In the frigid night, beneath the unforgiving sleet, Eddie, a slightly intoxicated salesman clad in a Burberry cashmere car coat, confronted a homeless man named Steve. Steve, sitting silently at Eddie's feet, held a cardboard sign identifying him as a veteran seeking help. Eddie, with a dollar bill in hand, taunted Steve about his unemployment, unaware of the painful memories haunting the veteran.
As Eddie sipped from a silver hip flask labeled 'Salesman of the Year 1999,' he shared a flask offer with Steve, who remained stoically silent, his eyes fixed on the ground. The Times Square clock displayed a frosty -12 degrees at 1:00 AM, with remnants of New Year's fireworks hanging in the icy air.
Little did Eddie know, Steve's silence belied a lifetime of experiences, including a harrowing tour of duty during the Gulf War. Steve vividly recalled the relentless heat, the tension in the air, and the stench of decay from fallen comrades. His narration transported him back to Mosul, where a chance discovery of a small gold statue unraveled into tragedy.
In the ruined aftermath of an intense battle, Steve and his comrade Danny stumbled upon the gold idol. However, their finding was interrupted by an Iraqi man, leading to a split-second decision that would forever alter their lives. Danny pocketed the statue, concealing the incident that left an innocent Iraqi dead.
A year later, Danny sold the statue for a substantial sum, haunted by the guilt of their actions. He handed Steve the money, but the weight of their shared pain proved too much for Danny, leading to his tragic demise. Steve, burdened by remorse, left the gold idol behind as a symbolic payment for his guilt.
Back in the present, Eddie continued his banter with Steve, unaware of the depths of the veteran's anguish. He dismissed the horrors of war, emphasizing his own transient inconveniences during work-related travels. Eddie, offering a cigarette to Steve, marveled at the homeless man's resilience.
As Eddie stumbled in his attempt to pat Steve's shoulder, he decided to withhold the dollar bill. With a dismissive remark, he retreated into the snowy night, leaving Steve frozen in place. The veteran's vacant eyes stared ahead, his hand still outstretched, a statue of his own frozen despair.
Time passed, and the snow persisted, blanketing the alley in a quiet lament. Steve, the forgotten veteran, remained unmoving, a casualty of both the biting cold and the weight of his haunted memories.