I feel like YAEL's memory of being treated gently stops at age nine. After joining the military and surviving in the Sand Nation, all he faced were unpleasant memories – everything had to be fought for. So if TASUKU treated him gently, he'd probably feel a subtle kind of resentment – that's my personal take on it. He'd probably want to ask TASUKU, "What do you even know?" but since this young man is genuinely innocent and kind, YAEL never says it out loud. When he hurt TASUKU's stomach, I think he wanted to make a clean break with that mindset – and TASUKU completely received that emotion. That's why their relationship was able to move forward. I really love this development.