The next morning saw more rain, but gentler than yesterday afternoon's. It pelted softly against the window of Dave's room where he sat on the bed, knees bent up right and arms folded over them. He had his face hidden in his elbow, too sensitive to the light to look up at the moment. He'd been up since 5 AM being completely sick and hungover. Rose stood against his closed door, arms crossed over her chest and head bowed slightly.

"You have to tell John," Dave said, voice hoarse and weary. "You can't keep that from him. Not that."

"I know," she replied quietly.

The truth was that Rose had actually uncovered the fate of the trolls about three days ago. The shock was a bit to take in for her but she had been keeping the secret because she knew how upset John would be. Dave and Jade too, for that matter. Given all that was happening right now she wasn't sure how to add more to plate. Yet keeping it from them made her feel guilty. It also weighed on her mind more than she thought it would. Despite not knowing the trolls for that long, there was still a sense of comradeship and attachment formed between the two species. Even more so when the trolls had assisted in the successful reset of their session. The plan had been to erase Sburb's existence with it. The troll version of it too. That way perhaps things would look up for them both.

While the plan had succeeded on Earth, Alternia had not been as lucky. Somehow the change in time and space that occurred to restart everything tore their universe to bits. Not all at once but over a short period of time it crumbled and destroyed all life in it. Or so was the explanation Karkat gave in the letter Rose had found in the bowels of the internet. He hadn't explained much in detail but just enough, in his own unique way, to give her an idea. He had said there was really no reason for it but that it had happened this way and so be it. The letter had been a little strange in all honesty but then again Rose hadn't ever really known Karkat that well. She had been disappointed that his was the only farewell message she had discovered.

"I'll tell him tomorrow."

"At the festival? Go figure. Gotta make the first date as dark and awkward as fuck, don't you."

Rose's cheeks turned slightly red and she lifted her head to glare at him. "We're going there to keep an eye on you and Jade. We're both more than a little concerned about you."

"Uh-huh." Dave winced a little at the pounding in his head. God, somebody just shoot him. Why did he think drinking would ever be a good idea? He had never, ever been able to hold alcohol well. "Is she back?"

"No, not yet."

He grimaced. So she spent the night with Elliot after all. He didn't have the energy to be upset by it. Not that he should be but he was anyway.

"What time is it?" he asked after a pause.

Rose arched an eyebrow at him. Dave didn't see it but the silence made him grumble, "Shut up, it's eight in the morning. I know."

"Try and get some sleep."

"Try not to sulk and be gloomy too much. It just makes John worry about you."

Rose seemed offended, replying stiffly, "I've been fine thus far, haven't I?" She was good at keeping secrets and concealing things, after all. "Worry about yourself right now."

"John's my bro I gotta look after him, man. You wouldn't understand, being a chick."

"It's hard to take you seriously with your face hidden like that. Then again, I suppose it's hard to ever take you seriously."

"Fuck off I'm about to blow chunks."

Rose sighed and opened the door as Dave sprung off the bed and darted off toward the bathroom. She left his room and retreated to her own. She was exhausted herself. The day was spent sleeping for both of the Derse siblings. They remained largely oblivious to the happenings of the day, including John heading out to fetch Jade and the two siblings exploring the wilderness together. They returned in the evening and sat on the porch swing together in silence.

"I broke up with Elliot."

John glanced up, eyebrows arching in surprise. "What, really? Last night?"

"Yes… but it was so late and I was tired so he let me stay, but…" Jade trailed off and bowed her head a little, looking troubled. "I have to tell Dave, right?"

"Uh.. if you want, I guess. I'm sure he'd be glad. He never really liked the guy."

Jade laughed quietly. "Not that."

"Oh."

John hesitated on his next words. He really had wanted Jade to tell Dave the truth about her situation but now he wasn't so sure. Dave would be glad to know Elliot was out of the picture. Now something could maybe finally happen between those two. Hopefully. John knew they both wanted to be together without either of them ever telling him. It was way obvious. Jade's situation, though…

"Yeah, you should," he finally relented. "He's going to be really mad you kept it from him, though."

"I know. I feel bad that I did. The more I think about it the more I realize it wasn't fair. I mean, I was going to tell him yesterday but then Elliot showed up and I never got the chance…" Jade sighed heavily and leaned back against the swing, rocking it back and forth lightly with her foot. "Not that that's an excuse…"

John yawned suddenly, rubbing his eyes underneath his glasses. Jade smiled softly and patted his shoulder. She pushed him forward slightly, earning a look from him. "Are you worn out?"

