It was like they were trying to mirror back the same piercing stare between them both, back and forth. His gaze was intently focused and unwavering, the same sort of stare he once had when performing a delicate surgery. He wanted to make her understand without having to show her, and he had already shown her too much. So much for operating in secrecy.
"Still not a cult," he murmured, gently resting one hand against the side of her face. "It happened at the end of twenty-sixteen. Over a year ago. It's going to be this way until, someday, it settles into its own. I don't know when. And there's probably going to be things trying to kill us. Like sharks. In tornadoes. And there's other people, right now, that could be hurt or even killed if they aren't careful. All because of my mistake."
And if he heard Tony Stark mention 'sharknado' one more time, he was going lose his self-contained cool.
He smirked a little bit at that thought, while rubbing a thumb over her cheek. This was a problem. He couldn't stop caring about her either. It was easier when she wasn't right there in front of him. Now that she was, it was a distraction, and he was concerned that he couldn't afford a distraction given everything going on.
It still seemed right. Being there. Being with her.
That was probably the reason he looked into her eyes and said, "I can show you."