Inhale

A week before we were going home, I saw Sid outside the bus on the phone. He was clearly upset, pacing and rubbing the back of his neck. I didn't want to bother him, but I'm worried.

He was on the phone for a while before he was finally done and came back on the bus. I looked at him and he avoided my eyes.

"What's wrong, Sid?" I asked.

"Just some contract shit with my solo album." He muttered not looking at me. He sucks at lying.

"Bullshit." I said. He glared at me.

"Not now Evie." He snapped and walked past me. Everyone was a little shocked, but I was even more. He's never even snapped at me before.

"Just give him a bit. He'll be ok." Corey told me. I nodded.

Sid avoided me all day and most of the night. He barely said a word to anyone, which is strange for him. He always talks. I wanted to talk to him, but he wouldn't give me a chance to even ask him anything. I'm hurt, and I'm worried.

I saw him and Corey having a heated conversation towards the back and I watched Corey run a hand down his face like he was beside himself. I can't stand this and walked back there. Both of them looked at me with pained expressions.

"What is going on?" I asked them. Neither of them will look at me or say anything to me.

"One of us needs to tell her." Corey said.

"Tell me what?" I asked.

"Not here." Sid said as he stood. He grabbed my hand and pulled me off the bus. We walked a little ways from the bus and he turned to me.

"Evie, Larry died." He said quietly. My heart stopped almost.

"What?" I whispered. "Was it the alcohol finally?" I feel hot tears in my eyes. He shook his head slowly.

"No. He was murdered. Marco found him back by the dumpster behind the shop." He said. I'm dizzy and I can't breathe. I backed away from Sid shaking my head.

"No!" I yelled, wiping my eyes.

"Fuck." Sid hissed. He started walking closer to me.

"No! Sid, tell me it's all a lie!" I yelled. I feel myself becoming hysterical. "He never hurt anyone!" I yelled. Sid finally just grabbed me and held on to me.

"I know. He was a good guy. He really was. He didn't deserve that." He whispered.

I am crying so hard. Larry was the nicest man I ever met. No matter how bad his life was, he always smiled and had a kind word for me. He never once asked me for money. I just did it out of kindness. He would ask other people, but never me or Sid. He also never expected anything from either of us.

Larry would never go inside any of the shops unless you asked him to come in. We would let him come in and warm up in the winter, cool off in the summer, take shelter from the rain.

"I'm so sorry Evie." He told me. "Marco found him this morning. Someone stabbed him." I felt my blood run cold. I stepped back and looked at Sid.

"Sid." I whispered. I felt like I have a massive headrush and it's not going away like it would if you stood up to quick.

"Evie?" I heard Sid say. He was so far away from me now. That was all I remembered.

"Evie?" I heard. I feel hands on my face and I'm moving them off of me.

"She's coming around." I heard Sid say.

"Evie? Open your eyes babe." Corey said. I blinked at the bright light. I moved to sit up, feeling someone pull me back down.

"Get the fuck off." I grumbled.

"Yep. She's almost there." Sid grinned. The guys chuckled.

"Lay down girl." Mick told me, sounding amused.

"Fine." I said. He laughed and nodded. I noticed I was on the couch.

"You ok?" Sid asked me, moving my head around like he was looking for wounds. I slapped at his hands and they laughed.

"Yes. I'm not puppet for fucksake." I grinned.

"She's good!" Sid smiled at me.

"Can I sit up now?" I asked Mick.

"Yeah. I don't wanna get hit." He laughed, helping me up. Fuck, I have a headache. I looked at Sid.

"He's really gone?" I asked. Sid nodded sadly.

"Yeah, he really is. I'm so sorry." Sid said.

"When is the funeral?" I asked.

"There won't be one. He didn't have any family. No one will claim him. If he's not claimed, the state will cremate him." Sid said.

"What! No! I'll do it. Call whoever you have to and tell them I'm claiming him." I said panicked. Sid looked at me surprised.

"Evie, that means you have to pay for his funeral. That's-" I stopped him.

"I'll get the money. Just don't let them do that. He was a human being for christsake! He died alone and no one should ever have to die alone." I told him. All of them look shocked by what I just said.

"I'm sorry. I know he's not my family, but, he was a hell of a lot better than most people I've ever met." I heard my voice breaking. "Who do I have to call Sid?"

"I'll call them. I let them know you'll be there in a week, ok? Are you sure?" He asked. I had my phone out calling about the money I have in my retirement fund from my old job.

"Yes." I told him. Someone picked up on the other end. "Yeah. I need to do a withdrawal." I said walking to the back of the bus. I was just giving my info to the person when my phone was pulled out of my hand. I spun around and looked at Corey.

"What are you doing?" I asked. I may hit him.

"No." He told me. "Let me do this." He said.

"What? Why? You didn't know him. Why would-" Sid cut me off as he walked up.

"We, as in all of us on this bus, are doing this." Sid told me. The guys all grinned at me.

"No-" I started, but stopped when Corey groaned.

"Mick! Help!" Corey yelled. They all laughed.

"Come on girl. Let us help. You're right. He was a human being. He didn't deserve what he got. No one does. Please?" Mick grinned. I glared at Corey.

"Dick move Taylor." I said to Corey.

"Yep." He smiled happily.

"That means yes." Sid grinned at me. I smiled and nodded. I hugged and thanked each one of them.

I spent the next week, anxious to get back and make arrangements for Larry. As soon as I was back, I was at the county coroner's office demanding that they release his body to me. I filled out a ton of paperwork, and contacted a funeral home who was getting him later that day. The coroner's office gave me his one bag of belongings that he always carried in an old faded green bag.

I sat with the bag in front of me and stared at it. I feel wrong for having it, and almost like I'm doing something illegal by looking into it.

