The clouds of darkness shifted, as they were given a voice that could lead to their ultimate defeat.


"Don't worry about it, Dar. I figured you'd need to work late after taking all morning off anyway. I'll just call Steve, or I'll walk home."

Darry watched Soda slide out of the truck and shifted it back into gear. "You going to be okay here? That pain any better?"

Soda shrugged, leaning on the still-open passenger door. "Not that bad. I'll be fine."

"Okay. I'll see you later tonight, little buddy."


I have a right not to want to go out with her.

Steve's pencil pressed hard onto the paper in front of him, the numbers adding, then multiplying.

I don't have to do anything or go out with anybody.

The pencil's lead broke in the middle of the equation.

But what if this means I never will?


Soda's right hand opened, dropping the quarters and dimes into the cash drawer. He heard the sound of the coins clanging together, then started to pick up some pennies, only for them to slide right out from between his fingers.

"Hey, what's taking so long?"

Soda flinched, both at the customer's words and the pain in his fingers, as a tingle shot through them. He switched to his left hand that easily picked up the pennies. "Sorry about that."

"Oh. Don't worry. It ain't a problem. I shouldn't be in such a rush."

Soda counted the four pennies, dropping them into the customer's palm, as he gave her a smile. "Thanks for being patient. You have no idea how much it means."


"Hey, cheer up, man. The day is all over!"

Steve sighed, TwoBit's words not even beginning to make him smile. "Yeah. I just got some shit to work out in my head, and it's going to take some time."

TwoBit patted Steve's back. "I can see that. I really ain't trying to be an ass. I hope you know that."

"Nah. That's cause you don't gotta try. It just comes natural."


"So I don't really know anything yet. But the tests are done."

Mr. Coleman tightened a bolt underneath the hood of the car he was working on, nodding along with what Soda was telling him. "Okay. You should know more soon then. How are you doing anyway?"

Soda ran his fingers along the edges of the toolbox. "Sometimes good. Sometimes not. I've been hurting today, and my hand and arm feel kind of weak. Sore too, but that's cause of one of the tests."

Mr. Coleman looked at Soda's arm, able to see skin that would be sore right now. "Looks like you've got a little bit of bruising there."

"Yeah. It ain't that bad. They stuck needles in my arm."

"The wound itself is healing okay, right? Not giving you any problems?"

Soda could see a bit of a bruise peeking out from underneath the bandage. "Nah. It's been okay. I should be able to leave this off soon. It's really just there now, so nothing hurts the skin that's still trying to heal up some more."

"Okay. Well, keep me posted, Sodapop. For the most part, I think you're doing just fine being back here."


"You can hang here for a while, TwoBit. I'm not working this afternoon."

TwoBit sat down in the Randles' kitchen, putting his feet up on the chair across from him, as he accepted Steve's suggestion. "Sure. Why not? I got nothing better to do."

Steve pulled the chair out from under TwoBit's feet and sat down in it. "Nothing better, huh? Should I be offended by that?"

TwoBit noticed the lack of humor in Steve's question. "Nah. I'm just kidding."

"I know that, you goof."

"Oh. Just making sure. You didn't sound right."

"Yeah. Sorry. Cause I'm not. My head is kind of screwed up right now."

"Cause of Evie?"

"No. Cause I broke a nail. Yes! It's because of Evie."

"All right, all right, no need to get snappy."

Steve held his hands over his face. "Sorry, TwoBit. I don't mean to be an ass to you. It ain't your fault this shit is coming back to bite me."

"You can be an ass to me if it makes you feel better. I can take it."

"Apparently. Or you wouldn't still be sitting here right now."

"Hey, I've got some tough skin."

"I think you're looking for the phrase 'thick skin,' man."

"Yeah. Whatever. You knew what I meant."

"What do you think about graduating, TwoBit?"

"I don't know. It's pretty tuff, right? I mean, no more school. I like it, but I've stuck around long enough."

"Me and Sodapop were talking about it the other day. It's kind of hard to believe, you know?"

"Sure. Hey, you going to wear that cap and gown?"

"Of course. I don't think my dad would let me get out of that one anyway."

"Yeah. My mom's not going to believe it til she sees me in that get-up."

"It doesn't really bother me, I guess. We'll all be wearing it."

"I should ask the school to put 'Two-Bit' on my diploma."

"You do know that's not your real name, right?"

