"... Does this mean you only like to play with yourself?"

He can't help a half smile from creeping onto his face. He chuckles into his curled fingers and sighs. Oh, the exuberant nonsense of youth.

"And for all that I've been praised for my observation, I have let precious many things slip from my grasp where you are concerned. I watched them go through my fingers and understood my mistakes as I made them, yet observing and understanding aren't quite enough."

He turns to Dirk now, placing a hand on his chest over the tattoo. He blinks slowly at the other as his lips part. "What would you do in my situation? To win you over properly?"