He's weakening. It's written clearly in the way he tries and fails to regulate his breathing, the way he cringes against the wall, the long pause before he speaks.

It's not what Jade wants to hear. He lets silence settle over the two of them, heavy and stifling, as he wonders whether or not to take another risk. Then he remembers that note of breathless desire in Shinjirou's voice.

Slowly, deliberately, he turns his back in Shinjirou and walks away. "Come, Irvin," he says, and the dog rises to his feet immediately. "Heel."