"Hehe… yeah, a little. I can't keep up with you when it comes to outdoor adventures."

Jade grinned. "No one can, you know!"

He waved her off and stood up. "Yeah, yeah…" He paused heading toward the door. He glanced over his shoulder at her, expression oddly serious. "Just tell him, okay? He might overreact or something dumb like that but… he should know."

Jade bit her lip and then nodded once. "Okay."

The summer festival was a town tradition. Apparently it was the reason people even came to visit this remote place at all. It was a big deal. The town had been setting up for it over the course of the several days and finally the day for it arrived. It started mid-afternoon and lasted well into the night. The rain clouds all seemed to have fled in the face of such a cheerful mood that washed over the town. The town itself seemed to be transformed with colorful decorations and flowers to celebrate the good times of summer. Supposedly the thing lasted for three days. Despite the heavy mood that had settled over the quartet, they attended it as they had planned. They went during the evening just as the sun was setting and night was creeping across the sky.

Jade was cheerful which made Dave grumpier. Not that he wasn't glad to see Jade a little more perky than she had been during this whole trip but her mood was probably because she had made up with her boyfriend. Even so, everyone and everything was in such a cheerful mood that even Dave's dark rain clouds couldn't resist it for very long. He enjoyed time spent with his friends and so he enjoyed this. The four of them wandered the festival which was less old fashion and more a mix of a modern carnival and some town traditions. They even had a maypole for some reason and even Jade's puppy dog eyes couldn't force Dave to dance with the multicolored ribbons hanging from it. She got John and Rose to, though. Dave had no problem being an observer, watching her laugh and twirl and collide with people.

Eventually they split up after John's subtle nudging and winking at Dave to do so. He'd done a good job keeping Rose distracted from cornering him and asking if he'd made any confessions to Jade. Dave appreciated it because any time Rose's focus wasn't on him was the best time. So they parted because Jade wanted to see a flower display they had set up. As Dave and Jade sauntered off in that direction, Rose realized it was now or never to bite the bullet and give up a confession of her own. He was the only one who didn't know about the trolls now. (After Jade had returned she had told her.)

"John. There's something I wish to speak to you about."

John cocked his head toward her, somewhat distracted by a food stand nearby. "Oh? Okay. Hold on, let's get something over there first."

Rose smiled slightly and nodded. After John acquired some of the fried dough they were selling, they retreated up a small hill on the outskirts of the festival. It overlooked it and Rose found it a very nostalgic looking view. They settled under the tree there.

"I discovered the whereabouts of the trolls," Rose said after a moment of silence.

John perked up immediately. "Really? Did you talk to them? Where are they? Back on their planet, right?"

"Well, they… they were, but…" Rose was discovering that telling John this was a lot harder than telling Jade and Dave. She wasn't sure why. "They didn't make it. I'm sorry, John. I found a letter from Karkat. I have it for you to read, if you would like."

John's face immediately fell, eyes widening from shock. He looked away, lowering his gaze to his feet. Slowly he put down the plate of the half eaten dough and for a few awful seconds, didn't say anything. Rose quietly took the folded up paper from the small purse she was carrying over her shoulder.

"I must apologize to you," she continued softly. "I discovered this a few days ago but had been hesitant to inform everyone. You were the last one to be told because I… well, I'm not sure. I suppose I knew you would take it the hardest."

John held out his hand to her and Rose placed the letter in his palm. He curled his fingers around it and stared at it for the longest time. Then he folded his arms over his bent up knees and looked away, letter in his hand but unread.

"To be honest… I think I kind of knew. It was kind of weird that they never contacted us again after everything happened. We knew they could since they did it once before. I started thinking, 'What if something happened to them?' and that made me upset so I stopped thinking it. I started making up excuses in my head that they were just busy or something. But a part of me knew better. I guess… I was right."

Rose bowed her head slightly, saddened by this but slightly relieved that John had at least been somewhat prepared for the news. Abruptly he slumped sideways and rested his head on her shoulder, causing her to stiffen in surprise. After a few moments she slowly relaxed.

"Thanks, Rose."

"Thanks?"

"Yeah. For doing all that work and finding out for sure. I appreciate it."

