Grayish smoke billowed slowly between Darnell's fingers, rising to the ceiling of his bedroom, dissolving into the stuffy air before it could reach the top. The last days were so intense with events that Madeleine dropped tired and fell asleep almost as soon as she went home, and Darnell decided to try to follow her example. However, his brain had other plans for the evening. After an hour or so, Darnell gave up and turned on the light, lighting a cigarette. He puffed out smoke rings in a relaxed manner, admiring their swirls. Thoughts flowed slowly and lazily, finally settling on the image of Casey that came back to mind. Darnell suddenly realized that he was smiling foolishly to himself as he remembered their last meeting. What did he even hope for, and what did he think, starting to put
