[Someday she must thank Kaede for teaching Akechi the art of affection. When she cuddles up to him, he goes ahead and puts his arms around her in a secure hug. She's free to take as much comfort from it as she wants. Maybe the differences in their lives are vast but the feelings here are remarkably similar.]

Yes. Whenever he says that he's happy I'm here, I'm happy, too, but... it really is scary, isn't it? [He gives a soft, rueful laugh.] I think even in the event that he asked me out, I don't know if I could believe it was happening. Or that he really... cared that way. As though maybe I tricked him or he felt sorry for me, seeing how lonely I am, or... I don't know. It's always a mess when I think about all of this. He's really the only one I've ever liked this way.

[Even saying it like that feels so high school and normal. But truthfully, despite the circumstances of their relationship, he feels like a pretty average teenage boy with him with a perfectly average crush.

No, not crush. He knows it's love. That is part of what makes it so terrifying.]