[ It was tempting to reach out and catch her hand, before she could retreat. The simple comfort of human warm through his clothes, something Adrien never recognized he missed until moments like this.

All the more reason why he kept himself from reaching.

Instead, he folded his hands together, lacing and unlacing his fingers as he nodded. ]

Not immediately. I did not handle civilian life gracefully and I pushed the very limit of what was acceptable. I was -miserable- and I made sure the world knew it. [ Slowly he set his chin on his knees, flicking a glance towards Elena and then back down along the line of his leg. ]

All it really did was make Arie's life a living Fates' storm. She and I fought, behind closed doors, constantly towards the end. It was getting to the breaking point. [ His voice had softened as he talked and for a moment, he paused obviously lost to those memories; the shame and the pain that came with them now. ]

The recruiters were smart. [ He continued, his voice a whisper. ] They knew, everything about us when they approached us. Our pressure points. For some, it was money, for others it was love, some it was life. For me ... it was escape.

All I had to do, was say yes.