He shifts under her gaze. Not because he’s uncomfortable.. okay, because he’s uncomfortable. But not the usual sort. Not because someone’s looking, but because he wants to know what she sees there. He’s changed, he knows that, it would be mad to expect anything else, because back then he was still a kid, could still worry about things like which were the right trainers and exactly where his fringe should fall in order to be 'cool' (and had made an executive decision not to, because he was a geek and didn’t care about that sort of thing… of course) and now he’s… old. Back then 30 had seemed like a lifetime away. Now he’s getting there and yeah, it was a lifetime in between…
And all of that makes sense, but he almost feels as if he should apologise for having changed. Which is stupid. And not worth thinking about.
< ”I'm sorry”
… yeah, that right there? It's genuinely amusing. In a sick sort of way, at least, and he chokes on a harsh, sharp laugh. “Right. Sure you are.”
He squeezes his eyes shut for a moment, drawing a long, hissing breath as if counting to ten before continuing, letting it out in a huffed sigh before sliding his chair back, pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head. Taking a deep drag he exhales as if that’s relieving his stress… which… it’s meant to, but doesn’t. But it gives him something to do with the fingers of one hand, at least, while the others frenetically tap out a random rhythm on the desk edge, light on various things and fiddle with them…
”I mean… bloody hell, Anna. You’re dead. I…” - he chokes slightly, clears his throat in defiance of that, and continues - ”I buried you… or, well, there was a funeral. Obviously there wasn’t a” - he runs his eyes over her, swallows again - ”body, but… You were dead!” Aaron gesticulates indignantly. ”And you vanish and… we stay and die and… then you just come back. Like that.” - clicking his fingers highlights just how ‘out of the blue’ “back” was - ”Just like nothing ever happened, like you didn’t bloody… abandon us, and drop off the face off the earth like I, like… we never meant… Shit.” He exhales again; counting to ten didn't do much good, huh? He shouldn't have said any of that, even if he has every right to be royally pissed off with her. It's not the time or place.