"Nothing," Nila said. "Just… I suppose, the rebuilding is going on longer than I thought… and I could have done more—"
"It's Oliver, isn't it?" Her mother said, cutting through to the heart of the issue quickly enough to make Nila grow flustered.
"Wha--! No! I never said anything about Oliver. Why are you bringing him up? You just have fun trying to embarrass me, don't you?" Nila fumed.
"So, what happened with him?" Her mother pressed, her smile growing all the wider. "Did the two of you fight?"
"No! I told you, nothing has happened. Why don't you ever listen to me?" Nila said.
"Ah…" Her mother nodded thoughtfully. She didn't like that nod. It made it seem again like her mother was seeing straight through her, and she didn't want anyone to see straight through her. "You mean, nothing at all?"
She said it almost slyly, there was a twinkle in her eyes. Nila didn't know quite what she was suggesting, but she didn't like it.
