[ Wow, heart eating. That is pretty hardcore. He looks appropriately - surprised? Impressed? Confused? Probably a mixture of all three. No wonder she wasn't shocked by a plain old vampire. He's still a bit anxious and fidgety when he sits on the opposite bed at her behest, leans forward and locks his hands together to make himself sit still; but it's pretty much back to his baseline levels of energy. Still not up for space snacks, though. ]

You really take that "professional empathy" thing to new levels, don't you? [ It's a joke, but he means it as a complement. And the fact that she's just come out with the alien thing - which was mostly confirmed, just withheld from the network - it's another show of confidence, just enough for him to hedge a bit further with a serious reply. ] Sometimes I think life would be a lot easier if I got better at holding grudges. Sympathizing about assholes is kind of exhausting sometimes.

[ Of course, "assholes" is proxy for "monsters" here, but that might stand out a bit. ]