Denver raised his hand. It took ten seconds. His voice wheezed through the air. He'd taken his oxygen mask off. Marc Love had already gotten up but Denver swatted him away.
The waiter acknowledged the request. Gave the two younger men a look that asked 'is this okay?'. The man in the expensive suit shrugged before sipping his beer. Love was considering objecting explicitly. But the waiter was already gone.
Love asked Denver. "Are you sure you should be drinking?"
"Love." a deep breath. "I'm a goner." breath. "anyway." ... "can I just enjoy a nice beer with my
friends
before I go?"
That threw the man in the expensive suit for a twist. Denver had used the plural. Friends. Did this old man consider him a friend? He had never considered Denver that. Not consciously at least. Now, confronted by the imagination, it didn't seem like a fantasy. Sure they were friends.
They'd only spent a few weeks together. But spending everyday together like that. On the road. Away from all of the regular
life
. It made whatever his previous life was feel so distant. Was he even the same man anymore? A man in an expensive suit. Who lived up in the Hills. And had various women who came and pleased him sexually and emotionally. The man who made nine figure deals with other power brokers.
He was still wearing an expensive suit. But he didn't feel like that man anymore. The road trip had done a number on him. Or better put. Life had done a number on him. The trip had unraveled it all. Now here he was. Random bar in some mid sized
Suburban
town. Drinking a beer. With his only two friends in life.
Just a month ago he hated Marc Love. Had even paid several people, some professional hitmen, to have him killed. And now here they were together. Enjoying a beer. Funny how life worked.
After drinking several beers, the three laid on various parts of the
Hyundai
in the parking lot to sober up. They looked up at the sky. The man in the expensive suit was smoking a
cigarette
. Denver asked for one. The man immediately thought of declining, but then shrugged it off. Tonight was special. Anything for his friend Denver.
Marc Love looked up from his phone. He rarely looked at that thing anymore. So when he did, it was something important. "I saw that
Spacecity
is going to be right over us this evening. Just now. If we look up we'll be able to see it."
"Where'd you find that out?" the man in the expensive suit asked, looking up at Love to the side while lighting Denver's smoke.
"The subreddit for this town."
"Of course."
The bugs sang in the distance. They looked up without saying a word. Four minutes later Love pointed out to the sky. "Look. I think that's it."
The man in the expensive suit took off his sunglasses finally. "Now isn't that something?"
Denver's hand pointed to the sky. Raised slow. Wheezed "wowww".
"That thing must be moving really fast. You know how high that thing is?"
"Mmm."
Denver then said. "I want to go there."
The two stuttered. Then laughed.
"There?"
"Yes.
Spacecity
. That's where." a drag of the smoke. Then a long series of coughs. "I want to die."