In this omegaverse pheromones fluctuations apparently messes with your performance, so organizations need ML to have them always in control. This is stated by the doctor last episode, ML's manager, and even MC himself.
So, ML clearly sees sex a means so satisfy pheromones and nothing more, he doesn't have sex most of the time because he likes it, but because, like he (and the doctor) said, it's the effective way to deal with it. So he separated love from sex, almost completely. Most people he sleeps with, is out of necessity, and he let them go right after. So his statement means "I don't want to lose my only friend over this, you need to still stay with me when this is over, okay?" cause he cares about the MC, apparently a lot. Again he didn't even want to sleep with him in the first place, cause for him sex isn't love, is pheromones bullshit that he has to deal with.
MC doesn't know his perspective, he thinks ML just likes to sleep around and not settle with anyone (basically a playboy). So, for MC, ML is friend zoning him, this same statement is heard as "I'm not good enough to be his boyfriend, just his friend, and that won't change even after this is over".
We're only learning MC's perspective on this, but the author is leaving sudden hints of ML perspective as well, just pay attention to it. From MC perspective of course this is painful, unfair, cruel. But at the same time ML is unaware of MC's feelings, MC never confessed. ML never meant to hurt him, on the contrary, he is pissed that MC has to make the sacrifice in this situation. It will take time until ML realizes he's liking sex with MC not because of pheromones bullshit, but because he likes him.
In this omegaverse pheromones fluctuations apparently messes with your performance, so organizations need ML to have them always in control. This is stated by the doctor last episode, ML's manager, and even MC himself.
So, ML clearly sees sex a means so satisfy pheromones and nothing more, he doesn't have sex most of the time because he likes it, but because, like he (and the doctor) said, it's the effective way to deal with it. So he separated love from sex, almost completely. Most people he sleeps with, is out of necessity, and he let them go right after. So his statement means "I don't want to lose my only friend over this, you need to still stay with me when this is over, okay?" cause he cares about the MC, apparently a lot. Again he didn't even want to sleep with him in the first place, cause for him sex isn't love, is pheromones bullshit that he has to deal with.
MC doesn't know his perspective, he thinks ML just likes to sleep around and not settle with anyone (basically a playboy). So, for MC, ML is friend zoning him, this same statement is heard as "I'm not good enough to be his boyfriend, just his friend, and that won't change even after this is over".
We're only learning MC's perspective on this, but the author is leaving sudden hints of ML perspective as well, just pay attention to it. From MC perspective of course this is painful, unfair, cruel. But at the same time ML is unaware of MC's feelings, MC never confessed. ML never meant to hurt him, on the contrary, he is pissed that MC has to make the sacrifice in this situation. It will take time until ML realizes he's liking sex with MC not because of pheromones bullshit, but because he likes him.