It always seemed to me as if James wasn't really who Deli saw herself with. Good friend - yes (not to mention that James basically helped her build her channel up), but Deli seemed to prefer someone like Pat, a more serious, athletic, "life put together" type of guy. The irony of that.
Then her and Pat broke up, she got a dog, the pandemic hit, she gained weight and realized she's hitting 30 with no steady partner in sight and not enough money to be able to afford her own place and "level up" in life. James was her "backup" (for lack of a better word) guy that she is very comfortable with and he was always a bit more into her than she was into him. She said it herself that James had been asking her to give them a chance and then she finally gave in, presumably when she realized that waiting for a new stable relationship might take years, along with everything else. I think that's why there's this feeling like James
should be happy that he managed to "snatch" Deli.
Secondly, if you look at youtubers' relationships, they all have partners that
1) they have either been in relationship with since before they grew on Youtube
or
2) their partner is also a Youtuber
It's quite obvious that they all have trouble dating someone who isn't part of their
milieu. Even with Pat, Deli's ex, you could tell in videos that he was uncomfortable with that amount of publicity. It just didn't mesh well. I can imagine James having the same issue. Ultimately, it was the easiest choice for them to get together.
Deli may not be living her
Australiana fairytale with a Hemsworth-y prince, but she has a house and a reliable partner who would probably do anything for her. And it allowed her to be more comfortable with being lazy and expressive in terms of making periods a 2 week event. I don't think another guy would be just as ok with working hard while Deli spends mornings grabbing coffee and practicing mindfulness, satisfying whatever expensive whim she has that week, having a 2 week period "Woe is me" act, embarrassing herself online, making organic meals just for herself and ticking off major tasks of the day such as "do squats".
I'm sure James and Deli get along just fine, but from everything I've seen, it seems more like their relationship is...convenient. Relationships are personal, but if you can't even find one meal in a day to eat together and you work from home, then you're more roommates than anything else.