The two men sat cross legged on the floor, with their backs flat against the wall. They had been talking for almost an hour; that is, Pythagoras was confessing his troubles and Jason was listening intently. He had been shocked at first upon hearing of Pythagoras' daily struggles, but after a while that feeling was replaced by guilt. Surely he should have noticed that something was wrong. Surely he could have helped. Pythagoras glanced towards him anxiously and Jason smiled warmly, urging him to go on.

'I-I can't even sleep anymore. It's like my brain just won't shut off, and I'm so tired, Jason... I just feel like I'm bothering everyone just by existing.' Pythagoras rubbed his tired eyes and let out a shaky sigh. Jason's arm snaked around his shoulder, and he pulled the man closer to him. His hand rested over Pythagoras' heart, and it beat so quickly and unusually. Resting his chin on top of Pythagoras' head, Jason shut his eyes and took in his sweet smell.

'That's not true.'

'Isn't it?'

'No, Pythagoras, it isn't. If you didn't exist, well... for a start, I wouldn't either. I would have died if you hadn't pulled me through that window.'

'Yes, but you would never have met me.'

'Don't say that.' Jason moved away from Pythagoras a little.

'Why not? All I've done is cause you trouble, Jason. I've almost gotten you killed more times than I can count, and look at you!' Pythagoras pushed himself into a sitting position and turned to look at Jason.

'You haven't eaten in days because I'm too damn stupid to get a job! I mean, who's going to hire someone like me, I can't even draw a stupid triangle and-'

'Pythagoras will you stop!' Jason urged, saddened by his friends words.

'You don't realize how important you are, do you?'

'What do you mean?'

'Look, where I'm from... you're very important to so many people. I mean, they tend to think your work is boring but without it they'd fail their exams and-'

'You're talking in riddles again.'

'I'm sorry. I'm just... thinking of home.' Jason stopped talking and looked at the floor. He had no clue of what to say to Pythagoras to make him feel better.

'Tell me about it. Tell me about your home.' Pythagoras rolled little to the side in an attempt to find a comfortable position. His head was rested against Jason's left shoulder, and his hand rested unsurely just below the man's knee.

'Uhm, well it's different from here. Very different. There are... there's this thing called electricity. It makes light and it makes things work, things like televisions and radios and microwaves. And it keeps your house warm, too.'

'So it's like magic then?' Pythagoras curled himself into a ball and let his head fall onto Jason's lap.

'Yeah, I guess it is.'

'What's a microwave?'

'It's a big box that heats up food, and there's a cooker too that does the same. But not a cooker like a person, it's a machine.'

'It makes no sense, Jason.' Pythagoras yawned and tugged on his earlobe. It was a technique that he'd learned in his childhood, a gentle rhythm that would have him sleepy in an instant. 'How could a machine cook food?'

'Well, you push some buttons and it makes it really hot inside, so when you put the food in and shut the door it cooks it, just like when it's put over a fire.'

'Oh.' Jason could hear the exhaustion in his friend's short reply. Pythagoras was slowly drifting off to sleep, a smile on his lips for the first time in a long time. Jason's hand snaked into his hair again and Jason started moving his fingers in a circular motion.

'You're sleepy.'

'You saved my life.' Pythagoras stated. Jason smirked and leaned his head back against the wall before hugging Pythagoras closer to him.

'You saved mine first.'