The city went by in a haze of heat and that kind of sticky moisture that promised the day would only get hotter. Already, he could feel the slick of more sweat as it collected between his shoulder blades, across his brow and the most annoying upper lip. Why he ever thought that living in this place would be a good idea following his tour in the desert was beyond him. However, there was no way to change it now so with a stiff back and the wipe of the sweat from his brow, Toby looked at the girl and wondered how she lasted. With how many layers she had on, it was a miracle she had not passed out yet.<br/><br/>After a long silent ride that finally came to an end, the truck pulled into the depot. From the back both hopped and already he knew she was not settled. To him she looked like some small critter or insect, itching to get away but being unable to decide on which direction. With the question, she confirmed his suspicions, though before he could answer.<br/><br/>“Hey! Toby, what took you so long back there?” Dan, the driver, asked before he was even close.<br/><br/>A look of panic passed over his face, and he was quick to move so that the girl was hidden from view that his much larger bulk. “Uh…uh…Um…what do you mean Dan?” Toby would have kicked himself for how he stumbled and stuttered over the blatant lie. All he could hope for now was that Dan was no better at social cues than he was when it came to wearing his deodorant. There was a reason why he opted to ride on the outside of the truck, and it had nothing to do with the false claim of disliking small spaces.<br/><br/>“What do I mean? What do I mean?” Dan mumbled. This was a man in his mid-thirties, but he looked like he was in his mid-forties, and he had not taken care of himself in a very long time. His greasy scalp was red beneath the heat of the sun, unprotected by a hairline that had lone since receded. The jumper her wore strained over the large pot belly that he carried around like a woman about to enter her third trimester. Being this close, to him, Toby had to make sure to breathe out his mouth, least his smell overwhelmed him. “We are nearly ten minutes late to clock out, and you know how they hate to pay us an extra dime.”<br/><br/>“Yeah I know, just uh…there was this kitten…” the lied started before he could rethink. “And it looked hurt, so I tried to um… catch it, but it got away.”<br/><br/>Dan looked at him for a long moment, the clipboard brought up to check on some paperwork before he just chuckled and shook his head. “Toby you are such the bleeding heart!” tone shifted from one of annoyance to one of humor and forgiveness. “Just clock out and do your paperwork ok?”<br/><br/>“Um…do you think you could do that for me?”<br/><br/>“Why?” Suspicion back in his voice.<br/><br/>“I have to go and meet my doctor, need to get a refill on my meds,” as his nerves kicked in his tongue darted out to lick lips that had suddenly become dry.<br/><br/>“Ugh, fine. Go and do what you need to do, but don’t miss your shift on Tuesday. Alright?”<br/><br/>“Sure thing, Dan. I promise,” his best smile was flashed and waved as Dan walked off. Once he was clear, Toby let out a breath he had not known he held and turned to face girl once more. “So, um…my name is Tobias though most just all me Toby. I can walk you to the bus station if you want? It on my usual route to get lunch and then head home…so…it would not be any trouble to just walk you there.”