There's less fear than he would have expected, even when he sees the knife and realises what J intends to do. Anger overtakes and overwhelms it, not even giving him the chance to panic, skipping straight to rage, straight to fighting, trying to twist and buck J off of him, or at leat keep him from getting that knife in his mouth.

The kiss, the kiss to his cheek... that stops him. For all of half a second, just because it's so unexpected. Close your eyes. Be still... And there's part of him that wants to. A tiny, mad something that babbles about how it would be fair, and they could match, and then he'd understand... But then there's cool steel between his lips, and fight shoves its way back to the forefront, and it's drowned out again.

When he's slapped, it's an opening, an opportunity. A deep growl tears its way out of his throat, and he follows that hand, jerking and twisting his head as he tries to bury his teeth in the soft flesh.