[For a moment the tension in his shoulders remains, and then it slowly seeps away, and Souji lets out a gently scraping little sigh, slumping backwards in the sofa. He had been expecting well-meaning concern and being tattled on for his own good, but while he can tell that the former is there, the subsequent reaction is unexpectedly absent.

It's... a huge relief, really.

He offers a smile that is bleak, but a lot more genuine than the chipper face of a man trying to hold everything together.]

Would you? I'd really appreciate it if you did.

[He bites his lower lip, then adds:]

It's not that I don't understand that people worry, but... if possible, I want to spare them for a little while, see?

[That's only a half truth. There are more twisted, complicated reasons for wanting to cover this up, one of them being that he likes the worry and care just a little too much, and another being that he's still terrified that one day it will somehow run out. It's one big mess of guilt and affection - not to mention the ever-present fear of being selfish, and the less attention he has to draw to it, the better.]

So... thank you. It means a lot - but maybe you already know that.