( he doesn't actually know her history, not really. he'd seen the smear campaign Regina had painted over the front page of the paper, of course; everyone in Storybrooke had the basic facts. orphaned and incarcerated. there's more to a person than their past, though, and apparently even cursed he'd believed there was more to Emma than what a sealed record could tell.
he's quiet as he listens, not looking her in the eye but focused on her words. the idea of not being wanted isn't so foreign to him, because he'd felt it before. in the midst of villagers when he tried to buy bread or have a drink or even find shelter, he'd never been particularly wanted by anything that walked on two legs. it hadn't bothered him as much as it could have when he had a pack of warm fur and cold noses to go back to that wanted him desperately, but that didn't much ease the sting of being turned away or sneered at. he can't imagine what it must have been like to have a family give her up, he was too young when he'd lost his, he doesn't even remember what having one had been like. he'd seen how it affected her, though, she carried it as obviously as the red leather jacket.
and he knows that when she'd taken the badge from him, she'd been toeing the line of letting herself be a part of something. she was, he could see it, he could tell, even if he hadn't gotten to be there when it happened. her hand is not so far away from his, and while he does tend to be cautious about touching people, it doesn't seem so terrible to reach out. wrapping his hand over hers, even for a moment. a reminder that she's not alone here, either, even if it's everything she's afraid of.
temporary. )
I'm sorry. ( it's a lacking word, but he's got to say it, even if it can't fill the gaps or soothe the sorrow. pack is his word for family, and he really and truly is glad that Emma has hers again, even if her past still complicates things. feeling unwanted stays with you, it'd made him angry instead of distant. he's glad that she's starting to learn differently without the extremes he'd needed. ) I know it's not easy, but remember you're not a lone wolf here, either. Who I used to be doesn't change how I feel about you now.
( and surely Emma can tell Graham is very much on the opposite side of the spectrum from the angry young man she'd met. he cares about her a great deal, probably more than she even knows. )
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Date: 2016-10-03 08:04 am (UTC)he's quiet as he listens, not looking her in the eye but focused on her words. the idea of not being wanted isn't so foreign to him, because he'd felt it before. in the midst of villagers when he tried to buy bread or have a drink or even find shelter, he'd never been particularly wanted by anything that walked on two legs. it hadn't bothered him as much as it could have when he had a pack of warm fur and cold noses to go back to that wanted him desperately, but that didn't much ease the sting of being turned away or sneered at. he can't imagine what it must have been like to have a family give her up, he was too young when he'd lost his, he doesn't even remember what having one had been like. he'd seen how it affected her, though, she carried it as obviously as the red leather jacket.
and he knows that when she'd taken the badge from him, she'd been toeing the line of letting herself be a part of something. she was, he could see it, he could tell, even if he hadn't gotten to be there when it happened. her hand is not so far away from his, and while he does tend to be cautious about touching people, it doesn't seem so terrible to reach out. wrapping his hand over hers, even for a moment. a reminder that she's not alone here, either, even if it's everything she's afraid of.
temporary. )
I'm sorry. ( it's a lacking word, but he's got to say it, even if it can't fill the gaps or soothe the sorrow. pack is his word for family, and he really and truly is glad that Emma has hers again, even if her past still complicates things. feeling unwanted stays with you, it'd made him angry instead of distant. he's glad that she's starting to learn differently without the extremes he'd needed. ) I know it's not easy, but remember you're not a lone wolf here, either. Who I used to be doesn't change how I feel about you now.
( and surely Emma can tell Graham is very much on the opposite side of the spectrum from the angry young man she'd met. he cares about her a great deal, probably more than she even knows. )