[ The sight of Keigo's bright eyes spilling over with tears froze Renji. His first thought was that, somehow, he'd made it worse. It was clear that Keigo was in a precarious state of mind, disturbed by the manipulation of his memories and groping for answers that neither of them had. In light of that, he'd tried to choose what he said with care. Although, obviously, not enough care. He didn't have any illusions that a few encouraging words would make Keigo less afraid, less uncertain, less anxious, but he didn't expect that it'd make him tear up.
And so he was pinned in place by Keigo's brimming eyes, his upturned face. Renji was never good at dealing with people crying in front of him. He was even more inept when they started crying because of him. It was an outward manifestation of his powerlessness, how no matter how well he fought, how hard he trained, he couldn't keep the tears from flowing.
His hand slipped from Keigo's shoulder as he gathered enough strength to take a short, unsteady step back, giving him room to weep. He was about to take another to put some distance between Keigo and the cause of his tears when Keigo thanked him.
Renji exhaled slowly, thawing as his posture went from guilt rigid to relieved. His mouth scarcely began to form the question, "For what?" before Keigo's arms drew around him. ]
Uh...
[ He held his arms out as Keigo buried into his chest for lack of knowing what else to do with them, allowing him to cling tight against him. He could feel the sobs as they shook Keigo's shoulders and seemed to echo in his chest. He wondered at how long he'd kept all this fear and doubt to himself, always in the back of his mind, how exhausting it must have been.
After some hesitation, he closed his arms over his back. He meant to let him have a couple seconds to compose himself before nudging him away for the sake of both their dignities. He meant to, and then Keigo said that. Renji peered down at his soft, dark hair, all he could see from his vantage point. ]
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And so he was pinned in place by Keigo's brimming eyes, his upturned face. Renji was never good at dealing with people crying in front of him. He was even more inept when they started crying because of him. It was an outward manifestation of his powerlessness, how no matter how well he fought, how hard he trained, he couldn't keep the tears from flowing.
His hand slipped from Keigo's shoulder as he gathered enough strength to take a short, unsteady step back, giving him room to weep. He was about to take another to put some distance between Keigo and the cause of his tears when Keigo thanked him.
Renji exhaled slowly, thawing as his posture went from guilt rigid to relieved. His mouth scarcely began to form the question, "For what?" before Keigo's arms drew around him. ]
Uh...
[ He held his arms out as Keigo buried into his chest for lack of knowing what else to do with them, allowing him to cling tight against him. He could feel the sobs as they shook Keigo's shoulders and seemed to echo in his chest. He wondered at how long he'd kept all this fear and doubt to himself, always in the back of his mind, how exhausting it must have been.
After some hesitation, he closed his arms over his back. He meant to let him have a couple seconds to compose himself before nudging him away for the sake of both their dignities. He meant to, and then Keigo said that. Renji peered down at his soft, dark hair, all he could see from his vantage point. ]
Me? I didn't do anything.