Work Text:
Tomás Vrbada:
✧Tomas’ red flag is that he’s a certified people-pleasing menace
✧He will fold faster than a lawn chair in hurricane season
✧At first it’s adorable
✧Then suddenly you’re realizing this man has not voiced a single personal opinion in three business days
✧The communication becomes so one-sided that you’re basically dating a very polite echo
✧This poor bean is terrified of disappointing you
✧He’ll hit you with the 'yes, of course, whatever you want' before you even finish your sentence
✧It’s not the most catastrophic red flag out there
✧But your partner should not be scared to use their brain cells around you
You ask him what’s wrong, and he gives you that soft smile. The one that hides everything.
“It’s nothing,”
He says, even though his shoulders are tense and he hasn’t looked you in the eye all day. Later, you find out he agreed to something he didn’t want because he was scared upsetting you would push you away. It hits you in the gut: he’s drowning himself to keep the peace, and you never asked him to.
Kuai Liang:
✧Kuai’s red flag is that he carries emotional baggage like he’s training for the Lin Kuei Weightlifting Olympics
✧He refuses to let you help him with anything
✧In his mind he must Protect You At All Costs, even if he’s internally on fire
✧He’ll be sitting there like 'I’m fine' with the same energy as someone bleeding out
✧Insists it’s just a scratch
✧He hides every stress, every worry, every problem until it piles up into a moral crisis skyscraper
✧It’s not distance because he doesn’t love you
✧It’s distance because he insists on being a stoic little martyr instead of letting you in like a normal human being
You notice he’s been coming home later. Quieter. More tired. Every time you ask if he’s overwhelmed, he reassures you with that calm, practiced tone he uses for everyone else. But he won’t let you in. And one night, he breaks—just a little—letting out a breath he’s been holding for weeks.
“I didn’t want to worry you,” he murmurs.
And suddenly you realize he’s been trying so hard to protect you that he’s shutting you out without meaning to.
Bi-Han:
✧This man is not a red flag
✧He is a red nation
✧A red civilization
✧A UNESCO-protected red hazard zone
✧His number one relationship flaw?
✧He wouldn’t communicate his feelings even if you handed him a script, flashcards, and a teleprompter
✧His emotional vulnerability comes factory-sealed and recalled for safety issues
✧And compromise?
✧He doesn’t know her
✧He actively avoids her
✧Bi-Han will look you dead in the eyes, decide he’s right, and shut down the conversation like you’re an app he’s tired of
✧He loves you in his own My heart is frozen and also glitching way
✧You better be ready to argue with a man whose emotional settings include: silent mode, frostbite, and delusion
You tell him something bothered you. Something small, something fixable. He crosses his arms, jaw tight.
“This conversation is unnecessary.”
Hours later, you’re still thinking about it. He’s already moved on, acting like nothing happened. The issue festers because he refuses to acknowledge it, and you’re forced to carry the weight of a problem he insists doesn’t exist. It hurts, knowing he’d rather shut down than meet you halfway.