Knowing the extent of Midoriya's (and Kaworu's) ability to look after himself may be one of the only reasons Paul isn't more insufferably protective than he already is. The fuller scope of Midoriya's competence is also one of the reasons Paul became fond of him in the first place, and it's one of the things he loves about him now that those feelings have travelled into a different sort of intimacy.

It's only that love will always be shaped like care for him. Love is a quiet voice in a close corner of a room, or a hand laid across the back of the neck. Love is a lunch box and a visit to say hello in semi-hostile territory. It is, at this moment, delicately increasing his body temperature to help make Midoriya more comfortable.

"Always," he says, with a soft kiss to the top of Midoriya's head as punctuation, and settles into an easy silence.

Maybe, he thinks optimistically, things will keep going well.