[His fingers go still on the little lid of the cream pot, turning it slightly. It is a question that requires an answer- but he pulls his lower lip under his teeth, some slight show of tension of his own before he answers-]
I want to talk to you. About how you are faring and- [It's a poor start, but he is saved, in part, by an internal timer that is very precise. The tea was done. If left it would oversteep, the taste would be ruined, the balance upset, the flow disturbed. He sets the lid back down on it's pot, slightly crooked, a clear indicator of his own imbalance, and reaches for the tea pot with it's many spouts, hand carefully steady as he brings it between them. He tips it first in her direction to fill her delicate cup, not a single drop spilled, and then, once the last drip has fallen from that spout, towards his own cup, repeating the process with inordinate- but entirely predictable- care.
A serious expression remains even as he finally settles the pot back onto it's base, carefully removing the basket before it could taint the remaining tea and setting it neatly aside.]
You asked me to make a decision, if you recall.
[He picks up his cup, carefully holding it, with two fingers at the bottom, and two fingers on the side, his thumb keeping balance. And then he waits.]
no subject
I want to talk to you. About how you are faring and- [It's a poor start, but he is saved, in part, by an internal timer that is very precise. The tea was done. If left it would oversteep, the taste would be ruined, the balance upset, the flow disturbed. He sets the lid back down on it's pot, slightly crooked, a clear indicator of his own imbalance, and reaches for the tea pot with it's many spouts, hand carefully steady as he brings it between them. He tips it first in her direction to fill her delicate cup, not a single drop spilled, and then, once the last drip has fallen from that spout, towards his own cup, repeating the process with inordinate- but entirely predictable- care.
A serious expression remains even as he finally settles the pot back onto it's base, carefully removing the basket before it could taint the remaining tea and setting it neatly aside.]
You asked me to make a decision, if you recall.
[He picks up his cup, carefully holding it, with two fingers at the bottom, and two fingers on the side, his thumb keeping balance. And then he waits.]