Okay we're doing the circular thing now. The truth is, you want to do the private thing? But because I said I didn't, you're forcing yourself not to. Since no one is okay with us continuing to do the private thing despite both of us actually technically preferring that, we're not doing that, so discussing it is kind of pointless? You're not the wrong one, I already knew that was a thing when we started dating and I shouldn't have ever mentioned being ok with doing otherwise because I should have realized you'd flip the fuck out about it and we'd have this mess?

[ so, apparently dave has learned that he should...not say when he wants things lest he upset people by wanting said things. that is of course the life lesson he took away here. ]

I'm happy enough? Karkat, if you don't want me to pretend, I won't, but you can't ask me to be happy all the time. So yeah, that's life, sometimes I won't be thrilled about shit, big deal. The thing I don't like is just stabbing one another in the same place over and over again and expecting different results. It's why I don't tell people this kinda stuff. Dirk seems to have ascended to some higher plane where he leaves it alone as long as I tell it to him and I don't know yet if that's a problem or not, but I guess at least he knows and doesn't hate me for the shit I told him, so that's nice? But even so I didn't really like telling him because I don't actually want to be the kind of person I am, sometimes?