Oh, Claude.

[ what he says does make her happy. there is a bubble of warmth in her chest like gentle twinkling stars. he may be joking as a front, but she can sense the sincerity. ]

I'm glad, despite everything, to have met and known you. And it may not have been in the way you wanted, but I do care about you. In no reality would there be a version of me that wouldn't.

[ she loves him, as true as anything else she feels. ]