"How're you doin'?" Angus asked, tying his shoe. Hannah blew the hair out of the corner of her face and shrugged. Her feet swung from the counter, Angus at the table pushing them back when one would get too close. 

The week she had to decide was almost up. Either she would make the call today, or nothing would happen and it'd be all her fault. The ring still hugged her finger and the locket still hung around her neck. But pawn shops closed in the evenings here. There wasn't much time left to think. "That phone call still wearin' on ya'?"

"A bit," she muttered. Angus gave her a smile. 

"Ya' know, if you care to tell me, which I'd love to hear it," he said reaching up to ruffle her hair. "I'm here, ya' know. Ya' know that right?"

During that week, along with the world standing on Hannah's shoulders, Angus stood right by her side, both of them holding each other up. With the late night phone call to the stack of letters sitting on the counter, there was a certain fog in the small apartment space, clouding their eyes of a solution. 

Angus' late night phone call mixed in with Hannah's thoughts as well. He'd been talking to his mother, Mrs. Young, whom Hannah had become well acquainted with as a child. Someone who, according to her sons, loved her, and wished her boys felt the same. Again, Hannah refused all temptation to sell the locket. 

Hannah's own mother would feel betrayed if something passed down to her was given away to some stranger. With Mrs. Young being a second mother, the betrayal was no weaker. 

Angus' mother called more than once during that week. Making sure the two were okay, talking to Hannah while dinner was cooking, teasing Angus about his old baby pictures she conveniently found. One arrived by mail with a note congratulating the both for how far they'd come. In careers, life, and love.

The two had gotten immeasurably closer that week. Through longer hugs and late night chats, along with sharing sweaters even as a clean pile of laundry sat right in the dresser. Whatever the exact day was when stealing cookies became stealing hearts, neither knew. And they were both too stubborn to return the heart they stole.

Hannah scooted over as Angus took a seat on the counter next to her. It took a couple tries to make a decent jump, once knocking over the salt shaker. "You ready to go?" Hannah asked about to jump down. Not wanting his success to be in vain, Angus stopped her.

"Not yet, not yet. Stay a minute." Hannah stayed where she was. Angus kicked his feet along with Hannah's, the two ending up in near perfect sync. "How are your legs longer than mine?" he asked.

"What?"

"You used to be so short, what happened?"

"Are you jealous?" Angus crossed his arms. 

"No." Hannah stopped swinging her legs, Angus slowly following suit. "How's your writing goin'?"

"Alright, I've almost finished my second article," she responded.

"How many do you need?"

"As many as I think will be enough. I'm aiming for four." Angus nodded, the ticking of the clock the only sound around them. It was a broken clock, one that Angus had had for years, given to him by his father. Malcolm had gotten a ceiling fan, one that sat in a closet collecting dust. Neither one were thrilled, especially when George got their father's watch. No matter how many times Angus changed the time it always managed to find a way to lag. His watch, which he had to buy himself, was correct, being twenty minutes ahead. Getting a new clock was difficult without the money to do so. Every morning Angus woke up hoping his watch worked.

"I uh, never got to tell you, I really do appreciate you helpin'," Angus confessed. "I wish you didn't have to but I..." Unaware of his actions he rubbed his hands together, finding new callouses his guitar gave him. Once in a while he'd take it off the stand and play it for a while, often calling Malcolm to tell him of a new chord progression he'd made and Malcolm would respond the same. "I do appreciate it."

"I'm glad I'm helping," Hannah said. "You come up with any more songs yet? You could make a new album." 

"Mal an' I have talked about that, we'll need to do that soon. Get the studio open an' have Bon get over there..." Angus' thoughts took him away from the small kitchen, Hannah waiting until he came back. When he did he seemed optimistic. "We'll have another one I reckon, sometime next year."

"Next year? That's months away!"

