[ The truth is, Alan's ready to come home. Maybe it's embarrassing to admit just how ready he is. He's so ready for these nightmares to be over. He just wants to come home and sleep and when he's done sleeping (it might take him a week at this rate), he just wants to live with Jesse, and do all the things he hasn't been able to do for thirteen years.

He knows it ought to be embarrassing and he should stop, but he reaches out for her, for anything he can reach: hand or arm, it doesn't matter. He just wants to touch her. He actually wants her to lie down next to him so he can hold her for a moment, but time isn't on their side, as usual. ]

I guess it does. Morning, evening, it- well, sometimes I can't tell the difference, so I guess that means I'm used to it too.

[ There's no daytime in the Dark Place, at least not that Alan's seen. But there's danger present day or night, even though the threats seem to come out mostly at night. That does little to reassure him, though, because there's no pretending that the threats don't exist. There's no putting the poster back up on the wall anymore. ]

Yeah, but... we still have go plan our movements and who's going to be handling what. Well, I'm just going to go where you tell me to, but- you know what I mean.

[ He glances at himself and frowns as well, but he's quick to look back up at her. ]

It's not like there's a department store around here. [ Even if there was, he wouldn't waste time on going there unless she insisted. ]