Yes, I did. [And the warmth that fills her otherwise polite smile in that moment banishes the hard edges, transforming her into a seventeen year old girl again as she absently rubs the back of her neck.] I just wish I'd known they were going to be here...it would have made leaving home a lot less hard.

[She pauses, then smiles wider.] And I would have talked them out of coming, know what I mean?