"Yeah," he says, looking down into his mug again. He takes a swallow and barely tastes it, but the heat against the back of his throat makes him feel slightly more awake. More real.

"I can't decide if I want him here or not," he says after another minute or so. This time he doesn't look up. "That's fucking awful, right? I mean, I do. But if he didn't remember..." He does look up then, and smiles, hard and crooked. "Think you got enough to deal with, with just me around."