Page 113

By Jack Joseph Smith

| "ue A breath, yeah, He is thin and beautiful, Very sergene, but strong, I liked him agains Let's get a table, I said, If you would like? 0, yeahs That would be goods Sure would, and he noddeds He downed hits beer and I ordered two more from the bartender and we walked across a narrow space and gat at a tables “e faced each other smiling and 1 spoke firsts It sure has been a long time Danifas § It sure has; Hows your headg In terms of thougttl or in terms of feeling? Or in terms of both?” Well, I heard you were in a bad accidents Do the sears look like I am a German fencer? He laughed; Sure, Were you driving? I mean, I heard you wer't, but I wondered about ite’ No I wasn't, I was in O' Dandy's sports care ; He's the big guy? om Pa Yes; he is unbeliveable character, I don't kmow thems: I have never talked to any of them; Those guys they say you run around with! His compose? ras very quiet and very slow in speech, What are they like, he questioneds F There ‘a buneh of guys who are forever storming the Bastgile, just to storm it, My heart is pounding from alb the escapades Danis, The drinking has been heavys Heavy and deep, I see it all through redy How blues, but in blinking, Oold and

Original Scan

Page 113

AI Interpretation

GPT

Over beers at a small table, Michael and Dani reconnect after a long absence and move quickly from talk of Michael's accident into his drinking, O'Dandy, and the men he runs with.

The exchange opens in a friendly, almost courtly way, but Michael immediately starts building a rough self-portrait out of scars, booze, and bad company. The language already swings between calm conversation and inflated underworld drama, which gives the reunion a strained intensity.

Claude

At the table Danial's first question is about the head, Michael makes a German-fencer joke about his scars, and the page slides into the accident in O'Dandy's sports car as the opening beat of the whole Danial conversation.