forum "You DO like me!" "I don't think 'like' is the right word." "You tolerate me." "Maybe." one on one

Started January 29, 2021 by @cryptic-glitch

tune

"By antsy I mean… fidgety, I guess." Lin sighed and looked down at his hands. "But you get mad when I fidget, so I've been trying really hard not to."

“If you feel better when you fidget, then don’t let me stop you,” she said gently. “It just makes me worry about you.”

"Oh… well, I-I don't want to worry you." He said softly, toying with his sleeves a bit. "It does help settle my mind a bit, though. Keeps me occupied so I don't get so… distracted."

"You can't do a whole lot about my worrying," Orion said wryly. "Don't worry about my worrying."

"But I don't want you to worry…" Lin sighed softly, looking away. "And I don't wanna bother you."

"I always worry. You aren't bothering me. I only worry about you because I like you, Lin." Orion shrugged.

Lin tugged at his sleeves a bit more, still seeming unsure. "Is there any way to make you feel better about it?"

"I don't know. I don't think we should try, anyway. Based on what happened in the warehouse, I need to worry about you."

Lin sighed again. "I'm fine. Just a bit of lung damage. It's really no big deal. Breathing under normal circumstances isn't really all that difficult."

"See! This type of disregard is exactly why I need to worry about you."

"Why is that so worrying?" Lin asked, confused. "I see no reason why to be so paranoid about it all the time. I can breathe fine most of the time."

"Most of the time. The lesser amount of time, I do need to worry about you."

Lin shook his head a bit and closed his eyes. "I'm sure I'll be okay. I'm only really bothered if it's super dusty or smoky or something."

"I'm going to worry about you regardless."

"You really don't have to, though. You shouldn't have to worry about me all the time."

"And you don't need to tell me not to worry. It won't work. So stop trying."

Lin sighed again, running his fingers through his hair. "You don't like it when I worry about you though."

"Because I take care of myself, you dolt."

He huffed a bit in protest. "I take care of myself!" He insisted.

"You were going to suffocate and die in that warehouse."

"I wouldn't have died. I would be fine." Lin crossed his arms and looked away. "We weren't there all that long anyway."

"Only because I dragged you out of there before you died. Jesus Christ."

Lin rolled his eyes a bit. "I wouldn't have died. It takes more than that to kill me."

"I don't believe that," Orion said. "And at least I saved you from more lung damage."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm not as fragile as you seem to think."

"You are. If not more."

"How so? I'm plenty strong."

"I meant mentally. You're very rash, you know."

Lin huffed again, obviously pouting. "I don't know how to test mind strength, but I'm sure I'm fine."

"Are you," Orion said blithely. "Don't be petulant. You can admit that you're reckless."