A man ambled quietly through the thick, dew-covered grove as the sun peaked over the horizon. His cane gently guided branches to the side , protecting his immaculate, pinstriped attire. His steps and cane tapped hollowly at the air as the soles of his black leather dress shoes seemed to repel the soil itself, as if strolling upon the low-hanging air.

  Atop his feathery black hair rested a bowler hat at just such an angle. Despite his movings to avoid branch and limb, the hat never strayed from its angle, abiding the commanding presence of its master. His gait was that of the esteemed and wealthy, straight-backed and elegant, as if to demean his surroundings by comparison.

  Before him lay his destination, the silent heart of all worlds. A woman in figure, divinity in truth. Her features were neither youthful nor aged. It was a beauty that beguiled. A beauty beyond the reach of the words uttered to describe it. A silent pulse beat from her into the earth on which she stood. Her skin, kissed by the warmth of the sun, bore all the tones of fertile soil. Long, flowering hair sprouted behind her, a tapestry of petals, leaves, and trailing vines, glimmered with dew in the light.

  Her eyes carried the vastness of the ocean. Vast, dark and unknowable. As she cast her gaze at Glean, he did not feel mere recognition. He felt an overwhelming invitation to rest, an unbreakable bond, a belonging. In her gaze was a home upon the ocean.

  Every motion and every breath flowed with the wind and sky. To behold her was to recall a time before struggle, before separation from the One. Drawing breath from her domain was akin to drawing life from the womb. Warm and revitalizing.

  Glean struggled to resist the urge, as he usually did. It was the utmost privilege to be accepted here, though not without danger. The possibility of slipping into deep slumber was ever present within her reach. Dreams here haunted weaker minds, pleasurable though they may be. A drug for the soul that leads to terrible withdrawal. Waking to Hell after dreaming of Heaven.

  As the figure turned to him, glean pulled his bowler hat from its esteemed angle, sweeping into a deep bow. “A pleasure as always, Gaia.”

  Her smile was genuine and seemed to breathe even more life into the foliage around them. “Glean, thank you for coming.” She said. Her breath ushered the wind through the trees.

  Glean regained his posture and placed his hat back upon his head. “Of course. I take it you have made a decision.”

  “I have.” She stated, circling her arm in a large arch. At the end of that arch, Gaia breathed a light into the air. The light swirled into an image of a man and then multiplied. Several images of this man were displayed, hanging in the air around the pair.

  Glean observed one of these displays. In this display a child’s head was down as an older man poked his burly finger into the child’s chest. A scolding, perhaps.

  “You do not approve?” Gaia simply asked.

  Glean's eyes flitted to the other displays. These displays seemed to feature the same person at different stages in his life. “Not so much a disapproval as a hesitant curiosity. After all these centuries, I would have wagered your options were… more plentiful.”

  “What do you think of him, Glean?” She asked, playfully tilting her head and folding her arms confidently.

  Glean shifted his attention to another display. The boy was lost in the woods at night mere paces from his home, shaking and crying. “Doesn’t seem very brave. Navigation skills were lacking even at that age..” Glean observed cradling his chin in one hand, the other on his hip.

  Gaia smiled again. “No two people will age at the same rate, Glean.” she pointed to a fourth display. There the boy was standing his ground against 3 other children larger than themselves. Behind him cowered a smaller child, bawling into the dirt.

  Glean remarked on a display of the boy screaming, red in the face, and tears in his eyes. He seemed to be angry at another child. “Volatile. Not a good sign.”

  Gaia offered only a gesture towards an image of the boy and allowed the boy to speak audibly.

  “I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that… we all make mistakes.” The boy’s eyes watered as he apologized to the child from the previous display.

  A moment later, Glean gestured with his thumb to the boy running scared from an angry rooster. “Even the prey thinks he’s prey.”

  Gaia chuckled. With a wave of her hand, several displays dispersed. The remaining scenarios provided proof that the boy grew to adore and rear farm animals of all kinds. “Any other concerns you would like to voice ?” she asked with an eyebrow raised.

  Glean grinned in defeat. “None whatsoever! Shall I deliver the invitation, then?”

  Gaia nodded her consent.

  Glean bowed before vanishing like a flame blown from a candle.

  Gaia turned back to the life of the boy. She watched as the child lay sleeping in his bed, unaware of his observer. “It won’t all be happy, but it will be worth it. I look forward to watching you grow. I never choose wrong.”

