Emme nodded and moved from the living room into their small kitchen. She filled the kettle with water and set it on the stove to boil. Marlene joined her in the kitchen while Emme busied herself with getting them mugs and pulling out the tin of tea. Her head and heart ached, but keeping her hands occupied helped a little.
"They're not pathetic," she said. "And anyway, I'm not certain there's anything to be done right this moment. I've just got to give myself a chance to catch up to everything. Figure out what I'm going to say to Ellis. How I want to handle things." She opened a kitchen drawer for the stash of chocolate she always kept there. She unwrapped the bar and broke off pieces for the both of them.