"What are you going to do, set me up on a blind date and cross your fingers?"

"...would you like that?"

"If I thought it'd work."

Sigh. "Um... Do you think you may have clinical depression?"

Shrug. "I got a student health office call, they wanted me to be screened, they said my screening was 'worrying', they want me to come back. I guess if they give me pills I'll take them? And then be alone with different chemicals in my head?"

"What do you mean, 'be alone with different chemicals in your head'?"

"They can't prescribe me a dom. I'll still be alone. Which is my actual problem."

"I don't... think that's your actual problem? Or, not all of it. I mean, um, if you have actual depression then treating it should make stuff in general become more interesting?"

"Why do you think you know what my problem is?"

"I'm sorry, that's not what I meant. It's just... you seem to not be very enthusiastic about other things than belonging to someone, and if that helped you there, I think it'd be... easier to belong to somebody? Everything's related, like I said, Isabella and I bonded over other stuff we were both enthusiastic about."

"I already know nobody has a reason to want me," grumbles Jackson. "Everyone's made that real clear."

"And my hypothesis is that that's because of depression, and with depression gone that problem goes."

"I don't think it's going to make me prettier and it might actually be physically impossible for me to be more submissive and I don't require doms to be giant nerds," Jackson points out.

"You're pretty already," she reassures him. "And 'giant nerd' is only one type of personality that happens to be mine. You could be a sports guy, or maybe a music guy, or movies, or something."

He snorts. "So, I'm not pretty enough, and I have to make up for it with my personality, and your opinion is I don't currently have one but I might with hard work and psychiatric medication figure something out. Thanks a lot."

"I'm not saying you're not pretty enough! I mean, I'm pretty sure most people don't date exclusively based on looks? Um. I'm sorry. I'm an idiot and am completely ruining this conversation."

Jackson stares glumly at the dregs of soup left in his bowl. "Some people do and I'm not pretty enough for them and I'm not interesting enough for anybody else and I don't see how happy pills are supposed to make me interesting."

"By giving you interests."

"How are they supposed to do that?"

"Well... the way depression works, as far as I know," and she actually looked some stuff up since she came up with the hypothesis, "everything feels meh or just doesn't feel like anything at all, and doesn't actually stir the positive emotions associated with liking them. If the positive emotions are possible again you'll... figure out what you're interested in."

"What if this is just actually what I'm like, then what?"

"...I don't know. I'm not the most indicated person to really answer this question. Um. Therapy should help, too, probably."

"That sounds like tons of fun," says Jackson sarcastically.

Sigh. "For what it's worth, under different circumstances I'd dom you."

"Thanks, I guess."