#also unrelated fact: noah has impeccable gaydar. the only people who trip him up are mac n steve who are isaac's friends

[carbonateddelusion]

I think. part of Eddie's route would be trying to earn his kids' and Isaac and Noah's trust, plus maybe Nathan too

because if his babies don't trust you (beyond the usual "they're trying to steal dad >:<) he won't trust you. and Noah is stable enough to make unbiased judgements, plus Isaac has a pretty good is-this-person-a-piece-of-shit-o-meter because of their family

of course, meeting the kids would be a "you are very close with Eddie" kind of thing unless they showed themselves to you. which is.. what happened with Noah. sometimes Liv, Maddie, Owen, Jun, and Beth get really excited when they see new people and forget/don't care to hide. I think.. the protag (you) would have the option to either be more.. chill? about it or freak the fuck out OR get really excited yourself. the ideal scenario is someone who is already spiritual and therefore completely believes him over them not being hallucinations. that'd get major Love Points. plus. yk. sometimes it's nice to have a reminder that you aren't actually talking to yourself and that these people are real.

if you fail the Child Administered Vibe Check, you are IMMEDIATELY cut off from finishing his route. this is where it'd be much easier for the family-oriented/child-friendly protag. I also think it'd be kinda cute if his cat, Amie, was sort of like. an Eddie love gage. if he doesn't trust you, she'll hiss and arch her back, if he's still on that "acquaintance" level, she'll hide from you, if he considers you a friend, she'll rub her head against your hand, etc. yk, animals matching their owners and all and having a good judge of character.

there'd also be a lot of little things like.. body language would be majorly important. all the Physical and Emotional things, and the cognitive/logical only comes into play if he starts to like you as a person. he needs his space. he can tell if you're unstable.

I think another special route for Eddie would factor that last bit in. if you're controlling, manipulative, overbearing, etc., you get The Worst Ending where Eddie is terrified of you and his friends and family completely cut you off from him. of course, I specify that THEY would do that because it's very unlikely he'd have the gall to do it himself. unless you like.. really pissed him off. ROYALLY infuriated him.

I also think it'd be neat to have a little nod toward how stuff wasn't as.. open? back then. like, there'd be an option for neopronouns, gnc pronouns, etc., and if you select them Edgar will be confused and make a comment. and then basically go... "oh! oh, like Isaac!" internally. that'd make him much more comfortable with you right off of the bat. he KNOWS you wouldn't cause shit for him being gay.