After tiptoeing out of his own house like a thief in the night. Scared that his mother would catch him going out. Something that he would deny with his last breath, if the question ever happened to come up. He had gotten into his car and started driving. The packed roads full of people looking to have a good time hindering his progress. But he had kept his cool and carried on driving. And now he had finally made it.
Once at the diner, it had been so tempting to let the cowardice that he had developed when it came to facing Emily take over. But he had resisted the urge to just stay in his car and look at the diner while his mind tried to come up with an excuse for him to leave.
Instead he took a deep breath in, then out. And then another breath in and out.
He practiced breathing for a while longer, his fingers gripping, and then releasing the steering wheel with each breath.
