When things have calmed down a bit he tells him that they are to meet Stella and her mother at the café. "When?" "At ten o'clock tomorrow." "Not today?" The kid looks like he relaxes a little. Night comes, and eventually it becomes bedtime. Shortly after the man has turned the light off he hears a small clicking sound from the front door. Quickly, he is up, ready to meet the stranger in the hallway. But it is empty. The door however is unlocked. A little puzzled and uneasy, he locks it. He moves around in the apartment and checks the situation. The kid is sleeping, it is quiet and calm everywhere. Very quiet. Before he goes to bed a thought strikes him. He can't have... Better check anyway. Back to the hallway. He swears quietly. The kids shoes are not there. Perhaps they are in his room? He hits the light, a little to hard, closest to the boys room so that he can see into the room without entering. No shoes on the floor. But... that's odd. New profanity, loudly this time. There is no one in bed. Just crumpled clothes. Now he hurrys. He throws on some clothes and rushes out after the guy. Stays irresolute outside the gate. Right or left? Takes a chance and goes right. Slows down, too many choices. Trying to think - where? Picks up the phone. Who can he he call? Realizing that it certainly will not help he diales the kids number anyway. No answer. Who else is there to call? Then the phone rings, the display shows the boys number! "Where are you?" It is quiet in the other end but he has not hung up. "Please, where are you right now?" The thoughts are up to superspeed now. How to trace a phone quickly? Then comes a trembling voice. "At the bus…" "Don't hang up! I'm coming! Stay there! At our closest bus stop?" He keeps talking while he is sort of running. Almost there.
The kid is sitting on the bench with the phone in both hands. The man puts his cell away and stops in front of the kid. "Hey buddy." The kid throws a quick glance upwards and put his phone away. He sits there with his head bowed. The big man squats down in front of the kid. "Where are you going?" Silence. With a sigh he moves the sports bag away and sits next to the boy. "The bus didn't come." "Where are you going?" The mans thoughts are rushing. Sometimes you're lucky. What if the bus had come. The kid shrugs. "Away." "Away from me?" No answer. "It is a bit chilly and you have no jacket. Will you come home with me?" He notes that the kid is at least wearing a sweater. He picks up the bag and gets up. The boy follows.
They stroll home side by side. The man realizes pretty quickly that the smaller guy is sad, but doesn't want to show it. He puts a hand on the boy's shoulder. The kid hiccups and pulls away. In the hallway the kid tries to pull off his sweater. He failes to judge the distance and slams his elbow. The pain makes tears overflow. The man sees what is happening and throws his arms around the kid. The guy protest at first, then he loses control. Wailing and gasping, his knees give way. Once his voice work again he thickly says "Stella, I want to go away from Stella. There is nowhere to... want... want to stay..." "It´s alright, everything is ok. Sit up, deep breaths" "...here! Just want to stay here." Sitting on the floor next to the boy the man starts taking his jacket of. Crackpot he says with a smile. The kid first looks terrified. Then he realizes that everything is just fine.
"You were already outside!" "Outside?" "Yeah, when I called. The bus did not come. You weren't a sleep." "No, there were only clothes in your bed so I was worried." "You worried about me?" They have moved to the sofa, it is more comfortable than the floor. "There's a lot of things that can go wrong if you run away in the middle of the night." The smaller guy shivers slightly. "It's ok buddy. I guess it has to do with the café tomorrow?" The kid nods. "We'll take it one step at a time. I think we need to meet them. Even if it feels awkward to you." The boy doesn't respond, instead he picks up the blanket. "You can't avoid Stella forever... Oh! That was what you were planning to do." The kids gives him a small sorry. He asks him if it may be time to sleep. The guy shakes his head. "No... I couldn't think of any other solution. But I did not know where to go. It was lonely on the bench." He lies down on the couch and pulls the blanket over himself.
"I can't go to Alfred…" "Would you like to do that?" "No! Want to stay here ... on the couch."
Now the little guy sounds really tired. The man remains on the couch. Picks up a newspaper and opens it. Then the kid sits up, looks straight at him and says thanks. "For what?" "For calling." The kid turns around so that the pillow is leaning towards the man instead of the armrest. I'm just going to rest a bit, he says, and falls asleep. The big guy stays a while before he gets up. The kid is sound asleep on the couch.