[Viktor is self-assured, yes, but he's not very good at taking compliments, even from Jayce. In fact, maybe it's even worse coming from Jayce, because he knows that he means it and also he's the only person whose opinion Viktor really cares about. Jayce says that Viktor's attention is addictive, but he clearly doesn't know how magnetic he is, in turn. Having all of this trained on him, singularly, is overwhelming. His tone of voice, his stare, entirely fond. He doesn't know what to do with that, and ordinarily his kneejerk response would be to put up another wall, but he's trying not to do that. Not when they're the only thing they have, in this strange world, removed from everything they used to know. They're still sorting all this out. He imagines they will continue to sort things out for the foreseeable future.
He can tell Jayce is avoiding touching him, more than the usual fleeting touches to the arm, probably to make sure he doesn't scare Viktor off. He'll fill that void instead, reaching out to put the flat of his palm against Jayce's face, thumb rubbing across his cheek once, back and forth.]
Listen to how ridiculous you sound. [A sharp pat, and then his hand is gone. Viktor is turning away, putting a few steps of distance between them.] The sun? Honestly.
[Everyone knows that's Jayce, and Viktor is more than content with their respective positions. He's pretending to scoff at it, but half the reason he's turning away is so that Jayce can't see the little smile that pulls at his own face.]
If my new friends are so concerned about my health, they can ask me directly. You can tell them that, so you don't need to lie.
[Maybe he appreciates the effort, but it rankles him just the same, the thought that as soon as he tells anyone about what's happening, they'll see only a ticking clock. Even Jayce, for all his best efforts, is lying on his behalf when Viktor never asked for that.]
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Date: 2022-04-24 03:04 pm (UTC)He can tell Jayce is avoiding touching him, more than the usual fleeting touches to the arm, probably to make sure he doesn't scare Viktor off. He'll fill that void instead, reaching out to put the flat of his palm against Jayce's face, thumb rubbing across his cheek once, back and forth.]
Listen to how ridiculous you sound. [A sharp pat, and then his hand is gone. Viktor is turning away, putting a few steps of distance between them.] The sun? Honestly.
[Everyone knows that's Jayce, and Viktor is more than content with their respective positions. He's pretending to scoff at it, but half the reason he's turning away is so that Jayce can't see the little smile that pulls at his own face.]
If my new friends are so concerned about my health, they can ask me directly. You can tell them that, so you don't need to lie.
[Maybe he appreciates the effort, but it rankles him just the same, the thought that as soon as he tells anyone about what's happening, they'll see only a ticking clock. Even Jayce, for all his best efforts, is lying on his behalf when Viktor never asked for that.]