Have you tried maybe thinking that it’s not because of the endgame? Like how do you genuinely defend an endgame where Ian is still oblivious of the abuse he went through for 2 decades and tj not saying he was sorry once? That’s the love you’re rooting for? A love where they never had a meaningful conversation, not even once. That’s some interesting shit. Maybe if the author gave us some redemption arc and growth of tj as a character, we might buy it but it’s all empty and hollow. The way they ended up together, even Joians would hate for Ian and Jo to end up that way, so yall can have it.

Tjian has got to be one of the most disgusting endgames in history. The only reason they were able to work things out is because Ian is still ignorant of all the fucked up things TJ did behind his back. They’re basically living in a bubble that could burst at any moment. The author never addressed the past for a reason.
Poor Ian he’s nothing but a fool. He’s still in love with that version of TJ who saved him from his drug addiction when they were 18. He doesn’t know that TJ is the same guy who made him deliver drugs after he left the gang, because he wanted him to relapse. TJ deliberately tried to temp Ian to take drugs again so he would rely on him again and play the savior.
Ian doesn’t know that it was TJ who sent him to jail and put him in massive debt, making it nearly impossible for him to find a clean job. That way, Ian would have no choice but to crawl back to TJ and the gang to make money. If Ian had known, he wouldn’t have worked his ass off while TJ was in jail just to build a house for him, when TJ was the very person who did anything in his power to make it hard for Ian to make money through a clean job.
Ian also doesn’t know that TJ lied about his reasons for joining the gang, and that it was never Ian’s fault that TJ killed Mr Jang. Killing Mr Jang was a mission given by Jason so TJ could join the gang, saving Ian was just a pure coincidence.
He doesn’t know about TJ’s inferiority complex toward David Kim. TJ wanted power and money to own Ian, because David Kim was a man who had once “owned” Ian.
And don’t say TJ joined the gang to protect Ian, that makes no sense. How is putting Ian, who is openly gay, into an environment full of rapists and homophobes considered protection??? Ever since Ian joined the gang, his life became hell. He was constantly in survival mode, nearly killed and raped multiple times, and TJ was nowhere to protect him. Thankfully, Ian knew how to fight and defend himself, but eventually he became suicidal and couldn’t take it anymore, so he decided to leave.
If TJ truly wanted to protect Ian, he would have joined the gang alone, not dragged Ian into it and prevented him from leaving and ruined his chances at a decent life. But TJ never cared about Ian’s safety or mental health. He watched Ian suffer, begging on his knees to be freed, yet showed no empathy. Instead, he plotted how to pull him back in.
TJ is the type of person who only acted nice to gain something in return, because when they were teenagers, Ian wasn’t “his” But the moment they slept together, TJ realized that Ian is "his" now, as he said “Now you’re mine” From that point on, TJ stopped caring about Ian because he got what he wanted, because he believes Ian wouldn’t be able to leave, since he can chain him through guilt and manipulation.
Ian blames himself for TJ joining the gang. He can’t move on as long as TJ is still in it, knowing TJ could die at any moment. He believes he ruined him, so he feels responsible for saving him. He wants TJ to live a normal life. He already felt too guilty for leaving the gang because he believes that he betrayed TJ who was patient and stayed by his side during his drug addiction days. But he doesn’t know that TJ joined the gang willingly just to control him.
To this day, Ian believes Jason was behind the cruel treatment he received after leaving the gang, when in reality it was TJ. The only things Ian knows about are the scar and the leg injury, things that are easier to forgive.
I don’t believe Ian and TJ could work out if Ian found out the truth. It would destroy the idealized image Ian has of TJ, the caring, patient person who saved him from addiction. That’s the version of TJ Ian fell in love with.
When TJ said “I’m scared of you, Youngwoo” it only reinforced Ian’s belief that TJ is his victim. That’s why Ian chose to leave, to heal himself and become a better man for TJ. But in reality, TJ should have been the one to confess everything, apologize, and leave to redeem himself.
Instead, TJ used Ian’s guilt again and made him feel like he’s the problem.
Too bad Ian is so ignorant and a fool, It’s too late for him to realize what kind of man TJ is, and that he should move on without ever caring about how TJ feels, because TJ never felt the same way about him. TJ has always only behaved selfishly and to gain something, he never genuinely cared for Ian the way Ian believes.