He sniffs, nods. "Later. That was after... a few days later I think? He came into the bar from home, he was all ..." He gestures unconsciously to his chest. "Hurt. Bleeding. He'd been stabbed. And he was in shock, panicking, and ... he sort of set the place on fire."

It's easier to tell this part, somehow: the wound in Matt's chest, the fires starting, Matt collapsing; his own terror as he ran over; Nita stepping up to heal him. Getting him to the infirmary together. Coming back there later to visit Matt, with books -- and he remembers so vividly how much time he spent choosing exactly the right ones, how badly he wanted to hit on a selection that would please him.

Matt asking him for a kiss, there in his hospital bed. Coming to himself with his head resting on the edge of the bed, with no clear idea how long it had been, with Matt stroking his hair and smiling at him.

Staggering upstairs afterward, alone and dizzy with happiness, to fall into bed and sleep for most of a day.