  Tim’s eyes shot open at the shrill blaring of the alarm. Tim sluggishly reached through the dark to the lit rim of his phone laying face-down on the empty pillow beside him. He struggled in vain to grab the phone, instead pushing it just out of reach.

  Time drew a deep breath, frustrated at the lack of energy and coordination in his limbs. With great effort, Tim stretched his arm as far as he could manage and pressed the tips of his fingers onto the edge of the screaming phone. He hooked his fingers in, sliding them off the edge of the phone. Tim drew a deep breath and tried not to let the frustration get to him. On the second attempt, the phone scooted within grasp and Tim was able to flip the phone and tap the snooze button.

  With a groan Tim rolled onto his back and let his eyes center toward the ceiling. Tim turned on his side, clinging to his pillow. “Why does time refuse to let me enjoy sleep?” Tim said absently stretching his cheek downward in his hand.

  Reluctantly, Tim hoisted himself up in the bed. He scanned around his bed. It was shoved against a wall to cover the peeling paint. A fan purred loudly from its perch on the dresser near the bed. The computer sat on his desk in the corner, calling to him or so he liked to think. The desk was decorated with aluminum cans, used paper plates, plastic and styrofoam cups in varying states of emptiness.

  He reached into his basket of laundry and rummaged about for a pair of khakis. He slipped himself into them easily, but sighed at the squeeze it gave his waist once zipped and buttoned.

  “The things I put myself through for dead end jobs...” he muttered with a sour look. Tracy was the floor manager today. That means Tim would be subject to many stories he would not like to hear while doing more than his fair share of the work with very little credit given.

  Excuses flooded his mind. I wonder if the flu is going around right now. Maybe I could fake it today. Flat tire, perhaps? Tim slumped into a sigh. He needed the money to get through the month and really couldn’t afford to miss another day.

  On his way to the kitchen, Tim grabbed the remote to the living room television and powered it on. He flipped to the rock channel as he cracked open the fridge and removed the eggs, bacon, and sausages. The usual.

  Spraying the pan he began cooking, the sweet sizzling sound graced his ears, complimenting the music. The smell filled the air as the light wisps of grease smoke wafted through the kitchen.

  His face perked up to the sound of a heavy shuffle in the room across from his own. Tim turned and set two plates on the dining room table only feet from the oven. With a flourish he added the breakfast materials from the pan directly to the plates using gravity, nature’s bully. “Morning Simon.” Tim chimed as he pulled his chair from the table.

  Simon sat as he adjusted his glasses and picked his fork up with a sniff. “Morning, bud.” he mumbled as he rubbed the crust from his eyes with a free hand. Simon wore a stained white T-shirt with a lightly torn chest pocket and a pullstring pair of cotton shorts for comfort.

  “I didn’t get to ask. What did you and the others decide to do with the Volcanic sword?” Tim asked before scooping up some eggs, disappointed when they fell apart and splatted back onto his plate.

  “We sold it. It’s a part of the guild bank stash now.” Simon replied

  “Max gave in after all?” Tim asked, surprised.

  “It’s not about what Max wants. The sword is nice, but no one in our raid group really needs it. Our gear is better as is. The members who could use it already have better tuned equipment for their builds .” Simon claimed, agitation clear in his voice.

  “Well… every guild has at least one loot goblin.” Tim started with a mocking voice. “But what if we need it? Something could come up and we’ll wish we had it.” he finished, chuckling a bit.

  “And those are the players that have to spend extra gold just to open up more slots in their personal banks because they never use anything. It is a waste. Big fat waste. Not a wrinkle to that type of brain.” Simon said as he quickly composed himself. He sat his fork down. “Doesn’t matter. It was voted on and we sold it. Tonight we can do the dungeon again and hopefully we will get the wind glaive for Adam. Then we can move on to whoever else needs gear.”

  Tim stood up and walked his dishes to the sink. Pensively, Tim turned back to face Simon. “Yeah, a four percent drop rate is a pain, but we are due for a win. The RNG gods will need to throw a bone eventually.” He noted. Simon passed his dishes to Tim.

  “I'll finish getting ready and we can head out.” Simon said with a pointed finger.

  “I'll be outside.” Tim replied. Simon pressed a few buttons and started the dishwasher before heading outside.

