"Thank you all for coming out today." "It really means a lot to us to have you here." "And I know it would have meant a lot to my brother as well." "Chris is... was a natural comedian." "And anyone who knew him has heard his patented jokes." "The setup varied from time to time." ""How many people can you fit in a boat?" ""How many people can you fit in an elevator?" "A car?"" "But the punch line was always the same." ""One, with a big fat head"." "He used to tell me that he was getting 'em from a book that he kept top- secret." "Stashed away." "And just before he passed away, he called me over to tell me something." "He said," ""Eddie, there wasn't a book with all the jokes." ""I made them up." "I didn't want you to go try looking for it"." "I like your cracker house." "Do I know you?" "Does anybody here know you?" "Hey, wait." "The suit was a giveaway." "You're not supposed to wear black to these things anymore." "Why not?" "'Cause it's a bummer." "Yeah, people like to wear bright colors these days." "I don't have any bright colors." "I'm not gonna tell, or whatever, about crashing the memorial." "Good." "Sorry for your loss." ""Cast thy bread upon the waters," ""for thou shalt find it after many days"." "I'm reminded of the little squirrel that Vicki talked about in a poem that she wrote, discovered among her papers." "Here's that poem." ""The leaves are turning, turning" ""Yellow, orange, red" ""The colors of death" ""Like the squirrel without its walnut, without its mother" ""I am alone" ""Like a deer that longs for running streams My soul longs for you, my God" ""My soul longs for you"" "And we must remember the words from Ecclesiastes as well." ""Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after many days." ""If the clouds be full of rain, then they empty themselves upon the earth." ""And if the tree fall toward the south or toward the north," ""in the place where the tree falleth"..." "It's not that bad." " C- 8." " Hit." "What do you mean?" "I'm ruined." "Thanks to her, they'll probably have people watching out for me now." "I'm gonna have to be careful." "F- 5." " Miss." " Where's your dumb little boat, Hiroshi?" "Maybe you should stop going to strangers' funerals." "C- 6." "Hit." "A- 7?" "Miss." "C- 9." "How is it you win every time?" "So I thought I'd give it a try." "It's not my best color." "It's one of my mom's old dresses." "It's a little big, but it should be okay, right?" "Are you following me?" "No, I just thought I'd find you here." "Well, you did." " Can I come in with you?" " No." " Well, why not?" " Because you can't." "I don't need help, okay?" " Why?" " Because there's nothing to help with." " Well, I can just, like..." " Just leave me alone." "Okay." "I'm Annabel." " Can I have a word with you?" " Yes." "I'm not quite sure what your game is here, son, but this is the fourth funeral I've seen you at this month." "And either you are the world's unluckiest boy or you are a disrespectful little prankster." "If I see you around here again, I'm calling the cops," " and I'm going to tell all the..." " Marcus?" "Marcus, I've been looking for you." "I want you to meet my cousin." "I told her all about you." "Hey." "Hey, thanks for helping with my uncle's funeral." "Yeah, he was a great, great man." "We're just all so torn up about it." " This is my boyfriend, Marcus." " Marcus." " Marcus Daly." " Nice to meet you, Marcus." "Pleasure's all yours, I'm sure." "I'm sorry for your loss." "Thank you, sir." "My aunt's taking it really hard right now, so we're trying not to leave her alone for too long." "Yeah." "Thanks, man." "Come on." "Again." "I'm so sorry for your loss." "You'll get there." "Do another one." "So sorry for your loss." "He'll be missed." "Our prayers are with you in this difficult time." " Too formal." " Yeah." "I like it, though." " My name's not Marcus, you know." " I figured." "I'm not sure why I picked that." "You don't really look like a Marcus." "I'm Enoch." "Much better." "I'm Annabel." "But I already told you that." " So did you know that cancer kid?" " What?" "The kid from the other funeral?" "Yeah." "I volunteer at the hospital." "In the Webber building." "Is that where all the cancer kids are?" "Kids with cancer." "Bummer." "Not really." "What are you reading?" "It's a new biography on Darwin." "The evolution guy?" "Yeah." "He's kind of my favorite." " Why?" " "Why?"" "Well, only because he's the father of the greatest idea a human being has ever had." "Not to mention the fact that