The next morning, Dane awoke to Cassie and her roommate whispering softly in the kitchen. He pretended to still be asleep. With one eye open, he saw Cassie go to a stash spot and hand her roommate something. His vision was too blurry to see clearly what it was, but it had to be important enough to hide it in a secret compartment behind the fridge.

As soon as her roommate left, Dane stretched out on the couch and made eye contact with Cassie.

"Good morning," he moaned.

"How did you sleep?" she asked quietly, not wanting wake Train. The sleeping giant lay sprawled out on the large sofa's pull-out mattress.

"There's not much food here, do you guys want to go out to eat?" Cassie asked.

"Yeah, that sounds great," Dane said. "I'd love to jump in the shower if you don't mind."

"Of course. It's all yours. I'll get you a set of towels."

The hot water and steam hit Dane's face and he had never felt so good. Never again would he take these simple pleasures in life for granted. Going without something basic for just a few days made them highly coveted luxuries.

Mr. Camouflage wire transferred enough money so that Dane and Train could eat, take transportation, and buy some essentials. Dane was really looking forward to getting himself some new clothes, a massage, a dozen donuts, and perhaps seeing his ex-girlfriend.

Leaving the apartment, the three took a train into the city. The population of Earth had been drastically reduced, but standing on the overcrowded train platform, it would be hard to tell. People from all ends of the world flocked into a few major hubs, making those cities densely populated.

Hiding behind sunglasses and a thin scarf that was wrapped around his face like a veil, Dane's eyes scanned the crowd. He saw several armed military personnel, looking for suspicious activity. In addition to the foot patrol, there were also high-res cameras mounted on the walls and ceiling, covering every inch of the station.

Dane and the others were nervous, but were able to board the train without any issues.

Riding three stops, they found themselves in another quiet neighbourhood outside of the main downtown core. Beautiful houses with manicured lawns and white picket fences lined the streets.

"You know her address?" Train asked.

"Of course, we dated for three years."

"Okay, relax, it was just a simple question."

"I guess I'm just a bit nervous."

"What are you nervous about?"

"I don't know. I just... I have a plan in my head for how a perfect scenario will play out. But knowing me... I'll probably find a way to mess it up."

"Just be yourself," Cassie suggested.

"Actually, Cassie, you don't know Dane as well as I do. That's actually not the best advice. You should be more like me. Whenever you feel one of your... Danerisms coming on, stop, and think, what would Train do?"

Train and Cassie both shared a laugh at Dane's expense.

"How long are we going to be?" Train asked. "I'm starving?"

"Depends," Dane replied. "I guess we'll see how this whole thing plays out."

Train could see that Dane was nervous and wanted to give him some parting words of encouragement.

"Hey, man. Relax. After everything you've been through, this will be a cake walk."

"What's a cake walk?"

"I don't know, but it's making me hungry."

Dane approached the house by himself, while Train and Cassie hung back on the sidewalk. Walking up to the front door, a scanner notified the residents inside that they had a guest. Seconds later, the door opened and a familiar face stood in the doorway with a displeased look.

"What are you doing here, Dane?"

"I... uh... just wanted to see you," he said, fighting back tears.

The girl looked over Dane's shoulder at Train and Cassie, who were standing around curbside. They each gave a friendly wave, but showed no emotion toward Dane.

"Those are my friends, Train and Cassie," Dane said. "They've been with me through some tough times. This past week, I almost died... several times... and I'm not sure what the future may hold so..."

"What do you think he's saying to her?" Cassie asked.

"Don't know, don't care."

"That's a little harsh, don't you think?"

"All I can think about is food at the moment."

"Surely there's someone you want to see."

"I would love to see my son."

"Maybe after lunch we can see him."

"I would like that."

"What's his name?"

"Caleb."

"That's a nice name. How old is Caleb?"

"He's ten."

Dane returned shortly after wiping tears from his face. "Alright, let's go," he said.

"How did it go?" Train asked, walking back to the subway station.

"Um... tough to say. I'm not sure if we are going to be one big happy family, but I feel the healing process has begun. I apologized for some of the mistakes I've made and she seemed receptive to that. But honestly, who knows if I'll ever see her again."

"Don't say that," Train comforted. "Everything is going to be okay."