anger, refused to back down and got right in front of Rick's face, glaring at him and said, "What the hell are you gonna do, huh? WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO?!!!" "Don't try me, Net, I'm warning you, don't freaking try me, NOT HERE, NOT NOW!!!" "Oh, that's pretty," said the man, looking on with a blood stained smile on his face. "Here I am, waiting to be killed, and the two of you are playing the stare game. Ironic that the man wanting to die by those who would kill him witness them self-destruct right in front of him." "See what I mean, Rick? That dude's got a smart mouth on him! Look, I ain't got no problem with you, man, but this sucker's been asking for it from the word go!" "Correction, I wasn't asking for anything! You stumbled on me, remember? Remember beating me up, taking my belongings, any of that ring a bell?" Net burst out laughing so hard he had to hold his stomach. "Tell me he's not asking for it, Rick? Do you hear this sucker? He's not just laughing at me but at both of us, man, both of us! Don't you understand!?" "Sorry, I didn't mean it to seem as if I were laughing at you. But maybe you could see how ludicrous and easy it is for hatred to get out of hand. Here you are, seemingly good friends, at each other's throats, over what? Respect? Honor? What? Explain it to me, pleaseI need to knowI want to know. Because if this is a microcosm of humanity, then we are indeed in bad shape. And hope is scarce. What possible hope can I have, what possible hope can we have as a people with this going on? I'll tell you, none, zero, zilch, no hope at all. And you know, it's funny how this is all playing out, because I always thought I was put on this earth for something better than this, you know? That I was meant to contribute something to humanity, and not just wind up like this. Do any of you know what the noblest cause is? No? I'll tell you what it is: doing good towards others, no matter who you are or what you are, doing good deeds an...
