I really truly think that reincarnation is a lazy cop-out for authors that write terrible characters and don’t have the skill or the effort to ACTUALLY redeem them.
They’ll write 50 chapters of pure torture porn and instead of trying to make characters redeemable, nuanced, or likeable in the slightest they just kill them off and reincarnate them and call it a day.
yes, speak on it. the bl market is undeniably saturated with rape and abuse bc for whatever reason, the audience (which is undeniably a lot of straight women) looovveee seeing gay men getting raped and abused which is weird asf. and authors love to throw in a reincarnation arc to redeem the rapist. i just read into the rose garden and beyond the memories recently and i’m so??? like there was really no need to throw in rape in the first place so why are you trying to redeem them now and it shouldn’t be such a nuanced conversation - rape is bad, stop romanticising it, stop making the abused end up with their abuser/rapist and call it a happy ending, end of story hello?
Okay I impulsively read the entire novel today so only read this if you’re okay spoiling the whole thing!!
(Also the version I read was a rough translation, I may have gotten a few details messed up but here’s the jist )
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Okay so the story gets dark. Like super fucking dark. You think it can’t get worse and it does.
ML makes MC move into apartment with him
MLS brothers try to run fades on MC
Abusive slop continues and MC dad dies after the doctor abandons the building
MC goes FUCKING crazy. Like balls to the walls loses his fucking mind. Get this kid a scientist or an exorcism fr.
ML softens up but is still a real piece of garbage for a while
Points of interest:
~ They do fucking METH and fuck like animals on multiple occasions
~ ML BREAKS MC FUCKING LEGS and chains him up like a dog
~ MC is completely detached from reality. Like straight up living in delusions and hallucinations, screaming and babbling all the time, forgets where he is or who is is, etc.
~ MLs brother straight up tries to kill MC. Wack shit.
All of this craziness culminates in MC having a breakdown, slitting his wrist, and ML finding him JUST in the nick of time
ML completely switches up, panics and starts straight PAMPERING MC
ML somehow becomes unbelievably doting and affectionate.
MC has some amnesia (forgets the past two years.) and ML takes it as a fresh start
ML buys a new mansion near a river and moves in with MC
ML starts groveling, worrying and babying MC and treating him like a pretty little princess
ML gets MC counseling, gets him an ID and really REALLY starts being a real cuddly piece of work
MC memories come back but it’s okay because he is happy and getting spoiled like the beautiful prince he is, ML literally a caregiver to MC.
ML demolishes Red Mansion and builds a casino, naming MC as the beneficiary so they both have ownership over it
Happy days, sunshine and flowers and cuddly passionate love-making
Our two psycho fuck protagonists live happily and lovely with a beautiful cat in a beautiful house by the river YAY!
On some real shit this story made me cry a few times. Oddly and delightfully awful and fluffy at the end but if you’re interested you better buckle the fuck up (〜 ̄△ ̄)〜
thank you for this, the entire time I was reading this I was like, “do I wanna keep reading? this shit is kinda insane? why am I still reading? should I keep reading?” and then got to the end (of season 1 at least) and now your comment saves me the trouble and mental turmoil of reading on. I don’t think I could’ve kept reading even if I was strangely interested and even it does end fluffy (I do love a good fluffy ending) but I still wanted to know what happens next so thank youuu
Omg I completely feel you! I love psychological stuff so much but I had to know how it was gonna end because usually stories like this end with either death or some fucked up stockholm syndrome dynamic but oddly enough this didn’t lol. The story gets so beyond fucked up though so I’m glad I saved you some time !
I read up until the part where MC confesses to the therapist that he already got back his memories but still pretends that he doesn't coz he likes how doting ML is to him and he's afraid he'll switch back once he realize he remembers everything. Did he he actually hide this to the very end? I like that type of plot device where only me as the reader and one of the character knows a deep secret within the story, it's kinda like breaking the fourth wall lol.






Is jaekyung borrowing John’s phone and trying to call us??? If so I decline