"I was on a red-eye flight, so I saw the message too late. After I saw it, I raced over here, so I didn't have the time to send a response. Did you wait long?"
Tears welled up in Lily's eyes. With her mouth full of rice, she slowly nodded her head.
"I held back from contacting you while I was abroad because I didn't want to bother you while you were thinking."
"...You know that was kind of a nasty thing to do, right?"
"It's you of all people. Don't you think I can be a bit nasty in front of you sometimes?"
Ethan leaned closer to Lily and flashed her a soft smile.
"But should I have contacted you anyway?"
With her cheeks full of food like a squirrel, Lily nodded again.
"I see. That was my bad. I'm sorry."