Solitude

The campaign staff were sat in the hotel bar, laughing and joking and drinking. The campaign was going better than anyone, with the possible exception of Leo, had ever thought possible, so they have a lot to celebrate, but there was one person who didn't feel like joining in. Josh was sat slightly away from the others, silently drinking a bottle of beer. He'd rejoined the campaign yesterday afternoon, only five days after his father's funeral and Leo was worried that he'd come back too soon. 

"You okay?" Leo asked.

Josh looked up and mustered a smile, "Yeah. It's going well."

Leo couldn't help but grin, "It certainly is," he agreed. "You could have stayed longer with your mom you know."

"She's gone back to work, she told me to do the same." Josh smiled sadly, "That's what my dad would have done."

"Yeah it is," Leo agreed.

Josh was suddenly hit by a wave of emotion. "It's too warm in here, I'm going for some fresh air." He stood and picked up a couple of bottles of beer. "I'll see you tomorrow."

As Leo watched Josh walk across the room, there was someone else who wasn't fully involved with the celebrations. Sam watched Josh leave and walked over to Leo. "Is he alright?"

"No. But he'll get there. Leave him for now."

Sam waited half an hour, before going in search of his friend. He found him sat on the steps outside the hotel. "You okay?" he asked, sitting down next to Josh.

Josh looked up from the beer label he'd been slowly shredding, "Yeah. You?".

"I'm fine. Do you want to talk?"

"What about?"

"Your dad."

Josh turned his attention back to the beer label. "I just want to sit here on my own and have a drink." When Sam didn't move, Josh asked. "Which part of 'on my own' didn't you understand?"

"Don't do this, Josh."

"Do what?"

"This. Don't shut everyone out."

"I'm not shutting anyone out. I'm sitting here having a drink."

They sat in silence for a few minutes until Sam asked, "How's your mom?"

"She's gone back to work."

"Okay, well that's the answer to 'where's your mom?' Is she alright?"

Josh took a drink of beer. "Yeah, she's fine I guess."

"Okay," Sam knew when he was beat.

Josh studied the now labelless beer bottle. "No," he said. "No, it's not okay. It's about as far from okay as you can get." He looked sideways at Sam, "It was his last chemo session. He went through all that, he survived the surgery, months of chemo." Josh stared up at the sky. "You think the Governor or maybe Toby could explain to me why God does stuff like that?"

Sam looked down at his hands and wished he had an answer for Josh, but he didn't. "At least the surgery and the chemo gave him a few more months," he said, though he knew that wasn't much of a comfort.

Josh surprised him though by giving a small smile. "Yeah. At least he got to see me leave Hoynes and work for a candidate who's worth the fight."

"We're going to win you know," Sam announced, holding out his beer bottle.

"We certainly are," Josh agreed, clinking his bottle against Sam's. "I think someone's trying to get your attention," Josh nodded toward a woman stood in the hotel doorway.

"Yeah, that's Kerry. I kind of arranged to meet her. I'll tell I can't."

"Go," Josh told him. "I think she'll be better company than me."

"I don't mind."

Josh laughed. "Go and have fun. I'm going back in now anyway."

Sam was still unsure. "I'll come with you."

"Well okay, but I'm going to bed and I think people'll talk," Josh smiled.

"In that case, if you're sure you're okay, I'll go and see how Kerry is."

Josh watched Sam walk back to the hotel, before he finished his beer and went back to his room to call his mom.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
END
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~