"So this is like, you feeling jealous of all the couples out there and taking it out on me," he says, ignoring Cedric's qualifiers. It's his last defense, his last attempt to push Cedric away, and there's a part of him that so badly wants to put Cedric off the idea forever so they can both just move on.

He sighs and takes a seat on the couch. "I just don't get why. I mean, I'm cranky and I don't like touch and I make fun of you all the time..."

Maybe if it were when they had just started knowing each other, before Cedric was so informed on Howard's quirks and foibles, it would be different. Howard stares into his cat's fur and avoids looking at Cedric.