Rose moved her hand and hesitantly laid it over his. "You're welcome."

"Can we just stay here like this? I don't think I really feel like going back."

"I would like that as I am inclined to agree."

John smiled.

The flower display was about as exciting as Dave expected it to be. Brightly colored floral life, oh boy. What a thrill. They weren't even swaying in a breeze. They were just there for people to stare at. People like Jade who was enamored with them regardless. She spent several minutes talking to the owner about what flowers they were, how they were grown, how they had been cut and other details about gardening that could not interest Dave less. So Dave took pictures of them instead and of her standing among them, unaware. Well, she remained unaware until he went right up to her face and flashed the camera. Jade yelped and made a face, shoving him away and rubbing one eye.

"Dave, ow! Jeez!"

"Are we done yet?"

Jade dropped her hands to her hips and rolled her eyes. "Fiiiiine. Where did you want to go instead?"

"I dunno. Not here."

Jade shrugged and turned to the shop owner with a smile. "Thanks for talking with me!"

The elderly lady standing beside the display smiled kindly. "Of course. Enjoy the festival, love birds!"

Jade blushed lightly and Dave retained his ever infamous poker face. When they finally left, they headed in no particular direction. They walked in awkward silence.

"So," Dave started to break it. He didn't actually have anything to say, though, so the word was left hanging in the air without anything attached to it.

After a moment, Jade laughed sheepishly. "I guess we do kind of look like a couple, don't we?"

Dave tensed a little at the implication. "Better watch what you're saying, Harley. Your creepy boyfriend might be watching us from the bushes. He seems like the type."

"Oh, um… well… he doesn't really have a say in anything like that anymore. I broke up with him."

Dave stopped walking. "What. Are you serious?"

Jade stopped too a few steps ahead of him. She turned slightly to look at him and smiled faintly. She looked sad again. "Uh-huh. It's over. It's, um… for the best."

Well, shit. Now Dave wasn't sure what to do. Confess to her, right? He was suppose to do it anyway either way but now suddenly there was way more riding on it. Now this could possible be a thing or something, right? He should've been really happy about this but somehow he felt worried. He couldn't place his finger on why.

"Dave?"

Dave blinked. "Huh?"

"Where are your shades?"

Oh. Dave glanced away, suddenly self-conscious. He'd been trying to ignore the fact that he was walking around without them. "I dunno. Around." Dave assumed he had left them at the bar last night. "Where are your glasses?"

Jade smiled, blushing faintly. "I left them at the cabin. I'm wearing contacts this time. I look better without them, don't I?"

Dave made some noncommittal noise in reply. It wasn't the first time that she had done that but it was weird to see her without them. Mostly because Dave liked her in glasses way better. She looked cuter with them on. Jade was still smiling but there was still something so sad about it. "We're all really different now, huh? We all grew up."

"We're not that different," Dave replied somewhat defensively.

He didn't want things to be different. He didn't want them to all change or drift apart. He'd been resisting integrating with the new world around them so hard and that was the reason. The Knight of Time, trapped in one moment in time. It wasn't that he ever wanted to go back to Sburb and all the misfortune it brought them. What he missed was the summers when he was thirteen and he would stay up all night talking to Jade, John and Rose in a group chat. They would laugh and snark at each other, show each other funny links and general be kids. What he missed was the carefree, lighthearted bond between them all. Now they weren't kids and things were not the same at all. Not after Sburb and not after growing up. Somehow Dave was afraid that they would change too much; change to the point where there was a permeant divide between them.

Jade's giggle broke his thoughts. "I guess we aren't. We are in some ways but not the bad way, right?"

Dave quirked a small smile. "Yeah, sure." He wasn't so sure, to be honest, but it was fine for now. There was a pause. Jade looked like she wanted to say something. This was a pretty perfect moment for him to tell her something of his own, too. Instead he spoke just as Jade opened her mouth, "Let's go to the bar."

Whatever Jade was going to say was forgotten and she blinked. "The bar?"

"Pretty sure I left my shades there."

"Huh?"

Dave was already heading in that direction and Jade scurried after him. They left the commotion at the fair and entered the bar. It was bustling with activity. Dave retrieved his shades from the bar tender and pocketed them, satisfied. Not that he had been worried someone would steal his shitty Ben Stiller shades but it was still a relief to have them back. He then took a seat at the bar stool. Honestly, he was done with that festival. Jade sat next to him curiously. He bet she had never been in a bar before.

