Duck Lake are you worth your weight in gold, cause you're behind my eyelids when i'm all alone

He couldn't help the surge of guilt as Mahler looked away, and pressed a little closer into their lingering closeness without realizing it. In a way, he did appreciate the sentiment behind what the man had tried to express— but he'd likely ruined any chance he might have to make that known. There were too many feelings; a common problem for Alarian, but sometimes he found it exhausting. Sometimes it was just too much, even for him.
You, He deadpanned without thinking to the question, watching the dark male and hoping he might turn to look again. If he did look, Alarian would put some effort into trying to offer a smile— a playful, gentle, sort of grateful smile, but one he could not pull off without a lingering exhaustion to the entire expression. Otherwise he'd just lay his head down again and hope he didn't drive Mahler away in the end.