Charles locks their fingers together a bit more tightly than he usually would, sighing softly as he looks at the blanket. He should have guessed Erik would demand something like that, being himself, and it did give him a chance to broach the subject on his mind. It was easier than bringing it up unprompted, and he was grateful - as he often was - for Erik's directness.
"I do know how you are. That's why this feels so--trivial, I suppose, compared to everything else, and if you don't want to talk about it now we absolutely don't have to." He rubs his thumb over the back of Erik's hand and then covers it with his other hand as well, to secure their connection even more. When he looks up at Erik it's apologetically, as Charles often is about his own wants. For a telepath it's impossible not to know that the world is full of desires and needs that are far greater than your own, and seeing your own as valid takes a solipsism that someone like Emma possesses and Charles does not. He indulges his desires, of course, but when it's harmless to do so, without drawing from the resources of anyone else.
"I'd just...like to know what we are to you. What this means. I don't know if you still...want to do this. Or if it was because of the circumstances. I'll understand if that's the case. This could be difficult for us, since things are so difficult already, so if--you'd rather not that's all right." He doesn't hate how he sounds, exactly, but it makes him feel much younger than he is, and much more frightened, as reasonable as he's trying to be. "I do want to be with you, Erik. Not just take you to bed and not talk about it in the morning. You're very special to me. But don't let that cloud your judgment, please. I don't want you to stay with me for my sake. You have to do what's best for you."