Kindness and brokenness aren't mutually exclusive. Jyn has her reasons to be defensive, to keep her hand close to the chest. The world is very rarely kind to those people in return and they've both had to but walls up inside of themselves to survive places and moments that would otherwise strip it from them. Cassian feels as though he's got less goodness left in him than Jyn, though he doesn't say that aloud after what they've just talked about.

"When you care about something, it's impossible not to see it," he says, thinking about the council meeting and then the speech she gave onboard. If she commits to teaching, Cassian has no reason to think she won't bring the same attitude. "Maybe I'm biased but I don't think that makes it untrue."

The subject changes back to him and Cassian makes a face. "I knew you'd find a loophole," he says, even though it's one he'd expected her to take. "I don't believe in myself, but if I have to believe you and you believe in me..." He smiles, though there's still self-deprecation in his eyes. Cassian wants to be the man Jyn sees in him, the man he doesn't believe he can be. But Jyn believes it and so he must believe her. Or try to be what she thinks is true.