[It is a great deal to process, but for as good as Gale often is at talking, he can be just as good at listening, as well. He's patient, allowing Astarion to speak without interruption, nodding here and there when he finds himself compelled to agree with an especially important point. All of that is very true, and perhaps that means they are fundamentally mismatched— but it would be a lie to say that he hadn't considered what it might be like to kiss Astarion long before the masquerade, among other things. He may have spent time among the divine, but he himself remains only human— and had been even when he'd still possessed the greatest of his powers.

He is slow to respond, wanting to choose his words with care. He doesn't wish to make demands, or for the man in front of him to feel unheard, but somewhere in all of this, it seems there must be room for some sort of compromise. It's clear what he'll have to be willing to give; he would need to be flexible, to find a way to make peace with the fact that a potential partner wouldn't be able to be exclusive with him, but he had hardly been about to ask Astarion to move back to Waterdeep with him or some such nonsense.

There was something here to be explored, as the vampire had put it.]

I agree. You deserve to explore your freedom and use the opportunity you've been given as you see fit. I would never mean to imply otherwise, I only... [He halts, frowning slightly.] I have never been terribly good at sharing. If it were to be strictly physical, I don't know that I could convince myself. If it were more than that— just a bit, mind you— then I think I could learn, though it may take me some time, as well.

[He's not asking for the moon. Only the faintest glimmer of hope that there might be feeling involved for both parties.]

You deserve to be happy. I know that giving yourself up would swiftly lead to the opposite of that.