"Jack?"

"Yeah?"

"You okay?" *pause*

"Yeah. I… No. I’m really not."

"Oh, sh… Well, I… I’m not sure if I can help, but I’ll try. Talk, I’ll listen."

"What do you want me to say?"

"Tell me about him. When did you meet?"

"Before you were here. Just before the strike. He walked up with Les, all stiff and suspicious. Wouldn’t spit-shake because he said it was "disgusting". *small laugh* We became pals right away, though. Especially during the strike. We were always better together than we were alone. We made each other… total. Complete. I was the mover, the doer, the idealist. He was the sense, the caution. I don’t think I could have done it without him, and him without me."

"What about after it was done?"

"We were inseparable. Spent most of our time together, doing stuff. Hanging around. You know how that goes."

"Yeah,"

"It was great. I was probably happier than I ever was in my life."

"Till Sutton?" *pained pause*

"Yeah,"

"How’d you run into him?"

"Selling papers. Dave accidentally crashed into him. Sent Sutton’s papers flying into the mud. Sutton started at him, beating him up. I ran over and pulled them apart, knocked Sutton around a bit, and we ran off as soon as the bulls showed up. Dave was worried, though. Sutton had threatened him before we hightailed it out of there. Paranoid, I called him."

"But he wasn’t?"

"No, Sutton was good to his threat. We said goodnight the next evening, and I was a block away when I heard two shots. I ran back as fast as I could, but not fast enough… *choked voice* I held him as he died. He told me to watch out for his family. Blood was everywhere. Everywhere! He touched my hair. Said I was his best friend. No bulls showed up. I carried him to the Lodging House. I was too tired, in too much agony to think of anywhere else. They took him away from me."

"Sutton?" *anger*

"I got him back. For what he did to Davy. To Davy’s family. For what he took from me. I wanted to kill him. I nearly killed him. Gah… it’s so hard. I can hardly look at Les. I don’t know what to do, I just wander around. I don’t eat unless I remember."

"It’ll pass," *pause*

"Yeah. Well, thanks for listening, Chase."