Re: Above the antique store: Cat & Bruce
"I don't know if he can. But it would be foolish to make uninformed assumptions." One of Bruce's ongoing problems with other people was that he said things with declarative authority that could easily be perceived as chastisement. He didn't smile to take the edge off such statements, nor did he do anything to imply the usual truth that he was referring himself. In this example, he was looking down, turning the wrapped burger over in his scarred hands, and his tone was reflective instead of light. But he was expressing thought, not lecturing. "And I don't think we can take the effectiveness of military policy as our example."
He pulled at a sticker indicating the pickle status of the burger. "It is not a common skill, I am sure. Possession, perhaps. Certainly unwilling." He looked up and met her eye, straight, firm. "You look like a teenager." His tone was sad. That was such a long time ago, and now he felt they both had been children, teenagers thinking only of themselves. "Or near enough. I'm not the teenager that wanted that anymore." He looked away from her.
"Love has to be easy to see, readily demonstrated, to matter, it seems."