"Don't." [Kirk said shortly, shaking his head slightly and slowly lowering his hand. He continued to stare at the ground for a long moment, just going over what he remembered.

He remembered giving up. He remembered promising people that he wouldn't leave but when it came down to it, he was too selfish and too cowardly to keep that promise. He remembered that when he was confronted with a choice between his feelings and other people's feelings, he'd hardly even bothered to care what would happen to theirs.

And god, he really hated himself for it.]

"It's my fault. I'm the one who should be apologizing. I shouldn't have put you through that."