"Why wouldn't I be nice? I mean, you were an ass, but I still had to work with you..." He says quietly, defending his own stance, knowing that it wasn't just because they were coworkers, that they were paired together. He'd always felt the way that they talked about the dynamic between fighters and navigators was off, in the same way he'd always fought with his father about talking down on martian citizens like they were something lesser.

He looks at their hands again, feels like perhaps if he keeps eye contact too much he'll spook Cain, but he's still listening, and his eyes come up when he's just about finished, breath catching in his throat.

He'd almost slipped earlier when they were talking, and here Alexei was, saying it first. God damnit. That wasn't fair. "I- I hope that's not the only reason...that I was nice to you. Everyone should treat you nicely, Alexei, it's not...You're a person, just like everyone else, and if they deserve that, so do you."