[He nods and tucks his chin down, rocking slightly on his feet.]

I. I know.

[Glancing away again, he runs a hand down the short hairs at the nape of his neck.]

I just wanted to be, y'know. A little cooler than I was. Not that that's saying a lot, but... [He shrugs.] ...You know.

[He thinks Noct might know, anyway, that tilting, anxious feeling of will I ever be good enough, like looking up and up and up at the expectations you'll never reach to be worth it.

The more they talk about the past, though, the further the floor ever-so-gradually, ever-so-minutely tips back, increasing the slope down and backwards into whatever dread lies behind.]