"We should open it." Sid told me as we sat at his house. Corey nodded at us.

"Ok." I sighed. I unzipped the bag, finding a few old shirts and set them aside. There was a cigar box taped shut, and it was heavy when I picked it up. I undid the tape and gasped at what I saw.

"Holy shit." Sid said. It was filled with old coins that collectors have. Each one was in a little coin sleeve. The coins looked in mint condition.

"Oh my god." Corey and I said to each other. There was a yellow worn out envelope in the bag addressed to Sid and I. He opened it and grinned.

"Dear Evie and Sid,
Thank you for your many years of kindness towards me. I appreciate everything you two ever did to help me. You went out of your way to help me when most wouldn't even look at me. You have no idea how much this meant to me. You never treated me any differently.

I will miss our talks, and seeing both of you. Both of you were the best friends I ever could of asked for. I hope you two always stay friends, because people like you only come along once in a lifetime.

Whatever you see in my bag is yours. Please do what you see fit with it. The only thing I ask is if you happen to come across another Larry, maybe send a coffee his way if you can. I know it's not much, but it's all I have.

Thank you for the wonderful friendship and always being good to me and each other. You both meant a great deal to me, and just know I'm never far away. I'm always here.

Keep Evie out of trouble, and make sure Sid keeps following his dreams. Take of each other.

Your friend,
Larry Peterson

I'm in tears by the time Sid was done reading the letter. Well, all three of us were. I was happy in a way. Happy to know that he felt the same way we did about him.

"Damn man. He really thought the world of you two." Corey grinned.

"Yeah man. I would get annoyed with him spending money on alcohol, but I also realized it made him, I dunno, happy in a weird way." Sid grinned.

"What about any family?" Corey asked.

"The woman he loved left him for someone else. He never got over it. That's when he turned to alcohol. He never had kids, his parents passed away. It was sad really." I told him. I looked in the bag, and there was another box that had mine and Sid's name on it. It was a small, lightweight cigar box taped up. I opened it and laughed.

"What the fuck?" Sid laughed. The box held almost a thousand dollars in cash. Some of the money looked pretty worn out. When I lifted the lid, he had wrote 'rainy day fund' in black letters.

"This was his life savings." I grinned.

"What do you think the coins are worth?" Corey asked.

"No idea." I said looking at the few items he had.

"What should we do with the money?" Sid asked.

"Donate it to the homeless shelter. If these coins are worth anything, that's what I planned on doing with some of it." I told Sid.

"Goddamn, Evie. You're too nice." Sid shook his head.

"Well, he said if we ever saw another Larry he hoped we'd help them out. There are a lot of Larry's in this world that need this money way more than I do." I told him. Him and Corey stared at me in shock.

"Yeah, but what about if it paid your house off?" Corey asked.

"I don't need to pay my house off. Those people need food and shelter, and clothes. I have all of that already. They don't." I shrugged.

"I have no idea what to say." Corey chuckled.

"There's nothing to say other than Evie is way better than all of us combined." Sid said to me.

"No. I just remember a time when I didn't have shit, and someone helped me out." I said looking at Sid. He grinned and shook his head. "You didn't even know me. Just like we didn't know Larry all that well. It's not about what you have, it's about what you can give." I told them.

"Are you positive that Evie came from earth?" Corey smiled at Sid.

"Right? I feel like an asshole." Sid said.

"Hey. Nope. That is my title. Get your own." I smiled. They both laughed.

"Sid? Do they know who did this to Larry?" Corey asked hesitantly. Sid shifted uncomfortably in his seat and sighed.

"Yeah. They do." Sid said quietly.

"That asshole from the club?" Corey asked. Sid closed his eyes and nodded. I knew it. That was why I passed out that night, because as soon as he told me Larry was stabbed, that was the first person that came to my head.

"Because of me." I said quietly. They both looked at me, and I feel myself slowly coming undone. "This is all because of me." It was like the reality of the whole situation hit me like a mack truck.

"Babe, no. That guy is fucked up." Corey said desperately. I shook my head.

"Larry paid the price because of me. Understand that?" I whisperd as hot tears fell. "He was killed because I got away."

"Evie, Corey's right. This guy is fucked in the head. It could of been anyone." Sid said trying to make me understand.

"Maybe. But it doesn't change that this all started because of me." I said. I can feel myself getting even more upset. Why Larry? Was he watching anytime I interacted with Larry?

"Evie, please, you can't blame yourself for this. You didn't make this guy go and do any of this, babe." Corey pleaded with me.

"All of you can sit here and tell me it's not my fault, but I don't think I will ever believe it." I wiped my eyes. The doorbell rang and I jumped a little. Sid went to answer the door and laughed. Marco marched inside and handed me a squeaking Orco.

"That little fucker is chupacabra. El diablo? No. Fucking chupacabra. You know I hate that word." Marco rambled in Spanish some more, and I am laughing. Corey and Sid are too.

"Marco? Still love me?" I grinned.

"Keep that rabid little bastard away, Evie." Marco told me. It's something about the way Marco gets worked up that makes everyone laugh. My sides hurt from laughing at him. I stopped laughing and smiled at him. Corey took the cage and got Orco out, rubbing his ears. Marco looks like he may lose his shit.

"What the fuck!" Marco laughed at Corey.

"Dude, you act like it's a lion ripping your arm off." Corey laughed.

"Wait until he bites you. You'll see." Marco said to Corey who hasn't quit laughing.

"Marco?" I grinned holding my arms out to him.

"Nope. Not gonna work." Marco said trying not to smile.

"Marco? You love me. I know you do." I grinned. He started smiling.

"Chica, of course I love you. But get a fucking dog or something." Marco laughed, hugging me.

"Why? So it can kill your ass?" Sid grinned.