A short sigh leaves his mouth. It seems like any time he and Ratchet start to get along, something like this happens. Inevitably, one of them will slip up and say the wrong thing.

“Listen, Ratchet. I’m not saying you aren’t fine! I don’t doubt that you can take care of yourself. I don’t doubt that even if you did overwork yourself, you’d be just as capable. But it doesn’t matter how capable you are. As your friend, I think I’m entitled to worry at least a little bit. Even if I know you can handle things just fine.”

He leans against the wall and tests his hand out again, flexing his fingers gently and admiring the how quickly they’ve recovered.

“Maybe you could just think of it as…doing me a favor? Either way, I’ll try to be more careful.”