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“Are you alright?”
Niles hadn't even noticed he'd been spoken to at first, which certainly did nothing to convince Frasier that he was anything close to okay- And in truth he wasn't.
Niles truly loved Marris… But the remarks she would make so casually and commonly would cut through something deep within him that was between self worth, self love and the concept of self in its entirety.
He felt empty…
Hollow and separate from himself.
But he couldn't say that.
So he looked at Frasier -although he didn't even bother to try and smile- and said, “I’m perfectly fine.”
-
“Are you alright?”
Martin had never been one to dote, but now he was incapable of going more than an hour without checking in on Niles.
Niles understood.
He had been a mess since he and Marris broke up.
Sometimes he believed that he had made the wrong choice, and that Marris had been right in everything she'd said…
He felt so helpless and hopeless in those moments.
But with every day he was getting closer and closer to being okay.
So, although it wasn't really the truth it also wasn't really a lie when he said, “I'm perfectly fine.”
-
“Are you alright?”
Daphne had asked a fair question.
Niles had been staring off.
His mind had momentarily wandered away to a far away and sad topic.
Although truthfully he wasn't too lost in that worry.
Everything that had happened in the past still affected him and still hurt; but now it was countered by the fact that he was safe.
He was loved just as he was.
There were no more harsh words trying to shape him into someone he wasn't.
For the first time in much much too long, he was able to honestly reply, “I'm perfectly fine.”