#but they'll get mad no matter how the breakup goes so

[lover-of-mine]

if we get a off screen break up like natalia they will accuse abc of homophobia

I think it's only fair to beat the misogyny allegations since both Natalia and Marisol got off screen breakups. Equality, dude.

[hostagine]

(Hope you don't mind if I group these two asks together!)

Tamaki:

Tamaki's the epitome of "obliviousness" but after he actually recognizes that he has a crush, he goes full swing. He's ready to marry them kind of swing.

He's writing their names on his exams/work documents Instead of his own.

A big daydreamer. He'll completely space out when talking to them, because he's too focused on them than what they're saying.

Sends them anonymous flowers to their school/job all the time.

Probably confesses to a crush in HS through a letter. A letter he'd spent a whole week on.

A letter that has to be rolled out like a scroll.

He wouldn't just hand it to them though. He'd read it out loud on one knee. In front of the whole class cause he wants the whole class to know that his crush is off limits if they don't reject him-

As he gets older he's a lot less awkward.

But he's still Tamaki so anything he does gets out of hand, so a "simple" dinner would include him renting out an entire restaurant and hiring an Orcastra just to ask his crush out.

Kyoya:

Kyoya won't ever admit he has a crush on them. He'll beat completely around the bush.

Not because he's shy, but because even if he knows he has feelings for someone, he believes it's non benifical to him to be in a romantic relationship, so he'll pretty much just thrown the idea out there, waiting for them to confess first, making it seem like he's doing them a favor by accepting them, while also getting what he wants.

He'll make sure that they have feelings for him as well so that it doesn't fail.

Cause there's no way he'd purposely embarrass himself like that—

Tends to get a frustrated a lot easier when he's with his crush than when they're not around, because despite not wanting to have feelings for someone, he does, and he doesn't like not being in control of himself and how he feels, so he'll lash out with a rude comment towards them or move aggressively. Ect/ slam doors, handle things with less care./ Things he'll indirectly apologize for later.

Is in the habit of biting his lips a lot when he's around/thinking about his crush.

I think as he gets older he'll definitely become more aware of his different emotions and how to manage them, so he'd be much more gentle and polite towards them.

Still, he's not going to admit he likes anyone. That's embarrassing. His confession would be something along the lines of:

"Seeing as we both enjoy each other's company—"

Or

"Seeing as you enjoy MY company so much—

Haruhi:

It's going to take her awhile to realize that what she feels for someone is attraction and not just "respect", which is a rocky development in itself, but she'll get there eventually.

She'll subconsciously flirt and compliment them. All the time.

Though they're subtle flirts. Ect - sitting so close to them that their legs are touching. Holding their hands. Fixing their hair if it's a mess or out if place - She's unintentionally super handsy.

Is actually a stuttering mess when confessing, especially to a first young love. She'll twiddle her thumbs and kind of crouch in embarrassment, quietly muttering something like: I just... Kind of- I mean a lot. I like you. A lot and-"

She's a fast learner. I don't think Haruhi would have a lot of crushes, so it's not something she does on a regular basis but as she gets older she's a lot more mature with handling her confessions. And especially views "sitting on her feelings" as a big waste of time, so when she realizes she likes someone, she'll tell them probably over a coffee date with a plain and simple: "I've liked you for awhile now." Followed by something like: "If you feel the same, I'd rather you tell me now."

Hikaru:

A master at sitting on his feelings. And sometimes gets somewhat of a "crush grudge" when/if he gets rejected.

He won't get angry. Just very sulky. (Maybe there was an instance or 2 where he had sat on his feelings for too long or somehow found out his crush was in love with someone else and he cried to Kaoru about it).

+ Gets very sulky when

Develops crushes rather easily. Not the typical "they're so pretty i'm gonna ask them out" but if someone is kind or compliments him (particularly something that makes him stand out from Kaoru (something he has an unspoken complex about)) he's obsessed.

But because he sits on his feelings and contemplates for so long, he won't even think about confessing until somebody (most likely Kaoru) urges him to. And when he does he gets so nervous he almost cries. He's a shaky mess. Cause he knows he's gonna be absolutely devastated if they say no.

He'll blurt out: "I love you." And immediately regrets putting his whole heart on his sleeve like that and quickly tries to save himself with: "I think I love you."

Poor kid has no filter.

When he's older, he's a lot less emotional but still too awkward for his own good so his confessions are still really heartfelt and honest.

He keeps really intense eye contact and holds their hand, giving them a kind of long speech about all the things he likes about them, leading up to his confession.

Kaoru:

Not as timorous as his brother and recognizes his feelings pretty easily so he makes quite an effort into making sure his feelings towards them can't be misunderstood.

But is always worried that he might be "moving too fast" or is "too clingy".

