Vlad sat back. "It took me 'til just recently to be really sure, but...yeah. I do love people of course, just not like...that."

"'Course," Teige said, though there was disappointment or something like it in the set of his ears and the narrowing of his eyes. "...So this relationship would be more of a friends-with-benefits thing, then."

Vlad glanced down. "I'll understand, if that's not what you want," he offered.

"'S a bit of a relief, 'f I'm t'be honest."

"Oh." Vlad glanced up again, startled. "It is??"

Teige shifted just enough to pull the covers up towards his shoulders. "Well, not the fuck-buddies bit...that needs some thinking over." He paused, and then explained carefully, "It's a relief that you've come to a realisation about yerself, I mean. And it ent that I've, you know, fallen short in some way."

"Oh! No!" Vlad exclaimed in dismay. "God no!" He put his head to one side, weaving his fingers together, and after a moment's thought, a sheepish kind of smile came over him. "...No, actually, it's like this. Sometimes I can't tell which parts of me are me and which are just survival instincts. And not getting romantic with anyone I knew on Earth did help me survive. But almost 20 years later, I wasn't sure--am I stuck in survival mode? Am I missing something?"