The way Will's body is reacting is delicious. Hannibal can feel his lover's heart pounding, his muscles quivering, can hear the way his breath catches and the rumble of the groan in his chest. But then Will says his name, his voice trembling, and Hannibal finds his own breath hitching involuntarily. It's a very strange reaction for him. He's heard his name said a variety of ways in a variety of situations, including pleading for one's life, and aside from a certain sense of victory to bring someone to beg, it doesn't affect him. But now, hearing it on the lips of this man, his friend, his lover, he's struck, his heart aching.

Hannibal leans his head forward and tenderly nuzzles into the hair at the back of Will's head, while wrapping an arm around his waist. He doesn't move to touch Will's cock, but rather just holds him close. He is not abandoning his plans to fuck and strangle Will into unconsciousness. Rather he is taking a breath, and addressing that ache by allowing himself to be tender and loving for a moment, and by letting Will know the depth of his affection before the violence.