"Takes time, sweetheart, can't rush good music." He noticed the lack of sparkle in Hannah's eyes and as fine as she said she was, he didn't believe her. "Hey, what's wrong?"

What Angus didn't know was that the ring choking Hannah's finger seemed to be sucking the sparkle from her eyes. It dazzled more than ever lately, Hannah hearing the disappointment in her mother's voice as she gave her a halfhearted goodbye whenever the light caught her glance. She placed a hand over it to cover it up, only feeling the diamond instead as it rubbed against her palm. "I'm fine," she answered. 

"It's that phone call, ain't it?"

"I'll deal with it, I know what I'm doing." Angus didn't want to argue against that, but he wanted to be absolutely sure.

"Will you promise me somethin'?" he asked her, tugging on her jacket. "An' in turn I'll promise you the same?" Hannah raised an eyebrow.

"I'm listening."

"Okay, whenever one of us has somethin', like a phone call or a money problem or somethin'-" Hannah nodded. "-we tell the other, if we can't handle it by ourselves. That fair?"

Hannah tilted her head back and forth. "Is this an 'only' if we can't handle it?"

"Not necessarily, it's not limited to it or nothin'. Jus'..." He took her hand away from the ring and held it between both of his own. "I should have told you about the rent thing, an' I'm sorry I didn't."

"I'm sorry I read your mail," Hannah interjected. "It really wasn't my business to."

"Well, I should be glad you did. It was best if you knew, ya' know?" For a few minutes Hannah didn't even remember she was wearing that silly ring. "Like Mal, an' his uh, drinkin', he told me if it gets to where he can't handle it he's goin' to-, ya' know, rehab."

"Rehab?" Hannah asked. Angus nodded. "Is he okay? What about that night, when-when he came in here an', fell asleep on the couch-"

"He told me, the uh, next mornin', about that. He said if he couldn't get back on his own feet then..." Angus shrugged.

"What about us, can't we help him?"

"We will. We're supportin' him, talkin' to him, bein' there with him. Yeah?" Hannah nodded, resting her head on Angus' shoulder. Surprised but not upset by this sudden display of affection, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "We'll see him today, we'll be there for him."

"I promise," Hannah muttered.

"Hmm?"

"I-I promise, Angus. That...if I need help-and I can't do it on my own...I'll tell you." He grinned.

"An' I, promise you." With a kiss on her head, Hannah stared at the clock on the wall in front of them, still lying about the time. "So, you're sure about this phone call of yours?"

"Yeah, yeah, no worries." It could have been his imagination, but a flash of light seemed to flicker back into Hannah's eyes, just for a second. It was gone before he had time to fully appreciate it, but Hannah turned her head before he could look for another one. "I know what I'm doing." 

"I know you do," he whispered. 

"Angus?"

"Hmm?"

"How behind is that clock up there?"

"Well, it was fifteen minutes behind last week, an' it's gone back five more yesterday, so..." Angus checked his watch. "Fuck, we got five minutes." He hopped off the counter holding his arms out. Hannah hugging his neck and meeting him on the ground. "You ready?" She nodded. "Alright, let's go."

Upon opening the door, Angus stepped back seeing as there was someone behind it in a bathrobe and slippers. "Hello, Angus."

"Uh, hello, Mr. Nelson," Angus smiled politely. Hannah stood shyly behind him, recognizing the name. 

"Lovely morning, isn't it? Oh, I see you're with a friend!" Angus stepped aside letting Hannah give a small wave. 

"Hello," she smiled. 

"Mr. Nelson, this is-"

"Is this the same girl you were with when you came home?" Angus' face, as he was getting rather used to, turned a bright red. 

"Uh, um, yeah, uh-this is, this is her-Hannah." Hannah stepped up to shake Angus' neighbor's hand but he never offered it. 

"That's good!" Mr. Nelson grinned. "That's good, get yourself a steady girlfriend, Angus, you deserve one." 

"I uh, had one. Sort of," Angus sniffed. 

