Kerr was quiet, thinking about Ben's self-imposed time limit. He was determined to hold out until some inexplicable, indefinable, untenable situation was reached and only then would he concede? The thought of him pushing himself to some awful breaking point squeezed Kerr's heart with worry but he wasn't sure what he could do about it. Yet. If he hung on and remained at Ben's side, surely a strategy would reveal itself.
"Okay," Kerr murmured, as if Ben had asked him a question, even though he hadn't. He lifted his head, rubbing his cheek slowly and thoughtfully against Ben's. He supported the notion that Ben shouldn't run from defeat but he thought his mental state shouldn't be sacrificed for pride. It was a delicate endeavour. "Okay," he said again, nodding against Ben's face.
"Just... know that there's no shame in protecting yourself, though. If 'I can't stand it anymore' turns into 'sending me insane' I'm not going to give you a choice. I will overrule you," he warned. "I'm not interested in watching this break you, no matter how much you think you should be able to endure. A strategic retreat is not running away. You're not that Ben anymore and you don't owe these people anything. They're not even going to be thinking about the election by this time next week," he snorted.