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Sonny looked over the bridge, across the river. The way the rain collided with the mostly-still water, combined with the coldness of the night, reminded him of... something. The moon? The stars? Whatever. It didn’t matter to him too much. Not even his feathers getting all damp could snap him out of this rut just yet.
Promises had been made, but not followed up on. Most of them were made by him. Heck, all but one of them were ones he had made, sworn upon a hypothetical relative’s life. He knew people would be pissed.
A sound broke the ambient silence of the rain and passing traffic – a pair of footsteps, first upon reasonably dry concrete, then into a puddle. Sonny turned to investigate. He knew exactly whose feathery face he was staring at now.
“Didn’t expect you to be here, Marty.”
Marty leaned on the railing next to him. “You didn’t really strike me as the “melancholically staring into the water” type of guy.”
“We both know my preferred view is the bottom of the glass,” Sonny quipped. “Anyway, don’t you have a wife to get home to?”
“Yeah, but...” Marty sighed. “I don’t know. You weren’t answering your phone at all, and, well... I guess I was worried about you.”
“I can look after myself, Marty.”
“Then go ahead and do so.”
Sonny stepped back from the railing. “I was going to. Once I... well, you know...”
Marty laughed. “They don’t call me “Marty the All-Knowing”, do they?”
“I could use someone to drive me back to the hotel. Doesn’t have to be you, but...”
Marty opened the door of the car behind him. If it wasn’t obvious to Sonny what he was being asked to do, then it wasn’t obvious to anyone.
*
Marty kept his eyes on the road. He did his best to focus. And he did – no traffic light escaped his watchful eye. But something else occupied his mind – why was Sonny so bitter at the end of that case? It was solved, wasn’t it? He had to get to the bottom of this.
Eventually, he reached a corner; a set of traffic lights and a row of parked cars allowed him to stop. “So, Sonny, I was wondering...” The words got caught in his throat. He didn’t know why – it was just a quick question from one man to another.
“Yes?” Sonny asked.
“Well... obviously, something went wrong. I was just wondering if you wanted to talk about it.”
Sonny sighed. “Well, the case was closed, but I made a few promises today. Ones that I couldn’t follow up on.”
“Well, as long as nobody’s put a price on your head, it’ll all be fine, right?”
“Tell that to my gut.”
The car ahead of Marty moved. He continued on his way to the hotel, all the while trying to think of something to say to Sonny. Something to make him feel better.
Sonny feeling better. If Marty could make that happen, he’d have done the impossible.
Eventually, Marty reached the hotel. He parked outside.
“Thanks,” Sonny said, reaching for the door. “Oh, and... well, thanks, I guess. Rough times, you know?”
“I guess,” Marty replied. “I wish I could do more to help you. I really do. But my life’s busier than usual right now. If you ever need someone to talk to – you’ve got friends. You’ve got me.”
“I already thanked you Marty.” Sonny left the car. “But thanks for going the extra mile.”