Her throat bobs and she sits up straighter. “I may be the last person you want to talk to or even confide in. I’m not good at giving advice or being the most affectionate. I may be overstepping and you can tell me to never bring this up and I won’t, but I just want you to know that I see you. I see you, Daniel,” she reaffirms, like she needs me to understand that she knows what I’m feeling, that she can see it and isn’t going to pretend it’s not there. “I don’t want you to feel like you need to make yourself cheerful or useful in order to be around me. I just want you to be you. And if you
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