Caleb's anger terrifies him, perhaps more than anyone else's, even his father. He knows now that Caleb's anger is deserved. All he can do is mumble, the words tripping over themselves lowly. Behind him, a rack of glasses begins to vibrate to the frequency of his anxiety and Gabe swallows. He has to rein it in or they'll all shatter.

"That's not true," he whispers, looking at the paper. The Cove says all those awful things about him, about the imaginary string of lovers he's had. "I haven't...not since you." But what kind of reassurance is that after the treatment Caleb must have endured in his parents' search for him.

Hands shaking, the glasses rattling behind him, Gabe glances around for the manager and signals that he's going on break.

"O-outside. Please...Can we..."

All he wants to do is run.