agleam | pc catchall for roxana.

she has a permit your honor

Yeah, I'd imagine not. You hate it, too?

It'd be more of a surprise if you found someone who was fine with this situation.

Yeah. So... I guess it's just a matter of what we do about it, now.

What can we do but wait?

Try to keep our spirits up...?

[disgusting]

[ she just

stares at him for a full second before she shakes her head. ]

I'm not going to be offended if you disagree, you know. You can say so.

I didn't think I had to say anything to convey what I thought.

Shaking your head can mean anything from "no" to "wow, that's really stupid".

[a little amused]

You'll have to guess where it lands in that range.

Unsurprisingly, I'm going to pick the nicest option if you let me decide.

[earnest... stupid... one and the same]

Not a surprise at all. It could be as simple as that. You will have to be the optimist for the both of us.

Or a great many of us.

Not really the type to get your hopes up...?

Not at all.

[ she'll be honest about that. ]

Can I ask why?

[genuinely curious]

Let's say... without getting too many details, my life led me to think this way.

I'm guessing things have been hard for you, then... I'm sorry to hear that.

Don't pay too much mind. I'm not the only one whose childhood was less than ideal.