"As long as you don't turn me into a toad," he says, laughing softly. It's not something he could do, Demetri thinks, or at least hopes. He realises that he actually doesn't know, but he's come this far and strangely, trust the other man at least that much.

"Oh, I think there are better things," he says, his teasing words resurfacing. There's something enjoyable about this, about their banter on the phone, both of them nervous in some way and confident in another. It makes them opposites, nearly, something that Demetri might think about another time. Not tonight, climbing the step to the door, tapping at it and hanging up his phone before Fabrice can answer him.