he was brilliant enough to see nature's design laid out right in front of him." "And maybe just because he was the most important scientific mind that ever was or ever will be in the history of history." " What about Einstein?" " What about him?" "All right." "Well, I'm gonna get home or whatever." "Okay." "Yeah, me, too." "Thanks for bailing me out back there." "Yeah." "Any time." "Okay." "I don't know why we still eat in here." "Did you look at those school brochures I left on your bed?" "No." "There's some really great schools in the city." "And Henderson has this great college prep course, and I know the headmaster at..." "May I be excused, Mabel?" "Why don't you call me Auntie Mabel anymore?" "Okay." "No." "With your whole body." "No, that's too far." "Like this?" " No way." " This feels pretty good." "I'll take a good old- fashioned handshake any day." "A bow is a sign of deep respect." "So's a handshake." "Come on, try it." "Enoch Brae, nice to meet you." "White people." "You have to grab everything." "Okay." "You stick with the bow." "Enoch, come away from the edge." "Don't worry." "I'm over that." "Are you?" "Yeah." "I'm fine." " What's the score?" " You're up five hits." "I thought it was six." "We didn't count that one." "I did." "Tennessee, St. James and New York are the best properties on the board." "I like Boardwalk." "Yeah, nobody wins with Boardwalk." "It's a terrible investment that never pays off." "like Boardwalk." "Fine." "I'll trade you orange for blue any day." "Okay." "Deal." "What?" "That's her." " Who?" " That girl I was telling you about." " Why is she dressed like a boy?" " She's not." "Are you gonna go talk to her?" " What do I say?" " You could say hello." "I'm gonna go talk to her." "Okay." "I'll see you at home." "She won't be able to see me anyway." "All right, see you, Hiroshi." "Annabel." "Enoch." "Funny running into you here." "I was just walking." "By myself." "You know." "Cool." "I like to come out here to draw." "It's nice, you know, to get out." "Yeah, always good to get out." "Seen any good funerals lately?" "Yeah." "This one guy, he had this weird skin disease that made him go crazy or whatever." "Closed casket." "Of course." "Could I see your drawings?" "I'm not very good." "I just like to do it." "It's okay." "I can barely draw a stick figure." "Okay." "This is Chroicocephalus ridibundus, the black- headed gull." "Her head is actually white in the winter and she has these cool black streaks on her plumage." "That's the little- footed gull." "That one's not finished." " And there's..." " Who's this guy?" "I really like him." "Nicrophorus americanus, the American burying beetle." " I like his little mustache." " Yeah." "He's pretty amazing." "What makes him so amazing?" "Well, they can smell carrion from miles away, which is what death smells like." "So basically, a male and female will show up at the body, and kind of get to know each other." "Then they work together to bury the carcass." "And then they mate." "And then she lays her eggs on it." "But they aren't like other species, like bug species, that just run away afterwards." "They make a little chamber nearby, underground." "And then, when the babies hatch, the parents go chew up the corpse and feed it to them." "Isn't that amazing?" "They actually take care of their kids." "Do you want to meet my parents?" "Sure." "Okay." "Do you always meet your parents at a graveyard?" "These days." "Mom, Pop, this is Annabel." "Yeah, yeah, I'm eating." "Why is that always the first thing you ask me?" "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Brae." "I'm Annabel Cotton." "You can call me Annie, if you'd like." "It's nice to meet you, too." "We met at a memorial." "It was for a friend." "I'm fine." "Thank you, though." "She works at the hospital with cancer kids." "Kids with cancer." "It's the same thing." "Not the same thing." " Yeah, it is." " No, it's not." " How is that not the same thing?" " Yes, I notice." "He's very stubborn." "No, I'm not." "He was always that way?" "Really?" "I was not." "I mean, I am not." "Annie here is a bug stalker." "Naturalist." "I'm a naturalist." "Like I said, bug stalker." "Well, it's just a little bit more complicated than that." "Well, it's studying the world that we live in." "The trees and the grass and bacteria and mice and birds, and how they all fit together." "Yeah." "I think it's pretty cool, too." "We're gonna go to the soccer game on Sunday." "We are?" "Yeah." "Sunday." "I almost forgot." "It's