After several minutes I stumbled toward the washroom to rinse my face. As the cold water slowly brought me back to the living I started to recall more...of the events from the day before. It was a little after five o'clock in the afternoon when hit the mattress; shit, I thought, I just slept for eleven hours; I must have been completely drained emotionally and didn't even realize it.I wondered if Jean made it home after being released from jail. She had nowhere else to go at that hour unless she. ’ She moved closer to me on the couch, reaching out to push a stray strand behind my ear. ‘I’m no idiot,’ she said, ‘and I’m not about to break your heart and destroy what we have. I’ve never had a best friend like you before. I want to do what Robbie said: I want to erase Kelly from your mind forever. I want an intimacy with you that I’ve never wanted with another friend, I want a bond with you that no one else can have. Do you believe me?’ Those amazing eyes would not break away from mine.. Old man Hudgens was still there, still trying to maintain his little business establishment. He greeted Jase with warm affection ... and sadness."Hello Jase, it's been a long time."Jase replied, "A very long time indeed, Mr. Hudgens, how are you?"Mr. Hudgens replied, "Not the best anymore, Jase, not the best. Too much has happened, too many changes, and not many of them for the better, either. I suppose you are looking for your family?" Yes," replied Jase, "I just found out they no longer live. Even for work. And our sex life went through the roof. My birthday was coming up soon. “Is there anything, in particular, you’d like?” Dave asked. “No, surprise me,” I replied. My birthday was a Saturday this year. He had arranged for us to go out with our friends Mark and Helen for dinner and a bit of dancing afterwards.The morning of my birthday I was presented with a box, all wrapped up. Dave had such a wide grin on his face as I unwrapped it. Inside was a matching three-piece set. Black.