Ellie had been living at Jackson together with Joel for quite some time now and any remaining doubts that she could trust him were finally gone. So she finally decided to tell him a story of her past that she hadn't told anyone before. The story of her and Riley.
She decided not to leave a single detail out, especially not the fact that Riley was more than just her friend, that she was in love with her.
Ellie was glad that Joel was so understanding and she cried a bit when he hugged her tightly and called her »Baby girl« again.
Feeling relief Ellie, wondered if Joel may have had similar experiences.
»So what about you?« she asked »I know Sarah's mother left you shortly after her birth, but did you ever fall in love with anyone else? What was it that you had with Tess?«
Joel chuckled a bit »We didn't really know that either. I guess we were partners, and maybe a bit more, but nothing ever actually developed out of that«
Ellie was pleased that she had finally talked about it and was just about to leave as something came to Joel's mind
»Now that I think of it, I did have a short relationship about 15 years ago. The woman's name was Anna, as far as I remember. A really beautiful woman. She even looked a bit like you«
Ellie's eyes widened »Was that in the Boston QZ?«
»Yes, why do you ask?«
»My mother's name was Anna«
And somewhere in the background someone yelled »What a twist!«