Gets really anxious when his crush doesn't text back right away and sometimes giving himself a mental breakdown: "what if they're mad at me?"

Tends to stare at them a lot, silently, chin in his hands, absolutely mesmerized.

He's very affectionate. Constantly nuzzling against them.

Kaoru won't confess until he's absolutely sure their crush is the person he wants to spend the rest of his life with, because breakups terrify him. (And does not take them well).

He cries everytime.

Always goes the extra mile to impress them, leading up to his confession. + Spends hours getting ready.

His actual confessions are pretty straight forward because he's so desperate to get it off his chest.

It goes something like: "I like you. You don't have to tell me your answer now, but I want you to know I'm serious."

Hani:

It doesn't take much to get his attention to he crushes fairly easily.

But there's actually very few he'd be serious enough about to confess to.

A Savage tease when it comes to his crush. + Teases them to cover up his own embarrassment.

Makes up pathetic excuses to hold their hands or just to be intimately close to them. Doesn't matter how.

"It's cold outside. We should hold hands to keep warm!"

He's the type who'll hide their umbrella when it's raining so that they'll "have to" share his umbrella.

Frosts littles messages on the cakes that he buys them as gifts.

He's pretty sly when confessing. He won't say he likes them until they agree to go on a date with him so that he can blow it off as just a "friend date. Nothing serious" in case he gets rejected.

And he still avoids the word "love" until he's sure that he's serious about the relationship. Cause that's a strong word.

His confession being something like: "I'd like it if we could eat cake together like this all the time." As he looks them in the eye suggestively.

"Just me and you."

He likes to watch their reaction as they slowly come to realization that he's confessing. It's cute to him.

Mori:

He doesn't talk much, but gets embarrassed so easily around his crush.

Tends to get a bit overprotective with them. Similar to the way he gets with Hani, but a little more anxiously.

Has a strange mentality that he somehow how has to prove to himself that he's "worthy" to them before he can tell them how he feels.

Which kind of goes hand-in-hand that he's determined to never let them do anything themselves or by themselves, if he can help it. Ect: insists on carrying their bags, walking to class with them.

It's in his blood and unintentionally becomes their personal servant/bodyguard.

He gets a little blundering and uncoordinated, because of his feelings for them. Ect: The poor guy is walking into walls, + becomes so graceless and out of focus when he's training at the dojo that his pupils and underclassmen start overthrowing him.

Which is when Hani tells him that he should "probably tell them how you feel", afraid that his cousin might accidentally walk into traffic or fall down a flight of stairs.

Mori's confession is straight to the point, but considerate. He doesn't want to use too many words that it would overwhelm them but he does want them to know that he's serious about them.

But it's be completely out of the blue. The moment he comes to the realization that he likes them, he's going to say it.

And it's something maybe like: " t/n... I'd like for us to be together. If you're comfortable. You're special to me. I'd like it very much if... You could be with me."

[lover-of-mine]

https://www.tumblr.com/lover-of-mine/756634437833424896/if-we-get-a-off-screen-break-up-like-natalia-they

“But they’ll get mad no matter how the breakup goes”

Exactly this. We have reached the point where there isn’t going to be just a peaceful fandom transition when Tommy’s time is up. Maybe had someone stepped in and shut the cameo stuff down the moment it started to really get so much attention it would be more manageable? But they didn’t and things grew way to out of hand. I personally think the easiest way to handle it is just an off screen break up. Don’t even bring him back because all it will do is add more fuel because it’ll give them “hope” if he’s on set. Storyline wise though, I think it would be better to have the beats of us getting to see Buck end it, us see him tell Tommy his name is Buck etc.

Regardless of what they do though, as you said the BT fandom is going to throw a fit and the one thing the show cannot do, is allow that to dictate what they do. That would essentially be showing them they have the ability to hold the story hostage and make them infinitely more horrible.

No matter what the show does, they'll throw a fit, so there's no getting everyone happy here, getting an off-screen or first episode breakup would be the easiest way to handle it because, like you said, you don't give them hope. Personally, with the way Tommy has been written and Buck's journey with love and the archetypes they use when writing him, I was leaning towards Tommy breaking up with him, because we never saw anyone break up with Buck and putting the blame of the breakup on Tommy is the easiest way to make it clear that he's not coming back, and if people already gonna be mad, piss them off for real. We don't know what's the plan with Tommy though, what Buck is supposed to learn beyond the fact that he's attracted to men, but Tommy can be any guy, and Buck can realize stuff on his own, so it could go anywhere, but it is a fact that the longer they keep him, the worse it's gonna get.

I also do agree that if someone had stopped the cameos earlier this would be a whole lot more manageable, but I also don't think anyone thought the cameos would grow to be the problem they became.