Sam snapped out of his little trip down memory lane. He repeated the little mantra he had come up with a while ago – if you don't want past to come and fuck up your life, don't freaking call it. It worked for it had managed to chase away most of his pain. Anger replaced it soon and Nova involuntarily growled. Why did it always have to be either pain or anger? Couldn't he feel something else? And not only for a few minutes or an hour or so. He needed more happiness in his life. He knew that. He craved for that foreign emotion but just couldn't remember what it felt like.

Sam recalled fondly the times when everything seemed so easy. The days when he didn't have to make tough decisions or choose whose life to spare. The days when he wasn't forced to kill innocents in order to preserve his homeland. The days when he didn't have to kill. The happy days. The simple days. They were over. They lay forgotten in the endlessness called past.

"What took you so long?" A black-haired boy, not older than Sam, asked.

The questioned snapped Sam out of his bitter thoughts and jerked him awake. Right. He had arrived at the club and his shift was about to begin. It was exactly eleven and he had to stay there until the club closed which was at about five in the morning. Lovely!

"I'm not late. You're simply impatient." He answered coldly.

The boy just rolled his eyes and handed him a list with the names of those who had made reservations. He then left without another word. Sam simply took it and scanned the names on the first page. Hopefully it wouldn't be too crowded tonight.

Meanwhile somewhere else:

Ava twisted and turned in her bed. She wanted to scream out of frustration. The woman had gone to bed at midnight and now her clock read 3 a.m. Great! She had to go to work tomorrow with bags under her eyes. Thank God she started work at eleven because it was Saturday.

After another hour of unsuccessful attempts at falling asleep she gave up. Ava sat up into her bed and switched the lamp on her nightstand on. She sighed and contemplated whether it was a good idea to do what she desperately needed to do. The rational part of her brain told her that it was an extremely bad idea while her heart won the battle with this simple sentence: I need to hear his voice.

Yes, Ava knew how cliché it sounded and she was aware of how late it was but there was a reason she wasn't that worried about calling him so late at night – she had done it countless times already. One more time wouldn't hurt anyone.

A few seconds passed until a voice came from the other line:

"Hello?" Its tone was questioning but not surprised or bewildered.

"Hey." Ava said softly.

"I take it you too have trouble sleeping?" The voice asked.

The accuracy of that guess did not affect Ava at all.

"Yeah." She answered her voice a bit stronger this time and more confident.

"Is there anything troubling you?" He asked.

Ava bit her lip. There was a war raging on inside her. Should she tell him about Sam's coming back? Was it right to trouble him with something that would do little to change his current situation for the better if not make it even worse? Did she have the right to venture into something so fragile? After all, he was the one that had taken Sam's sudden disappearance relatively calmly on the outside, but she knew that on the inside he had been hurting and probably still was. Betrayal was something he despised and rarely forgave.

"I saw Sam today." She said, forgetting all about the rational part of her brain that was now screaming at her for telling him about it.

"Does Peter know?" He asked, though there was a certain edge in his voice. He was finding it hard to control his anger.

"Yes. We both talked to him but we didn't find anything out. From what Peter told me Sam was having a hard time controlling his emotions. Even when I conversed with him, though briefly, there was something odd about him."

"Care to elaborate." The voice replied.

Ava sighed. She hated that coldness and wanted it gone. She wished her old friend would come back. She missed the cheerfulness and liveliness that voice always held. She dared even admit that on many occasions its soothing calmness had managed to make her feel safe. Something very few managed to do.

"He is defensive and withdrawn. I dare even say cold and distant." Ava responded.

The other line was silent for a moment before saying:

"It seems whatever happened has changed him completely."

Ava bit her lip, knowing full well that this conversation was hard for him. She wished there was something she could do. She wished she could go back in time and do things differently. Sadly, there was nothing she could do to change the current situation.

"Just like you." Ava said, allowing her tone to become sad and vulnerable. She was exposing herself completely, not bothering to hide anything because there was one thing she could do – let him know that she was there for him and would do anything to make things less unbearable.

The only answer she received was silence. Ava prayed to God that he hadn't hung up. Fortunately, being the selfless and considerate friend he always had been, he hadn't.

"Is there anything else troubling you?" He asked, becoming defensive once again.

Ava sighed and with a defeated gaze answered:

"No. Thank you for listening to me."

There was silence once again. It seemed as though he were contemplating what to say and whether it was safe to do so. After what felt like eternity he asked:

"Can you visit me tomorrow?"

Ava was speechless. This was the first time he had requested that she should go and keep him company, though a certain part of her knew that there was more to it than just to have a friendly chit chat. Despite the ulterior motives, Ava was still glad that his shell had finally cracked. Allowing a smile to form on her face and a few tears of happiness to escape the corners of her eyes, she answered:

"Of course."

"You finish work at six, correct?" The voice asked.

"Yes." Ava replied.

"Alright." He responded and after another silent moment he added, "Good night Ava."

"Good night Danny."

And with that they both hung up. Throughout the rest of the night both were able to sleep soundly, having spoken to the ones they loved.