She snorts, amused. Not a bad way to get to the top, really. Butcher feels less amusing, her little smile fading as she talks:

“Some shit went down at home for him and I told him to put some effort into the graduation thing. He got real nasty with me.” She rolls her eyes. She shouldn’t have pushed him, probably. “A couple weeks later he had some epiphany and decided to do just that, but his apology blew and he’s been real patronizing since, so...”

She shrugs. After Joel, sticking by someone marginally more open but equally distant doesn’t feel worth it, but maybe she’s bitter, too. She feels bitter.