"Yeah, but it's weird cause even my mom only calls me 'Keith' when she's mad or something."

"Yeah. How about that, huh? A couple more months, and we'll be high school graduates."


"Thanks for picking me up, man. I was going to walk but uh, I'm not exactly going home."

Steve's eyebrows furrowed, hearing his car's passenger door close, as Soda slid into the Ford. "What do you mean? You coming to my house?"

Soda fidgeted with the hem of his DX shirt, not looking up at Steve. "No. Not to your house. I'm going to Samuel's, actually. And I know you know exactly where his house is so..."

"Oh. Okay. Good, man. I'm glad." Steve started the car, watching Soda for a moment. "So how were the tests?"

"Not terrible. They shocked me."

"Shocked you? What happened?"

"I mean literally. To test my nerves and muscles and stuff like that."

"Oh. Wow."

"And I had needles in my arm that went into the muscles. It stung like hell when the guy put them in."

"Ouch. So do you know anything about the results yet?"

"Nah. Maybe Monday. Dr. Simons is supposed to call."

Steve started to pull out of the DX's parking lot. "Did you call Samuel already?"

"Yeah. He knows I'm coming over after work."

"You just decide you want to talk to him?"

"Um, yeah. I guess."

Steve drove his car into the flow of traffic, going in the direction of Samuel's neighborhood. "Okay. Good. Like I said, I think you should talk to him. He's real great for that, seriously." The Ford moved along the road, blending in with the vehicles surrounding it. "Evie asked me out today."

Soda's head shot up, his eyes staring at Steve. "She what? What did you say?"

"I told her I don't think it's a good idea. Then, she looked at me like that was crazy and asked why."

"Why? She doesn't know that already?"

"Yeah. Exactly. She tried telling me it's been a long time. It really hasn't, but it's not about time going by. We tried again already."

"Wasn't she seeing some guy?"

"Yeah. They just broke up. Apparently, she's been thinking about me a lot. You don't think I should do it, do you?"

"Do what?"

"Go out with Evie."

"No! I mean, not if you don't want to. You two went through a hell of a lot together, and it ain't been long at all."

"It's messing with my head, Sodapop. I didn't see that coming."

"I didn't either, man."

"I'm not wrong to say no to her?"

"Of course not, Stevie. You broke up with her for a reason, and it's not like that's gone away. You guys really did try too."

"It's just thinking about it makes me wonder what if- what if this is my only chance?"

"Your only chance? What are you talking about?"

"I mean, with Evie, she already knows everything about my past, right? And we still have a connection. We always will. So if she's willing to be with me, even after all this, maybe it's my only chance to have someone."

"Are you saying you think no other girl is ever going to want you?"

"I don't know. I'm just saying it's easier cause she already knows, and she still accepts me."

"Can I say what I'm thinking right now without you getting pissed at me for bringing it up?"

"Yeah. Go ahead. I ain't going to get mad at you, man."

"When you had that flashback while you two were together, and she kissed that other guy right after, she wasn't accepting you then, buddy. I know Evie cares about you, but nothing about that was easy."

"You're right. I know you're right. Even though I do understand where she was coming from. I guess maybe I do think no other girl is going to want me, and it's not like I could just never tell someone I'm with about my past. I'd have to, and I know these same problems would still come up. At least Evie loved me anyway, even after she knew how tough it could get."

"You might not like me for saying this either, but I am."

"What?"

"Are you okay just not being with anyone right now? You've seemed like you are, man."

"Yeah. I guess."

"Then, don't go jumping into something with Evie because you think it's your only shot. You deserve better than that. So does she, honestly. Damn, Stevie, after everything you've been through just recently, it's okay to have time to yourself and not even think about any of that kind of stuff. Please just take some time to breathe. You don't need to figure it out right now, buddy, especially if it bothers you this much and starts making you think things I know hurt you real bad."

Steve crossed the next intersection, before making a right turn onto Samuel's street. "Yeah. Maybe I should do that. But just hearing Evie ask me to go on a date, it got me feeling overwhelmed. I mean, I actually wasn't even thinking about any of it til then anyway. I've got a lot of other things and people in my life, so it's not like it's empty, you know?"

Soda looked at the numbers on the mailboxes passing by, recognizing the address Samuel had told him when Steve's car was approaching the driveway. "It's this one, right?"

"Yep." Steve stopped beside the curb and looked at the familiar sight of Samuel's brick house. He saw that Soda didn't make a move to get out of the car. "You going in, buddy?"

