"Hey, Dar, I think you've got a bite!"

Darry felt the tug on his fishing line, as he stood next to Soda on the dock. "I think you're right, little buddy."

Soda kept an eye on his own line, as he watched Darry begin to pull, reeling just a little bit. "Get him, Darry! Show that fish who's boss!"

Darry chuckled, the continued tug on the line telling him to reel it in some more. "Can you box up some of that enthusiasm for me, Pepsi Cola? I need it for my guys at work."

"Sure. I'll put some right in a tupperware bowl, just like Maryanne did with the- Hey, I think I've got a bite too!"

"Well, that's okay. It's not like I was expecting you to go to church with me or anything like that."

Katie's eyes moved down, staring at the faded jeans she wore rather than at Steve. "So is everyone else in your life religious?"

Steve scooted closer to Katie, his hand covering one of hers to create a spark that made his skin tingle. "Yes. Soda, my dad, and Audrey all believe in God. I'm close friends with the pastor at our church. His name is Samuel. But, Katie, I won't try to make you believe if you don't, okay? And neither will they. I know that's not something you can force. It's different, but I had to decide to come to God on my own too. He and I weren't always on speaking terms."

"The concept of God makes no sense to me. Neither does the idea of doing what an invisible being wants me to do. I can't come to something I think couldn't possibly exist."

"I guess that's what's different then. I always believed God was there. I just wasn't too happy with him because of certain things that happened."

"That's something else that bothers me. Such awful things do happen to people. It's hard to believe there's a God who supposedly loves us all when that's the case. If he were really there, the world couldn't be that way. It'd be a much better place."

"So it's just not logical for you?"

"Exactly. I've never seen any proof of God. I don't see him. I don't feel him. Religion simply isn't for me."

"Hey, Stevie, you should've seen the catfish I caught!"

Steve heard Soda's voice, as his best friend entered their apartment. "You hooked a big one, huh?"

Soda went into the kitchen, putting an aluminum foil-covered plate in the refrigerator. "Yep. Then, Darry fried up all the fish we caught, so I brought some here too. So did you make it over to Katie's?"

"Yeah. We talked and studied."

"Ooh. So what did you study? Maybe a little chemistry and biology?"

"That's such a corny high school joke, man."

"Yeah, I know. I need a new one. But anyway, did ya'll have a nice time?"

"Yeah, I guess. She told me she doesn't believe in God."

"Oh. Um, what'd you say then?"

"That it's okay, and I won't try to make her believe. I almost feel like I can relate, but I really can't. I used to be angry with God and didn't want to pray or even hear about him. But that's not the same as being sure he doesn't exist. I can't even wrap my head around that one."

"I can't either. I know I used to not pray much and didn't think I needed God or anything. But I never thought he wasn't there."

"It's funny because Katie thinks believing in God isn't logical, and she doesn't see any proof. I can see proof everywhere. For me, it'd be illogical not to believe. Maybe I used to doubt everything about God, but I can't imagine thinking he's not there."

"Yeah. He's definitely there."

"She thinks the bad things that happen in the world couldn't if God exists. I can sort of understand that, but at the same time, I know God doesn't cause those things. I used to blame him for not stopping them, but he didn't make them happen."

"Yeah. It's like we've heard at church. There's bad stuff in the world. God didn't want it to be that way though. It's why he had Jesus come here."

"Katie and I didn't even get to that part of it. But she did tell me it doesn't make sense to her to do what somebody wants when she can't see them."

"Well, that probably means she wouldn't like the idea of askin' God for forgiveness or for anything really."

"Yeah. I'm not sure what to do with this. I mean, it's her choice to believe or not. But faith is a big part of me now and has been for a while. She talks like she's so certain, and it's almost like listening to the reverse of one of Samuel's sermons. I know I needed a reason to think God cares about me, but even with the feelings I'd stored inside, I always had a reason to believe."

"Yes, sweetie. I'll talk to my coworker tomorrow and ask about coming to see the kittens."

Emily felt Samuel kiss her forehead, as she settled under her sparkly pink comforter. "How many are there, Daddy? Do I get to pick which one I want?"

