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Is bringing it up idiomatic in this particular context?

A: So when did he let you know he was dating your ex?

B: He didn't really. Not until recently.

A: Didn't you talk to him?

B: I ran into him a few times, but I guess he felt more comfortable not bringing it up.

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    Yes, that's natural.
    – Katy
    Jan 29, 2022 at 17:16
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    Arguably to bring [some subject matter X] up tends to imply steering the conversation towards X, where X is a topic familiar to all conversants (who may or may not wish to talk about X). But in the cited context it's being used to mean presenting new information (...he felt more comfortable not telling me). Which is "okay", but might lead to misunderstandings in certain contexts.
    – FumbleFingers
    Jun 30 at 16:53
  • It's totally natural speech. Ignore the above comment about "bringing up..." not being used to talk about new information or causing confusion in that context - it is completely incorrect. You can absolutely "bring up" new information, and this is one very typical use of the phrase.
    – BadZen
    Jul 31 at 5:00
  • I also think there is a distinction to be made between just mentioning a fact and consciously or purposely introducing a new subject or a new aspect in a given conversation, which is, I think, what "to bring sth up" means. If I were the person of your example, I would rather "mention" a detail such as dating B's ex than start a conversation about it.
    – Maria A.
    Jul 31 at 15:16

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Absolutely. It's a perfectly natural usage.

The "alternative" use would be something like, "I guess he felt that bringing it up would be awkward."

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