"Yeah. I just- I don't know."

"Do you need me to stay?"

"No! Um, I mean, no. It's okay."

Steve reached over and gave Soda's shoulder a squeeze. "Are you nervous about talking to him?"

"No. Just nervous about some stuff I'm going to say."

"I know what you mean, man. I've been the same way. But it's Samuel. He'll try to help you with stuff, and he'll listen. He always does."


"It's okay, Sodapop. We're just talking, so try to calm down and relax."

Soda listened to Samuel's words, trying to take courage from them, as he also felt the preacher's hand resting on his back. "I can't. I can't calm down. There's a reason I called you when I did."

Samuel watched Soda, the anxiety practically radiating off of him. Feeling a familiar nudge, he closed his eyes and began a prayer. "Father, in the name of Jesus, please touch Soda right now. Give him whatever words he needs and help him feel calmer. Please, God, touch his heart, and help me have the words to speak too. Amen."

"Steve's been doing that too."

Soda opened his eyes, finding Soda's gaze meeting his own for the first time since he'd come inside the house. "Doing what? Praying?"

"Yeah. He'll hug me or just sit here like this, and he'll pray outloud."

"From what I've seen of you two, that doesn't surprise me."

"What I want to tell you, I'm afraid to tell Steve or my brother. But I know both of them would want to know. I'm just not sure what they'd say, and that scares me."

"Okay."

"I wasn't going to tell anybody, but I don't know if I could do something worse, and that scares me too. So I think I should cause maybe that could help. Or it might not."

"There's only one way to find out."

"Before, I would've thought I couldn't even think about doing anything like that, but now, I have felt like it kind of a lot. And just knowing about Steve makes me realize I didn't think he could either, but then, he did. So maybe I could too."

"You could what, Sodapop? What are we talking about here?"

Soda stared back at Samuel, sending up his own prayer for words that would explain. "I'm talking about how I've felt like hurting myself."

"Have you talked to anyone else about this? Is that what you're afraid to tell Steve or your brother?"

Tears filled Soda's eyes, as he shook his head. "No. They both know about it. I told Steve on Sunday. You know, when I was outside after church."

"And that was also when he asked me to talk to you. That was why?"

"Well, it's probably not the only reason cause I've had more than that going on. I'm not sure what he's told you."

"Not very much. Basically that the memories of the shooting are bothering you."

"Yeah. They are, then I had these thoughts about wanting to die or just not be here anymore. But it's gotten worse. It's like this urge sometimes, and I think I couldn't even describe it if Steve didn't get it the way he does."

"All right. So did something happen that you're afraid to tell either of them?"

"Yeah. It did. Cause I was feeling like that again yesterday. Not all the time, but just later. I went back to work on Monday. It's been pretty okay mostly. But yesterday, I kind of had a flashback there, and it really upset me."

"It seems like anyone would have a difficult time returning after what you experienced. I think it'd be hard to go back at all."

"It was worse when I first went back inside the DX right after the shooting. It's not easy now, but I've been able to get through. I was okay today. I guess it just depends on stuff and what's going on around me."

"Absolutely."

"I mean, when people come inside, sometimes I get jumpy. I get scared easy. And if anything reminds me of the robber, it's hard cause I go right back to that night."

"So you had a flashback at work, then later, you felt like hurting yourself?"

"Yeah."

Samuel waited for Soda to continue, only to be met with silence. He leaned closer to him, a hand on his shoulder, as he attempted to catch his gaze. "What happened, Sodapop? Whatever it is, you can tell me. I know you and I don't talk often, but when we have, you've told me things that were hard for you to say."

Soda squeezed his eyes shut, a few tears seeping out. "I held my head underwater. I tried to stay there. I never wanted to come back up or breathe again."

Samuel's mind momentarily flashed to Matthew and the water that had taken him under, making him drown. Yet, he forced himself to focus on what Soda was telling him. "Where did this happen? What water?"

"In the bath tub. I just wanted to relax, but then, it was almost full, and I tried. I tried to stay under."

Samuel saw more tears drip onto Soda's cheeks and started to rub his back. "Why? What is it you wanted to happen?"

"Just what I said. I didn't want to breathe again. It felt good at first too. Cause I was in the water, and I couldn't think or anything."

"So then what?"

"My chest started to get tight, and it didn't feel good anymore. I had to come back up. I had to breathe. But I still didn't want to."

