[He remains utterly motionless and silent as she speaks, watching her face with downright unnerving intensity. There is a sense of careful balance, as if a single wrong move could cause everything to crumble; as if a wrong step could drop them all into free fall.

But Jennifer is saying what he needs to hear. Drawing in a shaky, relieved breath, Souji realizes that he'd been holding his breath for a while there. The smile he offers her and then Hijikata is still... a bit strained, a bit too bright, but it's clear at least that he's trying.]

Then you should. He wouldn't name anyone if he didn't think well of them, of course, but- [His gaze drifts over to Hijikata, half apologetic and half helpless.] -I just needed to hear that, you know? I needed to know for sure.