It felt like an eternity walking down the sidewalk together.

Zak was anxious, he wasn't sure why he agreed to go with Darryl. Sure, he was his soulmate, but that didn't mean he knew him.

Still, Zak had the urge to hold Darryl's hand. He could feel his own hand twitch in anticipation, but he didn't want Darryl to think he was weird if he grabbed his hand.

In order to stop his body from reaching out to Darryl, he went to stuff his hand in his pocket.

He wasn't able to, though. Right as he was about to stick his fingertips in his pocket, another hand reached out and clasped onto his own. Zak was startled, which caused him to look over at the taller man next to him. His eyes trailed down Darryl's arm and finally landed on their hands, which were now firmly grasping at each other's.

Darryl's face was bright red, but he tried to keep his cool, so he shrugged and said, "I could tell you wanted to."

He looked away right after he said that, as if he were too embarrassed to admit he wanted to as well.

Zak allowed it, they were soulmates after all. Even if he was still mad at Darryl.

He couldn't help but notice that even though it was night, the colors around him seemed more vivid than before. He couldn't tell if it was because he was touching Darryl, or if it was something he just hadn't noticed in the past.

Zak brushed it off, thinking it wasn't possible. He must've just missed it before.

Zak was snapped out of the his thoughts again as Darryl tugged on his hand. He looked up and noticed they were in front of the diner. He hadn't realized they were already there.

Darryl smiled at the shorter boy, giving his hand a tiny squeeze before letting go to open the door.

Zak's hand suddenly felt cold.

He brushed the thought to the side, walking through the door as Darryl held it open for him, thanking him quietly. Darryl followed him, making their way to a booth in the corner of the diner.

Zak didn't know, but Darryl visited the diner almost daily, so the staff all knew him and treated him like family.

"Darryl! Where have you been?" A voice called out, which caused both boys to look over at the source. An older woman, possibly in her 50's, was walking through the door to the kitchen, making her way directly to them.

"Hey, Deborah. Sorry, it's been a long few days." Darryl smiled sheepishly at the older woman, rubbing the back of his neck. She gave him a pointed look, shaking her pen at him.

"Now, I told you, you call me Debby. None of that Deborah nonsense. You can tell me all about it later, but first I wanna know, who's this handsome fella?" She winked at Zak, who blushed slightly. He wasn't sure how to react to that.

Darryl noticed and jumped in for him. "Debby, this is Zak. He's my-"

"Friend. We're friends." Zak cut him off, to which Darryl gave him an odd look. Zak didn't want the woman to assume they were together, not when he was still angry at him.

"Whatever you say, boys," she winked at them once again. "What can I get you two tonight?"

She pulled out a notepad and a pen from her apron, pausing to look at the two of them.

"I'll just take a coffee and a muffin, please." Darryl looked at Zak, who wasn't quite sure what he wanted. "Just bring him the same thing."

Zak nodded, silently thanking Darryl. He didn't often drink coffee, but he didn't want it to go to waste this time.

"I'll be right back with those." Debby smiled at the boys, sticking the pen and notepad back in her apron before heading back into the kitchen.

Once the door closed behind her, the silence in the diner became extremely noticeable. There weren't any other customers, and the music that was usually playing was turned off. Darryl started to panic, now feeling extremely awkward. Zak noticed, so he reached his hand out and set it on top of Darryl's, smiling at him. He gave his hand a light squeeze, letting him know it was okay.

"Whenever you're ready, I'm listening. I'm just letting you know now, you better have a good reason for everything." Zak spoke quietly, he didn't want Debby to hear too much of their conversation. Even though she seemed nice, he wanted it to be as private as possible.

With that, Darryl began his story. He told Zak about his childhood, leaving out no details. He told him about his mother's death, how it affected both himself and his father. He told Zak about his father falling apart and having to watch it happen every day. He spoke about his fathers alcohol abuse, and what drove them to hate each other.

Throughout his confession, he noticed he had began to cry. Zak noticed as well, bringing his hand up every once in a while to brush away a stray tear from Darryl's face.

"That's why I was so scared. I still am scared, I'm terrified. I don't want to end up like that, like my dad." He whispered the last part, not even wanting to say it out loud.

Zak squeezes Darryl's hand again, brushing away another tear. "Darryl, you could have talked to me sooner. You didn't have to pretend I was a stranger."

Darryl nodded, wiping his own eyes. "I know, I'm sorry for doing that. When I saw you, I just panicked. I didn't know what else to do, I wasn't ready to talk yet. But now I am."

"I understand. I forgive you." Zak spoke softly, so softly that Darryl almost didn't catch what he said. He looked up at the dark haired boy, surprised by his words.

"You do? That easily?" Zak nodded, smiling at the green eyed man. He didn't know what made him want to forgive Darryl so easily, but he did anyway. "So, what do we do now?"

Zak sighed, sitting up straighter. "It's up to you. I won't force you into anything, but I think we should give this a try."

He gestured to their hands, which were still clasped tightly together on the table. Zak's arm was twisted around his plate where his muffin had been sitting. Debby had brought out their food while Darryl was telling his story, and though she seemed interested, she knew better than to pry. She left them alone, giving them a small smile when she set down their plates.

"I do too."

Zak's eyes went wide, he hadn't expected Darryl to agree so quickly. His facial expression then turned into one of a smile, looking into Darryl's eyes.

"I don't know if you've noticed, but everything looks so much brighter when we're together." Darryl spoke softly, chuckling because he thought his idea made no sense.

Zak nodded in agreement, "I've noticed, I just didn't say anything since I didn't think it was possible."

Darryl laughed, squeezing Zak's hand for the first time since they sat down.

Everything was going to be okay.