[He's quiet for a moment; his hand has gone still against Jaeger's hair, and he withdraws it after a moment without seeming consciously aware of doing so, settling it back in his lap for the time being.]
...Just stay with me, for the time being.
[It's obvious from the way he says it that he hates having said it at all, but there we have it for now.]
I don't... I'll be fine. But for now, just stay with me.
You don't have to worry about that. I won't leave your side.
[He'll take Wesker's other hand too, just holding on tightly for a moment while he tries to figure out how to phrase what he wants to say.]
I know you'll be okay. You always manage it, ja? But it really is okay to take a moment to be upset by what happened. I'll be right here; nothing in the world could get me to leave you.
[His grip is tight against Jaeger's hands; not enough to hurt him, but more than enough to be felt.]
...I'll be all right.
[It's clear from his tone that he isn't now, that he's saying it because he needs to; his eyes are doing that unnatural glowing again, though it isn't as bright as it is when he's angry.]
[It's not fine right now, but it will be. He's confident about that. The glowing eyes are still bizarre, but he doesn't look away. He's going to get used to them eventually, he'll make sure of it.]
But for now I'm here, and you're safe. We don't have to talk about that at all if you don't want to.
[His eyes start to slide closed a little at that, the action obvious due to the soft glow still present behind those dark lenses; even despite that, however, his gaze still darts a bit, like he's not sure where he should be looking.]
I don't like the idea that something can just do that... That something can take away all our memories of who we are now, and our past lives are all we have left.
It's a terrifying thought, isn't it? I really don't like it either.
[He doesn't ever want to be Yeager, and he's sure Wesker never wanted to be his past self either. But it happened, and it could very well happen again.]
I wish I could reassure you that something like that will never happen again, but... I don't know that for sure.
...I'll be here though. As long as I remember, I'll be here for you. No matter what.
[He's quiet for a moment at that; it's obvious that he doesn't know what to say, and he can feel himself shaking. His grip tightens a bit on Jaeger's hands, like he's trying to regain some control over it; it doesn't work.
He just shakes his head again after a moment, the gesture tight and agitated; he doesn't know how to articulate what he wants - if he's honest, he doesn't know what he wants in the first place, not entirely, and what he can sort out he doesn't know how to ask for. So for the time being he's just quiet; instances of this are fewer and farther between than they used to be, but for the time being he can't help it.]
[Oh, it's this... It's been quite some time since Wesker hasn't been able to speak like this. It's okay though, Jaeger doesn't mind it at all. He returns Wesker's grip and moves a bit closer so he's pressed against Wesker's side again.]
I'm right here. I won't go anywhere. We can stay here for as long as you'd like.
[The increased contact seems to be helping, at least; he doesn't settle fully, he's still shaking quite a bit and he doesn't seem quite able to stop, but he does lean into him a bit and some of the tension leaves him at that, his breathing seeming to find a bit of a more even pattern.
Speaking still isn't going to happen, not for the time being, but this is...good? It's probably good.]
[This is definitely good! It's getting Jaeger to settle a bit as well. Normally he can't seem to shut up, but for now he'll be quiet, just leaning against Wesker and holding his hands tightly. He really isn't sure what else to do to help, so for now he'll just see if Wesker will calm down a bit more on his own. If not, he can try to find something else to do to help him with that.]
[It does seem to be helping - the constant contact is nice, and after a long moment of silence he'll shift a little bit to nuzzle up against Jaeger a little; the gesture is awkward, as it always is coming from him, and it seems desperate in a way that he usually isn't, but it's something he's doing anyway.]
[Oh no... He'll return that immediately, of course, shifting a bit so that he's pressed even closer against Wesker. He was planning to keep quiet for a bit longer, but he's never been good at that.]
[That's really nice... He'll return it, of course.]
That happens sometimes, ja? It's okay, I'm right here. If you can find the words for it, I'll listen. Don't worry if you can't, though. I'm not going anywhere.
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