[ Oh, that warmth that bleeds over her tension... That's bad. It's also good, because a part of Mark responds in kind, soft and warm and wanting to stay with this feeling. Not that he'd ever doubted the closeness they'd formed over the weeks, but being confident in it is different from actually feeling it for himself. ]

Yeah, that's what I was thinking. [ Please ignore the twisting sensation in his gut. That his being here just made her feel better, but the actual purpose for this walk... Deep breath. It's just a lingering feeling from the flu, obviously. ] It's actually kinda nice out too.

[ The sun is shining, it's pleasantly warm... He could still back out of this, actually. They could just go out for a walk and have it be nothing more.

That knowledge makes it easier for him to check in with her, ] Have you got your gun with you? You know, just in case.