[ It's not the first time this expression has crossed his face as he listened to her, but it's the first time she's seen it: intently engaged and quietly impressed. ]

That's a valuable perspective to have, in situations like this.

[ And it's been made abundantly clear that he doesn't, not this time. There's too much resonance with his own baggage. ]

...This isn't a deflection, we can steer back around. But how would you feel about doing this in a more structured way? Reaching out to people, and helping them get past hurdles like with each other.