“Loud.”
I nodded once. “Accurate.”
He studied me for a second.
“You don’t do that.”
“Do what?”
“Care.”
That landed slightly off-center.
I closed my laptop a little.
“I care about plenty of things.”
“Like what?”
“My degree.”
“That’s safe.”
“My future.”
“Still safe.”
I narrowed my eyes. “What answer are you looking for?”
“I’m not.”
But his voice said otherwise.
Silence stretched.
Rain harder now against the glass.
He looked down at my notebook.
“You always write by hand first?”
“Sometimes.”
“Old-school.”
“Effective.”
He nodded like he actually respected that.
Which was annoying in a different way.
Because it made him harder to dismiss.
His knee shifted slightly under the table.
It bumped mine.
Accidental.
