What Sangwoo had between Bum was not love, but codependency and desperation. He had trauma throughout his life from his mother's abuse and manipulation that turned him into the person he was now. We could see throughout the story that he was smart and calculated, but very emotionally unstable. He was a person with a lack of parental love, and I would dare to say he was actually thirsty for it that every time he received love, he would think of his mother. Sangwoo had mommy issues. There were a lot of instances where this was proved—1.it was countlessly portrayed in the story that Bum reminded him of his mother (appearance-wise and action-wise), 2.he said he liked girls with strong maternal instinct. But rather than loving his mother, I'd say he was so emotionally scarred by her that he couldn't escape her, causing him to confuse his feelings. His personality was basically influenced by what he went through with her.
So yeah, I think Sangwoo was incapable of love between partners, especially as long as he stayed with Bum. He was emotionally unstable while Bum was mentally unstable, yet both were dependent on each other. Sangwoo wanted to be saved from his trauma, while Bum wanted to be loved as per his delusions (bro had a list). I think Sangwoo did realize that Bum's love is stronger than his mother's, and he did come to realize that they were two different people, but he was beyond traumatized and paranoid to see this, especially with Bum's words and actions frustrating him in chapter 57+. Unless Bum is capable of understanding the depth of Sangwoo's trauma, I think the both of them will have the romance most BL readers want. But if we have an understanding Bum, we need a sane Bum, and if we have a sane Bum, then this manhwa wouldn't exist.
What Sangwoo had between Bum was not love, but codependency and desperation. He had trauma throughout his life from his mother's abuse and manipulation that turned him into the person he was now. We could see throughout the story that he was smart and calculated, but very emotionally unstable. He was a person with a lack of parental love, and I would dare to say he was actually thirsty for it that every time he received love, he would think of his mother. Sangwoo had mommy issues. There were a lot of instances where this was proved—1.it was countlessly portrayed in the story that Bum reminded him of his mother (appearance-wise and action-wise), 2.he said he liked girls with strong maternal instinct. But rather than loving his mother, I'd say he was so emotionally scarred by her that he couldn't escape her, causing him to confuse his feelings. His personality was basically influenced by what he went through with her.
So yeah, I think Sangwoo was incapable of love between partners, especially as long as he stayed with Bum. He was emotionally unstable while Bum was mentally unstable, yet both were dependent on each other. Sangwoo wanted to be saved from his trauma, while Bum wanted to be loved as per his delusions (bro had a list). I think Sangwoo did realize that Bum's love is stronger than his mother's, and he did come to realize that they were two different people, but he was beyond traumatized and paranoid to see this, especially with Bum's words and actions frustrating him in chapter 57+. Unless Bum is capable of understanding the depth of Sangwoo's trauma, I think the both of them will have the romance most BL readers want. But if we have an understanding Bum, we need a sane Bum, and if we have a sane Bum, then this manhwa wouldn't exist.
In short, Killing Stalking is perfect as it is.