When Zak got the call, he was a mess. He cried for hours, but eventually, he realized that he couldn't handle being alone. So, naturally, he called his best friend, Darryl, and asked him to come over. At first Darryl was reluctant to come, as he was deathly afraid of planes and there was no way in hell he was driving for eight hours to get to his friend. But when he heard Zak's sobs, he knew he had to. So, he quickly told his friend that he would be right back and exited the discord call. He picked up his car keys and phone, then immediately FaceTimed the sobbing mess that was his best friend.
When Zak saw that his friend was holding his car keys, he was panicked. "No! If you're going to come, please, take a plane or something. It takes eight and a half hours to get from your house to my house." He had screamed. So, Darryl went back to his computer and bought a plane ticket to his best friend's city. After that, he told Zak he wanted to turn of FaceTime because he was still insecure about his face, and instead they stayed in a normal call until Darryl told Zak that he had to do something and that he would talk to him over text until he could get back into a call with him.
When Zak saw that his friend was calling him, he didn't hesitate before he pushed accept. Whet Darryl said next, however, confused Zak. "Open your door." As his face scrunched into confusion, he decided to speak. "Wh-" Darryl cut him off. "Just do it." And so he did. He walked slowly to the door, brushing some of the tear stains off of his cheeks. When he passed a mirror and realized how horrible he looked, he didn't necessarily care.
When Zak opened the door and saw his best friend standing outside his door, he wasn't exactly happy. I mean, how could he be? He had found out that his Mother had died merely hours ago. But, he was definitely less unhappy. Under other circumstances, he would have been thrilled to see Darryl. But at that moment, he just wrapped his arms around the taller boy and cried. They stood like that for a while before Zak asked him if he wanted to come inside. Of course Darryl said yes, so Zak walked over to his couch, obviously expecting his friend to follow him.
When Zak wrapped his arms around Darryl and pulled him as close as he could, Darryl reacted by pulling him even closer. After a few seconds Darryl felt warm a liquid all over his shirt, and he soon realized it was the poor boy's tears. He sighed and pulled his best friend impossibly closer and quietly whispered words of comfort to him. When he realized that this was making Zak cry harder, he stopped, and instead repeated the same thing over and over again to him. "It's okay. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere. You'll be okay, I promise. You're strong, stronger than anyone else I know." It soothed him a bit, but not enough to stop his body from shaking as he cried.
When Zak started singing, Darryl stopped talking. He didn't know why, but he just felt like what was about to happen would be important. So, he listened closely. "Hold." He started, and it was hard for Darryl to tell wether he dragged out the O, the L, or both. His voice cracked immensely, and Darryl almost thought he was going to stop. Almost. "Hold on." In the back of his head, a voice was telling Darryl that he knew this song. But Darryl was just focused on what Zak was saying. He realized now that Zak was dragging out the O, and that Zak's voice was amazing. He realized that Zak had stopped, and gave a short nod telling him to keep going. "Hold on to me."
When Zak reached the middle of the chorus, Darryl realized what he was singing. "'Cause I'm a little unsteady." Darryl did exactly that. He rapped his arms around his best friend and held him tightly, as if to tell Zak that he wouldn't let go. Or, maybe, to help keep the boy steady. "A little unsteady." He said as he put his head down on his friend's shoulder. "Hold." He continued and Darryl could hear the pain in his voice. "Hold on." His shirt was muffling his voice, but Darryl could still hear it. It was as if Zak was screaming it into his ear, but he didn't mind. "Hold on to me." It sounded like a statement, or maybe even a request. And anyone other than Darryl would have thought it was. But he knew what his friend meant. He was asking Darryl to hold on to him. And while it may have confused him as he was already holding the boy, he decided to hold him tighter. And while Zak was in a little but of pain from how tight Darryl was squeezing him, he didn't say anything. It felt nice to him, to be so close to his best friend. It comforted him. "'Cause I'm a little unsteady." Zak repeated. "It'll be okay, Zak." Darryl whispered quietly. "A little unsteady." He said quietly.
When Zak asked Darryl to stay with him that night, Darryl didn't hesitate before agreeing.
