This should've been a new series with new characters. It's not that the story is bad, it's just that the characters and the vibe are completely different from the "original", it doesn't feel like CBAW at all. These two characters doesn't feel like taesung and haebom to me, from the decisions they make to the way they react to things, everything feels weird.
Also CBAW had it's dose of prejudice toward the main couple's relationship and dark undertones but never to this extent. The "original" was much lighter, brighter, warm and hopeful, it was the type of story you read to feel warm inside, this gloomy and noir atmosphere came out of nowhere.
It feels like the author was too afraid to release a new work after the success of CBAW so they decided to bring their new ideas for a series using the characters we already love. Problem is that this new story doesn't make any sense with the setting we've already had.
Please baby don't take after your fathers, they're no good, stimulate your brain enough not to do half the stupid dumb things your fathers did before you came to this world.
At that point, I'm reading just to know how it'll end.
On one side the ML is shaming and abusing MC verbally and sexually every chance he got, to the point where anyone with a brain would've shown some self respect and walked away. He's harassing MC even in his work, in front of people, there's not a single sentence that comes out of his mouth that's not pure humiliation. And don't even come with the BS of "oh, he's just directing his anger cause of the misunderstanding", he's not 5 years of age anymore, that's no way to treat a human being.
On the other side there's MC who already had hundreds of chances of clearing up said misunderstanding, he have messages of red hair blackmailing him with stuff about ML, but naaah, he repeats hundreds of times "i can explain", "it's a misunderstanding" and never actually say anything. He just had to show it "here take a look at this, I'm his errand boy cause he got dirt on you, asshole" it's not that hard, just sit and talk it out. But nooooooo he has to be a puppy begging for scraps 24/7. the ML presents a deal to use him as a hole and he says "yeah let's go for it ヾ(❀╹◡╹)ﾉ~ i mean it's better than nothing... Right?", BRUH.
And this misunderstanding doesn't even make sense at the first place. ML saw red hair abuse MC, he saw MC have nightmares about red hair, he saw how scummy red hair is... why would he believe it? Why not give MC a chance to explain? All that drama over a phone call? Really? And then ML conveniently vanish into thin air? And after years they reunite, he sees MC having a miserable life, he even says so, and he think it was all a plan to mock him?
"oh I'll live a miserable life to attract rich guys and live off of them while mocking them with my red hair lover who has money and abuses me, so when i get uncovered I'll go back to being miserable again to find another rich guy and repeat the process" WTF, the gymnastics going on inside ML head to come up with this is amazing.
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.