"Really, you could have fooled me, I never met her! How come I never met her?" Angus didn't have time to answer. "Oh well, can't meet 'em all, can ya'? What's your name, Miss? Hannah?"

"Yes, it is. You're Angus' neighbor?"

"The one but not the only. What was your last girlfriend's name, Angus?" Angus stepped back from the doorway after Mr. Nelson stopped him from squeezing by. 

"Her name was Sherrie, uh-Mr. Nelson, we've got somewhere to be-"

"Sherrie, like sherry, the drink! Oh, but you don't drink, do you?"

"No, sir," Angus sighed. "Neither of us do."

"Oh, I see. That's alright, I was never a big drinker myself. Hey, Miss Hannah?" Mr. Nelson pointed at Angus with a smile. "Be good to this guy, alright? He's been my neighbor for a long time and he's never been a peeve." The finger changed directions. "Ang? Be good to her, you hear?" He and Hannah shared shy crimson smiles. "Don't make the same mistake my cousin did. Did I ever tell you about my cousin?"

"Do you have somethin' for me, Mr. Nelson?" Angus asked. "'Cause if you don't, we've got to get somewhere." Mr. Nelson frowned in thought, then jumped a bit as the memory sparked him. 

"Oh, yeah I almost forgot..." Inside the pocket of his bathrobe was a small envelope addressed to-"Miss Hannah, I believe this is yours. Got delivered in my mailbox again, but you were here to give it to, so..." Hannah took the envelope with a thanks, her and Angus examining the front. Angus' address with Hannah's name was printed right before their eyes, the envelope torn open in seconds. Mr. Nelson stood there on his toes, anxious to hear what it was. 

"This is a paycheck," Hannah said, a hint of confusion in her voice. "I haven't submitted anything, how do I have a paycheck?"

"Look, the bottom there..." Angus pointed at a few lines of fine print. 

"Due to your last submission before your departure, we have received your new address and have sent this check to you. If you're not the recipient for this letter, please return it as soon as possible."

"As you can see, I'm not a Hannah," Mr. Nelson smiled.

"They sent it this quick? It was last week when I told them!"

"Maybe this was a priority envelope," Angus said. "How much is it for?"

"Four hundred?" Hannah asked after finding the number. "Four hundred, that's more than I've ever had! It's always been a hundred at most."

"I won't say what I think happened," Angus muttered. "But four hundred, hell, that's a lot!"

Something about seeing a check that she earned herself, that no one could take away, ignited something in Hannah. "This is great, I-I've never really had this before-never had, my own money before..."

"Maybe they raised your pay?" Angus suggested. "Either way, you'll be gettin' a lot more of these." He returned the big smile Hannah gave him, all the light returning to her eyes. Suddenly she was in his arms, Angus so caught up in the moment that he didn't have time to be surprised. His lips were instantaneously on hers, taking a few seconds to realize what he had done. With wide eyes he pulled away, both of them speechless. The presence of Mr. Nelson brought them back down to Earth. 

"Well, I see you two are getting along just fine," he said with a grin. "I'll uh, leave you kids alone then." Before Mr. Nelson closed the door behind him Angus swung it back open.

"Wait, wait, uh, we're actually goin' somewhere, you can, leave it-ya' know." Mr. Nelson gave Angus a pat on the back. "Uh, thank you for the uh, the uh-"

"The mail?"

"Yeah, the mail."

"We should really find a new mailman," Mr. Nelson said walking back to his apartment. "One that can tell a one and a seven apart."

By the time they reached the beach it had begun to rain. Their shoes sat on the sand a few yards away, two pairs of socks snug inside. A man wearing sunglasses speckled with raindrops and barefoot as well came strolling up to them, bending over slightly to look Hannah in the eyes, pouting. "You're late," Bon said.

"You're early," Hannah responded. 

"Phil called me on the phone wakin' me up from my excitin' dream, it's his fault."