"Can I help you?" the bartender drawled, glancing between the two of them.

"Two of your strongest," Dave said.

The man nodded and shuffled away. Jade leaned back on the stool, staring at him with wide eyes of disbelief. "Dave! You can't order alcohol!"

"Just did," Dave replied with a small shrug. "They don't care here. Look, see? He didn't even ask for an I.D. We're fine."

"Ugh!" Jade flopped her arms across the bar counter and stared at him incredulously. "You're impossible."

"What, never had a drink before? Weaksauce, Jade. I'm disappointed in you. I bet I could drink you under the table in two minutes."

Jade bristled at that. "Is that a challenge?"

Dave snorted. "No. A challenge actually needs to be challenging."

The bartender returned and gave them each a glass. Without missing a beat, Jade scooped it up and downed it in one gulp. Dave stared at her as she nearly choked. Eyes watering, she didn't bat an eye otherwise and slammed her palm against the table.

"Another!" she demanded at the equally flabbergasted bartender.

"Holy shit. I can hear your liver screaming in agony from here. Calm your tits, Jade. I was just messing with you."

Jade stabbed his chest with her index finger, leaning over so far that she nearly toppled from her seat. He held her by the shoulders. Yep. As he suspected, she was a lightweight. Extremely so, it seemed. She glared at him aggressively, the fire of competition in her eyes. Dave felt like he had just gravely underestimated her competitive streak.

"You said 'I could drink you under the table in two minutes.' and I say challenge fucking accepted. Now drink, asshole. C'mon!"

Honestly, Dave would rather stare at the way she was leaning forward which provided a very nice view right down her shirt. Jade was suddenly downing his glass.

Fuck.

John is going to kill me.

It didn't take long for Jade to get thoroughly trashed (Dave managed all of one drink because after being so drunk the night before he was not in the mood for a repeat.) and of course she turned out to be the most feisty drunk he had ever encountered. Trying to drag her out of the bar was nothing short of impossible and boy did they get a lot of stares, snickers and looks of disgust as they made their exit. When he finally managed to drag her outside, she was yelling and howling about something so incoherent he couldn't even understand her. He figured she was trying to start a fight with the building as she had tried to start a fight with nearly everyone in the bar itself. Much to his dismay, John found them. Rose was with him but this did not guarantee he would live to see another day.

"Dave, hey! We were looking for-uhh… Jade? Are you okay?"

"I am so okay, John. I am so fucking ready to take you on," Jade replied instantly, trying to shove Dave away while he was holding her upright. "C'mon, lessh go! C'mon!"

John stared. Rose coughed into her hand. "Ah. She's quite drunk, isn't she. I see you showed her a good time, Dave."

"What?"

"No, fuck. Rose, shut your trap. John, listen, it's-"

"He got me soooooo drunk!" Jade cackled.

"Indeed. I suppose for the reason any young male gets a female drunk, yes?"

"Dave, you asshole! I help set you up with Jade and you do this?"

"Rose, shut the fuck iup/i! Listen to me, that's not-"

"That is sooooo the reason. You can't lie to meeeee." Jade fell on him and Dave nearly fell over with her, not expecting the sudden weight. He growled irritably and suddenly picked her up bridal style. She squeaked and started giggling like crazy.

Great, yes. Jade could be his shield against John and also she wouldn't fall over. Two birds with one stone. He backed away quickly. "She got drunk on her own, stop glaring at me like that, Egbert. I swear on my fucking life."

John didn't look convinced but Rose placed a hand on his shoulder. This seemed to snap John back and he blinked. "Oh. Oh, shit! That's right! We came to find you guys. Elliot was looking for Jade. I thought he'd gone home, but I guess not..."

Forget John killing him. Elliot would probably do it. Then again, Dave would love to go toe to toe with him. He'd kick his ass and enjoy it. Yeah, she isn't your girlfriend anymore, loser. What are you gonna-

"Take her back to the cabin. We will deal with him," Rose said, interrupting his thoughts. She smirked. "Try not to do anything indecent to her."

Dave shot Rose a look that could kill. "Yeah, and don't lose your virginity on your first date with Egbert."

