Now do you believe me?

He didn't quite realize he was holding his breath while he waited for her to react or respond when he finally got out everything he had been wanting to say, at least not until his lungs started to ache with the need for air. Her wide, emerald expression held much more confusion and panic than he had expected and watching her struggle to respond made his ears fold back as his hope for how this would go started to fade away. He really hadn't known what to expect, but how it had played out in his head as he sat all of this up had certainly been different. When she did finally speak and she told him that she didn't know what to say it was almost like he could feel himself deflate even though he tried his hardest to keep it from showing on his face. He tried to keep the little smile on his lips even though it was hard when she didn't return the sentiment to him, instead questioning whether he really meant it. He didn't respond right away, instead just slowly letting out that breath he had been holding while he swallowed back his disappointment.

She continued before he could say anything and he was glad that she did. Her insistence that she wanted to say it back and that it was her fear holding her back took some of the edge off of the sting. Even though he had his own flaws and trauma and uncertainties about the world, it was still hard for him to grasp sometimes just how deep those things ran in her and just how much it effected things—especially their relationship. He was quiet while she looked away and apologized, insisting that she wasn't the one he should love. As much as it hurt that she couldn't love him back, at least not yet, it still hurt him more to see her like this. It felt like they had come a long way from how things had been when he went to find her by the waterfall, but there was obviously still so much to work through. He knew that it would have been easier to accept the heartbreak and try to move on instead of continuing without really knowing if they would ever really make it to where he hoped they could be, but he couldn't leave her. He knew it would be hard from the very beginning and once that initial hurt and disappointment began to fade it only reminded him more what he was working so hard for.

He sighed softly after a moment and reached out a foreleg to wrap it around her shoulders, pulling her into his chest and holding her tight as he wrapped his other foreleg around her in an embrace. He kissed the top of her head and told her, "I do mean it. I've never been so sure about anything in my whole life. I love you and nothing is going to change that." He kissed her forehead again before he caught her lips in a gentle kiss, reassuring himself as much as her that everything was still okay even if this night didn't exactly go as he hoped. "I'm willing to wait as long as it takes and do whatever I have to do to prove to you that I mean it. Maybe you are a little broken, but you're not beyond repair." He lifted one of his paws to brush her cheek, forever marveling at how delicate and soft she felt against him. He bent his head down to nuzzle his cheek against the top of her head and was quiet for a moment before he added softly, "I... I hope that maybe one day you'll trust me enough to know I'm telling the truth and that I never want to hurt you... But even if you can't say it back it won't change how I feel about you."

"Syanna & Ezra"