Bella makes a small, exasperated gesture. "Anyway. He hasn't called back since we got into a fight Sunday night."

"Sorry to hear it," says Trouble. "You okay?"

"I'll be fine."

"Next summer we might stay with Mom though."

"Good thing you've got the two of them, I guess," he murmurs.

"Yeah - uh - is this a sore spot?"

He shrugs; smiles. "Not a big one."

"I don't know anything about your family at all come to think of it."

"Yep," says Trouble. "That's 'cause I don't want you to."

"Oh. Well, I guess that makes sense."

Bella laughs a nervous, helpless laugh.

Trouble smiles and shakes his head.

"Anyway, there's a creepy pattern if you look at the press about them over time -" And Bella describes the way retractions tend to be issued.

"Shit," says Trouble. "That is creepy. I'm creeped."

"I am also creeped. I did find, yesterday, a single website by an anonymous raving person who claims that the Sharing is a front organization for brain-eating zombifying creatures. But I'm pretty sure if I looked hard enough I could find someone claiming that about everything from the Girl Scouts to the De Beers cartel, which I am pretty sure just sell cookies and diamonds respectively."

Trouble laughs. "And they can't be eating all the brains, or somebody would've noticed by now, right?"

"I'm pretty sure you need your brain to do most things. Or at least I do. It's possible you're operating without."

He flashes a brilliant grin. "Aww, you're makin' fun of me," he says happily.

"You noticed."

"You guys are cute."

"Aren't we though," Trouble agrees, beaming. "I wanna bake you things again, can I?"

"Of course."

"Bella has an admiiiiirer," coos Andi.

"She does," says Trouble, hugging himself in a way that causes his face to briefly become - interesting.

"Andi thinks this is very cute," says Bella.