I feel like it’s less about others finding bg desirable (that’s a given) and more about bg himself realizing and feeling confident in his desirability that makes sb a bit insecure. when you date someone very attractive, a perfectly secure person might think, ‘it doesn’t matter because they chose me,’ but in reality most people aren’t that secure. there’s always a human fear that someone objectively attractive could consider other options.

I don’t think sb feels bg is out of his league, but there may be an underlying fear tied to bg knowing his own power, especially since sb himself finds him that way. I’ve said before that sb seems to take satisfaction in his role as caretaker, in having bg rely on him. but when someone becomes more self-assured, they appear to ‘need’ you less, and maybe that’s part of it.

sb sometimes purposely says the opposite of what he really feels but he’s implicitly and explicitly admitted that he thinks bg looked good at soundcheck and that he finds bg more attractive since working out. Yet he’ll tease or mock-complain about it, like when he commented on bg wearing more sleeveless tops lately. these moments come across as sb’s clumsy, almost childish way of coping with feelings he can’t express directly, which boil down to: ‘I notice you. I notice you’re attractive and more confident now, and it makes me feel things.’

and importantly, he never does this when bg is insecure. then, he reassures him right away. it’s only when bg is confident that sb teases, and bg is strong enough to keep it playful. when bg calls him out for trying to keep him in check, sb doesn’t deny it, he exaggerates the bit instead. that’s why this dynamic works for them, because they both know exactly where it’s coming from so it feels like a form of flirting even.