  The breeze carried the caress of a warm day ahead as the sun rose above the trees to the east. The wooden porch groaned beneath his feet and dogs barked in the distance. Dust swirled up from the dirt road from passing cars carrying their passengers to their places of work. Roosters crowed from this way and that, adding to the symphony of a country morning.

  Tim approached the railing of the porch, closed his eyes and took in that sound. Tim was fond of this place. It was remote and what few neighbors they had were pleasant. It almost made up for the lack of work nearby.

  The porch groaned again as Simon stepped out, shutting the door behind him. “Come on, you can day dream on the way.” said Simon as he started down the stairs.

  Tim slowly broke his reverie and made his way toward the old buck century. He climbed into the passenger seat and fought with the seatbelt. It always stuck on the first few pulls. Once fastened, Simon searched radio stations for anything that would come in clearly. It became routine to guess which station would have the best reception each workday.

  Tim let his eyes wander as the houses, trees and fields passed. The cattle grazed behind their fences, farmers drove their tractors, checked crops and fed livestock. The trees grew somewhat near one another. Any and left to itself created a natural privacy wall. One could only see so far in any direction before a tree was standing in the way.

  Tim’s mind began to wander again. A vague human figure, legs moving at impossible speed, rushed near the window in the opposite lane. The human leaped with extreme dexterity over each car that passed, bounded from telephone poles and flipped over fences with ease.

  For some time, this figure ran across telephone poles, hopped from roof to roof and tumbled to the ground back to its feet. As they neared their regular parking spot an impractically large sword appeared in the figure’s hands, and a large snake-faced demon appeared to loom overhead.

  Tim and Simon came to a stop and the figure leapt at the creature. The creature delved out of the sword’s path and wound its lithe body around the heroic figure who struggled to free himself. Hope may be lost and the hero could face his end here and now! GASP!!

  But wait! The hero is-

  “HEY! Come on, stop daydreaming. Get back to reality, man.” Simon snapped.

  Tim shook his head, “Sorry, the drive is just so monotonous anymore.” said Tim as the pair began walking from the car.

  “Not another female goblin day dream, I hope.” Simon said as the automatic doors slid open.

  “No. Though it wouldn’t have been a bad one.” Tim replied with an awkward smile.

  “I swear dude, you have way too much sympathy for the green skins.” Simon said, “Judgement.”

  “What?” Tim Shrugged. “They are misunderstood outcasts. I kinda relate, some would say” Tim justified.

  Simon laughed. “They are outcast for good reason compared to you! In many fantasies they are known for raping, pillaging, and taking what they want from weaker villagers.” Simon replied.

  “That’s cherry picking! They don’t always have to be bad, it’s just easy to write them that way. If I ever run a game, I will show you how easy it would be to make them redeemable. I could also make them a bigger threat than usual” Tim said confidently as they paired checked the batteries for their walkie talkies before clipping them to their belts.

  “Well, any race can be a threat if it somehow gets a class and levels. I’m not saying you can’t write better goblins, I just think somehow you twisted what is meant to be a force of evil or chaos into your own cliche Disney story.”

  Tim gasped mockingly. “How dare you compare my compassion and understanding to the pandering of a tyrant conglomerate!”

  The break room was well used. Its worn tiles bore the stains, chips and marks of a building in disrepair. The leather couch, flush against the far wall, was cracked and faded, with uneven cushions. The kitchen area had few cabinets and a single sink with a dish rack on one side, a coffee maker on the other. The smell of old coffee was a permanent feature soaked into the very walls. An old round table sat in the center of the room. A piece of cardboard was wedged beneath one of the legs to keep it balanced. Four worn plastic chairs surrounded the table.Two of these were occupied..

  “Maybe, I just like a good underdog story.” Tim replied as he started towards the coffee.

  Two young women sat with math books open as one let out a growl of frustration. “Why can’t I get the answer? How am I supposed to make it in college if I can’t pass simple algebra II?” she asked the universe.

  “It will be fine, look we can ask Simon he knows this stuff. Hey Simon, could you take a look?” She asked with puppy dog eyes. Without looking Tim just shook his head. Amy always tried to act sweet, but Tim knew better.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Simon walked over quietly, looked at the problem and instantly replied. “The answer is forty two.”

  Debbie got even more frustrated. “How do you get this so easily? it is too hard.”

  Simon chuckled. “I just had a bit more math classes when I was in college.”

