Nox

He didn't tell the truth because at that point in the story telling the truth would basically be ending everything. NDS knew he was dependent on the lie in order to keep DM in his life. Now that he had his way it matters less because his presence is already important on it's own with all the samsam tech and the way he made himself ingrained in DM life, he doesn't need the lie to stick around anymore but at the same time telling the truth now (especially after that kiss) may hurt DM way more

I still remember what HJP said to NDS in the earlier episodes: "TELL HER YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND AND GET THE FUC* OUT OF HER LIFE". One step back due to personal reasons and now look the mess they are in

Damn... '-'

There was one part of this ep (ep 7) that got me all like "WTF?" grandma says: "she became a lot happier since you came into her life" and then the author proceeds to flashback all the scenes she was gushing over meeting the NDS of 15 years ago *facepalm* honestly, the author keeps screwing over the real NDS with her writing.

Well, we will have to wait and see how this will play out. I am keeping my expectations on the bay for this one :/

They can't help it, the ruckus is what drives the audience forward...as long as people are getting at each other's throats instead of picking on the drama they are good (sometimes even criticism can boost the drama). Love triangles is a easy way to create tension and with tension people come, stay and get engaged (just look at the comments section)

Occam's razzor: the simplest explanation is most likely the right one. Honestly, i am more interested to see if the author can twist my opinion...so far the romance has not convinced me.

You take everybody who doesn't agree with you seriously, seriously enough to take an portion of your almighty time to lead them in the right path. Thanks for your services: it means a lot!

Dude, cut it out... nobody is buying your reasoning and at this point you are just the annoying kid who keeps repeating itself because nobody takes them seriously. According to you, HJP is not only a asshole but also completely insane to keep basically used paper around for over a decade...let alone take his time to understand it.

And the true bromance is HJP and the AI assistant lol

Yeah sorry, i saw after writing my comment. I think you raised some good points

Did you perhaps happened to read the tweet i shared? It somewhat address some parts of your comment. He is not figuring out his feelings for DM for the past 15 years but rather, he locked up these feelings all together. If you look at his upbringing and his relationship with grandma is quite clear he has a emotional trauma and self-loath problems, even after all grandma did for him he still has a hard time opening up to her...he still thinks he needs to repay because "nobody showed they cared about me for 18 years why would this strange do that without asking anything in return?" His self-loath is so deep rooted he even asks grandma if she regrets choosing him after 15 year. Usually, kid's that have grown like him need a lifetime worth of therapy and a huge support network to overcome their self-loath tendencies and to not question people's feeling's or theirs, it's no superficial problem you just deal with it

I am pretty sure HJP knows what he is feeling, he just has a warped relation with said sentiment because of his childhood trauma of growing up in a orphanage, never being adopted and later on being abandoned in the adult world to fend for himself. It's quite common for kids in a similar situation to grow up with self-loath issues: "Why no one wants me?Am i really that bad?" kind of thing.

"Why is it that when he sees that NDS likes DM then that's when he knows he also has feeling's?"
Short answer: he doesn't know yet, he is figuring out.
Long but eye-opening (in my opinion) answer: https://twitter.com/bangtansuji/status/1325504564577988609?s=19

Did i heard a Amen!?

I don't think the writer is doing on purpose, i just think she lost her hand a little bit on NDS writing but hit the right target with HJP. I could totally see her being caught off-guard by the second lead popularity lol

Imagine spending most of your life alone: no family, genuine friends, a welcoming home to come back or someone to rely on whatsoever... coming back home and finding only silence, talking to his AI secretary because there's no else he feels he can talk to. I couldn't expect nothing of him but to cherish that soup like it was the most amazing dish ever, dude is used to have very little in life

If your theory holds true, this can be a good set up in the sense the author can milk out a really good second half for the drama. But at the same time is a slippery slope were he either makes something remarkable or fails to deliver.

I also been trying to figure out the lie significance as a plot device and so far this theory seems like the most interesting one plot-wise to be honest.

There's no one to blame in this situation, all of them had their own motives to lie and keep lying. It just happens that grandma and HJP were not romance rooted. Also, NDS shining through HJP doesn't mean he doesn't has his own light, but everything he does in amplified in DL eyes because of HJP, both the one in the present and the one in the letters. Also, and this is just my opinion, NDS fell in love really quick and quite hard, he has all the reasons to help, believe or support DM because of that...this is just not HJP case. Whereas NDS helps Dal Mi because she is Dal Mi, HJP helps Dal Mi because he is HJP.