you have survived every moment of your life
even the ones you swore you wouldn't
It’s a good thing she is not offended, because he is far too tired to control his tongue more carefully. It’s true he could never see her as a romantic partner - but he does still see her as someone to care for, a friend, perhaps a confidant given all they’ve shared already.
A weakness, maybe. To be determined by all the future holds.
But he is weak enough already, and there is time later to worry about such things. He is trained to spot the tremble of her hands, and even her feigned confidence cannot distract him. Smiling gently, he reaches for the one she extends, holding it with a gentlemanly softness he trusts her sensors will communicate to her. “Permission granted, my lady,” he chuckles, pulling her hand close - and perhaps pulling her summarily out of her bow - and dropping a kiss to her knuckles in a turning of the tables she might have intended with her dramatic gesture. Then offering their tangled fingers closer to her face - wrist upturned and offered sincerely for her to take from.
A weakness, maybe. To be determined by all the future holds.
But he is weak enough already, and there is time later to worry about such things. He is trained to spot the tremble of her hands, and even her feigned confidence cannot distract him. Smiling gently, he reaches for the one she extends, holding it with a gentlemanly softness he trusts her sensors will communicate to her. “Permission granted, my lady,” he chuckles, pulling her hand close - and perhaps pulling her summarily out of her bow - and dropping a kiss to her knuckles in a turning of the tables she might have intended with her dramatic gesture. Then offering their tangled fingers closer to her face - wrist upturned and offered sincerely for her to take from.
this time is no different
you will last