[He looks startled to see her, but - everything is startling to him right now, perhaps even more than it should be. After a pause of surprise, he drags in a breath.]
...Yeah. Yeah, me too. I...
[He takes in another breath. Things worked out as well as they could considering the circumstances and what everyone seemed ready to do, but...
tfw you're in a murder castle without your anxiety medication and your partner almost excitedly murders someone in the middle of everything!!]
I'm fine. I'll - be fine. We're all going to end up killing each other, but apparently it's fine, right? I-I mean, everyone else seems fine enough with it to just, just casually suggest murdering someone else in the middle of the trial like it doesn't even matter, like that's just - how it should be, like that's just fine to do.
[He looks like he wants to say something else, but he runs out of breath and has to inhale, dragging a hand down his face while he shakes his head.]
Sorry. Sorry, it's... it's not about me, I'm not hurt or, or worse, so I'm fine compared to most people. I just - I want to go home, Veronica.
she looks at him with growing concern and horror because, holy shit, evan?? the longer he rambles on, the more it grows — until her expression shutters, and she's moving towards him.]
Hey, no... Evan, no. Come here. [gesturing at him to scoot over. maybe opening her arms a little in an invitation for a hug, though she won't be bullying him into anything he doesn't want, and won't be offended if he prefers to stay as he is.] Look at me. I need you to take a moment and breathe. Can you follow my lead?
[Instinctively, he responds to the open arms first, shaking his head.]
Sorry, I - I can't. We, we might get stuck, I don't want you to, to get stuck here.
[But he keeps listening to her as he tells her to breathe, and as poor as he is at eye contact, he glances towards her when she asks. He still looks much too tense, and if she's perceptive, she'll be able to see that he's trembling. Still...]
[He wants to protest again, but instead he focuses on echoing her breathing, his shoulders rising and falling more and more steadily as time goes on. The situation isn't something that can be fixed with only breathing, but... Taking a few moments like this helps him more than he imagined it would.
[The situation certainly won't be fixed as easily as this, but... it's good that he's breathing steadily again. It helps her relax, if nothing else, and she folds her one hands in front of her lap.]
... Do you want to talk? It doesn't have to be tonight, or about the last three weeks. It can be about anything.
...Yeah. I, um, if that's okay... That would be nice.
[Everything that happened tonight is too close, too vivid; thinking about it again makes his stomach twist and heat crawl up his throat all over again. Shaking his head, he continues.]
I don't really, um, I don't know what about, though. If there's anything you want to talk about...
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
...Yeah. Yeah, me too. I...
[He takes in another breath. Things worked out as well as they could considering the circumstances and what everyone seemed ready to do, but...
tfw you're in a murder castle without your anxiety medication and your partner almost excitedly murders someone in the middle of everything!!]
no subject
Evan... Are you okay?
no subject
[He looks like he wants to say something else, but he runs out of breath and has to inhale, dragging a hand down his face while he shakes his head.]
Sorry. Sorry, it's... it's not about me, I'm not hurt or, or worse, so I'm fine compared to most people. I just - I want to go home, Veronica.
no subject
she looks at him with growing concern and horror because, holy shit, evan?? the longer he rambles on, the more it grows — until her expression shutters, and she's moving towards him.]
Hey, no... Evan, no. Come here. [gesturing at him to scoot over. maybe opening her arms a little in an invitation for a hug, though she won't be bullying him into anything he doesn't want, and won't be offended if he prefers to stay as he is.] Look at me. I need you to take a moment and breathe. Can you follow my lead?
no subject
Sorry, I - I can't. We, we might get stuck, I don't want you to, to get stuck here.
[But he keeps listening to her as he tells her to breathe, and as poor as he is at eye contact, he glances towards her when she asks. He still looks much too tense, and if she's perceptive, she'll be able to see that he's trembling. Still...]
I... Yeah. Yeah, I can. I'm - sorry. I'm sorry.
no subject
She's going to make her breathing as steady as possible, trying to keep her expression as some approximation of "comforting."]
None of that, okay? You have nothing to be sorry for.
no subject
Eventually:]
...Thank you.
no subject
It's nothing.
[The situation certainly won't be fixed as easily as this, but... it's good that he's breathing steadily again. It helps her relax, if nothing else, and she folds her one hands in front of her lap.]
... Do you want to talk? It doesn't have to be tonight, or about the last three weeks. It can be about anything.
no subject
[Everything that happened tonight is too close, too vivid; thinking about it again makes his stomach twist and heat crawl up his throat all over again. Shaking his head, he continues.]
I don't really, um, I don't know what about, though. If there's anything you want to talk about...
no subject
... Movies. [unsure, but—] Are you a movie fan, Evan?
no subject
[A beat.]
What's your favorite...?
no subject
[Probably. She pauses.]
That wasn't very specific, was it?
no subject
No, um - even, um, even if it's not specific, happy endings are... good. Your friend sounds like they, they have good taste.