He... what? Chris stared, sat back in his chair and slowly shook his head. That it was real was something he'd only considered in his nightmares, his thoughts wandering to what might have been if he hadn't been born a Halliwell whose life was destined to be irrevocably tied to magic making a mess of everything. Having a friend had done him good, and having that friend turn out to be a traitor had practically undone it all. Now Cole was saying the friendship wasn't a ruse but the motivation, and he didn't know how to deal with it.

"Is that some kind of joke?" he asked, tone tight and displeased. He was angry that it might have been real this whole time, that it was real and Cole hadn't come for help sooner, that it was real and this was going all wrong, that this was how it might stay because he was just so mad. He couldn't understand it, no way to fathom the fear and the relief underneath it all making the anger only more visible.