Ive turned into a #1 Ash Defender,,,,but he's so good to Lyle i won't have these two love birds slandered like this they both are pure (they kinda freaky with it and thats okay) and deserve nothing but love ( T﹏T )
OKAY ILL ACTUALLY GO TO BED AFTER THIS
Even while reading Lyle's thoughts, he seems more worried about how Ash will react to his own behavior (being perverted as he puts it) and is simply overwhelmed with the new situation rather than what Ash is actually doing to him in most cases. It's not a case of him not consenting, it's him thinking he's flawed in some way and not good enough for Ash. Even with the squirting thing, it's valid he was uncomfortable cause he thought it was dirty and Ash never consciously tried to do that again (Ash was not fully aware during his rut, btw, he said he knew how he got but didn't regret it cause that's a part of how he is, he's sadistic. Nothing wrong with that, Lyle said he didn't mind it (as I repeat ad nauseum). Even Lyle wasn't fully lucid during his own heat and Ash gets it worse,,,its a two way street here and his sadistic side was given a green light by Lyle himself,,,,)
Lyle, while sheltered, is a grown ass man. He's pushed Ash off him before (re; first squirting incident) and the knotting because it was painful (ofc, he was knotted so couldnt exactly get away). Ash apologized for that of course, Lyle (once again sigh) expressed he was fine with it and was more worried that Ash didn't mind what he said entirely during the rut. It's not rape, stop trying to say it is.
Why didn't I just go to bed after rereading this juicy chapter for the night, these comments,,,,
I really don't see how Ash can be seen as pushy when looking at things from his perspective. He knows of Lyle's self-esteem issues, it's what caused the whole 'break-up' but I feel like it's not unusual for someone your in a committed relationship to want to trust them?
He's expressed his feelings on quite literally everything Lyle has had doubts about and, from what I can see, trusts that he would trust Ash to mean what he's saying. We're seeing things from Lyle's point of view, so it's understandable that we know he still really struggles with these things and likely won't speak up.
But what is Ash to do when Lyle says he understands, accepts and goes along with his wishes without, in most cases, ever saying his real thoughts? He was mad for a reason during the Ex arc, he trusted Lyle to not run from confrontation and he practically did just that (of course, WE saw he was going back, but how could Ash ever know that?). Lyle has agency, his personal issues that he's slowly learning to overcome do not rob him of that. I would not doubt Ash wouldn't hesitate to drop the Dom act if Lyle started voicing his self-depricating thoughts.
Relationships are a two-way street, trust goes both ways. He's trusting that Lyle will use the safe word if he's feeling uncomfortable in any way and he explained this is his way to 'punish' Lyle for going back on his promise to be open and honest. Is it the best way to communicate, probably not, but Lyle could have communicated that it was a serious issue he rather speak of elsewhere/in a serious setting. I don't doubt Ash thought this was a fun, low-stress environment (Lyle said he was fine with the rough treatment during the Rut period as well, he's well aware how mean Ash can be).
Maybe my expectations have been skewed cause webtoon BL antics, but so far Ash has been as green flag as a man can be in his situation. He can only do so much with a partner like Lyle other than trust his word at this point. In fact the only times he's been knowingly rough with Lyle was during his rut (Lyle had ample warning, multiple outs given and despite the knotting, which I consider his biggest offense, he immediately apologized and understood if Lyle didn't want to be with him because of it. He even owned up to his behavior, but Lyle said he didn't mind it so :/) and this roleplay occasion, but he's given Lyle the rundown, is explaining what his intentions are even now despite telling Lyle no questions. He saw he was genuinely confused and wanted to know when the play would end, so he knows the out conditions once more.
Really,,despite being a little childish in this occasion, he's not being pushy in my opinion and is even still being as accommodating as he can within the play,,,,
Anyways, enough 2am posting for me.