Kieran was answering his question about the book and more importantly had just succeeded in smudging paint across his cheek without thinking and all Jude could think at this was I love you. It was like an anthem in his head, sometimes, like the words might burn through his tongue if he held them there for too long. If he were smarter, he might have wished that it happened less frequently, this feeling; if he were smarter, maybe he would be more used to it by now.
But he wasn’t, and he had to duck his head to hide the blossoming smile at it, peering diligently down at the book until he was actually skimming over lines of it again. The sea does not belong to tyrants. “You’ll know more about fish than you ever needed to, but it’s a good adventure - though I want to know what you think about Captain Nemo when you’re finished,” Jude admitted, leaning forwards a little more keenly, the book dredging up old teenage passions in him. “Because I know he says he’s turned his back on society, forsaken all of civilisation in order to be free, but then occasionally he’ll stop and help the oppressed or quietly fund rebellions, so he must -” still have hope for humanity, Jude thought, realising Kieran might not have read far enough yet to argue about this.
“But you’ll appreciate one of the portraits hanging in his cabin, anyway,” he continued, with a knowing smile - Daniel O’Connell, that was - and Jude might have kept going, only as he brushed a strand of hair out of his face, he realised he’d forgotten he was supposed to be sitting still. He’d moved his hands, and his leg, and his head, and he tried to shift back into place, but couldn’t quite work out the exact position he’d been in. “Sorry -” he said ruefully, glancing at Kieran in apology and trying to replace his hands on the book how they had been so he didn’t ruin the painting that had been the whole point of being here. “Is this -?” how I was sitting before?
But he wasn’t, and he had to duck his head to hide the blossoming smile at it, peering diligently down at the book until he was actually skimming over lines of it again. The sea does not belong to tyrants. “You’ll know more about fish than you ever needed to, but it’s a good adventure - though I want to know what you think about Captain Nemo when you’re finished,” Jude admitted, leaning forwards a little more keenly, the book dredging up old teenage passions in him. “Because I know he says he’s turned his back on society, forsaken all of civilisation in order to be free, but then occasionally he’ll stop and help the oppressed or quietly fund rebellions, so he must -” still have hope for humanity, Jude thought, realising Kieran might not have read far enough yet to argue about this.
“But you’ll appreciate one of the portraits hanging in his cabin, anyway,” he continued, with a knowing smile - Daniel O’Connell, that was - and Jude might have kept going, only as he brushed a strand of hair out of his face, he realised he’d forgotten he was supposed to be sitting still. He’d moved his hands, and his leg, and his head, and he tried to shift back into place, but couldn’t quite work out the exact position he’d been in. “Sorry -” he said ruefully, glancing at Kieran in apology and trying to replace his hands on the book how they had been so he didn’t ruin the painting that had been the whole point of being here. “Is this -?” how I was sitting before?