"That why you're poutin', Bon?" Angus said. The three walked toward the ocean where three other men were throwing seaweed at each other. 

"I didn't pout, I merely made a statement," Bon defended. "I'd like to give Phil a little flick on the head, sure, but I haven't. That's says somethin', don't ya' think?"

"A childish somethin', that says," Angus laughed, dodging the sand Bon threw at him. Someone threw seaweed at him too, and Angus had no second thoughts about throwing some back at his brother. 

"I'm childish?" Bon muttered to Hannah as the two nearly got in a brawl. Phil came over with a collection of sand dollars.

"I'm rich, Bon, I own this beach now, you're trespassin'." Bon did a little dance with his feet letting Phil know he wasn't going anywhere. "If you're gonna visit my beach I'd rather you wore shoes or somethin'."

"I'm not wearin' shoes on the beach, Phil, an' if this beach were in fact yours, I'll have you know I wouldn't be wearin' anything." He took some of Phil's sand dollars and scattered them. "You can send your little dogs to come an' chase me."

Phil laughed and threw the rest of the shells in the water. One flew in a different direction and trailed through the wet sand. A wave came in and took it as it left. "Hey, you're here, Hannah," Phil noted after a few seconds. "I hear uh, Travis? Is that his name?" Hannah lowered her head and nodded. "I hear you're not livin' with him anymore?"

"Nah, she dumped him," Bon said wiping the rain from his face. "He's livin' with his granny now, ain't he? Or in his mum's basement?"

"Uh, no actually, he-"

"Phil, do you still have that crab leg I gave you?" Cliff asked coming up to them. His hair was sparkling with the rain and his sandals were more like sand all overs. "Hey, Hannah, glad you could make it. So, Phil? Crab leg?" Phil's hands were empty as he held them out, both him and Cliff looking out to the ocean, knowing Phil had thrown it out there by accident. 

"Wouldn't you like a little story instead, Cliff?"

"What, you just chuck it?" Cliff asked and the two set off to search it. 

"What were you gonna do with it, eat it?" Phil got shoved for that comment. "Might still be here, an' Bon threw some too!"

"I plead the fifth!" Bon shouted at them as a small wave came, knocking Cliff off his feet. Bon laughed, then looked at Hannah. He was concerned when she didn't after something that funny. "Somethin' wrong, little lady?" Hannah scanned the beach for Angus, who was talking to Malcolm, both looking a little down. "You'd rather talk to them?" Bon asked following her gaze.

"What? No, no.I want to talk to you," Hannah said. Bon grinned. 

"Good." He knelt down in the sand. "Here, get on, let's go for a ride."

Hannah climbed reluctantly onto Bon's back and he slowly stood up, holding her legs in place. The footprints he left behind were swallowed by the water, clumps of seaweed laying around that hadn't been there that morning. Birds flew above them, some flying away from the rain, others relishing it. A wind blew Bon's hair into Hannah's face, which turned to one of annoyance. "So, your hickey still there?"

A minute of silence passed. Hannah could tell Bon was smiling. "What...what-"

"The hickey on your neck, don't think I didn't see it," Bon said. "I didn't say anything or Angus would have given me a kick in the ass or somethin'. He was a bit snappy that mornin'." Hannah didn't know how to respond. "Anyway, he give it to ya'?"

"Uh, well, actually-"

"Figures. The man won't shut up about ya'. Any uh, idea why he might have been so cranky that day? He chip a tooth?"

"No, no. He wasn't upset when I talked to him." Bon scoffed. 

"Wasn't he..." Malcolm and Angus had taken to sitting on a nearby log further up the sand, Hannah noticing the way Angus had his leg crossed over the other. Malcolm was putting away a small pack of what looked like cigarettes, Angus already having lit his. "It's still there, ain't it?"

Hannah tightened her hold around his neck. 

"Hey hey hey, watch it."

"You brought it on yourself."

