[[It is entirely his fault. If he'd have learned what a boundary is before all this, maybe not have thought something as funny as abandoning Vance to go enjoy the company of other people in various ways for all things considered, there'd never have been this fight, there never would have been the stinging bite on his neck or the stinging bite that he still feels in his heart, too. Despite that Vance seems to be opening back up, not shut down in the middle of snowdicks, it still doesn't feel okay. In fact it feels 0k. Which isn't at all okay.

When nothing gets said after he barely speaks his last bit of words before trailing off, that scares him even more. There were certain lines in both directions they both don't really cross. He crossed it by psuedo saying it in the water and he'd crossed it out right here. Being in love isn't something either of them had the leisure to do, at least back home, the risk to accept either. But they'd gone and done it. Some how gone and fallen flat faced bold in love with each other and Shades didn't want it any differently, not now, not in 100 years from now and he'd almost fucked it up too, if not the specific person fucking it up. That may be Vance's domain normally but it was his, right now he was Knight of Fuckup more like.

He saw the Troll lean up, letting his eyes slide closed, leaning in return to meet him half way and covet the other's lips, their taste, even if somewhat coppery. But he takes it at any rate. He's not outpacing it, not making it out to be anything but a kiss to comfort the both of them. The interest in giving up on said kiss or letting it become all too brief when it felt so consummate, how could he want to feel anything but the words behind that kiss. If the blond wasn't so busy with his mouth, he may have smiled. Without meaning to, really, Shades has become one of those shitty romance stories that he picks apart. While his arms wrap around a little tighter to the troll to pull him in and deny his leaving this kiss any time soon.

Normally he'd have tried to push his boundaries. That was the way Shades was. This time he just wanted the overwhelming warmth and the sigh against Vance's face through his nose said more about his need for this closeness than if he'd said it out loud. Just how much this had made him feel a bit more secure again. Vance didn't have to say it back, he hadn't ever heard a Troll he remembered go screaming out 'I love you'. But this more than conveyed it, there was nothing to make up for. Shades had a lot to make up for. Making him cry? That's unacceptable.

So, apparently, is the lack of oxygen to his lungs despite breathing through his nose where he had been trying to exclusively breathe for however long he could manage this flawless feeling kiss. Despite the bit of burn, his lips stay pliantly against Vance's as long as he could, finally having to part long enough to breathe deeply through his mouth. No heavy, quick panting, just calm, deep breaths, but he couldn't bring himself to tear away from this grey-skinned, irresistible, sharktoothed asshole. It didn't matter how cold it was or wasn't where they were both knelt in the snow, he couldn't have cared less.

His voice had lost most tone, heart busy fluttering in his throat somewhere to make it almost sound like the whisper he ended up using wasn't his own, normally confident voice.]]

Vance?

[[He had to take a moment to regain his voice, the test hadn't gone as well.]]

I don't wanna go home on my own tonight. No-homo though, I'll keep my hands to myself in that respect.

[[Slender fingers, belying of their ability and skill, press up in to Vance's hair, avoiding his horn, but all the same stroking through the strands. Times like this when they were alone, or could be, was so nice. No chance of someone coming up on them to embarrass them specifically. It would have definitely separated them and Shades was pretty sure he couldn't handle that right now. Right now what he wanted was just this.]]

Just. Want t'wake up and listen to you bitch about how I'm up in the middle of your night. Or that I hog blankets. That I likely talk in my damn sleep, or that I'm cold as fuck all the time and you gotta do all the work t'warm us both up like now.

[[On an otherwise serene, if not stoic, face, the smallest of up-quirks finds its way to Shades' lips, fingers continuing their light-tipped paths.]]

You can say no, I won't be upset. But it gets real hard t'kiss like that one if I'm far's fuck away.

[[To elaborate on his point and so he didn't take Vance's ability to speak away, the corners of Vance's lips were his target, giving them one kiss each.]]

I'll even give you th'thing I drug you up here t'get, you know t'sweeten the deal. Spoiler alert, it isn't a cock either.