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Caleb
“Caleb.”
I don’t look away from the black desert ahead of me as Fox leans beside me on the crate.
“Fox,” I greet.
“This is a good thing, you know that, right?” he says.
“Feels pretty crappy.”
“It will for a while,” he says. “Then, you’ll get over it and life will return to normal.”
Normal. I’ve been out here for so long, I’m not even sure what that means anymore.
“And what about you?” I ask.
“I’ll be fine.”
“I don’t like these new people, Fox. I think Boxcar is right. They can’t be trusted.”
He grins. “Well, that’s progress.”
“What’s progress?”
“You trusting Box.”
I scoff. “Even a broken clock is right twice a day.”
“Just…” he lays a hand on my shoulder, “do me a favor, all right?”
“What?”
“Don’t go home. Go somewhere you’ve never been before. Do something you’d never thought you’d do.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s good for you.” He chuckles. “And later, when I get back, drinks are on me and you can tell me all about it. Also… cut Boxcar some slack. He did the right thing tonight.”
I cringe, remembering that gun to his head. “You should have stopped him,” I say.
Fox sighs. “It was his moment. No matter how much you want to deny it — he earned it. No offense but it takes a pretty strong patience to get to know you and that little bastard’s built from steel.”
I laugh, shaking my head. “I guess that’s not wildly inaccurate.”
“Don’t give up on something that could be great because you’re scared of how it’ll end up,” he continues. “Live in the moment every so often. It might surprise you.”
I exhale until my lungs are empty. “All right,” I say. “I’ll try.”
“And don’t waste your time worrying about me,” he adds. “I’m coming home, too. It’ll just take longer to get there.”
“Promise?”
He opens his arms to me. I step closer to return his hug.
“I promise.”
* * *