  “If you were in college, why are you working at this trash job?” Debbie asked.

  Simon frowned a little bit. “Things just don’t always work out the way you want them too.”

  Amy started to whisper. “Well at least you tried, unlike your lazy friend over there. He is always getting in trouble not doing all of his work and tracie having to get on to him about doing a better job.”

  Tim could not help but visibly tense at hearing it. ‘It never fails, one person doesn’t like me and just because they are more sociable than me everyone thinks they know the entire story.’ Tim thought to himself when images of similar past experiences had happened.

  Simon caught the sight of Tim's shoulders tensing before looking back down at Amy. “You all just know what you hear from Tracie or the grapevine. It’s all fun and games till you become the topic of those things, never good. take everything with a grain of salt and make your own decisions.” Simon said, trying to be polite to the younger coworkers.

  The room went quiet, Tim seemed to relax a little bit as he took a whiff of the magic liquid that could breathe life into the darkest of souls. With his coffee in hand he turned towards the table. “I am going to get out on the floor, see if Eric missed anything last night.” Tim said with a forced smile before walking out the door.

  He took a drink from his coffee, the life warming liquid running down his throat, that small simple pleasure helping him relax just a bit more. Closing his eyes he just focused on that warmth as he drank some more, his eyes closed as he felt it fill his stomach.

  Standing there, his shoulders relaxing more and more, when a far too familiar annoying voice violated that peace and made him snap open his eyes and the tension he was just letting go violently returned.

  “What do you think you are doing?” Standing a couple feet ahead of him stood a five foot nothing blond hair woman, her bright blue eye sending daggers at him. “You know you are not supposed to bring drinks out onto the floor.” She stated before Tim could respond.

  ‘Of course, I must have pissed off a witch in my past life or something, family bloodline cursed?’ Tim thought to himself before saying. “I was just finishing it before heading to my area.”

  “You should have finished it in the break room.” Tracie said not giving him an inch.

  ‘Honestly wish I would have. I thought I was leaving a bad situation, but all I did was jump from the frying pan into the fire. It will be ok Tim just stay calm and limit the interaction.’ He finished his pep talk to himself before a smile that could not reach his eyes came onto his face. “You are right. My apologies Tracie.” His tone said more than he wanted, that he is tired, tired of her shit, tired of rumors, tired of being targeted just because he doesn’t bend to the idea of human hierarchy.

  Tracie narrowed her eyes. “If I am right, what are you going to do about that cup?” she asked.

  Tim looked at her, then his cup, lifting the rim met his lips and he began to drink, his head tilting back as the hot liquid ran out of the cup. ‘This is stupid, your entire power trip is stupid, your mind set is stupid, this is not highschool anymore, giving me a hard time for no other reason than because you can.’ every thought that ran through his head, he wanted to tell her to bring her back down to earth.

  The last drop left the cup and Tim lowered his head. His not smile came back to his face as their eyes met his grip crushing the cup. He turned back and opened the door behind him just enough to slip his hand in and drop the cup into the small trash can, turning back to Tracie “problem solved.” he said and began to walk to his department but she stepped right in front of him.

  “You need to lose the attitude, be more friendly with customers, give an actual smile not whatever.” She gestured to his face, “That is.” Her eyes filled with disgust as she looked him up and down. Her hands went to her hips as she turned her head as if she couldn’t bare to look at him anymore. “I am getting way too many complaints from customers that you are not friendly to them as you help them.” she used her finger for air quotes at the end.

  Tim continued to smile without it reaching his eyes. “I will do better to not cause you anymore trouble Tracie.”

  She turned her head back to him. “You better I will be keeping my eyes on you, and if you don’t shape up you might as well start looking for a new job.” She said with a tone as if she has been wanting to say this for a very long time.

  Tim’s eyes flashed his first real emotion. Anger. Their radios buzzed to life. “Tracie I need you in my office please.” The store owner Mr. Moore called.

  Quickly Tracie grabbed her radio with a perfect princess smile and customer service voice. “I’ll be right there.” She put the radio back on her hip and the smile left her face. “You are lucky Tim, I could continue giving you advice but I am needed elsewhere.”

  The smile that could not reach his eyes came back. “Of course Tracie, I will be doing my utmost to represent you and the job I am so lucky to have.” He said in a tone that it was easy to hear the truth behind them.

