The hesitation, however brief, draws the redhead's eyes up, watching Emil, listening. He doesn't hear the words, Emil doesn't say then, but it almost feels like there was more. Maybe he's just stupidly hopeful? Either way, Reno smiles, less for show, more for real.

"We're gettin' heavy for a first date, ain't we?" he asks, arching a brow lightly, even as he turns his arm and slides it away until their hands connect again. He just can't not touch the other man, now that he's there and real and everything is so close even if it feels a trillion miles away.

"I'll ask if I really need something, but I gotta prove I can take care of myself, right? No one wants to date a man that can't carry his own weight and pay his own way. I don't want to be someone you feel ashamed of...If you ever introduce me to your friends, I want you to be proud, not humiliated."