Memories are nothing more than ghosts that we let in. Don’t be afraid of them.

When We Were Us by Bon Jovi.

“How come you never told me?”

“Told you what?” Candy took another long sip of the lukewarm beer and tried to swallow it. The liquid stuck in his throat as he tried to ignore Joe’s steady gaze.

“I thought we were past this. That we were friends.” Joe tried to keep a neutral expression, but Candy didn’t miss the slight edge of disappointment in his voice.

“We were.”

At least he hoped that was still true. If he weren’t parked in the corner with a table hemming him in, he would have already dropped the glass on the table and left. Joe deserved answers, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. He couldn’t bear the thought that any respect Joe had for him would evaporate in an instant.

“And what? We aren’t anymore?”

Candy took another gulp of his beer and refused to make eye contact.

“Candy …” Joe rubbed at his jaw as he wondered how to shift things. Candy’s stubbornness was legendary, but then again, so was his! He snorted to himself as he lifted his glass for another drink. The beer was stale and warm, but it was helping to wash out the trail dust he’d been eating for three days now. Three long days he had spent tracking down his wayward friend after he’d just up and left.

“Joe, you need to go home. Nothing for you to do here.”

Except lose all respect for me.

“That’s not how I see it.”

Candy was beginning to lose the game. He pushed out from the table and stalked towards the saloon door. Joe was only a step or two behind him and Candy felt his fists clenching by his sides. He gripped one hand in the other as he shoved at the swing door with his shoulder. Joe held up an arm to deflect the door from swinging back on him as he watched Candy cross the dusty street.

He stood on the dilapidated boardwalk and watched as his friend walked away from him. He’d allowed Candy to walk away once before and he’d be damned if he was going to let it happen again. Especially since he didn’t know why.

By the time Joe caught up with him, Candy looked like he was going to throw up. He was hunched over with one hand steadying himself against the back wall of the mercantile.

“Candy … what’s going on?” Joe stopped a few feet short of his friend, half expecting him to take a swing. By the time he finally looked up, his eyes betrayed him.

“Memories.”

Joe edged closer and waited.

“You know, Sarge used to say that memories are nothing more than ghosts that we let in.” He groaned, as if in pain. “Don’t be afraid of them, he’d say.”

Candy peeled himself off the wall and straightened up. The pain on his face was as clear as day.

“Sarge dragged me up after my father died.”

“Tell me what happened.”