[ Inigo's touch jolts him out of his habit, brings him back from the depths of his own mind. ]
Huh?
[ It barely registers, with the weight of the book in his hand and suddenly, Inigo asking him to stop. Roland looks up at the boy, seeing it clear in his eyes. He's seen that look before. He's watched it pass over people's faces so many times that he can't be mistaken. It'll all still be here later.
'What if it isn't?'
The missile. Nothing left. Ichigo seeing it, saying it to his face: My god, was that a nuke? Then, this, watching Purple come back with only two left - having the most number now, the stakes that were involved on the Voidtrecker that none of them signed up. He grips the spine of the book hard, and looks away from Inigo if only to hide his own gaze from the other. He would read him so openly, so vulnerable Roland was at the moment.
How do you know, Inigo? How do you know that things will still be okay, after you stop? What if isn't all there? What if in that one minute you decided to take a break, that's when it's all taken from you? ]
...
[ Roland makes a decision, against his instincts begging him to ask for more time; maybe a nap can wait. The faster he gets out of here, the better. He wasn't going to break his promise to this boy. So he nods in finality, sets the books back against the side of the table and trusts that just as Inigo says, they will all still be there later. He stands abruptly, and whatever he did not put in his Arms Band, he just settles there on the desk. ]
Alright, lead the way.
[ He offers him a quiet smile and allows Inigo to pull him along, wherever he needed him to be. But before they got too far, he does touch Inigo's arm, asks for him to look back. Roland doesn't say anything else, apart from a fond "thank you", before he lets his sleeve go. ]
no subject
Huh?
[ It barely registers, with the weight of the book in his hand and suddenly, Inigo asking him to stop. Roland looks up at the boy, seeing it clear in his eyes. He's seen that look before. He's watched it pass over people's faces so many times that he can't be mistaken. It'll all still be here later.
'What if it isn't?'
The missile. Nothing left. Ichigo seeing it, saying it to his face: My god, was that a nuke? Then, this, watching Purple come back with only two left - having the most number now, the stakes that were involved on the Voidtrecker that none of them signed up. He grips the spine of the book hard, and looks away from Inigo if only to hide his own gaze from the other. He would read him so openly, so vulnerable Roland was at the moment.
How do you know, Inigo? How do you know that things will still be okay, after you stop? What if isn't all there? What if in that one minute you decided to take a break, that's when it's all taken from you? ]
...
[ Roland makes a decision, against his instincts begging him to ask for more time; maybe a nap can wait. The faster he gets out of here, the better. He wasn't going to break his promise to this boy. So he nods in finality, sets the books back against the side of the table and trusts that just as Inigo says, they will all still be there later. He stands abruptly, and whatever he did not put in his Arms Band, he just settles there on the desk. ]
Alright, lead the way.
[ He offers him a quiet smile and allows Inigo to pull him along, wherever he needed him to be. But before they got too far, he does touch Inigo's arm, asks for him to look back. Roland doesn't say anything else, apart from a fond "thank you", before he lets his sleeve go. ]