientation doesn't reflect on your academic reports, but it CAN reflect as workplace discrimination. We also see that Arthit slowly realises that nobody is gossiping like he imagined. That's how he learns how pointless his worries were.

There are other shattered stereotypes. Such as the owner's nephew being a hard worker unlike the general nepotism character. And Earth just taking her time to warm up instead of turning out to be the female villian.

With all this being said, the show has a balance of silly entertainment & realistic ish character growth, idk it's a hill I'm willing to die on kbye.

This scene healed something in me

Vegas Pete incorrect quotes

Vegas : Hold the fuck up!

Pete : ??

Vegas : I'm the fuck up

Vegas : hold me

Is Fuse actually pretty or is it just me? 🥺