"I'm not sure that I could sleep if I wanted to?"

"Or not that, then." If she doesn't comment on how tightly she's hugging Lev and Asher maybe they won't either. 

Asher won't, he's hugging back as tightly as she is.

And Marlo — is suddenly keenly aware of how little practice he has with lying to other people, but he's doing a fairly good job of keeping his face even.

Christine doesn't bring up that he was gone last night or that he's dating Lev.

She asks gentle questions about why he's less committed to recovery than he was last week and what she can do to help him. She helps him brainstorm what his root might be. 

He doesn't know why he's less committed to recovery now than he was last week. He doesn't know what she can do to help him. (This, at least, is true.) He's happy to brainstorm what his root might be. 

He seems to have an interest in small, smart boys he can protect, so perhaps his homosexuality is sexualizing the normal male emotional need to be chivalrous and protect the weak. Does he have an idea of someone he might have failed to protect in the past? Or perhaps unreasonable expectations on the part of his parents?

He thinks his parents' expectations are broadly reasonable; they love him and want a good life for him. Obviously he hasn't always succeeded in protecting everybody but he can't think of anyone in particular he's failed. 

"What would you say to Lev if he said to you the thing you just said to me about your parents?"

"I told him he shouldn't have to get a perfect score on the SAT for his parents to be proud of him." 

"Do you think you should have to earn your parents being proud of you?"

He could say a lot of things. 

"I don't know," is what he winds up saying. 

"Can you tell me more about that?"

"Lev's parents' standards are absurd but I don't know whether I think it's wrong for parents to have standards at all." 

"How would you treat your kids, if you had them?"

"Better than Lev's parents treat him." 

"Would you want them to feel like you're proud of them no matter what?"

Yes, he doesn't say. 

His shoulders curl inward and he squeezes his eyes shut. 

"You're making a lot of progress, Marlo, and I'm very proud of you."

From Christine's perspective, he has backslid. There is no reason for her to be proud of him. He doesn't believe it for half of a second. 

He nods anyway and tries his best to smile and says "Thank you." 

"You have made a lot of progress in identifying your root today."

"Thank you," he says again. 

By the time it's her turn, Raine doesn't feel like she's about to cry anymore. 

Small mercies. 

Christine's questions mostly focus on Sasha's willingness to change and on any problems in his life he can identify that come from his homosexuality.

She evades for a couple of minutes and then pulls her knees up against her chest.