at 3:00, behind the elementary school." "Yes, it is." "Right behind there." ""That is how to transform into your true power self." ""By taking responsibility for your perceptions" ""so that you are not the victim of the events in your life," ""but the events of your life..." ""are the creation of what you perceive them to be." ""This is how you become the god or goddess" ""of your own personal universe"." "Mom, that guy is a total hack." "Well, when you read it, then you can have an opinion." " I met a boy." " Really?" "Yeah, I met him at Chris' memorial." "He was kind of different." " Different can be good." " Yeah, I think it is." "Yeah, well, be careful." "Because boys can be jerks." "All of them?" "All the ones I knew." "Bummer." "I want to meet him." "Okay." "I'll bring him over." "All right." "Books away, please." "Mom." "Annie." "Don't you listen to what your sister says, Annie." "You just have fun." "Mom, can you just take it easy on that, please?" " So, what were you reading?" " Ornithology book." " What's that?" " Birds." " For school?" " Nope." "We'll see what Dr. Lee says tomorrow." "You might be able to start again next week." "Okay." "So, anything good in that bird book?" "Yeah." "Apparently, there's this kind of songbird that thinks it dies every time the sun goes down." "So in the morning, when it wakes up, it's totally shocked to still be alive, so it sings this really beautiful song." "Just happy not to be dead, I guess." "So?" "I didn't think it would be back so soon." "I guess that's a no on school." "I mean, when you think about it geologically, our lives are just a little speck on the time line anyway, so..." "People haven't even been around for a fraction of the time that some reptiles have been around." "So, three months is almost the same as three centuries or three days," " or three..." " Annabel, stop." "Please." "Can we just..." "Can we not..." "Can we..." "Can we just not?" "Okay?" "This kid is unbelievable." "He's, like, seven, and he's already got a shot that could kill a golden retriever." "Come on, Riots!" "Do you know one of these kids?" "No." "Hiroshi and I just like to..." "Who's Hiroshi?" "He's a friend." "From school?" "No." "He's a..." "He's sort of a ghost." " He's a ghost?" " Yeah." " A Japanese ghost?" " Yeah." "Do you speak Japanese?" " No, he speaks English." " Really?" "Wow." "Can I meet him?" "You could try." "No one else can." " Can he fly?" " He used to." ""Used to"?" "Well, he was a kamikaze." "Like one of those guys who crashed into ships and things?" "Yeah." "One of those guys." "So you're haunted, then." "I guess I am." "I never thought about it like that." "Wonder who I'll get to haunt." "I don't think I would have been his first choice." " You can choose?" " I don't think so." "I'll find out in a few months." "Wait, what are you talking about?" "I was lying, Enoch." "About working at the hospital." "I don't work there." "I'm a patient." "Wait, at the cancer place?" " And..." " And I just got some tests back." "That bad, huh?" "I flunked." "So, how long?" "Three months." "So I understand if you don't wanna..." "A person can get a lot done in three months." " You think?" " Yeah." "You could learn French, go to Africa, pick up the xylophone." "Tons of stuff." "I always wanted to be a world-renowned xylophone player." "I don't think it takes that long, right?" "I don't know, there are a lot of those bar thingies." "Would you get one for me?" "I know a guy." "I could help you get ready, you know?" "To learn the xylophone?" "No, for..." "You know." "I mean, I know a lot about it or whatever, so I could help you with stuff." "Okay." " Okay?" " Okay." "Cool." "Hey, I have a transfusion tomorrow." "Do you want to come see me after?" "I love it when girls ask me that." "Shoot." "You're not very good at this." "This game is impossible." "Okay, but that's only because you play it more." "Does it hurt when they..." "Sorry." "It's okay." "They always tell me how brave I am." "After every needle and mri and test." "Makes me wonder how the non- brave kids act." "I could take some of them for you." " My tests?" " Yeah, I'm great at tests." "Used to help all the other kids at school cheat." "Why aren't you at school?" "I'm just not." " Are you..." " Just not." "Okay." "Sorry I couldn't find that xylophone." "I spent all night looking for the stupid thing." "It's fine." "I know, but it's just..." "When I think of things going a certain way, and then they don't, it's difficult." "How's this