Gideon could see her tensing, the muscles in her arms tightening and making the marks stand out. He bit his lip, wishing he had some sort of spell or potion or something that he could use to make her feel better--about everything: the cuts, the news, the negative reaction to their dating...everything.
He glanced back down at her arms, face screwing into a guilty look as she lifted her arms slightly. "It's...different," he said. "I wouldn't fight him back, that wouldn't be right...and he wouldn't do something like that," he repeated. "And...it's different." As if that would make it all clear. "It would be a fight between friends." Even if James wholeheartedly did not want to be his friend, Gideon was still convinced that eventually this would all blow over. "That," he said, glaring at the scars as if they were Alecto herself, "That is someone who is malicious and evil-hearted." He gladly accepted her hug, pressing a kiss to her cheek as he did so.
His eyebrows raised just slightly as she scooted over--as if he was going to say no to that request. "Sure," he said, offering up a small, almost shy smile, and sliding onto the bed next to her. He moved her covers towards her so he wouldn't pin her under them in case she needed to shift around.