He accepts, happily, the hand on his shoulder. She should be able to feel the way he's much more relaxed now than he was a bit ago. "I'm feeling..."

How to explain it? Howard's not sure he knows. It's not as if he's just clicked into feeling a sense of belonging, like he was expecting, hoping for, but he does feel as if a heavy weight has been pulled off him. Like breathing is easier.

"Kind of proud of myself?"