[He wins this battle, kind of, but the war rages on.]

In this case? I'd say it's a compliment. There... are definitely other aspects of his personality that might not be as much, but this sort of thing is good.

[He sighs a little, shrugging himself.]

Believe me. It's not like I want to live like this, but after a point I just kind of had to learn to live with it rather than fight against it. No matter what I do, I'm going to feel like I don't deserve the kindnesses I'm given – so, what's better, letting that anxiety paralyze me or at least working to move forward and pay it back?

[He wouldn't admit any of that to most people, but with her... he has a feeling she'll understand all too well. Which hurts, really; as far as he's concerned, despite all that she's said, she doesn't deserve to feel that way. If nothing else, she's not the burden he's always been...]

Don't worry about it, though. Believe me, I've had my fill of not sleeping for the past few weeks. If I try to overdo myself now, Crow's going to harp at me until the end of time, so I'm not going to make it a priority just yet.