He shouldn't have said anything. Even as she tried to reframe and reassure him, he could hear the conflict in her voice, knew there was going to be a 'but' that he had to brace for; because it was too soon and she needed space to be her own person, not under Flora or him. He knew that, knew that it was a bad idea, that it didn't matter how much they loved each other right now, or how much he missed her when she was gone. It was too much too soon.
But when Soh gave her reason, Zavien paused, his own thoughts jolting to a stop. The quiet resignation turned to confusion, his face tightening as he tried to understand where this had come from - and why it hurt. His voice was soft, not angry or accusatory, but just sad, coming out as a near whisper like he didn't want the questions to take up what little space was between them. "Do you really think that? That I'd get sick of you?" Did she think so little of his feelings for her? He'd hoped he'd made his affections clear, had hoped she knew that they weren't some childish infatuation or flimsy attraction that she could weaken the more he learned about her.
His hands ran down her arms as if he could smooth away the doubts, wishing again that he hadn't brought up living together so soon, wondering if that had scared her. "There's nothing you could do - no amount of time together or apart - that would change how I feel about you." What should have been a comforting and uplifting statement came out muted, tinged with a sad uncertainty of whether she'd believe him.
But when Soh gave her reason, Zavien paused, his own thoughts jolting to a stop. The quiet resignation turned to confusion, his face tightening as he tried to understand where this had come from - and why it hurt. His voice was soft, not angry or accusatory, but just sad, coming out as a near whisper like he didn't want the questions to take up what little space was between them. "Do you really think that? That I'd get sick of you?" Did she think so little of his feelings for her? He'd hoped he'd made his affections clear, had hoped she knew that they weren't some childish infatuation or flimsy attraction that she could weaken the more he learned about her.
His hands ran down her arms as if he could smooth away the doubts, wishing again that he hadn't brought up living together so soon, wondering if that had scared her. "There's nothing you could do - no amount of time together or apart - that would change how I feel about you." What should have been a comforting and uplifting statement came out muted, tinged with a sad uncertainty of whether she'd believe him.
Zavien
