i also think it's important to remember that taeyeong and jinwoo come from completely different worlds.
taeyeong has been raised to present himself to the public in a certain way, to always act like he owns the world and like nothing can touch him. yet, no matter what he does, it's never good enough for his family. he has access to everything, yet none of it means anything to him.
he is juxtaposed with jinwoo, who has been raised to feel like he has the weight of entire world resting upon his shoulders, like he has to keep working himself to the point of utter exhaustion to be worth anything. and yet, nothing he could ever do will be enough. he has access to nothing, and he's convinced himself (and has been convinced by his mother) that nothing is worthwhile because he's "not working as hard as his mother is", so why even bother.
taeyeong has been raised to perceive and understand the emotions of the people around him, but seemingly only for the purpose of making them view him in a positive light, not really to truly connect with anyone. further, he seems to have never been taught nor allowed to learn how to look inward, self-reflect, nor care about himself and his mental well-being in any genuine capacity. he seems really disconnected from his feelings, as if he doesn't really understand the actual depth of them, nor what he's really feeling when he feels it.
jinwoo has been raised to perceive himself and his mother, and that seems to be the extent of his world, at this point. jinwoo's self-worth appears to rely heavily upon what he thinks his mother thinks of him and his choices. he doesn't seem to understand nor consider the way he appears to other people around him.
for example, jinwoo doesn't notice when his body and mind are utterly exhausted and he's spacing out, to the point of (potential) injury and property damage; he doesn't have any self-awareness when he drinks alcohol, and tends to act inappropriately for the time and place; he doesn't understand how people perceive his tired appearance, his clothing (when he wears taeyeong's shirt), etc - even taeyeong mentions that jinwoo doesn't understand how lewd he appears to others, and that he is incapable of even concealing the marks taeyeong left on him; and, jinwoo is even a bit unprofessional when it comes to his part time job, his attempts at working in the production industry, and also when giving his speech about the play in-progress. he barely smiles, his stress seeps into his outward appearance, and he allows himself to be taken advantage of because he's been taught that if he's not entirely exhausted, he's not working hard enough.
point being, jinwoo is so focused on himself and his internal struggles, and his ongoing personal battle with comparing himself to his own mother that he, unlike taeyeong, is unable to understand and interpret the emotions and intentions of the people around him. he's never been given the chance to care about anything but pushing himself.
all of that to say, taeyeong and jinwoo are completely different, but also the same. taeyeong has everything handed to him, yet none of it means anything; jinwoo has nothing handed to him, and none of it means anything.
taeyeong can understand jinwoo's feelings for him with ease: jinwoo likes taeyeong. jinwoo gets jealous over taeyeong. AND taeyeong understands that jinwoo doesn't understand the feelings of others; that's why, in chapter 42, taeyeong verbalises, point blank, to jinwoo's face "i like you, too. i get jealous over you, as well."
i think it'll be hard for both of them, going forward. jinwoo understands how much he feels for taeyeong, but he is unable to interpret taeyeong's emotions for him. taeyeong understands how jinwoo feels about him, but he's unable to understand the true extent of his own emotions, and how he really feels about jinwoo.
i guess it'll be a journey of them both learning about taeyeong's emotions then? taeyeong learning to give, and jinwoo learning to take.
i also think it's important to remember that taeyeong and jinwoo come from completely different worlds.
taeyeong has been raised to present himself to the public in a certain way, to always act like he owns the world and like nothing can touch him. yet, no matter what he does, it's never good enough for his family. he has access to everything, yet none of it means anything to him.
he is juxtaposed with jinwoo, who has been raised to feel like he has the weight of entire world resting upon his shoulders, like he has to keep working himself to the point of utter exhaustion to be worth anything. and yet, nothing he could ever do will be enough. he has access to nothing, and he's convinced himself (and has been convinced by his mother) that nothing is worthwhile because he's "not working as hard as his mother is", so why even bother.
taeyeong has been raised to perceive and understand the emotions of the people around him, but seemingly only for the purpose of making them view him in a positive light, not really to truly connect with anyone. further, he seems to have never been taught nor allowed to learn how to look inward, self-reflect, nor care about himself and his mental well-being in any genuine capacity. he seems really disconnected from his feelings, as if he doesn't really understand the actual depth of them, nor what he's really feeling when he feels it.
jinwoo has been raised to perceive himself and his mother, and that seems to be the extent of his world, at this point. jinwoo's self-worth appears to rely heavily upon what he thinks his mother thinks of him and his choices. he doesn't seem to understand nor consider the way he appears to other people around him.
for example, jinwoo doesn't notice when his body and mind are utterly exhausted and he's spacing out, to the point of (potential) injury and property damage; he doesn't have any self-awareness when he drinks alcohol, and tends to act inappropriately for the time and place; he doesn't understand how people perceive his tired appearance, his clothing (when he wears taeyeong's shirt), etc - even taeyeong mentions that jinwoo doesn't understand how lewd he appears to others, and that he is incapable of even concealing the marks taeyeong left on him; and, jinwoo is even a bit unprofessional when it comes to his part time job, his attempts at working in the production industry, and also when giving his speech about the play in-progress. he barely smiles, his stress seeps into his outward appearance, and he allows himself to be taken advantage of because he's been taught that if he's not entirely exhausted, he's not working hard enough.
point being, jinwoo is so focused on himself and his internal struggles, and his ongoing personal battle with comparing himself to his own mother that he, unlike taeyeong, is unable to understand and interpret the emotions and intentions of the people around him. he's never been given the chance to care about anything but pushing himself.
all of that to say, taeyeong and jinwoo are completely different, but also the same. taeyeong has everything handed to him, yet none of it means anything; jinwoo has nothing handed to him, and none of it means anything.
taeyeong can understand jinwoo's feelings for him with ease: jinwoo likes taeyeong. jinwoo gets jealous over taeyeong. AND taeyeong understands that jinwoo doesn't understand the feelings of others; that's why, in chapter 42, taeyeong verbalises, point blank, to jinwoo's face "i like you, too. i get jealous over you, as well."
i think it'll be hard for both of them, going forward. jinwoo understands how much he feels for taeyeong, but he is unable to interpret taeyeong's emotions for him. taeyeong understands how jinwoo feels about him, but he's unable to understand the true extent of his own emotions, and how he really feels about jinwoo.
i guess it'll be a journey of them both learning about taeyeong's emotions then? taeyeong learning to give, and jinwoo learning to take.
[following on from this: https://www.mangago.me/home/mangatopic/23139267/]