It wasn't that they were not close enough to be touching in other ways, but Jackson wanted as much contact as possible. Holding hands, legs touching slightly, any physical link. It was still a fear that Adrian would up and go at this point, after the night before. It was how he reacted- hiding from things. He didn't like it but it happened.
The accent was normally there, though normally it didn't lend such a strong edge to his speech. Living in New Orleans his whole life except for the past year hadn't done much to soften it, but it had done a little. He nodded at the statement, clearly turning it over in his head a few times. It was up to him. No. If it was up to just him he wouldn't be here. He had to be what he thought Adrian deserved though and so he had to make sure he was up to it - no drinking, no potions, none of that.
"I'm a pianist. I'm doing auditions to some schools over the break. I need to be able to get by at college." He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. "I drank a lot this past year. Could've blown my chances if I kept it up. A lot of shit went down." He shifted subtly closer to Adrian, taking a comfort in his existence.