Checkered Hearts
"I don't know what I'm offering, Cyrus. I don't know if I can separate wanting you from needing you as distraction. I don't know if—"
"Then don't know," Cyrus said. "Let it be uncertain. Let it be situational and structural and transformational all at once. I'm not asking for category, Arthur. I'm asking for experiment."
"Experiment," Arthur repeated, tasting the word.
"Hypothesis: we might fit. Method: spend time together without crisis. Variables controlled: no hospital, no racetrack, no Theo for two hours." Cyrus raised his coffee cup, a toast. "Current data: I want to kiss you. I won't, because you're still deciding if you want to be wanted. But the data is clear."