i think since this is only a one vol, the pacing was bound to be quicker, but i appreciate that the author still took time into consideration and didn’t make everything happen in one week, especially since they never exactly mentioned how many days had passed.
about how all it took was someone being nice to him, from my experience, sometimes all we need is a push to start taking initiative. in comparison, the landlady mostly blamed and criticized him for not doing anything, while the ml actually stepped forward and initiated things, which gave him that starting advantage. also, when you’re depressed, ik u often already know what you need to do, but the weight of actually doing it can feel overwhelming. having someone support you and help you take that first step can rly make a huge difference. when someone’s drowning, you don’t ask why they’re drowning before throwing them a lifeline.
while professional help is definitely a reco, i don’t think it necessarily has to happen right away or be the starting point. even seeking help can be weighed down by fear and anxiety. especially here, he was scared of going out in public and interacting with people, so i can understand why that wasn’t immediately addressed.
i also think recovery isn’t always linear. i do agree that with the author’s style, it would’ve been nice to see these aspects explored more deeply. i would’ve happily read this in a webtoon format with 100 chaps!
I liked this and their relationship a lot so this might be nitpicking, but I wish the mental health aspect was taken a bit more seriously/realistically. He was very obviously at least moderately and probably severely depressed but it feels like he 'bounced back' way to quickly/ easily. Even if he didn't get completely 'cured' immedietely, he still got significantly better (being able to clean, taking care of himself and his appearence, going back to work so soon, etc.) just because someone was a bit nice to him. Unfortunately, it doesn't work like that no matter how romantic it seems. You don't go from being unable to get out of bed or wash yourself to buying new clothes and styling your hair in like a week. Not to mention there was never any professional help of any kind or even any conversation about it. Anyway, all that said, I think the author seems to be kind of aware of this since they'd somehow throw in a line of him being tired in the midst of this progress, so maybe it was just a matter of space/time and this could have been handled even better if the manga was longer.