gonna go?" " "This"?" " You and me." "I don't know." "That's the part where you say it's gonna go really well." "You're all set, Annabel." "Could I get a couple of those for the road?" "No." "Larus novaehollandiae." ""Laughing gull"." "Larus atricilla." ""Little gull"." "Larus minutus." "Getting better, huh, Charlie?" "Still no on the horse." "Why does she keep asking if I ride a horse?" "I wonder where ghost horses go." " What is it with girls and horses?" " I think it's the mane." "Does she want to know about my military service?" "I don't think so." "Don't think what?" "He wants to know if you want to know about his military service." "Of course." "Good." "It was 1941." " I was at the top of my graduating class." " It's boring." "You used to like that story." "I've heard it a million times." "Top of your class." "Chosen over hundreds of other pilots." " Does he miss flying?" " I do." " He says he does." " Wasn't he scared?" "We weren't allowed to be afraid." " He said a little." " No, I didn't." "It was implied." "Do you ever get to meet famous ghosts, like Ben Franklin, or Napoleon or anything?" "We haven't met any other ghosts yet." "Maybe you should take out a personal." " He says he likes yourjacket." " No, I didn't." "Thank you, Hiroshi." "He says he thinks you look really nice." "I still don't know why she's dressed like a boy." "He's very complimentary." "He's a friendly ghost." " Enoch, we should get back home." " Why?" " Why what?" " He thinks we should go." " Am I boring him?" " No." "Tell her no." "He just wants to play Battleship." "So what if I do?" "Is he any good?" "I haven't beat him yet." "Payback for Nagasaki, huh?" "What did she say about Nagasaki?" "Nothing." "Nothing what?" "What'd I say?" "Is Annie here?" "I'm Elizabeth." "I'm Annabel's sister." "You must be Enoch." "Must be." "Come on in." "She around?" "Yeah, she's downstairs." "I'll tell her you're here." "Annie!" "Your boyfriend's here!" "Not my boyfriend." "I'll be right up." " Sit down." " I'm okay." "Have a seat." "So, I hear you two met at a funeral?" "Memorial service." "I'm sorry for your loss." "It's okay." "I didn't know him or whatever." " Know who?" " The kid who died." "So how are you two getting around?" "We're gonna take the bus." "Nothing like public transportation to set the mood, right?" ""The mood"?" "No mood, no mood." "Just forget I said it." "So you don't have a car?" "No, I don't really care for them." "Why's that?" "It's a long story." "Cars are very dangerous." "Annabel tells me you talk to a ghost." " She told you that?" " She did." " It's kind of a joke." " "Kind of"?" "I'm a good kid." "Where do you go to school, Enoch?" "I sort of don't." "Why is that?" "Well, frankly, Elizabeth, it's kind of another long story." "So, let's just say it was a misunderstanding." "Okay, so I have this all straight." "You're a funeral- crashing dropout with no car and a dead friend." "Sounds pretty not- so- good when you say it all together like that." "Wow." " Hey." " Hey." " Hey, Annabel." " Hey, Laura." "Where are we going?" "It's a surprise." "This place is amazing." "I wonder who's in there." "That." "That's Skinny Jimmy Two Socks." "Got hit by a runaway go- cart." "Terrible tragedy." "What about there?" "That's Old Lady Wellbether." "She got devoured by a great white shark." "How about that one?" "That's a sad one." "That's Nicky "The Richter Scale" Johnson." "Got mauled to death by a wild ape." "Oh, man." "What about there?" "Excuse me." "Can I help you?" "No, we're just browsing." "Thanks." " Hi, I'm Annabel." " You kids aren't supposed to be in here." " Hey, my girlfriend was just trying to..." " What?" "Ian, call security." "Is this some sort of a joke?" "Do you bring all your dates here?" "No." "We were just curious." "What's your problem?" ""Curious"?" "My problem is you're in my morgue." "Could you show some respect, please?" " Annabel?" " You know these kids?" "Just the girl here." "She's a Webber kid." "A patient in the Webber building." "She looks pretty happy, right?" "Yeah, she does." " Hey, Joseph." " Hey, Annie." "You still owe me a Snickers bar." "Yeah." "I still think you tricked me, though." " That was the point." " I suppose it was." "What do you say you kids go on home now?" "Yes, sir." "I'm Annabel." " Suzette." " This is Enoch." ""Webber kids," huh?" "That's what they call us?" " Sometimes, yeah." " You must see a lot of us." " I am sorry, dear." " It's fine." " And if it's not fine, it'll be fine." " Of course." "Come