"Maybe," Bon grinned. "So. You doin' okay up there?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Guess so? Shouldn't you know so?" Hannah didn't answer. "Somethin' wrong?"

"Bon...have you ever had a difficult decision to make?"

"I think we all have. But, yes, I have had to make some pretty rough choices in my days."

"Like what?" Hannah pressed. Bon laughed a little.

"Well, let's see." Bon thought his answer through carefully. "There have been a few times I've had to choose a job," he said. "I've had a bit of'em before gettin' this one, this one bein' the best. Uh, I've had to-" He laughed again. "I've had to choose my words more than a few times." He lost the smile on his face, his voice holding the last pillar of a falling monument. "An' recently I've had to make a choice. About givin' up what I want for the sake of a friend."

"Did...you and your friend work things out?"

"Well, this friend didn't really know I was ever in a predicament. Prolly a good thing. An' he's not gonna find out so the matter's been dropped." Hannah was quiet again. "You got a choice to make?"

"How'd you guess?"

"Mind powers. An' what's your predicament then, hmm?" Hannah played with the collar of Bon's shirt. "Come on then, I told you mine."

"I need money," Hannah said bluntly. "I know ways I can get this money, and there are two people who need it much more than I do."

Bon tried his best to keep up. "Okay."

"I don't have much time to collect enough to help both of them though." Bon nodded.

"Huh. You need money to help a couple of guys?"

"Yes, and I can only help one of them."

Bon thought for a second. "Do you have a preference?"

"I do, actually."

"Problem solved, help that guy."

"But if I do, I feel like I'm betraying someone else I love, someone who I've already disappointed several times in my life."

"And, if you help the other?"

"Then I'm betraying several people I love, and who I know love me back."

Bon still believed the problem to be solved but he held his tongue. "So...what're you thinkin'?"

"I want to help the man I love-uh, the man I prefer. But...I don't want to disappoint anyone."

"May I ask who you're disappointin', if you pick this preference?"

"My mom," Hannah muttered. 

"I see. I'll let you know, I'm sure I've disappointed my own mum time and time again. We all do somethin' our parents ain't proud of. Like my singin'."

"She doesn't like your singing?" Hannah asked.

"She does now," Bon said, smiling at the thought of his mother. "By disappointin' her one moment, I made her proud the next. Maybe helpin' this man will piss your mum off, but then...maybe she'll see it was the better choice after all. Ya' know? Surely she wouldn't want you in deep water."

"I might never know if she approves, I've lost just about all contact with her." Bon remained silent. "She doesn't even know I'm in this mess."

"Why do you say you're betrayin' her?" Bon asked. "She doesn't even know what's goin' on?"

"I sort of made a promise not to do what I'm thinking of doing," Hannah confessed, pushing Bon's hair aside that the wind had blown around. "Why do you have so much hair?"

"Ya' know, my mum asked me the same thing once?" he recalled fondly. "It's high voltage rock 'n' roll, that's what it is."

"I see."

"An' it's a pain to get it cut, it grows fast. So. About this promise. You think that by helpin' this certain man you're breakin' a promise you made your mum?"

"That's about it."

"Huh. Well...if breakin' this promise is the right thing to do, then I think your mum would understand. Should she find out, I mean."

Hannah held on tighter as she started to slide off. Bon adjusted his hold and kept walking, the waves getting friendlier. Phil was shouting meters away and Cliff was laughing. "What if...helping the man I lo-prefer ends up hurting the other one?"

"Do you...prefer him too?"

"I should, but I can't seem to. At least, not as much." Hannah looked over her shoulder to see Angus laughing along with Cliff at whatever was causing Phil aggravation. "Or in the same way."

"Is...there a way of helpin' him along with the man you love?" Bon didn't bother correcting himself. He didn't make a mistake. "Or, is helpin' both impossible?"

