Ezra felt like something was shattering inside him. For a second he probably looked it, too, but he was pretty quick to pull that back. He breathed in through his nose, and forced his shoulders to relax.

"It's okay," he said, even if it wasn't. His words said it was, and his tone said it was, and that was enough. "But we probably shouldn't bore your mom with that topic."

He did his best to be gentle. He'd seen that wince, and he didn't want to cause more.