on, Annie." "Come on." "Sorry I got so worked up back there." "It's okay." "I thought it was kind of sweet." " Really?" " Kind of." "I mean, I know you said I'm not your boyfriend... or whatever, I just felt like..." "I think that's what girlfriends do." "We should have cheeseburgers and milkshakes." "We are." " No, I mean, at my memorial." " Yeah." "And tacos and lo mein and Red Vines." "And pizza and fluffernutters." "And everybody can just really pig out." "I mean, that's what people do when they're upset anyway, right?" "Yeah." "And we can just hang out by the milkshakes the whole time." "Right." "It tickles." "Your arms are ticklish?" "They are now, I guess." "I wasn't aware that could happen." "What happened, Enoch, to your parents?" "Please?" "We were coming back from visiting my aunt in Seattle." "She won some award for her writing on African freedom music or something." "I was dozing off in the back." "Cops told me the guy was so drunk he didn't even remember the accident." "Mom and..." "They were dead before the ambulance showed up." "I was in a coma for three months," "and I guess I was actually dead for a few minutes." "Is that when you started seeing Hiroshi?" "I believe you." "Yeah." "When I woke up, he was just sitting by my bed." "J..." "J..." "J..." " J-9." " Miss." "I saw a Mitsubishi car today." "So what?" "I used to fly a Mitsubishi." "You mean you used to crash a Mitsubishi." "Only once." "A- 5." "How do you get my battleship so quickly?" "Instinct." "We used to have a Toyota when I was a kid." "Toyota, too?" "Yeah." "We're cool with you guys now." ""Cool"?" "Friends." "F- 6?" "Miss." "How long does she have?" "The girl?" " D- 4." " Hit." "I don't know." "Still not very long." "Are you having fun with your game?" "It's not a game." "You wanna know what I think?" "Not really." "I think you've gone too far." "Strangers' funerals are one thing..." "Your coordinate." "She's actually gonna die soon." "Your coordinate!" "D- 3." "Hit." "Everything okay over there?" "Yeah." "Sorry." "You know, these..." "Actually, these visits are just supposed to be family only." "But Annie asked me to come, so..." "Hey." "How'd it go?" "You know, same old, same old." "Still dying." "But still, like, a bit?" "They try not to say any more." "At least you got your health." "I feel like I wanna, you know..." "I wanna be careful." " Annie?" " What?" "Where are you going?" "Home." "Dr. Lee said I'm all done." "Are you gonna wait for me?" " Lizzie." " Yeah?" "How old am I?" "Okay, I get it, I get it." "Okay, I'll see you later." " How much later?" " Late." "I don't really love the way that sounds." "Lizzie, it's Halloween." "Lighten up." "This night must be weird for you." "Yes." "Yes, it is." "Hey, did you guys still do that seppuku thing in the war?" "Seppuku." "And no, that was the samurai." "How did that work, exactly?" "You would take a small blade and gut yourself." "Slit across the abdomen to open your stomach." "Trick or treat!" "You know, you don't have to protect me anymore." "What do you mean?" "With Annabel." "I know she's gonna die, and that's okay." "If you say so." " What?" " We're here." "How do you know where she lives?" "I have a lot of free time." "That's kind of creepy." "I'm a ghost." "Okay, ghost." "Happy Halloween." "Happy Halloween." "Boo!" "Nice." " Trick or treat!" " Trick or treat." " Trick or treat." " Trick or treat." "What did you get?" "How is it possible that you've never been to a haunted house before?" "I don't know, I just haven't." "Not even those lame ones at school where you have the spaghetti brains and grape eyeballs and stuff?" "Brains do not feel like spaghetti." "How do you know?" "I know a thing or two about brains." "Right." "Birdie, are you okay?" "Yeah, just..." "Hold on." "Holy shit, Brae." "I thought you were dead." "Hey, Oz." " Nice costume." " Thanks, you, too." "This is Annabel." " Hey." " Hey." "Annie, this is Ozzie." "We went to school together." "Hey, Brae, I think you two should get out of here." "Why?" "Think we can't handle it?" "No, just trust me." "You guys should just..." "I don't believe this." "Oh, shit." "We got to get out of here." " Why?" " Now." "Brae, you little shit." "Enoch, what the hell is going on?" "Why are we running?" " Get in the car." " Why was that kid so mad at you?" " Open the goddamn door, Ozzie!" " I'm trying!" "Payback time, you little faggot!" "Go." "Go, go, go, go, go, go!" "Okay, is somebody gonna tell me what the hell that was all about?" "That was