"I won't discount a miracle. Just, try not to get your hopes up." Blue wasn't the one he had to worry about the most. Regardless of their circumstances, she was still a stranger. A stranger that he was keen on, sure, but a stranger nonetheless. She hadn't known Lex before he lost his sight, so she didn't expect anything from him. With Marcus, it was a little bit different. Up until six years ago, Marcus was used to Lex being entirely self-dependent. In fact, Marcus and their mother, and to an extent even Jenessa, had been dependent on<span style="font-style: italic">him.</span>And that all changed when he woke up from a state of unconsciousness, and met a world of darkness.<br/><br/>So, for Blue it was easier. She didn't miss his being able to see, because she didn't know him any other way than what he was now. Perhaps that was why he enjoyed her company so much, even in preference to Jenessa's these days. With Jess, their fallout had been vile. In the back of her mind, she had still expected him to be able to contribute as much as he had previously. She never told him as much, but it showed in her voice. And to be honest, he<span style="font-style: italic">could</span>have contributed more, both around the house and in their marriage, but the depression had held him down and fighting had only made it worse. It wasn't Jenessa's fault, or Lex's own. Once he lost his sight, he stopped being the man she fell in love with. It left a bitter taste in his mouth, but he couldn't fault her for that. But with Blue, she'd never known him any other way. She didn't expect more from him than he was capable of. If the procedure worked, and he got his vision back even half of what it had been, it would only be an improvement.<br/><br/>But with Marcus, things were a little bit different. Hope was dangerous when it came to his little brother, in that Lex was concerned about him being overly-disappointed when the procedure inevitably<span style="font-style: italic">didn't</span>work. He'd known Lex a very specific way all of his life, and Marcus would expect nothing different than the brother that he had been so used to. If something went wrong and Lex was stuck just seeing blurs of color, or god forbid the surgery wasn't even viable and he was just stuck being blind, Marcus would be devastated. Devastation for Marcus looked a little bit like a personified tornado, though, wreaking havoc and destruction in its wake. In the back of his mind, Lex could honestly say that his greatest fear for the surgery was not it failing, but having it fail and Marcus try and take it out on Jenessa and Dicen. If it didn't work, it was through no fault of theirs, but he was sure Marcus wouldn't see it that way.<br/><br/>The water eventually cut off when they were finished washing the general day-to-day off of their skin and hair. and Lex became immediately acutely aware of how cold it was without the water to warm him up. As he waited patiently for a towel, he had to wonder how incredibly satisfying it would feel to get his own towel for a change. "I appreciate you doing this, by the way. Even if this turns out to not work, I do appreciate it."