Dave was satisfied when they both turned very red, more so that Rose turned the reddest, and Dave hightailed it out of there with a giggling Jade still in his arms. Finally getting away from the crowd and heading down the dimly lit path toward the cabin, Dave's brain finally caught up to the fact that he was holding Jade in his arms and that it was really, really nice. She had finally stopped squirming and giggling. In fact, she seemed to have calmed down quit a bit and the walk back was very quiet. Her head fell against his chest and she wrapped her arms around his neck, completely still in his arms aside from clinging to him. Dave didn't dare look down at her face. He assumed she had fallen asleep as they reached the cabin and he somehow managed to get the door open.

"You're never allowed to have another drink for the rest of your life," he grumbled as he carried her at last into her room.

Jade giggled. So much for being asleep. He sighed and moved to lay her on her bed. Instead she twisted and rolled out of his arms instead, rolling across the bed. For a brief instant he thought she'd roll off but instead she sat up. She swayed a little, disorientated, and stared at him. He was standing right at the edge of her bed, knees pressed against the side, and stared right back. She shifted closer, knelt right in front of him. Something about this made his heart beat really fast all of a sudden.

"Dave… I'm sorry…"

Jade pushed herself up on her knees and suddenly they were nose to nose. She looked really sad, almost heartbreakingly so. He felt her breath against his lips and they parted instinctively, just slightly. He was struggling to maintain his poker face. He was struggling so very hard.

"Why?" he asked quietly.

She pressed her forehead to his, shifted just a hair closer. Just a hair yet suddenly he wrapped his arms around her waist and held her against him. Suddenly he couldn't let her go even if she had asked him to.

"I'm not suppose to love you."

Her voice was so soft he barely heard it. When she spoke it their lips brushed together and something inside him broke. He'd been trying so hard but this was too much. He'd wanted that sensation for so long. He didn't hesitate for a second, tilting his head and kissing her with almost bruising force. His fingers dug into her back and he held her so tightly he'd thought he'd break her. Then he realized what a stupid notion that was. He knew Jade wasn't that weak. He always knew even if as a kid he'd tried to make it out that she needed his protection. But lately it had seemed like the other way around. She was the one strong enough to be without him. He wasn't strong enough to be without her. Yet he never imagined he'd get to kiss her and suddenly he was and she was kissing him right back. Her fingers brushed against his face and his hair and she tasted like all the alcohol she had drank but fuck, he could care less. She tasted like he always thought she would.

This was not a kiss made in drunken confusion. This was the kind of kiss you gave to someone you loved and it took his breath away. It was the kind of kiss he had never actually experience before. Also the kind that was usual prelude to something way dirtier. Dave kissed her harder and her lips parted, inviting him and he took it to deepen the kiss further. He leaned forward, putting so much into this contact that it was making him dizzy. Jade made the softest sound in her throat and he felt like he could die happy right here just hearing that sound. He felt like he'd give anything to hear more of those sounds. Her hand grabbed at his hair and pulled him forward. He lost his balance but caught himself with his hand. Their lips were still moving against each other's though even when she dragged him down with her and sprawled out on her back. When they parted for breath they were both gasping. Dave stared at her, long black hair wild and face flushed from the alcohol and the heavy kiss. Her eyes were glassy.

Right. She was really drunk right now.

Dave closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He dropped his forehead against her's. Okay, this couldn't go any further. Also what she had said bothered him.

"Go to sleep, Jade," he breathed. "Just… it's late now, so-"

Jade yanked him back to her and suddenly they were kissing again, like before but way more insistent. Fuck, she was really fraying the last threads holding his libido in check. But he couldn't not kiss her back; couldn't deny how amazing it was to kiss her and be kissed by her. Jade wrapped her arms around his neck to hold him there, refusing to even let him breath for very long before she forced their mouths together again. This was wonderful but it was wrong. Dave didn't want it to be like this, not when she was drunk off her ass and mumbling nonsense. He didn't want to fuck this up. He finally had a chance here now that Elliot was out of the picture.

He withdrew, forced her arms off him and panted softly for breath. He could kiss her forever, he really could. "Jade," he breathed and he meant it to be scolding but instead it came out as kind of a pathetic whine.

She was crying. He noticed the tears suddenly on her face that definitely hadn't been there before and that snapped him right out of the daze their kissing have put him in. "I can't," she choked.

"Shit, Jade. Stop, it's fine. I'm not going to do anything you don't want. Just…" She was clutching very hard to his shirt, forcing him to stay put. He wasn't sure what she wanted right now. "Go to sleep."

