[His fingers untangle from his hair. The hairtwirling has always been a sign of his anxiety, and when he stops, it means either of two things: that he is calmer, or some other emotion has shunted the anxiety to the side. And he certainly is not calmer now.
[I'm already mixed up in this. You just don't realize it yet.
[There isn't much that makes Nathan angry. He'll sit back and accept and rationalize all kinds of things to the point where he feels he doesn't even have the right to be. But now he's essentially being told to sit in the corner like he's completely ineffectual and let people die for him. That he isn't capable and would make no difference if he were involved. He knows -- knows -- the words aren't meant poorly. That they're spoken from a desire for his safety. But the implications are stifling and borderline insulting even for Nathan, who retreats from the world and has his own doubts about himself.
[He doesn't raise his voice. Nathan never raises his voice. But his tone is usually soft and timid. Here, it comes out sharp and chilly.] And I am simply to sit back and allow it to happen when my aid could help prevent it? No, our Others' lives do not have ours set in stone, which means that you should not have to die before I am allowed to do anything. If you "slack"? I am here and can pick it up; it does not mean that everything will fall apart.
[There has been something vaguely weighing on him the past few days, and this conversation is only piling it on further. He's now being given no options on something in his own life? How old is he again?] You've always been one to remind others that I am not a child. Could you please take a moment to do that for yourself right now?
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[I'm already mixed up in this. You just don't realize it yet.
[There isn't much that makes Nathan angry. He'll sit back and accept and rationalize all kinds of things to the point where he feels he doesn't even have the right to be. But now he's essentially being told to sit in the corner like he's completely ineffectual and let people die for him. That he isn't capable and would make no difference if he were involved. He knows -- knows -- the words aren't meant poorly. That they're spoken from a desire for his safety. But the implications are stifling and borderline insulting even for Nathan, who retreats from the world and has his own doubts about himself.
[He doesn't raise his voice. Nathan never raises his voice. But his tone is usually soft and timid. Here, it comes out sharp and chilly.] And I am simply to sit back and allow it to happen when my aid could help prevent it? No, our Others' lives do not have ours set in stone, which means that you should not have to die before I am allowed to do anything. If you "slack"? I am here and can pick it up; it does not mean that everything will fall apart.
[There has been something vaguely weighing on him the past few days, and this conversation is only piling it on further. He's now being given no options on something in his own life? How old is he again?] You've always been one to remind others that I am not a child. Could you please take a moment to do that for yourself right now?