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"No" And he was not The abstraction had returned and he was a thing of dull concrete, forever falling nowhere

"You wanted to get to the top all your life, Hollis You alondered what happened I put the black mark on you just before I was tossed out myself"

"That isn't ione When life is over it is like a flicker of bright film, an instant on the screen, all of its prejudices and passions condensed and illumined for an instant on space, and before you could cry out, "There was a happy day, there a bad one, there an evil face, there a good one," the film burned to a cinder, the screen went dark

Fro back, there was only one re Did all dying people feel this way, as if they had never lived? Did life seem that short, indeed, over and done before you took a breath? Did it seem this abrupt and impossible to everyone, or only to hiht and deliberation?

One of the other ood time: I had a wife on Mars, Venus, and Jupiter Each of theambled aenty thousand dollars"

But you're here now, thought Hollis I didn't have any of those things When I was living I was jealous of you, Lespere; when I had another day ahead of htenedthe them, and money, and as much happiness as you could have in your oay But now, falling here, with everything over, I'm not jealous of you any ht now it's like it never was Hollis craned his face forward and shouted into the telephone

"It's all over, Lespere!" Silence

"It's just as if it never was, Lespere!"

"Who's that?" Lespere's faltering voice "This is Hollis"

He was beingApplegate had hurt hiate and space had both wounded him

"You're out here, Lespere It's all over It's just as if it had never happened, isn't it?"

"No"

"When anything's over, it's just like it never happened Where's your life any better than mine, nohat counts Is it any better? Is it?"

"Yes, it's better!"

"How!"