Don't believe in no-win scenarios

When escape isn't an option, Jim internalizes. It's fight or flight for a reason.

"I'm fine." He snaps like a whip, going rigid in Verity's grip. It's a similar defensive mechanism to hers. Walling himself up. Pushing everyone else away. Burned bridges mean he's abandoning them, not the other way around. The distinction is important in his warped view of the world.

They're lying. Had to be. It's not okay, he's not okay and they're pitying him. They're starting to see how much trouble he is and they'll get tired of it. Empty promises. Words he's heard dozens of times before. They may not mean to, but Jim knows better. Knows how twisted he is and that people are right to hate him.

This was a mistake. All of it. They're seeing a Jim that he's kept hidden from even Bones and Spock. And Jim's shaking with the knowledge that he may have just blown his chance for a family again.

"It's not a big deal." He can't even talk without sounding like he's pulling the words out with a pliers through his constricted airways.