Anton wasn't sure what to do when she reached out to touch his hands, and he stared intently at their fingers - so close to one another - as though willing them to make the decision for him. He would not allow himself to think of gestures such as these to be anything but platonic, friendly ones, but even so, it made him nervous not to know what or how much was expected of him, or what she would find off-putting and perhaps a bit too much.
He extended his hands to her hesitantly, and with fingers still shaking, he took her hands in his own, though he was unable to look her in the eye as he did so.
"And I'll stalk them with you," he said. "from here, I mean. I don't even know what I'd do if I ever found them in person." He wouldn't be writing them a strongly-worded letter, that much was certain.