[The laugh makes him feel a little better, oddly enough. Most people don't feel great when someone laughs at their apology, even if only in their voice. But, she's been so embarrassed and stressed over this, the fact she can laugh in some capacity is a good sign to him.
A comfort, really.
His expression softens for it—that and the warmth of the blanket, and how she chooses to sit besides him so they can see each other. The gentle brush of hair from his brow doesn't hurt anything, either. He even grins when she confirms what he had asked earlier, not that he actually needed further confirmation. Not with how clearly into it she was.
Not when she came like she did...]
Heh, sure thing. Ain't wantin' to be holdin' out on you too long, y'know?
[With a little bit of shifting, he gets his arm free from the blanket and places his hand on her thigh, giving it a firm and emphatic squeeze, before rubbing his fingers at the spot... God, looking at her like this, with that gentle expression on her face, the pink of her cheeks, she's honestly so beautiful.
The affectionate warmth that throbs in his chest is almost alarming every time he feels it. Such a contrast to the usual cold and twisted discomfort that's there otherwise. Like a flame melting away the build up of frigid ice that, for a decade, served as walls to protect him, yet it chilled him to his core as a consequence. Yet here she is, looking at him with gentle and loving eyes, treating him with kindness he normally rebukes out of fear...
It's truly in this moment that he's confident he made the right choice. To stay here, to fight against the impossible so that he could be here...with her.]
no subject
A comfort, really.
His expression softens for it—that and the warmth of the blanket, and how she chooses to sit besides him so they can see each other. The gentle brush of hair from his brow doesn't hurt anything, either. He even grins when she confirms what he had asked earlier, not that he actually needed further confirmation. Not with how clearly into it she was.
Not when she came like she did...]
Heh, sure thing. Ain't wantin' to be holdin' out on you too long, y'know?
[With a little bit of shifting, he gets his arm free from the blanket and places his hand on her thigh, giving it a firm and emphatic squeeze, before rubbing his fingers at the spot... God, looking at her like this, with that gentle expression on her face, the pink of her cheeks, she's honestly so beautiful.
The affectionate warmth that throbs in his chest is almost alarming every time he feels it. Such a contrast to the usual cold and twisted discomfort that's there otherwise. Like a flame melting away the build up of frigid ice that, for a decade, served as walls to protect him, yet it chilled him to his core as a consequence. Yet here she is, looking at him with gentle and loving eyes, treating him with kindness he normally rebukes out of fear...
It's truly in this moment that he's confident he made the right choice. To stay here, to fight against the impossible so that he could be here...with her.]