  She narrowed her eyes again before looking him up and down again. her lip rising on one side before tsking, “straighten that uniform before you go to your area.” she said before abruptly turning and leaving.

  The anger reached Tim’s eyes again, his teeth and fists clenching. His mind played the scene that caused all this. A stupid comment, around people he shouldn’t have relaxed around and a mini Tracie running to her to tell her what he said. Tim’s thoughts were abruptly cut off as a wide hand landed on his right shoulder giving it a tight squeeze.

  “Time to breathe, and unclench, your anger is going to cause you to have an aneurysm, man.” Simon said, trying to ease the tension in the air with some humor.

  “How are you always right there after a shitty situation?” Tim asked not looking at him.

  “Obviously because I am the valiant best friend always there to save the unhinged friend who will make stupid choices without my guidance.” He said in a heroic voice before becoming serious again. “People suck we both know that, but you don’t hide your emotions very well. Everyone gets an idea of what you really want to say or do no matter how polite you try to hide it.” Simon replied.

  Tim did not say anything, he knew he was right. Tim just wasn’t good with people unless they had similar interests or mindsets. His gut feelings if he would get along with people or not was always on point. Bad news: most people he didn’t get along with were always in a higher position than him.

  “Come on let's get to our areas, once we get busy the day will go by faster.” Simon said, walking in front of Tim.

  “Yeah, got to go to the bathroom first, splash some water on my face, and straighten up my uniform.” He said, before turning away and heading to the restroom without really looking at Simon.

  Simon watched him go. ‘Damn brother, you can’t let these stupid people get to you like that. as long as you do you will always have someone under your skin.’ he thought to himself wanting to say it, but knowing Tim and his anger, the words just would not reach him right now.

  Tim made his way into the restroom, a decently sized and clean one for a retail electronic store. He stopped at the middle sink, turning it on and cupping his hands to gather the water he splashed on his face, as he looked up a new face looked back at him, green skin, squared jaw with two tusks poking out over his top lip.

  He quickly blinked his eyes and shook his head to see his regular old face in the mirror now. “The fuck?!” he asked himself, feeling his chin looking himself over taking in his round face now. “Ok I need to stop staying up so late on work nights.”

  Reaching out with his left hand he grabbed paper towels to dry his face, straightening up, he got a good look at himself in the mirror for the first time since he arrived at work. his hair was more disheveled then he thought, his shirt untucked on the right side, and spreading to the left.

  Getting more water he started fixing his hair the best he could, then straightened his shirt retucking it. ‘It is just going to pull itself out once I get down to the lower rows on the isles for anything.’ he thought to himself but he knew why, rather he wanted to admit it to himself, he wanted to just have peace. This job isn’t bad at all. Some coworkers just suck.

  Standing there feeling like he put himself back together a bit better, he headed out the door and onto the floor. Walking past the tech help area, he overheard two of the techs talking about one of their games. “Everyone died, it was me versus three others. I hid behind the box at C. when they showed themselves. BLAM Blam blam” Tim heard till he was out of ear shot.

  Next, he approached the phone section, his pace picking up instinctively. Three young women huddled at the counter, giggling. As he came into view, their laughter faltered, replaced by whispered conversations.

  “I heard, he already got told off by Tracie before the store even opened.”

  “Yeah, Amy and I heard it through the break room door. I think it’s only a matter of time...” The voices faded as he walked where he couldn’t hear anymore.

  Tim kept going, now at the appliances, where Tony sat typing away at his computer, doing his morning price changes. Tony paused, gave a small wave, and returned to his task. No words, no judgment just Tony, counting down the days until retirement, escaping to a beach somewhere.

  Finally Tim made it to his area, it wasn’t paradise, but it was nice. Video games, controllers, consoles, prebuilt gaming PCs, everything he loved and rarely grew tired of being around. Sure, it was work, but at least it was a job where he got to talk about the things that brought him joy.

  The store doors opened, and customers trickled in. By ten, the building was bustling, radios crackling with questions about prices and stock. It wasn’t long before the inevitable “Karen” or “Richard” showed up, demanding attention. Time seemed to fly during those hours.

  Around noon things started to slow down. Customers shifted their focus from electronics to food.

  “Thank you for shopping with us, and have a great day ma’am” Tim said smiling to a mother and her child as she just bought a game he recommended. She smiled and the little boy waved bye as they left.

