#actually... i could probably easily headcanon both luo wenzhou and fei du as demiromantic

[mejomonster]

I absolutely love the part of slow burns where people have some level of attraction or draw to each other but are also not close enough to either fall in love/open up/trust whatever

And I am absolutely eating up Silent Reading in part because of how good it's slow burn is

Yes give me love rivals where one raised the other, and the other is projecting a need for emotional security on the remaining person who raised him but it's who the first one likes (and is also projecting a need for love in that romantically unavailable man), even Tao Ran who's got no crush has been playing along on some level with both the others serving as a surrogate parent, lover, partner, and delaying his own life moving on into building those things separate from the two as well. Leaving a trio of absolutely hilariously stalled individuals that time is also mercilessly Making move forward. Mercilessly Fei Du gets older and wants actual romantic love not just a safe harbor (tho he wants that too), want to fuck someone, Tao Rans getting older and does want an actual partner he comes home to and has a baby with at some point, and Luo HAD both those niches filled by Fei Du and Tao Ran so as they start kicking in gear and "moving on" toward something else he's left floundering. Left to latch onto Fei Du, who's also latching onto him, because they're both part of that past stable situation they all had and both a bit men of habit and clinging when it comes to loved ones and both take after each other a Bit too much. And life keeps on moving and changing and oh no Fei Du has decided, there's the rarest chance if the earth collapses, he might wanna smooch Luo Wenzhou. And Luo Wenzhou realizes, oh no he's not immune to Fei Dus charms (not like Tao Ran was immune to them both lol), and so the both of them Know at some point they need to go out and date and "meet people" Now that Tao Ran has split from the Triangle found family/relationships they wanted, but that requires a level of vulnerability they're not used to so it's easier to cling to what they have left with each other just a while longer. They don't wanna lose that too. But they ARE losing that too because like Fei Du says, time is always moving forward and changing and its impossible to stop. And love slowly blossoms. And in the midst of it blossoming they're not aware, then aware and resisting, then aware and curious, then aware and terrified, vulnerable, hopeful, and the merciless passing of time is continuing to drive then forward to Something but they've got no fucking idea what except it feels both inevitable as they've always clung together, and like the smallest possibility in the world and they're amazed it's happening for better or worse.

And like. That's just a big chunk of early Silent Reading books Fei Du/Luo wenzhou dynamics. This slow burn that both feels inevitable because of how much they'd already influenced who each other are and meshed into each other's lives, but also so lucky and surprising and they can't decide if they're going to cling to the new change instead or dart back scared into the old that is falling apart on them anyway.