"New Orlean, Crescent City!"

Snafu stood up from his seat. Suddenly he felt like his heart was made from a brass or something as heavy. In some cases Merriell Shelton could be a sensitive person. It didn't happend very often, but it did. And it was one of these situation. He took his bag and looked at sleeping Eugene Sledge, sitting in front of him. Sledgehammer looked very calm with that subtle smile on his face. He haven't got any idea in what condition was his friend at that moment. Snafu felt like something was tearing him from the inside. He didn't want to let go without saying a word to Gene. But, in the other hand, what could he say? "I have to go, see you... Someday"? Or maybe just simple "Good bye, Sledgehammer"? To be honest, he didn't want to go at all. Even his home here, in Louisiana, didn't seem so good to live in. What scared him the most, it seemed that for him any place where was no Sledge didn't seem good place to be in.

After few minutes, Snafu bited his mouth and finally stopped looking at his friend. Friend? Not really. Gene was someone even more important than friend. And Shelton just couldn't deny it. He turned away, still fighting little war with himself. Brain kept saying "Leave", but heart – "Stay here. It's the place you should be in, remember?". Next moment of hard thinking... And decision was irrevocable. Snafu put his bag on the right place and sat on his seat again. He knew that he've been risking, but he knew as well that it've been his last chance. When the train moved, he just had a smoke and tried to not to think what could possibly happenned if Gene would just laughed at him.
"Where are we?" asked Eugene, stubbornly trying not to yawn. He rubbed his eyes and looked at Snafu questionigly.

"Dunno, somewhere in Louisiana" answered Snafu casually. He weren't even looking at Sledge.
"Really? Oh, so I guess we'll be in New Orleans for a short time, am I right?" Eugene was pretty upset that he's going to leave his friend soon.

"Actually..." started Snafu carefully. "We left it about, dunno, an hour ago?"

"So why you're still here?" Sledge seemed crestfallen because of this situation. He looked at his friend, waiting for the explanations. For the first time he saw pain and sorrow in Shelton's eyes and it seriously worried him.

"What happened?"
"Well..." Snaf knew he haven't been ready but he had to say the true right then. "I couldn't come out from this goddamn train."

"Why?" asked Eugene, wrinkling his forehead. He couldn't believe that it is really happening.

"Can you stop asking me these fucking stupid questions?" Shelton snarled and drunk a gulp of cola.

"Tell me the truth" ordered Eugene calmly and quietly.

They were looking at each others' eyes for a longer while, when finally Snafu leaned over the table whispered nervously:

"Okay, I just didn't want to leave you, God damn it. Are ya satisfied with that answered, for fuck's sake?"

Sledge seemed pretty shocked. He opened his mouth and blinked quickly few times in a row.

"Are you serious?" he asked with trembling voice. He couldn't believe in what he heard. It was like someone just hist him in the head. In positive way, of course. Their relationship have turned into something more than friendship and it was hard to not to see it. Gene have realized it long time ago and couldn't fool himself. Neither he could fool Snafu.

"Gene" said Snafu with low voice. "Say you want me to go with ya. Say this fucking yes."

Eugene didn't say simple word, he just smiled. For Snafu it meant more than even a million words. He grinned, happy and satisfied.

"I'm glad you stayed, Snafu" admitted Eugene happily. He found out Shelton's hand under the table and touched it gently. Merriell budged a bit, looked at the window and said:

"Here we fucking are, Alabama."