The kiss at least was something where his nerves stood no chance of getting in the way. He might have forgotten how to hold a conversation, but his tongue would never forget how to respond to Hudson's. He closed his eyes during the leisurely kiss and took the opportunity to breathe — with Hudson this close he was no longer quite so distracted by the smell of smoke on his coat. Hudson broke off and asked if he was better and Don Juan found to some surprise that he was. Kissing Hudson hadn't tied up all the loose ends that had been rattling around in his brain, but it seemed to have put his feet back on solid ground; he didn't think he was going to be two beats behind in responding to seemingly innocuous questions now.

"Think I tied myself up in knots," he admitted, still sheepish. He bit his lower lip and spent a second looking at Hudson's eyes, trying to catch and interpret any emotion that might have flickered through them. The sustained eye contact quickly became unbearable, though, and Don Juan shifted his eyes up to a corner of the ceiling while he ran one hand through his hair in a gesture of agitation. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I didn't know you were home yet, or that you had company. I didn't stay to listen. I just —" He exhaled, not sure what he even wanted to be conveying. He glanced at Hudson's face briefly, then immediately back up to the ceiling. "— I don't even know why I came back. I think I must have said your address by mistake instead of mine. I've been so in my head about things, I just — I don't know. Are you angry?" he concluded, finally letting his eyes meet Hudson's again.

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