[Ellie expects this, so the flinch is minimal, and mostly in her eyes.]
It's fine. It's between her and me.
[The next part is harder, especially because she's on her back foot, and it makes her defensive. She doesn't want to open that up, to drag Joel's past out into the light. He's gone. She sets her jaw.]
no subject
It's fine. It's between her and me.
[The next part is harder, especially because she's on her back foot, and it makes her defensive. She doesn't want to open that up, to drag Joel's past out into the light. He's gone. She sets her jaw.]
The man who raised me.