[ He laces their fingers together when she takes his hand, and turns just a little bit towards her. He doesn't face her full on, doesn't want to put her on the spot and make her feel like he's staring at her - but it's obvious that she has his attention, that he's listening. He listens to what she says and what she doesn't, as she talks about the progress she's made and says nothing about what she'd had to come back from.

Sam doesn't push her, not for that. That's the kind of thing that you can't push for, as far as Sam's concerned, that you've gotta wait until someone is actually ready to talk about it before you start trying to get it out.

And she's got it spot on with three steps forward, two steps back. There's never an end, not for people like them. There's only a place where there's more good days than bad, where every slip back is just a reminder of how far you've come instead of how far you've got to go.

He lets go of her hand when she shifts, letting out an exhale and leaning back a little, facing forward. ]

I had support. Made all the difference for me, you know, finally realizing I didn't have to go it alone. [ He glances back over her, the corner of his lip quirking in a very small smile. ] It's still what makes the difference.