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"Oh, I don't think you're a coward," Sophie replied, wiping the tears from his cheek with a soft brush of her thumb, making sure not to scratch him with her sharpened nails. "I doubt that's the case at all. It just sounds like you're under a lot of stress, that's all..." She smiled, then gently patted his shoulder. "It's a lot of pressure for anyone to handle, and if there's nothing you can do, then there's nothing you can do. If you take what you have and just go with it, then things won't seem quite so bad."

"I'm saying that if you really hate it, then you should try your best to get out of it, but if you can't, then there's no point in getting worked up about it. There's only so much you can do, Newton, and after that, you're giving yourself unrealistic goals and making yourself feel bad for it." The answer she was giving him wasn't her preffered happy-ending style, but it was the truth, and that was really what the man needed right now. "I mean, being a janitor isn't that bad...if you can hold out for a little while and stay persistant in asking for the chance to quit, I think the labs'll give."

"In all honesty, I don't think the labs would've turned you into a frog if they'd intended for you to stay a janitor. If you give it time and try to stay positive about it, then maybe they'll just let you go."

"Nothing more for what? Life?" Sophie blinked, confused by his response. "Oh, of course there is! You could always take up a side hobby to have fun with, or have some sort of reward system, and just tell yourself, 'Hey, if I put up with being a janitor today, I get to do something fun,' or 'I'll treat myself to a nice little gift'. The labs won't be opposed to you ordering something for yourself now and again, and it'll be a good way to positively reinforce a better attitude."

Okay, so now she was quoting out of her Psych book from high school, but it had to be a useful hint, right?

Sophie sighed: it was easy to see that he still wasn't happy with the decision, but what else could she do? She didn't want to mess around with what the labs could or couldn't do, and even though it might've been the more conservative route, from her perspective it was the much safer one.

Standing up herself, she felt that it was probably her time to go, and she picked up the plates to be put back where they belonged. "It'll be okay, Newton, really: I'm sure you'll be in a better situation soon." She came back to him instead of the door and rested a hand on his shoulder. "And hey, if you ever need me, I'm in Duplex 10, okay?" Sophie had made it a habit of telling strangers her duplex number, and as an afterthought she decided that maybe she needed to stop doing that. However, she felt she could trust Newton, and if nothing else, he didn't seem like the kind of person capable of hurting her, anyways.

"I'll see you later," she called, leaving the cafeteria and heading home.