#and he’s still the most privileged and eligible bachelor in the empire

[sylver-drawer]

Rereading wmmap for the hell of it and things that further add evidence onto novel Ijekiel’s behavior towards Jennette being a result of HIS OWN expectations he held himself to, when Athy/Lee Jihye falls into him for their first meeting, and then hides because Roger approaches. Roger then talks to a young Ijekiel, and Ijekiel says how he was looking for Jennette because Jennette got upset and ran out of the mansion due to hearing about Ijekiel studying abroad.

BUT THEN. Roger tells Ijekiel that he doesn’t need to deal with Jennette’s tantrums! Because though Jennette is important, Roger tells Ijekiel that he holds Ijekiel more important than her! Ijekiel knew then—from a childhood age that he never needed to look after Jennette or obey her requests. Roger never held that expectation on him. The only one holding him to the responsibility of ‘looking after Jennette’ was Ijekiel himself! It became such a thing that he bound himself to, so much so he dreaded it though no one but he wanted such, not even Jennette herself! Yet he dared, dared to push and blame that on her, that it was her fault and her selfishness that crushed him and made him resent her so—but it was himself all along! He was never actually bound to her, never actually pressured into taking care of or obeying her. It was a role he forced himself into taking, and blamed Jennette for the moment his resentment and jealousy bottled up and bursted!