Samuel slipped his arm around Soda's shoulders, his own emotion beginning to tangle with this young boy's pained confessions. "Sodapop, are you telling me you were hoping you'd drown if you stayed under the water long enough?"

Soda nodded, finding the urge to sob had grown even greater than the instinct that had made him come up for air. "Yeah. I mean, I just wanted to lose myself in there, not have to feel anything anymore. Cause I keep hurting. Ever since I got shot, a bunch of times, I've wanted to be dead or just gone, and I've never been like that before."

Samuel took a moment to catch his own breath, aching inside at the idea of desiring to drown and greatly troubled by this insight into Soda's fragile state of mind. "I want you to know something, okay? I get what you're feeling. I do. I've been where I didn't care if I lived or died and didn't want to feel anything ever again because it seemed like there was nothing but pain. But you're here talking to me, and I know you've been talking to Steve and to your brother. So that tells me you know you can recover. You can feel better than you do right now. You're not handling all this pain alone. You're letting us help you through it, even though you can't see past it the way you want to."

"I'm trying to get through it, and I don't even understand all of it. I just don't feel right inside. I mean, I feel better sometimes, but never for long."

Samuel put his other arm around Soda and drew him into a hug, letting him sob into his shoulder. "I hope you can still say you know you much you're loved, and I hope it means something."

"I do know, and it means a lot to me. No matter who I talk to, everyone's always telling me too."

"I know I haven't known you very long, Sodapop, and I sure don't know you as well as Steve or your brothers or even Nicholas. But you told me you don't understand the pain you're going through, and I think maybe I do."


"That doesn't mean she's avoiding you, Dad. Maybe she's just not home."

Nicholas sighed and put the phone receiver back in its cradle, realizing Steve spoke logical truth. "I know, Son. I'm just worried."

Steve peeked inside the oven at the casserole that was baking, heat moving onto his face, before he closed it. "What are you worried about?"

"What if I did scare her away? Or what if she's thinking about everything I told her, and she sees me differently?"

"Dad, I think she really loves you. She's not just going to decide to ditch you because of something you told her that happened a long time ago."

"But I even told her the things I did wrong. What if-?"

Steve touched Nicholas' shoulder, his voice soft, even as he cut off the anxious questions. "Stop it, Dad. If anything, maybe she's just trying to let what she heard sink in, and if she does see you differently, it won't be in a bad way."

"How could that not be bad?"

"Cause she'll see how strong you are, and she'll get how much you've changed since then. She'll see you're being honest with her too."

A smile came over Nicholas' face, as he looked at Steve. "When did you get so wise, Son?"

"I don't know. I guess it happened somewhere between feeling like hell all the time and being a smart ass. I picked up some wisdom along the way."


"You've been through more already than most your age could ever imagine or comprehend, Sodapop. It didn't just start the night you got shot."

Soda felt Samuel's words move through him, giving life to a sense of validation. "Yeah. I guess I have. Starting with when my parents died. It's hard to believe how much more has happened since then too."

Samuel popped ice cubes out of the tray he'd just taken out of the freezer, adding some to each of the two glasses in front of him. "I'm sure I don't know everything, but just from what I do know, I wouldn't be surprised if other things, especially grief and even past fears, are contributing to what you're feeling now."

"Yeah. Maybe. That'd make a lot of sense to me. It sure feels like there's more going on."

Samuel refilled the ice tray with water, then put it back in the freezer. "I think sometimes bad things that happen have a way of drawing others back to the surface. Especially if similar feelings are involved. I know I've experienced that, even at times when I was seeing someone else going through pain, not necessarily going through it myself. But you know how much that can hurt too."

"I do." Soda looked over at Samuel, seeing him pour lemonade in both glasses. "Can we go sit outside? Please? It just helps me, I guess."

"Sure we can, if that's what helps you." Samuel picked up the glasses and motioned for Soda to follow him out the door, both of them stepping onto the front porch.

Soda sat down in one of the rocking chairs, taking the cold glass of lemonade Samuel handed him. "I just needed to tell someone, you know? I couldn't keep it to myself. I can't ever do that with anything, not even when I really try."

Samuel took a swallow from his glass, before setting it on the table that stood between the two rocking chairs. "Do you know why you couldn't keep yourself in that water, why you didn't drown?"

