So interestingly enough, my two separate male leads are very different in this arena.
Just a teaser for the series I'll be releasing in June, "Hushabye Prince," but Jinwoo is very cuddly, being part of a pretty affectionate family, where most of the members don't find it weird to hug and cuddle each other even well into adulthood. His sister is 28, and still likes to hug and cuddle up with their dad when they watch movies together as their little daddy-daughter thing. Jinwoo is 32 years old and will hug on his sister for hours while they read together. And yet, he has a tendency to freak out pretty easily when touched by strangers, even if they just brush against him or bump into him.
On the other hand, Kattar is not used to being cuddled or hugged. His mother will coo over him until his dying day calling him every baby-name under the sun, but she still never really has a lot of time, and she hasn't hugged or cuddled him since he was like 7 years old. His best friend Alicia is a very huggy-cuddly person though, and she used to give him hugs all the time until...well, spoilers. For this reason, Kattar might come across a bit closer to the kuudere-esque spectrum, but it's not that he dislikes or doesn't want to be hugged, he's just not very comfortable hugging people unless they hug him first.
On the female lead side, Kimberly is a very affectionate person as well, but she doesn't have people to give her a lot of hugs, so physical affection and comfort is something she craves, but rarely receives.
Alicia is a very affectionate person as well, but she has no hesitation about hugging someone she loves. Yes, she's rather shy, but once she's comfortable with someone 0% personal space. She has a little brother and she used to cuddle him to death when they were kids; As a teenager she used to give Kattar a lot of hugs. Why? Just because she loves him, and that's 100% a good enough reason.
Hushabye Prince: (Kimberly and Jinwoo's story)
Damsel in the Red Dress: (Kattar and Alicia's story)
(Art by Mariel Leister)
