[His smile turns just a touch self-deprecating, as it always does when Keith turns it back around on him like this. In this context, now, though-- the significance feels all the heavier. This isn't the first time they've said things like this, but now it's... a whole new meaning, or at least a new understanding of what it means.]
... I can't believe I never realized. [He lifts his hand again, goes back to cupping Keith's jaw, gently, his thumb swiping along his cheek.]
Was it... Was it really that long for you? [He doesn't imagine that the glowing words would actually give into hyperbole, but still.]