Soda tasted the lemonade, its soured sweetness touching his taste buds, as the fresh air blew onto his skin. "Because it was shallow, and I had to breathe, even though I felt like I didn't want to be alive anymore."

"Right. But your physical body doesn't give up that easily, Sodapop. Even if you're in pain, it's going to fight to survive. It'll do whatever it can to breathe and stay alive."

Soda held the lemonade in his hands, the ice cubes beginning to melt and condensation forming on the glass. "But I'm still afraid I could do something really bad. Like I'll hurt myself, and it won't be so simple."

"I'm concerned about that too. I'm more concerned about why you tried to make yourself stay under water than I am anything else. What you did isn't particularly dangerous, but what you were thinking could be."

"It's good to be able to talk about it. I wanted to so bad last night. But I don't want to hurt my brother or Steve, and I don't want them to be mad at me. I mean, like I told you, they already know everything else, how I've been feeling and stuff. But this makes it worse. I remember how Steve was afraid to be alone cause he felt like he might do something to hurt himself. And now, I wonder if I should be too."


"It's just a casserole, Dad. It's not like it was hard to make."

Nicholas pushed his fork into another chunk of creamy chicken, as he replied to Steve. "But it is good, Son. You're going to be cooking more often now. You know that, right?"

Steve rolled his eyes, as he stirred the rice and chicken that made up the casserole. "Yeah, right. You like cooking. Not that I can't see why." He looked down at the plate, pondering an earlier conversation that had yet to leave his mind. "Dad, what if I can never be with anyone again? What if I don't even really want to?"

"Do you mean what if you can't ever be in a relationship with a woman again?"

"Yeah. I mean that."

"You're young, Steve, and if you don't want to be, that's okay. I can understand why you'd feel that way too."

"Did you ever think you wouldn't?"

"Yes. I did think that. It would've been hard not to, especially since I wasn't exactly looking."

"Evie asked me to go on a date with her, but I can't imagine doing that."

"That's not surprising, Son. Not after everything. I'm sure it wouldn't be very comfortable."

"But I don't think I'd say 'yes' to any girl right now. It just sounds too overwhelming to me."

"Then, you don't have to. I wouldn't expect you to date now, honestly. I think it's too soon after everything you've been confronting, especially with the issues you and Evie had to handle."

"But, I mean, you didn't really answer my question, Dad. What if I can't ever date or be in a relationship because the same stuff always messes it up for me?"

"I don't think it'll always be that way, Son. I really don't."

"I don't even know how it wouldn't be. I think it'll always be like that, and I can't imagine it ever changing."


"Steve brought you over here, right? Do you need a lift home?"

Soda felt the tears in his eyes again, as he shook his head in response to Samuel's second question. "No. He said he'd come back and get me. Should be here soon."

Samuel touched Soda's shoulder. "Hey, I want you to know something, okay? I'm glad you came and talked to me, and it all stays between us. You can trust me."

"Okay. Thanks for saying that."

"You can call me anytime you want, and when I'm home, the door is always open, Sodapop. But I also want to say no one who cares about you is going to be mad at you for anything you tell them. I don't know your brother, but I've heard enough to get that you're close. I do know Steve, and the only thing he wants is to help you."

"Yeah. Me and Darry are close, and I can see that with Steve all the time."

"So let them be there for you completely. I'm not saying you have to tell them everything, but just remember you can. And even if you don't tell either of them or anybody else what you told me earlier, can I ask you to do one thing?"

"What?"

"You said you wonder if you should be afraid to be alone, so I think you should try not to be. Especially if you had a bad day or something happened that's bothering you at all. You said that both Steve and Darry know how you've been feeling, so I'm sure they can help with that. I can too, if you need me."

"Yeah. You're probably right. Everything seems to get worse anyway when I'm alone, not even just the thoughts about hurting myself. I'll get real anxious or have bad flashbacks."

"This is something I know you've heard me say often, but please remember that even when it doesn't seem like it, God is with you in whatever you're feeling. When it hurts, he still loves you within the pain, and anything you need to say, he'll always listen."


"Hey, preacher guy, did you save me some of that lemonade?"

Samuel responded to Steve's inquiry by pouring him a glass. "Of course, Steve. What do you take me for?"

Steve took the glass of lemonade from Samuel. "I'm not sure. I'm still trying to figure it out." He sipped the drink, eyes searching the house. "So where's Sodapop? I thought he'd be ready to go by now."