Samuel took a copy of The Cat in the Hat off Emily's bookshelf, then sat down on the bed with her. "I think there were six, and yes, I would guess so. Unless, of course, there's one the kids there are wanting to keep."

"Oh. Okay. I'll name it Macaroni, no matter what color it is. Uncle Soda said I could call it Mac."

"That sounds good. Now, let's read your story, then get you off to sleep."

"Do you remember that, Soda? Do you remember what I was like?"

Soda joined Steve in the living room, as his best friend stood in front of the window that overlooked a now-quiet parking lot. "Do I remember what you were like about what?"

Steve's eyes moved from the ground that was three stories down, looking up at a sky that had carried so many of his prayers. "God. How I was angry. How I couldn't even stand it when my dad talked about church or Samuel or the Bible. I remember how I slammed it shut and started asking you guys all the questions in my head."

"I remember that too, and I understood why you felt the way you did. It made me wish I could give you answers, but I didn't have them. All I had was the promise that we were both there for you."

Steve felt Soda's arm wrap around his shoulders, his gaze not leaving the sky where he'd often looked in times of grief and pain. "I knew you were too, so that made me able to get it all out. There probably wasn't even an answer I would've accepted then. But I needed to ask those questions and be heard."

"I know you did, Stevie."

"I wanted God to hear me too because I thought he should know how angry I was at him and how bad it hurt to think he must not have loved me enough to heal my mom or stop Clara from abusing me."

"I'm sure he wanted you to be honest, buddy."

"It was hard to understand how he could let me feel so bad. But if I hadn't felt like I wanted to die, I might not have ever decided to try trusting him. I might have just kept thinking he didn't care."

"And if you hadn't started talkin' to him, you wouldn't have been there to pray for me. I don't know exactly what God did during those kinds of moments, but I do know he was with us. I even think he sort of led you and helped with what to say and when. Not that I want to take away from the fact that you know me real well, and you're great at being a friend. I just think God had a hand in it too."

"Of course he did."

Soda leaned his head forward, giving Steve a grin, as he caught his eyes. "So do you feel a little better now? I hear you on all of it, and I want you to know it's okay if you've still got some of those questions you had back then. Maybe I don't have the answers this time either, but I can see how talking to Katie about God could bring them up again."

"It feels so personal to me. I know it's her belief, and she has a right to have it. But God is more than that for me. He's not just something I believe is there."

"Yeah, I know he's not. He ain't that for me either."

"I do still have some of those questions. But they come from a different place now. I'm not mad anymore, and I don't blame God. I just wonder if there could've been another way for me to turn out to be the person I am. Did it all really have to be that bad? Why couldn't I have had my mom a little longer? Why couldn't my dad find out about the abuse sooner than he did? I wonder why I had to suffer that much."

"I don't know either, Stevie. I wish I could explain it, but I think there are some things we just don't get to know about life and why stuff happens the way it does."

"Yeah, I guess that's true. It has to be true." Steve backed away from the window, sitting down on the couch, as he held a hand out to Soda. "Would you pray with me right now, buddy?"

Soda took the offered hand, as he sat beside Steve. "Sure I will." He put his other hand on his best friend's shoulder, as he closed his eyes.

Steve followed suit, his own eyes closing, as he began an internal prayer.

Soda didn't wait for Steve to speak aloud, choosing to do so himself. "God, please give Steve the best words to say to Katie about what he believes. I know it's important to him to be able to do that, even if she doesn't see this kind of stuff the same way. Maybe we don't really understand what she thinks, but you do. You understand everything, even when it doesn't make sense to us. It's not hard for you at all. Help Steve have peace with his questions too. I love him with all my heart, and I want him to have that."

Steve felt his spirit move along with Soda's spoken words, envisioning the prayer going up to meet God right where he lived.

Soda allowed himself to fall silent, as he squeezed Steve's hand in solidarity.

Both heads remained bowed, each pair of eyes still closed, as the aforementioned glow returned to shine upon two men whose souls would never separate.