There's another brief pause. "I've seen you at your worst, seen you crying and hurting because someone lashed out and used your difficulty with making friends against you. I've seen you question why people would think highly of you. I've seen how much it hurts you to be perceived in a negative light and it's obvious it hurts you as much as you boast you like it and love to be seen as evil and bad. So I think you're limiting yourself by not leaning into the part of you that still wants to be liked by others, that yearns to be friends and loved even as you push it away and claim you hate it."

They look down, chin hooked over his shoulder. "It's okay to want to be loved. To want to feel deserving of it. And it's okay to be scared that that's something you want because you're scared it'll be used against you. Because back home, it would be. It's okay to be conflicted about things. But don't cut yourself off at the knees because you're scared. I'm here. And if you wanted someone not to push you a little, you picked the wrong person to fall in love with, buddy. I love you. I love the parts of you that were there with Kipposhi. I love the parts of you that are Nobunaga. I love you even with all your flaws. Even with your past. And I'm gonna keep doing that. So just like...I don't want you to be better for me. I want you to do it for you. Which is annoyingly the same shit people said when I was in the rehab. It's what they always say. If you're not doing it for yourself, then it's not going to stick."

A light poke. "But we can table this discussion for now if you need me to. And talk about it later. Cause I want you to have fun at the wedding. Not be depressed at the wedding."