Northstar Vale not an answer to be heard

Irritation flashes through him when she seems to repeat her question, though he realizes a beat later that he must have spoken too quietly. The embarrassment brings his guard down slightly, at least, and his next words are slightly less guarded. It um, makes my stomach hurt, He says, feeling awkward as he repeats his answer. He's never really gone hungry before this, so he doesn't have the experience to know that such pain is to be expected — or that scarfing his meals down won't help a bit. As far as he's concerned, something is wrong with his stomach or with the food — or both, maybe.