Samuel nodded toward the hallway. "He's back there in the spare bedroom. He just needed a minute to himself."

"Oh. So, um-" Steve looked toward the bedroom he knew had once belonged to Samuel's son, seeing the door was open only a crack. "Can I or-?"

"Go talk to him if you want to, Steve. You know Sodapop better than I do."

"He talked to you, right? I mean, I'm not asking what he said or anything like that. I wouldn't cause that's not right. But he seemed nervous earlier, so I just wondered."

"Yes. He did. We talked quite a bit."

"I told him he should talk to you because it helped me too."

Samuel saw Steve's gaze still lingering down the hallway. "Go on, Steve. Go see how he's doing. He'd do the same thing for you."


"God, if I feel like that again, could I just stop and tell you about it? Would that help me?"

Steve didn't make out the words of Soda's whispered prayer, as he looked in on his best friend, who was seated on the bed in the corner right across from the wooden chest that held many of Matthew's toys. "Hey, buddy."

Soda gave Steve a grin, though his heart was still caught in silent prayer. "Hey."

Steve entered the room, joining Soda at the foot of the bed. "So how was it talking to Samuel?"

"It was good, I think. I guess I, um, got a little bit more off my chest."

"Yeah. He's good for that."

"Stevie, I, uh, I'm not saying that I did or anything, but if I ever do- I mean, I'm not saying I will, but..."

Steve put a hand on Soda's arm when he heard his words trail off. "You're not saying you will what?"

Soda met Steve's eyes for barely a second, before looking away again, his thought tumbling out before he could think about it further. "If I did ever try to hurt myself, would you be mad at me?"

"No, buddy. I wouldn't be mad at you."

"So if anything ever happened, and I really did do something like that, or even just almost, you wouldn't be mad?"

"No. I wouldn't. Nowhere near it, man."

"Okay."

Steve moved his hand from Soda's arm to his shoulder. "After all I went through, I could never be mad at you for anything like that, buddy."

"I guess I should know that, huh?"

"I would hope that you do, but I know how much some feelings can make you worry about those kinds of things."

"I was mad at you, Stevie."

"You were? When?"

"Right after you overdosed, when you were still in the hospital. I didn't want to be, but I couldn't help it."

"Oh. I didn't know that."

"I didn't want you to know then. But I was mad because you did it and you meant to. Cause you went and got the pills, even though you came close to taking them before. I was mad because you kept saying you didn't want to die, but you tried to anyway."

Steve squeezed Soda's shoulder, the grief from his own suicide attempt building up within him. "But that anger didn't stop you from being there for me, and it didn't stop you from trying to help me not be so mad at myself."

"No. Of course it didn't."

"Sodapop, did you do something, or almost do something, that you think I'd be mad at you for?"

"No! I just- I was just thinking, and I don't know, wondering about stuff."

"You're not good at hiding, buddy. If anything did happen, I won't be mad at you. I promise. Just remember that."

"I'm going to tell Darry I want to see the counselor."

"Good. I think it could help you."

"I'm still not really comfortable with the whole idea, but I feel like there's too much going on, and I can't- I just can't sort it out. I'm not getting better either."

"I know you've got Darry, but I'll even go with you too, if you want, man."

"You'd do that?"

"Of course I would. I'd do anything for you, buddy."

"Thanks, Stevie. And not just for that. I know I've been awful hard to put up with lately."

"Well, it's not like I'm easy to put up with. But seriously, I want to be here for you, so don't even say that."

"What I said about being mad at you, I want you to know I didn't stay mad long. It was just at first when it was hitting me real hard what happened."

"Have you been thinking about that a lot? You've brought it up more than once lately. I mean, even besides when you told me you felt like hurting yourself."

"Yeah. I guess I have been thinking about it a lot."

"It seems like it's because there were things you couldn't tell me then, so they're coming out now."

"Yeah. I guess they are."

"Is there more?"

"I don't know. Maybe."

Steve pulled Soda into a hug, his eyes filled with tears that were on the verge of falling. "I'm sorry that's bothering you, buddy. So sorry."

Soda returned the embrace, guilt moving in to wrap around his heart, as he heard the shake in his friend's voice. "No. Don't do that, Stevie. Please don't feel bad. I shouldn't have said anything about it at all."

Steve only cried, his face buried in Soda's shoulder.

Soda closed his eyes, holding onto Steve, as he resumed his prayers, this time seeking God's touch on behalf of his best friend.