  Tim moved to the accessory section, which was a mess. He dropped to one knee, pulling out items that had been hidden in the back.

  “What are you doing!” Tracie’s voice demanded.

  Tim jerked his head up, smacking it against the shelf above him. “Ouch! You need a frickin bell on you.” He mumbled, rubbing his head as he stood up and faced her.

  “What did you just say?” Tracie’s tone was sharp.

  Tim rubbed the back of his head standing up right. “I said, straightening up the aisle.”

  “Why aren’t you helping the customers still in your department,” She said pointing.

  Tim took a deep breath, keeping his composure. “Those customers have been here since we opened. They said they don’t need help, so I thought it'd be a good time to tidy up the area so things are easier to find.” He explained.

  Tracie bent her knee, propped her right hand on her hip and quirked an eyebrow. Her favorite stance. “You could be over there talking to them about what's the new best game, something, anything to get a sale.” Her eyes filled with disdain.

  Tim suppressed another sigh. “You got on to me just this morning saying I am getting complained about, I don’t want to seem like I am harassing them.”

  The right side of her mouth curled up a bit. “You know I just got two more complaints about you not being very helpful.”

  Tim’s confusion grew. “What? From who?” he stuttered.

  “Doesn’t matter, it's the fact I seem to get complaints anytime you work. It doesn’t look good Tim, does not look good at all.” She was not even trying to hide the joy she felt right now.

  Tim played out every interaction he had today in his head. Not a single person left not smiling in his mind. He actually had some really fun interactions today talking about some of his favorite games, and making more sales than he had in a while on a Wednesday.

  His eyes caught the smirk on Tracie’s face, and his temper flared again. His vision started to go red. He looked around trying to find any excuse to walk away.

  “What are you looking for? You need to face it and accept you need to start being a better worker, by starting to own up on your shortcomings.” Tracie said her face was just glowing.

  Tim lost it. “WHAT IS YOUR PROBLEM WITH ME?!” Hands curled into claws, his height over shadowing Tracie as his words rang out through the store.

  The blood rushed from her face and shock genuinely showed.

  “SERIOUSLY ALL YOU DO EVERY DAY IS COME TO ME AND TRY TO FIND SOMETHING TO HARASS ME ABOUT! WHY DON’T YOU JUST GO OVER TO YOUR LITTLE GOSSIP GROUP AND PICK A NEW TARGET!?” He yelled, breathing heavily, all teeth showing like an animal ready to bite.

  Tracie stood there stunned but only for a moment. “What did you just say to me?” she asked careful not to race her voice.

  “You heard me, day in and day out, you find something to complain to me about. Just some excuse to give me a hard time. Just say you don’t like me and stay away from my area.” Tim said, breathing heavy.

  “Oh you'll be lucky if you get to stay in this area after we go talk to Mr. Moore about this outburst.” Tracie said the smug smile coming back to her face.

  That was it. The final push.

  “Screw that. Fuck you and your ego! I quit!” Tim yelled, shoving past Tracie heading to put his radio back where he got it.

  The few customers still in the store and several workers stared as he stormed off. He slowed down when he was in the little cubby hole that held the work equipment, taking a breath for a moment, it hit what he just did.

  The radio buzzed. “Good riddance! Nice the trash takes itself out for once!” Amy said before the radio buzzed again.

  Tim put the radio on its charger brow forward as he just wanted something to break but would wait till he left. He walked with a full mindset to just ignore everyone and just get out the door.

  At the podium near the entrance, Simon spotted him immediately. His brow furrowed with concern.

  “You okay?” he asked, his voice low.

  Tim let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. “I quit.”

  Simon didn’t say anything, just waited.

  “Sorry but I can’t do this anymore, she wants me gone and I am tired of being harassed. But don’t worry I got some savings for my half of the bills, till I figure something out.” Tim said.

  “I’m not worried about that,” Simon replied. “But it sounds like you let out a lot you’ve been holding in.”

  Tim chuckled, but the shame followed fast behind. “Yeah... bottled it up too long.” He paused. “It’s for the best. You and I both know if I stayed, she’d keep hounding me.”

  “Yeah. She’s that type.” Simon pulled the car keys from his pocket and handed them over. “There’s a shirt in the trunk. Go grab some food, maybe some applications. Then pick me up this afternoon.”

  Tim took the keys with a nod. “Alright. I’ll see you later.”

  He turned and walked out the front doors for the last time.