Between Luo Binghe's bewildering but adorable clumsiness and Liu Qingge's earnest help managing the effects of Without a Cure, it would be inaccurate to say that Shen Yuan was wholly unused to being touched -- but much as he cared about them, neither of them had inspired quite the same mix of tangled emotions that he feels right now, looking across the table at somebody he met less than hour ago. There's some discomfort of course, at being so vulnerable and at being seen to be so vulnerable, but there's appreciation too, for Jin Guangyao's kindness and shared vulnerability as well as the clear effort it's taking him to let that part of him be seen. It seems like they're both rather reticent men, and yet Jin Guangyao's reaching out to him anyway.

That gives Shen Yuan all the push he needs to respond in kind, turning his hand to gently squeeze Jin Guangyao's wrist before patting the back of his friend's hand. He raises his head, making eye contact with a gentle smile. "Jin-gongzi really is a kind and gentle man," he says, before gently pulling away and sitting up straight. "Come on," he says briskly. "We should finish our lunch before someone else shows up needing the table."

Not a refusal or a deflection at all, merely a request for a little time and space to process. Shen Yuan's feeling a little raw from all this emotional intimacy, that's all.