taking another sip of his drink , he continued , `` they pressed us really hard . the mice were telling me a story . think of the flow of a poem . `` baby , i did n't mean ... '' to come between tara and brad ? it was scary as hell and really nasty . '' he had been just a month or two past his sixth birthday then . she asked excitedly , her eyes lighting up . he snatched his hand to his chest , looked at it again , and then shook it out . 