[ As he talks, Riley listens. It's more vulnerable than she usually hears him, particularly because...it sounds like he's working through this, right now. He sounds uncertain, like she's uncertain, and that doesn't seem... Well, okay, Giorno's not exactly a bastion of emotional security? But usually what he opens up about is something he's already thought about. Something he's already worked through, something he's explaining to her.

It's not...like this. Even whenever he's being vulnerable with her, this seems... ]

Giorno, you don't have...to...

[ What happens next isn't entirely something she means to do. Her closest wing stretches out around him. Her own unorthodox hug.

Her hand turns over, so she can lace their fingers together. ]

I didn't- want to be alone, it just- ...there were...so many things I couldn't talk about, so... I just kept...pushing. And pushing, and...

...It felt easier. To stop reaching out.

[ To stop seeing the hands reaching back to her. ]