Not even a week had passed of that tragic night, when Hannah and Beth Washington had gone lost into the woods, only to be never seen again. Now, only a couple days later the Washington lodge was silent. Although the friends were all present, the ordinary noises of living were all gone. Everyone had fallen deep into their thoughts. They all were in the large living room-like space.. except for one individual. Josh, the brother of Hannah and Beth, hadn't been the same after his sisters had disappeared, he'd just been sitting on Hannah's bed being completely numb. Everything in that room reminded him of his dear sisters, and of the fact that nothing was the same anymore. But besides all that he hadn't left the room.

The atmosphere wasn't any better among the others, for they didn't say a thing. Finally Sam had enough of the deadly, depressing silence, and stood up, saying in a slightly forced tone:

- I.. I'll go and see how Josh is doing..

Ashley nodded in a stiff way, and Mike just said:

- Okay...

Everyone was like frozen in place, and Sam was only relieved to get away for a while. As she made her way onto the upstairs, she became aware of the fact that Josh's mood wasn't really any better than anyone else's. On the contrary, actually. As she got into Hannah's room, she saw Josh sitting on the bed, not moving. God knows how long he had already been sitting there. He must have heard Sam's footsteps as she got closer, but he still didn't do anything to react to her. After staying still for a little while Sam finally took a deep breath and said:

- Josh..?

There was still no reaction in Josh, who had lost pretty much everything. Sam then walked right next to Hannah's bed, and sat down next to Josh.

- Listen, Josh.. I know that you're having a hard time right now, but you shouldn't keep blaming yourself for what happened.. It really wasn't your fault, and I'm sure that Hannah and Beth wouldn't want to see you like this,

Sam started in a careful tone. For a little while she was sure that Josh would still stay silent, but for Sam's surprise he started speaking quietly:

- There's no way you could understand, Sam.. None of you can. I.. I was the one who didn't do anything for them. I didn't know anything about what was happening.. when they needed me the most. And now, when they're gone, I.. I'm just pretending that I'm okay. That everything's okay. But that doesn't really change anything..

For every minute that Josh spoke, his voice started shaking more and more.

- I.. I didn't do anything to help them..

he continued on in a miserable tone, and slowly let his head sink against Sam's shoulder.

- Hey, Josh.. I just want you to know, that we're all here for you. And even if you don't want to talk with the others, well.. I'm here. You can always count on me,

Sam went on with a reassuring voice, while she gently put her arm around Josh, giving him even a little bit of comfort. Josh stayed silent, but didn't shake Sam's hand off. For a while they just sat quietly, side by side in a dim room, until Josh finally said:

- Sam.. thank you.. you know, for just.. being here.

It wasn't much, but Sam knew that Josh really meant it. And it was enough for her.