"No. I can't love you," she whispered.

Then suddenly the moment was over and it felt like someone had stabbed him in the gut. Dave jerked back, forcing her to let him go. He sat up, still hovering over her for half a second to stare at her. Then he was back on his feet, hastily moving her to her pillows and tucking the covers around her. Jade whined and continued to try and grab a hold of him, but he brushed her hand away each time. It seemed to make her cry harder but Dave could take a hint. Drunk or not, she was pretty much expressing the truth, right? Of course she was. He had lost his chance a long time ago. He was such a fucking idiot to think she would still carry a torch for him after he basically deflected all of her earlier hints before. So she had moved on as she should have because who spends their life waiting and pining for someone who clearly wasn't interested? Not Jade. Her attitude and free spirited nature would never allow that.

That was the cruelest irony of all, then. Dave had always been interested but he had also always been a coward. He thought maybe Jade would wait, though. Maybe she would wait for him to man up. Then she had gotten a boyfriend. No big deal, right? She might still want him. … Right?

Talk about being a self-centered dick. The fact that she had a boyfriend should have been the first hint. Even though she broke up with him didn't mean shit for him. What a fucking idiot he was. Now she was drunk and confused, kissing him because she had no idea what she was doing and he had enjoyed it like a sick bastard. Why had he thought for even a second this meant anything at all?

Jade latched onto the front of his shirt again. "They're going to make me be all alone, Dave," Jade sobbed. She was completely breaking down and Dave bit his lip. "I have to be all alone again, like before. I can't be all alone again. I can't, I can't…"

Dave gently detached her hand from his shirt. "Jade, you're babbling incoherent junk that would make monkeys at a keyboard look like Shakespeare. Just sleep, all right?"

"Not alone. Please, not alone."

Dave hesitated. Then he slowly sank to his knees and sat on the floor by her bed. "Okay, I'll sit right here. I won't move my pretty ass from this spot. Okay?"

Jade smiled through her tears and then just like that her eyes closed and she fell asleep. Or she had passed out. Dave wasn't sure which. He turned around and leaned his back against the bed, staring at the floor. He didn't sleep for the rest of the night. When dawn broke the next morning he cast a glance at her sleeping, tear stained face.

Then he left the room and did not look back.

Rose found him outside on the porch swing staring blankly at the sunrise. She paused in the doorway and leaned against the frame. She was still in her pajamas.

"They're deporting her."

Dave glanced up. Rose didn't look at him, eyes glued on the lightening sky. "Our guardians drafted paperwork to make sure we existed in the eyes of the government. Fabricated as they may be, they're perfect fakes. Birth certificates, social security cards, medical records… they exist for us. They don't exist for Jade. If they do, they've been lost. We've pulled a lot of strings to get her to stay as long as we have. It also helps, I suppose, that some things are different here on the new Earth we restored. However we've unfortunately run out of strings to pull."

Dave looked away and Rose continued, "I… apologize. John and I knew but did not feel it was our place to tell you. Jade refused to do so. I spoke with Elliot after you carried Jade off. Apparently he had offered to marry Jade when they were both eighteen in order to attempt to keep her here. They had been talking about it on and off. During our stay here he received a notice of the date she would be forced to leave. Noting it was a lot sooner than they thought it would be, he began to pressure her to accept the proposal. Yet in the end she refused and broke up with him. Don't you find that curious? She wants nothing more than to stay with us yet…"

Dave leaned forward and buried his face in his hands. So that was it, then. That had been the big secret all along. The reason Jade seemed so sad and forlorn, the reason for her weird behavior during the trip… it had been because of that. Why had she not bothered to tell him? Why did he have to find out like this? A lot of things made some sense though, now that he realized the truth. Most importantly, what she had said last night. Except he wasn't sure whether or not she really didn't love him because of him or if she actually did but refused to because she was leaving them. She had kissed him, after all, but she had also been drunk off her ass.

"It doesn't matter," he said suddenly. Rose glanced up as Dave stood, hands in his pockets. He left the swing and the porch, trotting down the two steps to the ground. "I don't care anymore."

That wasn't true at all.

"Dave…" Rose started but he began to walk down the path and she trailed off. She thought to call out to him again but she did not.

The next day the vacation ended and the four of them left the town