Julien isn't pulling away. Hope and the beginnings of joy flare up in his heart -- dampened by caution, of course, and by the knowledge that he could well be reading this wrong, but impossible to stifle.

He steps closer and brings his other hand up; he holds Julien's jaw in his palms, and his fingers slip into the feathers on the sides of Julien's face, brushing against the superheated skin underneath.

"Do you doubt me?" he murmurs, bringing their faces close, inches apart. "Would I tease, at a time like this?" His eyes meet Julien's, gazing deep; if Julien still needs convincing of Aaron's sincerity, he need look no further. There is no flinching, no flicker of doubt, nothing to betray a lie.