“You are gonna rupture something if you keep refusing to laugh,” she commented. “Tell me, do you not need a bodyguard because you can defend yourself, or because they never even get to you? I’ve got other skills, if you’d rather. Though if I’m showing off, I really would prefer not to just out in the open.” She circled a hand around to indicate the area around him. “It tends to startle people.”
“Contrary to popular belief I’m not that much of an asshole.”
“Not all the time, anyway. Only sometimes. As for needing a bodyguard, well. That’s all up to speculation. While I don’t think I need one, someone else might think I do. Or is it the other way around.”
Finally remembering that his earbuds were still in he gently pulled them out of his ears, lightly crossing his arms.
“I had a girl tell me that once. It ended in ping pong balls. This isn’t going to end in ping pong balls, is it?”
Her mouth twitched, a bent-up smile. “No, it’s not going to end in ping-pong balls. It really is okay. I already know you’re laughing inside, so it’s honestly not going to bother me.”
She rocked back a step. “See, I’m an empath. I know what you’re feeling, and I can know what the people around you are feeling.”