It really hurt for Jason to just sit there quietly while Ann finally gave up on trying to figure out what it was that was troubling him so much, with such a defeated and hurt look on her face as she kept quiet and said nothing more. He didn't want to see her like that... He didn't ever want to see her like that. She deserved to know the truth from him, but here he was, shying away every time she tried to confront him about it and insisting again and again that it wasn't something she needed to worry about. But in this moment, he knew that he had to come clean. There was no point in moving backwards and further; it was already enough that she knew something was going on with him, so why not explain in more detail?
At least he could know once and for all what would happen once he finally told her, instead of spending the rest of his life wondering about it.
"... I... Oh God, uh... This is really tough to explain..." He pressed his fist against his lips for a moment and pinned his gaze to the bowl of pasta in front of him, currently not daring to look up at his childhood friend. This was certainly not going to be easy to open up about. "Ann, I need you to listen to me, okay? I... You... Agh, goddamnit, I think I love you, okay?" Now Jason had lifted his eyes to meet with Ann's, trying to gauge a reaction from her in the few long seconds that followed after he spoke. He kept his lips firmly pressed together for that little while before letting out a sigh, and looking back down at the table. "I... I don't know just how or when it really happened, but... I'm starting to see you in a much different light than I have before. Just looking at you makes my heart race, and my mouth seems to get dry when you're close... But I also have these incredible urges to hold your hand, to hold you close to me, and..."
"To kiss you." He wanted to say "To kiss you", but that was one thing he definitely could not say. His heart was pounding hard against his ribs at this point, and he clenched his fist tightly with one hand as more silence filled the air between the two of them.
"It's been a really complicated thing to wrap my head around, but... I didn't want to tell you just in case you'd hate me for it," Jason whispered, slowly looking back up across the table at Ann. "That's why I can't charm you. Because you already beat me to it."