"That was my son before he got the treatment."Chiyo looked at the two photos. She could not believe they were of thesame person. "Have you spoken to R...becca?"*****"My wife and I last talked to her July of last year," Stuart said toMakoto. "Rebecca called on her mother's birthday." You are sure she was your son?" Makoto asked before having a swig ofbeer. On their way out of the house, Makoto and Stuart had grabbedbeers for themselves."I have not one single doubt in that regard. Before Tom. Jenny looked out and said, “Oh my god, it’s Derrick!”I went to the door and opened it to confront him. Derrick walked up to me and asked, “Are you John Paterson?”I was not about to lie. The name Paterson was on the mailbox, “Yes, I am. What do you want?”Derrick stuck his finger in my face and said, “I am here for that bitch Jenny, and don’t give me any of your lip fuck-head.”I was not about to back down and told him Jenny was not going anywhere with him. That’s when he sucker punched me and. We'd grown up close – our families were practically always at each others' houses. Being 6 years younger, however, I had started off seeing him as a big brother. In a house full of only women, I clung to any masculinity I could find. I still remember when I ran crying to him in a dress after my older sister forced me into it about three years ago. Enough about him and, in a way, "us". My name is Elliot. I'm 15 and I'm just starting to attain any sort of true masculinity to me. I was no. “You know I have no way to ever thank you for everything that you’ve done for me, right?”“Raise those kids to be even half as good as their father and you and that will be thanks enough.”Cindy teared up again, “Damn it Mark, you keep this up and I’ll get dehydrated from all this crying.”Mark just gave her a sad smile, “I’m sorry for everything Cindy.” “What the hell are you sorry for?”“That I couldn’t get to Ben faster. If I had gotten to him faster than he wouldn’t have died and you wouldn’t.