Hannah considered her options. Either Travis goes to jail, or he's homeless, or Angus ends up without a place to stay. Bon's words of wisdom seemed to clear a little fog, but Hannah wanted to be without a doubt that she was making the right choice. If she helped Angus like she wanted it would be bad news for Travis either way, but maybe...if she let him go to jail and serve time for what he'd done, he'd have some place to stay until he got out. That could buy him some time for him to get his life straight, and he could get another job, another house, quit gambling. It'd be rough on him, but he was rough on her. Hannah was never one to exact revenge on anyone, but this seemed helpful in a way. She no less felt guilty about it. Her mother would hate to see the ring sold away, but Travis was hurting her. Staying with him wasn't an option, and neither was letting the man she loved lose his home. She could move in, at least for a while. If things didn't work out, they'd still be friends and their lives would go on like normal. But she would never know if she never tried. "Maybe...it is possible."

"It is?" Bon asked. "Well, hey. I say if it's possible, go for it." Bon felt arms around his neck tighten, but rather than teasing or grip being the reason behind it, it was out of affection and thanks. 

"Thanks, Bon," Hannah said. "I'm glad I talked to you."

"Glad you did too," he confessed. "You uh...did you ever discuss it with anyone else?"

"I wanted to tell the man involved but...he's the man involved, you know?" Hannah shrugged. "And I could handle it just fine on my own, I just needed some advice. Some good advice. Thank you."

"You're welcome, little lady. Uh, do I happen to know this man involved?" Distant shouting echoed behind them.

"I think you know him very well." Bon turned around upon hearing his name being echoed across the beach, a little man storming up to them. 

"Where are you takin' my girl, Bon?" he asked when he finally could speak without shouting. 

"Your girl?" Bon teased. "I dunno, Ang, she seems to want to be with me instead."

"Oh come off it, Bon, you were takin' her hostage."

"Alright, alright." Bon knelt down again letting Hannah step onto the sand. It was cold between her toes. "She's all yours, Ang." Angus wrapped an arm around her shoulder, Hannah noticing a towel in his other arm, soaking wet. "I forgot, I'm not the one who gave her the hickey."

Angus didn't bother to guess if his face had changed color again. Hannah's face matched it and Angus threw the wet towel at Bon to shut him up. "Eh, shut up."

"You all use this for a toilet?" Bon asked dropping it on the sand.

"Malcolm brought it, he gave it to Phil after Cliff an' I threw him in the ocean." 

"Aw, too bad I missed that." With the towel gone from his possession, Angus occupied his other arm in the same way he used his first one. Hannah was a lot warmer in the cold rain. "Is that him swearin' a blue streak?"

"Yeah. You doin' alright?" Angus asked Hannah. She gave Bon one last smile, receiving one from him as well. 

"Angus, I need to talk with you."

"Alone?" he asked much too eagerly. "Or, we can jus' stay right here, we're already out of earshot of half the planet." Bon held up his hands.

"Lost myself in conversation, mate, that's all."

Angus wrinkled his nose. "Hmm. I'm all ears, then. What is it?"

Hannah's eyes, despite the cloudy sky, the dull rain, and the grey atmosphere, were shining more than he had ever seen them before. She bounced slightly on her toes like a child sharing some exciting news. "Does your offer still stand?"

"My offer..." He frowned before his eyes widened in realization. "You're...you mean it?" She nodded. "You're...you're movin' in?"

"I'm moving in," she grinned. Angus couldn't feel the rain anymore.

"You're really movin' in...this is, this is great!" He said hugging her tighter. "Are you sure? I don't wanna...I haven't pressured you or anythin', have I?"

"No, no, I'm sure. Two hundred percent."

Again, forgetting who surrounded them, who could see them and tease him about it later, he picked her up and spun her around, stumbling in the loose sand. Her laugh pierced his heart and he couldn't help but laugh with her. Overflowing with happiness and what he recognized as a long repressed love, he grabbed her lips with his own.  

And this time, he didn't pull away.