[ The surge of love in his chest is so sharp and hot that it aches, his own, singular heart stuttering like he's been kicked in the chest.

There's nothing he can do about it. Nothing except feel it, a shock crackling through the numbness that otherwise blankets him everywhere except for the things that have to do with her. He always liked it when she didn't take it easy on him. Everything got worse the more she started to worry about his feelings, however often he told her that she didn't have to.

Stupid. What else was she going to do? Noelle always fell back on what she thought she was supposed to do when she wasn't sure of herself, and being with him made her unsure a long time before he really fucked it up for good. ]

I was glad you didn't take it easy on me. I wanted to prove I could commit to it. Keep my head under pressure. You know, after my stellar first impression, I had some ground to cover there.

[ He squeezes her talon. He thinks about her hands, all the way up there in the air, her picked at nails and rapid fire reflexes. He knows it was always weird to admire how a girl worked a keyboard and mouse. ]

You made me better.

[ Krouse says, with a tiny throb of raw vulnerability. ]

Being ruthless. Pushing me to try harder. I never - I never wanted to try for anyone as much as I wanted to try for you.

[ Want to, beats his stupid, persistent, fucked up heart. Want to. ]

I don't think I ever thanked you for that enough. So. Thank you.