How does one return (teshuvah) for this?

Question:

Dear Rabbi,
How does one do teshuvah for this type of transgression? I was at a friend’s house yesterday, and she and someone else wanted me to touch a buddha. I said no thank you, but they kept saying do it. I gave in to peer pressure, and feel bad. I was not touching it for any mystical reason (good luck), but I know touching idols is a sin. I made a gameplan next time of what to say/do to not fall prey to peer pressure again. Can I repent now or do I need to wait until Yom Kippur? Since it is a negative commandment. Does someone need a mitzvah for this type of sin?

Answer:

A person can definitely repent before Yom Kippur comes. In fact the best day to repent in on the actual day that the sin was committed. The reason is, because we are taught that when a person goes to sleep his soul goes up to the heavenly court and all of his action of that day are recorded then. Once they are written down, the person has to do teshuva to erase what was written. however if the person does teshuva before going to sleep that night, the sin isn’t even written down, Therefore the best time to so teshuva is in fact on the very day the sin was done.

Best wishes

Sources:

Heard from Horav Zeidel Epstein zt”l