Stein's lips curved in a smirk. "You don't really seem the sacrifice and selflessness type, I guess. Nor did I think we were competing for Vanessa."

He sobered and reached out, putting a hand on Birkin's shoulder. "About Vanessa, she's a fascinating girl, and she is a great deal of fun. But I don't love her, like you do. Don't worry about me stealing her from you, because it's not going to happen."

He chuckled. "All right, fine. But if you're not, you still need to remember that I am. I don't... feel things the way normal people do. Attachments are hard for me." He spoke as if reading from a textbook, just a bit. He knew these things about himself, because he'd diagnosed himself, but it was an intellectual knowledge. He didn't understand how other people really felt... he just knew he didn't feel the same.