There was no choice, was there?  No<i>real </i>choice, anyway.  Elijah had seemingly come to Toby’s rescue.  Now it was time to come to his mother’s.  Never once did he view himself as the “hero” type, but he could tell she could use a friendly shoulder to lean on and cry upon.  He could also feel her frustration and anxiety at a loss of a male presence in her son’s young, impressionable life.  Funny that, as he thought the same thing about Rosalie and no motherly figure in her world.  He pictured Mary Beth, but who knew where that was going?<br/><br/>With Toby tucked snugly in bed, and hopefully headed to deep outer space while riding on the back of his pet T-Rex, Elijah’s attention now turned to Gwen.  Since he was standing and his good deed done for the day (two, if you counted her books and laptop being returned), he thought his escape would be happening soon.  Not soon enough, it seemed.  Gwen decided to unload a little about her son’s father, and the fact that, being a girl, she didn’t always understand what the young man was talking about.  He almost smiled at that, except her tears convinced him she wasn’t trying to be funny.<br/><br/>Elijah remembered her offer earlier of looking after Rosalie if and when he ever needed her to.  Always believing he was a fair man, he stated, “Y’know, Gwen, now that we have each other’s numbers, if you ever need a sitter for Toby, just gimme a ring, and if possible, I’ll do it.”  He hoped his sincere proposal cheered her up a bit, even if just a little.<br/><br/>When she casually mentioned he had periods and boyfriends to look forward to, however, now that<i>definitely </i>wasn’t funny.  Gwen struggled with her emotions, at times succeeding, but mostly not.  Standing up straight, she admitted that she was going to cry and that arrangements should be made for them to meet about their business ideas.  She even granted him an out, saying how he should insist that it was time for him to go.<br/><br/>“Give me a time and place, I’ll be there,” she bravely said, still battling with those tears.<br/><br/>“You’ll be there?” Elijah repeated, though no location had been disclosed yet.  “Yeah, me, too.”  Following those three words, he clutched those baggy pajamas of hers at the hips and pulled her close.  Comforting arms enveloped her, as he whispered that it was okay to cry, and his jacket could handle an avalanche of tears.<br/><br/>No further words were put forth, because one, he couldn’t think of anything constructive to say, and two, sometimes silence really was golden.