Oh, Huaisang. His heart breaks, a little, as it has every time Lan Xichen has seen him cry - real tears, anyway - and for a moment he wishes he could take the pain on as his own.

"You owe me nothing."

His free hand comes up to cup the side of Huaisang's face - not to try to wipe away his tears, just to be there, thumb resting over his cheekbone.

"I thought this was lost to me, that you may no longer want me near you. I wondered how much you had ever needed, or wanted, the support I thought I could give." He isn't sure he could even put into words how much it means to him that Huaisang is still sitting here, that he hasn't pushed him away. "You are not lacking in anything that matters, to me."