Ebenezer doesn't know this child. He might not have been in school at all during Ebenezer's tenure, let alone his most infamous years. There's no reason for him to perpetuate a long-dead lie. He could shed it here, now and forever.

But.

"Not since high school," he answers simply. Then, because he can't help himself, he keeps talking. "But I'll tell you that long distance is much easier than people like to make it out to be. It's all about communication."