It's brief enough that it's not obvious whether the flinch is about the touch or the leaving.

Haru speeds up, which depending on one's perspective might imply either interpretation on his part. Comes back with cargo pants. "Honestly if these fit you keep them, they're too short on me."

"Thank you."  He'll go back into the bathroom to put them on.  At a reasonable speed.  And come back.

Haru has returned to the couch and holds out an arm invitingly.

..........Julien hovers (non-literally) over by the door.

"Julien?"

"I.....

"You want to kill me."

"No, I don't want to kill you, which I guess is what a murderer would say, if they somehow needed to convince you of that and weren't very creative. C'mere."

"Not - him."  He gestures to the left of himself.  "Me."  Then to his chest.  "The backlash."

"I really don't recommend anthropomorphizing it, that can't possibly be healthy."

"Too late."

"Well, fuck. Uh. ...man it's like the opposite of that warning sign that got passed around the internet once upon a time where it says 'not only will this kill you it will hurt the whole time you're dying' or something. If you insist on the anthropomorphization then, sure, fine, I guess you can describe the situation as me wanting to kill you, but also it will feel amazing the entire time?"

He wipes at his eyes.  "You'll make me?  Because he asked you to?"

"I'd rather not have to? - look, if you're the backlash, you are the awakening backlash. Awakening backlash goes away on its own. You have less than a week to live guiding or no guiding. If you would prefer to exist any longer than that you have to leave him with memories of you being possible to work with literally at all."

He's crying more freely now.  But... he comes over and cuddles up.

Oh thank god.

"I don't care if you want to make this go faster but I don't want to talk to you if you do."

"...okay, suit yourself." He turns a page in Les Misérables.

And does he start hovering or anything?

Nope.

"Look, it's miserable existing like this.  I - want it to be over with as soon as possible.  If you can get by with talking to someone else I'd prefer that.  Especially if I can borrow headphones."

"- oh, okay, sure, that was really not clear from talking about how you think of it as being killed but okay. Cricket!" he calls, closing the book.

Cricket appears from the top of the stairs and glides down them. "Is he -"

"Kitty I try not to be too stifling of your expressive freedom but he is not as free to get up and leave the room in response to rude remarks as most people usually are. Can you get my headphones, they should be in my nightstand."