I wasn't even thinking about it in terms of verbal/not verbal. Just that "It must really hurt" is the kind of sympathy than can make you focus on, you know, how much it hurts; whereas being attacked with a handkerchief is almost invigorating. ;-p
Shen Wei gives comfort in a practical (and, when the hurt is self-inflicted, infuriated) way: food, liniment/first aid, physical support, peptalk, putting unconscious!ZYL to bed. Like, even when ZYL gets whacked with a metal bar during the mugging, SW asks, "Are you all right?" and when ZYL says yeah, SW doesn't argue in the moment.
It's not that ZYL's sympathy is wrong at all -- but I don't know that it's what SW needs? (Whereas, ZYL putting drunk!SW to bed and giving him an IV is much more in line with SW's style of care.)
no subject
Shen Wei gives comfort in a practical (and, when the hurt is self-inflicted, infuriated) way: food, liniment/first aid, physical support, peptalk, putting unconscious!ZYL to bed. Like, even when ZYL gets whacked with a metal bar during the mugging, SW asks, "Are you all right?" and when ZYL says yeah, SW doesn't argue in the moment.
It's not that ZYL's sympathy is wrong at all -- but I don't know that it's what SW needs? (Whereas, ZYL putting drunk!SW to bed and giving him an IV is much more in line with SW's style of care.)