Abby nods mutely. She thinks that if anybody else were to come in here and see them like this, having the most sincere conversation they've ever had while they fiddle and refrain from looking at each other, they'd probably laugh. Like, it probably is funny, but for them? It's huge. Or at least it feels that way, to Abby.

"Me too." On both counts. It... doesn't feel awkward to say so either, which is nice. At least they're agreeing on it. They reached this understanding a while ago, and now they're finally acknowledging it.

Before she can lose her nerve, she'll ask. Staring at her hands, thumbs pressing on knuckles, feeling that tension swell before the pop of bone under skin. She says, "I wanted to," and halts. Fuck, there's no easy way to cushion this question. Tries again, "What you said about Nora, did- was that what happened, or were you just trying to..."

Rile me up? Make me snap?

Abby knows. Truly, she knows, but if she doesn't ask she'll keep entertaining the notion anyway, just to torture herself. She has no idea when she got so good at doing that.

She looks up at Ellie, her expression neutral. Careful.