[That hurts- a lot, Elda's no pushover- but other than a quick wince and letting her wrist go, he doesn't make much of a display of how much it hurts.]

I know- [He shakes his head briefly before trying again-] I know people are cruel, and when they aren't cruel, they still try to look the other way. I know I spent almost a decade thinking I had no one in the world but my sister, and then my boy over there came along and proved me wrong.

I know more people will die, and I know their killers might be people I like. I know I might be someone's ticket out of here someday, even if I'm not planning on dying anytime soon.

I'm not ready to give up on people, either. I'm not going back to that lonely existence.