Alger Cofax." "He made some joke about Enoch's parents after..." " After they..." " Died." "Right." "So, Enoch beat the living shit out of him." "Put him in the hospital for a week." "So that's why you got kicked out of school." " Stop." " What?" "Stop the car, Oz." " At least let me get into town or..." " Stop the car now!" " He okay?" " Probably just carsick or something." " Okay." " Okay, thanks for the lift." " Are you gonna be okay?" " Yeah, we'll be fine." " Okay, nice to meet you." " You, too." "Take it easy, Brae." "Enoch?" "Enoch." "Over here." "Are you okay?" "Kind of." "You?" "I'm okay." "Good." "Looks lonely." "My dad was a forester." "Yeah?" "Might still be." "Annabel?" "Man." "You actually look terrifying." "Yeah?" "That's nothing." "Annie?" "Annabel?" "Okay, this is kind of not funny." "I'm gonna get you, little ghost." "Why are you trespassing in my woods?" "I'm sorry." "I was looking for my girlfriend." "I think she came this way." "Nobody has passed through these woods for years." "What did she look like?" "She is about your height, brown eyes." "Was she pretty?" "Beautiful." "Who are you?" "I am the spirit of this forest." "Can you help me?" "This girl, you must care about her a lot to come into the woods looking for her." "Very much." "Come with me." "Is this your home?" "Yes, it is." "Please come in." "Sit." "Do you know what this does?" "No." "It lets you see what you truly want in this world." "I want you to have it." "Try it." "What I truly want?" "Is it working?" "Yes." "Oh, my God." "We're saved!" "So, what was it like?" "Okay." "Are you gonna do it again?" "Hiroshi." "Did it make her happy?" "Okay." "Yellow- footed gull." "Why do we only do this one chapter?" "'Cause it's my favorite." "What's so great about water birds, anyway?" "I don't know." "They can go anywhere they want." "They're the only birds that can do that." "Not just the air and the land, but the sea, too." "When are we gonna get to the birds of prey?" "'Cause eagles can, like, kill..." "Yellow- footed gull." "So, that's a no?" "Yellow- footed gull." "Larus Livens." "Wing span?" "Fifty-five inches?" " Life span?" " Seven to ten years." "Very impressive." "You know, I wonder what my wing span is." "Well, I know my life span." "Yeah, yeah." "So I was thinking about donating my body to science." "Why?" "Because maybe I could help somebody like me." "It's disgusting." "What's disgusting?" "I mean, all those science guys cutting you up and putting you in jars and microscopes and those dish things." "I think I might like to have my eyes in a jar." "They're nice, right?" "My eyes." "Let's not talk about it, okay?" "You don't think they're nice?" "They are." "It's just, you know..." "Would you come and visit them?" "I guess." "You guess?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I would." "Of course I would." "Of course you would." "Annie?" "I got your Darwin books." "They had a new print of Voyage of the Beagle." "I know it's your favorite." "Annie?" "Annabel?" "Annie." "Hold on, Annabel." "No." "It's okay." "I'm gonna be okay." " Tell me about the birds, Enoch." " What?" "The songbirds." "Why do they sing in the morning?" "They sing because they're happy to be alive another day." "I've sung every morning since I met you." " I'm not letting you go, Annabel." " Let me go." "Enoch, let me go." "I can't." "I love you." "I love you so much." "I've never been so happy." "I've never been so..." "Hey, Annabel?" "Annabel!" "Oh, God, no!" "Hold on, Annie." "I'm coming with you." "What are you doing?" "What?" "I'm following you into death." "What more do you want from a guy?" "Wait." "That's not in the script." "That is so not in the script." "I know." "I added it in for this run." "But that's ridiculous." "It makes no sense." "What do you mean, "Makes no sense"?" "Like all that bird singing stuff does." "It totally upstages my passing." "You can't just stab yourself..." " to death, like..." " I'm not stabbing." "I'm disemboweling." "It's called seppuku." "Okay." "Whatever." "You cannot seppuku yourself to death right after I just had the most tragic and beautiful end." " Who says?" " Me." "And all that bird stuff, that's stuff that we agreed on." "And you seemed to like it just fine when we wrote it." "Well, I don't like it anymore." "It's sappy and corny." "All the repeating the ends of the lines?" ""Don't be gone, don't be gone"." ""Let me go, let me go"." "Okay, but nobody also disembowels themselves... right after their girlfriend dies in