[The opposite had been Cliff's intention the entire time; he simply didn't want to seem to obvious in his wish to admire his partner's manner and appearance. As much as he liked to joke about it, such things were never a high priority for him...

He glanced off when Souji spoke up, feeling a little sheepish about the compliment.]

Yeah, I guess you're right on that one. But, I wasn't lying when I said you could pass for a badass babe-- you really are as gorgeous as you can be dangerous, a lot like a very good friend of mine.