Beyond the end

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Steve hadn't sleep either.
At home McKay had found no one. Dylan and Brandon were like evaporated into thin air. They did not answer the various phone calls he had attempted. Either the phone rang empty or the cell were off.
He was tempted to go at Kelly's, but then he thought about David's words, police presence, hustle and bustle, Kelly's confusion. He and Kelly really grew up together. Agonists and antagonists of the same lane.
Steve didn't know what to tell her, what to do. Brenda had answered the phone and she was trying to be a column of a weight that would soon sink. He preferred to wait before taking any steps. He went back home, stretched out on the bed and began to think about what to text to Janet.
He wrote and canceled dozens of text. Yet put in line they punched. Too formal. Too stupid. Too serious. Too sweet.
He seemed to have done nothing else in his life. Just type keys on a cell phone, in the twilight of the moonlight rays filtering from the window. He couldn't think about anything else.
Sammy's disappearance and the pain of his friends had also gone into the background in the face of the chance to return to wake up next to his wife, prepare breakfast for his daughter and resume marital life. Was he a selfish asshole?
Maybe. Maybe not. But he had a chance. After months of solitude. Of real, atrocious, loneliness.
He carefully weighed the words not to waste that possibility alone. The stakes seemed too high to him, at times unaffrontable, and that made him very insecure. Shaky.
He failed to send a message of complete sense. Moonlight was replaced by the first rays of the sun.
He had a slight headache from insomnia. Too many thoughts. Too many knotted wires. He decided to get up and take a shower.
He tried to call Brandon again: phone off. Damn Bran.
She was hungry and went to the Peach Pit. He found only Nat and Willy, in the air an aroma of freshly cooked eggs and bacon in preparation.
"Good morning man"
"Hi Steve, what's new?"
"None."
"Did you try with Brenda and Kelly?"
"I was only able to talk to Brenda, three seconds, maybe four. I don't know, it looks like talking on the phone is a problem. Maybe they are right. She tell to wait; Brandon and Dylan are gone. Where? Who knows.. Unpermissable" he shook his head "I have breakfast, then maybe ... I don't know".
"What do you want?"
"Età with bacon and a cup of coffee."
"The smell inspired you" Nat made the first 12-hour smile that way. Matte. Without joy.
"Already" Steve replied distracted, picking up his cell phone and rereading the draft of the last prepared text message.
"I always knew it was a mistake, but I didn't want to look pedantic to you or push you in his arms by countering the relationship; I want my family back, let's see each other whenever and where you want." A crap. He didn't convince him. He wasn't sure Janet intended to go back to him and the message seemed too possible, almost begging .. but he was begging. Very begging. If it weren't for the damn cheap pride he found himself stuck on him.
"Here's your breakfast."
"Thank you Nat – the look still glued to the display – has it ever happened to you," Steve asked him, "to be clear about what you want from life, but not being able to go in that direction because of pride?"
Nat sat down for a moment.
"So many times, my friend, so many times; but life doesn't take your pride into account and goes on its own; to preclude doors out of pride means leaving them to someone else, more...how to say...smart"
"And that when you realized it?"
"When I grew up, Sanders" Nat patted him in the arm and slipped away.
Steve picked up his phone. He erased any ugliness. CALL ME and clicked on the enter button. He felt relieved. Stupid and relieved.
"At this point I just have to wait," he said to himself and began to eat. After a dozen minutes Silver entered, saw him and headed to his table." Good morning Steve"
"David, what's new?"
"I called Brenda an hour ago; Kelly was still sleeping, she was under the influence of tranquilizers, so she would let her rest."
"Did you hear anything more about Sammy?" Nat heard the baby's name and approached.
"Brenda told me that it somehow has to do with Dylan, he is the one they want to hit. But, as far as I understand, the solution is at hand, not simple, but achievable. Dylan is taking care of it."
"Is Brandon with him?"
"I don't know, she didn't tell me; she didn't add anything to what I told you."
Bip Bip, Steve's phone. The boy, with his heart in his throat, pulled him out of his pocket and looked at him: VALERIE. "Damn!"
"What happened?" In unison David and Nat jumped worried in the chair.
"Nothing, headaches at work" and opened the message You left me at the Peach Pit as the last of the drivers, look I didn't want anything. Asshole . ".
"One less problem," Steve thought cruelly.
"These headaches risk you're losing your job, my friend; I know them well," David had peeked at his friend's phone.
"Yes, but sometimes they solve themselves; rarely, but it happens," Steve smiled. Nat didn't understand what they were talking about, they rang the doorbells announcing new customers and got up to get back to work. David ordered Steve's same breakfast and called Donna, "Do you love everything okay? Ethan? Good. I'm at the Peach Pit with Steve, we're waiting for news. Yes, of course, as soon as I know something I'll inform you right away. I have breakfast and maybe – Steve looked – let's go to Kelly' Steve nodded "In the meantime she will have woken up. Okay, yes, I love you too, see you later."
Eggs and bacon arrived and David started eating. Bip Bip, Steve's heart was agitated. Pleas not Valerie again.
"Let's see tonight at the Beat, which is also your home J. At 8pm, I'll be on time." And Janet didn't know anything. Maybe he had to tell her. Maybe he would have burned that chance? He didn't know. He couldn't think.
David was staring at him and asked him if it was always the "work" but Steve was peremptory.
"No, family issues this time; my family" and he drank his coffee.
Steve's phone was ringing up for the third time. He grabbed him out of his pocket and replied distractedly, without looking.
"Kelly, how are you? Yes...yes...of course, I'll be right there, I'm with David; ah, okay, I'm on my way" and closed.
"What happened?" Asked excited Silver.
"I don't know. She was agitated. I didn't understand. He said to run there."