George sat on his bunk, a lonely air in the room. He looked to the spot where Lennie had broke Curley's hand and he smiled, a bitter smile full of pain, like an old soldier who has seen too much death already, and has to add one more soul to the tally.
Memories flooded into his mind. Him telling Lennie about the dream. Their bus ride here. Lennie's Aunt Clara. Those memories made up his mind. He would work and save his money to build that ranch. There would be rabbits, and alfalfa, and vegetables, and when it rained, he and Old Candy, and maybe Slim too, would just sit and listen to the rain.
And that was what the lonely man did. He worked for several months and bought the ranch. Candy moved in, and a few years later, Slim did as well. They raised cattle, sheep, pigs, and rabbits and the vegetable garden flourished red, green, yellow, and orange when the crops came in.
And when it rained, they sat around a fire and never went to work. Years passed. Eventually, George married a woman named Kate, and they had three children. One named Jonathan who was the eldest, next a daughter named Jessica. But the youngest, he was the one whom George secretly favored. His name was Lennie, and he loved to care for animals and one day did just that. He became a veterinarian.
Now, fifty-and-some-odd years later, George is old and gray, with his family and friends all around him. And he is...strangely content. His life had not been all for naught, as he had predicted long ago, but instead it was fruitful, and it was good. He had been blessed with a successful job, a loving family, and the best friends a guy could ask for.
So George lived a long life, but he never forgot, oh no, he never forgot, the tale Of Mice And Men.
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