Initially he’d just been teasing. Payback for the constant lighthearted aggravation she subjected him to. And she’d already seen him in all his glory when she’d inadvertently intruded on him in the shower.

He knew she was self-conscious about her scars, but if anyone could appreciate and understand the beauty of scars, it was him, though his were mostly of the mental variety.

He caught the hoodie launched at his face easily with his bionic arm and let it drop to the floor, a smirk on his face a he raised a brow at the shoes she kicked across the room.

He watched her in amusement, chuckling softly, but there was an underlying appreciation for each new part of her she revealed beneath the amusement in his eyes and thoughts.

When she dropped the necklace however, he sobered up suddenly, and gave a small, knowing nod. His arm was a physical reminder of what he’d been through, something he’d never be rid of. And if he didn’t have that, he’d want some sort of reminder, a remnant of the destructive force he never wanted to be again.

There was admiration in his eyes as he took her in. For her to have been through a similar sort of hell to his and eventually turn out ok… it gave him hope for himself. Maybe one day he could be a…well not a normal person, people like them could never be normal. But he could be a person again, at least. Human.

The tiny sting of the hair tie striking his cheek jolted him from his thoughts, and he tossed the hoodie back to her.

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.”