their arms from a terminal brain tumor." "How do you know?" "Oh, my God." "This was such a mistake." "What was a mistake?" "This!" "Well, fine." "It's your dumb death scene." "You obviously don't want my help." " I quit." " Fine." "Good." "I don't need to die in anybody's arms." "It'll be much sadder alone." " Where are you going?" " I'm out of here." " You think you can just leave like that?" " Why not?" "Isn't that what you're gonna do?" " You think I want to?" " It doesn't matter, though, does it?" "So, what has this been?" "I don't know." " You don't know?" " I don't know." "So, what?" "You're just gonna go back to making fun of people's funerals?" "Yeah, I guess I am." "You know what?" "You're a coward." "That's all you are." "You know, I hope you and your ghost friend have a good life together, throwing rocks and acting like two-year-olds." "You tell him that I said that." "I made it up." " What?" " He's not real." " But you said that..." " I've been there, Annabel." "I was dead for three minutes." "And you know what's there?" "Nothing." "No ghosts." "No sappy lines about birds." "No parents." "No goodbyes." "Just nothing." "Thank you, everyone, for gathering this evening to honor my brother, Hans." "I've been looking up to Hans since I was born." "He was my hero." "He was my big, big brother." "Over the years, Hans taught me many things." "He taught me how to catch fish in bell jars in the rivers of Wisconsin." "He taught me how to take a punch in elementary school." "Good heavens." "In high school, he even counseled me on French kissing." " Golf at 5:00." " All right." "Hello." "Enoch, right?" "Yeah, Enoch." "Annabel talks a lot about you." "What can I do for you?" "I know you're really busy or whatever, so I'll make this quick." "I'm just doing my rounds." "I have some time." "What's on your mind?" "I wanted to talk about Annabel." "Okay." "Make her better." "I don't think you understand what we're trying to do here." "No, I understand." "She's sick and you were trying to get her better." "But now everybody's giving up, and I just think that..." "Enoch." "We did everything we could." "Now it's just about making her as comfortable as..." "Make her better!" "I mean, what do you do here, just watch people die?" "Watch your tongue." "Why don't you start doing what you're paid to do?" "I mean, how much are they paying you?" "To sit around and kill people?" "Dr. Lee here." "Yeah, just need security..." " to come escort..." " Why don't you just call... one of the good doctors?" "No, no, no, not a big deal." "I'm..." "Why don't you call one of them, huh?" "Come on." "Say something!" "I got him." "Enoch, calm down, man." "Come on." "Come on, now!" "No!" "Come on!" "Come on!" "Come on!" " No!" " Hey, hey." " Come on." " It's bullshit!" " Come on, man." "We have to do this." " I didn't do anything!" " Come on!" " Calm down!" " Enoch, wait." " What?" "Will you just..." "Will you tell me what I can do?" "How can I help?" " What can I do?" " Nothing." " Please." " You can't do anything." "You know, I dropped my whole life for you!" "I left Seattle, I left my friends," "I left everything I love so that I could be here for you." " I never asked you to." " No, but I'm here." "I'm here, I'm your family, and I'm trying." "What is it?" "Do you realize that they're dead because of your stupid award?" "What are you talking about?" "You blame me for that?" "Oh, my God." "Your mother decided to get in the car" " and come up to Seattle to..." " I don't care." "I don't care!" "I care!" "I care." "You didn't care enough to wait to have the funeral!" " I didn't get to say goodbye!" " My God!" "Nobody thought you would make it!" "Well, I wish they'd been right." "Don't say that." "Don't..." "Enoch, wait." "Baby Snickers." "Are you caramel or nut or chocolate?" " Hey." " Hey." " What's all this?" " Halloween candy." "I'm sorting it into phylum, class, order and suborder." "It's getting complicated." "Yeah, it sounds like it." " Need help?" " Sure." "Have a seat by CandycorniAnnabelus." "Sounds delicious." "So, I'm having trouble figuring out the candy that has a lot going on." " Okay, like what?" " Basically, the candy bars." "Problem solved." "Why didn't I think of that?" "'Cause that's what I'm here for." "Annie?" "I'm okay." "Licorice family." "So do you want to talk about Enoch?" "What's there to talk about?" "Do you miss your old boyfriends?" "No." "You had a bunch, huh?" "What are you implying?" "Nothing." "There just always seemed to be a guy