a generic ringtone, a sound foreign to this 2am hour
a beat as we freeze, glancing down, and then up
"hello?"
a motion towards the bottle
clink, pour, swallow
"things aren't looking too good"
a pause
a glance
a motion
clink, pour, swallow
"you guys should get down here as soon as possible"
no pause
no glance
no motion
clink, pour, swallow
a burning in the throat
a burning in the throat that does not compare to the burning in the heart
a burning that was meant to be a numbing, a botched attempt
an order, a call to action
slam, yell, run
a somber race to get dressed
flip flop
flip flop
a half drunken drive, the climax of chaos
turn
swerve
ring ring
turn
yell
"hello?"
cry
beep
brake
a car parked in the fire lane
a confused family in a revolving door
an out of place chuckle
then,
silence.
seven floors of silence.
finally,
a collective sigh of relief at the sight of our beloved dying friend.
a chance to say goodbye