Yeah all the more reason their relationship didn't work out lol
Haesoo used Taku just as much: but it doesn't change the fact that their r/s was a mutual agreement. They were both fully aware of the implications of being with each other and literally MADE A PACT to not have hard feelings. But that's what Taku goes ahead and does
"it doesn't sit well with me to call jowoon and heesoo selfless". haesoo and joowon were literally that and that was the POINT of their development. they went from being selfish about their relationship, to being selfless. you can't just rewrite the story and act like "yeah that never happened" when the panels showed it did happen. BeeTee is spot on with their analysis.
also it makes no sense for them to simply "move on" from each other, when the main reason they couldnt be together was cause of their parents. whatever happened in this story, even if they decided to stay single: the fact that they needed to come clean and be honest with each other was CLEAR AS WATER. that was the whole freaking point of loh and the story would never EVER end if they weren't honest with each other. like how tf are they supposed to move on if they dont get proper closure. it's valid if they decide to stay single even after admitting how they truly felt. WHICH. They actually kind of do for some time lol. Haesoo literally leaves joowon to go abroad for 3 whole years and they dont see each other in this time.
Yeah exactly. Honestly there were only two potential outcomes to this story.
1: Haesoo and Joowon endgame.
2: Haesoo ends up with no one.
But whether either happened, it would not happen without Haesoo and Joowon talking truthfully about their feelings for each other. If the parents got remarried, it would probably be the latter. There's 10 times more to this story and their relationship than "theyre toxic therefore they shouldnt be together" but readers just like to water it down so much.
So my understanding of LOH after reading it over these 2 years and seeing many thoughts on socmed/mggo, is that it's a story about selfish love, and selfless love.
Like Taku for example was manipulative towards Haesoo and didn’t have great intentions when he approached Haesoo. He was planning just to use him and drop him like all his past models. But when Taku felt more deeply and showed some genuine feelings for Haesoo, I found that he was ONLY concerned with himself. He didn’t care whether Haesoo was happy or not. Haesoo was visibly losing weight and unhappy as said by his mom, but Taku didn't seem to care at all. Even when Joowon got into all that trouble, notice how he starts typing "are you okay?" and then deletes it and tells Haesoo to stop caring about Joowon, even though this is something thats clearly hurting and worrying Haesoo. And NOW IN THIS CHAPTER: when they broke up he said he hoped Haesoo has a hard time and regrets leaving him… even though Haesoo genuinely didn’t wrong him. They both decided on this relationship. Taku was the one begging to do this, knowing Haesoo loves someone else, so he has no logical reason to wish Haesoo a hard time especially after he admitted Haesoo tried his best. So yeah... his words were purely emotional and selfish. Overall yeah, I just think Taku basically showed us: “Love is selfish”
But the endgame pair of LOH showed that that love can be selfless too. Like Joowon and Haesoo locked themselves into their open relationship because they were driven into a corner by their parents. They wanted to be with each other, but they didn't want to take the responsibility of the potential losses for their relationship. Which ofc is SELFISH as theyre caring more about themselves and what they could lose, than how the other person feels.
But when they separated, the change slowly happened and it was JOOWON that changed the most. Joowon called Haesoo after their painful separation and put aside his hurt feelings and told Haesoo something like: “I’m always on your side, even as a brother or friend, I’m just all yours". He was willing to support Haesoo even if Haesoo told him he liked Taku. It shows him swallowing his own feelings and loving Haesoo without condition. Joowon then later sacrificed his public reputation and career to protect Haesoo during the bullying scandal. He told Haesoo he wanted to take responsibility, which I think made Haesoo realize a lot, and gave hs courage to admit his feelings later. Like the whole point of LOH is that for a relationship to work out, you need willingness to sometimes make sacrifices for each other. Which is what Joowon and Haesoo did in the end. The very act of them confessing to each other is a SACRIFICE because their parents dont support them and they could face consequences.
The writer once said Love or Hate is a story about why a relationship can be fulfilled, and also why it may remain unfulfilled. Both statements perfectly fit Joohae (old relationship vs new one), and I love how well thought out it is.