[ Stubborn. He's so damn stubborn. But why wouldn't he be? Like hell he'd want him to die. Just like hell he'd want to die. That's what it comes down to, doesn't it? That's what this all comes down to in the end. But the more Jim talks, the more something else carries against the ebb and flow of his own emotional weight, pulling and strangling at his heart until his grip is tightening on that shoulder perhaps tighter than he means it.

He lifts his head suddenly, eyes snapping open. ] I'm not giving up! Like hell I'd ever! But I can't do anything about it if that's what it ends up being, Jim! No matter how much I want-!

[ He cuts himself off abruptly, like the air's suddenly all gone out of his lungs. Cuts off and his jaw goes taunt with clenched teeth and he has to shut his eyes tight. ]