[He nods in understanding, heartrate starting to come down to match his deep breaths. Elliot was right--it was just a memory. He'd heard gunshots before, hell, he used guns. So why did this one feel so much worse?

Was it because his voice said something so foreboding before it? That voice that seemed stripped of all warmth that he worries who might be on the other end of that barrel?]

Yeah... It's just the gunshot, there's no image to go with it. I think that's what makes it even worse.

[He chuckles softly, knowing Elliot would probably chastise him for leaving out that one detail he fixated on. But for now, it's probably the best route.]

Heh, guess we've both had our low moments this month, huh?