around." "Maybe a couple." "I remember looking at their hands and faces and thinking how handsome they were." "Yeah, well, not so many anymore." "'Cause of me, huh?" "No, Annie." "I always wanted to be like you." "With your friends and your bags and your boys." "God, I was..." "I was an idiot." "I mean, none of that stuff ever..." "Annie?" "Oh, God." "Mom?" "Mom, call 911!" "I got you." "Mom, wake up!" "Got you, I got you." " Oh, my God, baby, no." "No." " It's okay." " No." " Mom, call an ambulance!" "No, no, no, no." "Don't leave me." "Mom, do it now!" "Hey, baby." "Come back, now." "We're right here." "We're right here." "Enoch." " What are you doing with that?" " Leave me alone." " I have to tell you..." " Go home!" " Just stop." " No!" "You think you can just leave me here?" "You think you can just go and not come back?" "I hate you!" "She's dying, Enoch." "No shit!" "Are you going to smash her grave, too?" "You have no respect for the dead." "You have no respect for anything." "Why should I listen to you?" "You're just a pathetic ghost who took the easy way out." "Think you were honoring your family by dying?" "Here we call that abandoning them!" "You think you have nothing?" "You have everything." "You want to see what nothing feels like?" "Do you?" "Do it!" "Do it!" "I'm sorry, Auntie." "I thought I told you to stay out of here." "How you feeling?" "I'm all right." "Good." "I'm sorry about the food." "It's the biggest complaint we get, so I'm kind of anticipating." "It's fine, thanks." "Well, that's, I think, the first time I've ever heard that." "I'm sorry about all that stuff I said." " It was really messed up." " It's... it's okay." "I know what it's like to lose." "You do?" "I do." "But I'm not here to get an apology." "I actually came with a gift." "Where'd you get this?" "A very beautiful girl just gave it to me." "Was worried you didn't have enough to read." "I'm sure she'd like to see you." "I'm not so sure, Doc." "I found the chapter on water birds very interesting." "Oh, my God." "Hello, Enoch." "Sorry." "Me, too." "I'm glad that she's okay." "Annabel." "Yeah." "When are you going to see her?" "You're not going to see her?" "Caused enough damage already." "Besides, you know, she probably wants to... just go out" "with her family, you know." "It's a letter." "Just a letter." " From who?" " No, I wrote it." "It's for a girl." "Before we went up, we wrote letters to our loved ones." "And we were supposed to give them to a friend to deliver." "But you didn't." "No." "I never did." "You know, we have so little time to say the things we mean." "We have so little time for any of it." "Go to her." "Hiroshi?" "Hey." "I heard you got in a fight." "Sort of." "No more fights." "Okay, Birdie." "I love you." "I brought you something." "Took me forever to find this dumb thing." "Finally tracked one down at a toy store in Old Town." "Thanks, Enoch." "Better late than never, right?" "I wish I could do more, you know?" "Like take you to the Galapagos, or make it be spring or something." "Something better." "You did enough." " I did?" " Yeah." "Swear?" "Yeah." "Got to go soon, Birdie." " You do?" " Yeah." "Is that okay?" " I'll be right back, okay?" " Okay." "Enoch!" "Hiroshi?" "What are you doing here?" "I thought you were..." "You're back." "It's a long trip." "I thought she could use the company." "It's really good to see you." "You, too, Enoch." "As I write this letter, the ocean breeze feels cool on my skin." "That very ocean is soon to be my grave." "They tell me I will die a hero." "That the safety and honor of my country will be the reward for my sacrifice." "I pray they are right." "My only regret in life is never telling you how I feel." "I wish I were back home." "I wish I were holding your hand." "I wish I were telling you that I have loved you, and only you, since I was a boy." "But I'm not." "I see now that death is easy." "It is love that is hard." "As my plane dives, I will not see the face of my enemies." "I will instead see your eyes, like black rocks frozen in rainwater." "They tell us that we must scream, "Banzai," as we plunge into our target." "I will instead whisper your name." "And in death, as in life," "I will remain forever yours." "Ensign Hiroshi Takahashi." "She said you guys came up with it together." "Yeah." "Not now." "Elizabeth?" "Yes, Enoch?" "You think I could say a few words later?" "Yeah, I think that would be okay." "It was amazing to see her courage." "And her passion." "And I miss her already."