“Hello?” Bird’s stoic voice answered. “Hi, Bird?” This is Dex Foray, we met back in Red Fox last October…”“Dex,” he pronounced my name slowly. “I knew it was you.”“Oh,” I said, taken aback. Shit, maybe he was more new agey than I thought. “Could you sense me?”“No, I have caller ID”

“I wasn’t Dex Foray. I was just this emotion that was crumbling to the floor, holding onto the doorway like it was the last thread of my humanity.”

“I was trying to be a better man, Perry. For you.” I shifted in my seat. “Dex…” “And I’ll keep trying,” he quickly said, voice low and somber. “Until I get it right.”

“Dex,” I whispered.“Mmmm?” he grunted.“I hope you never stop feeling alive.”I could have sworn his heart skipped a few beats. He tensed. Then relaxed.“As long as you’re around,” he said softly, “I’ll be alive.”

“The Dex Foray special involves two lubed fingers, a lot of tongue and a cigarette for afterwards.”

“Who is it?" I asked teasingly"Bigfoot," Dex answered from his room."What do you want, Mr Foot?""Please, just call me Big."I snorted. "You wish.""You know.”

“No matter what happened, he was Dex and I was Perry and that combination only led to trouble.”