"Hello."
"Hello."
"What's your name, nurse?"
"Sybil."
"Pretty. You live around here?"
"This is where I live."
"I'm Alex."
"Hello, Alex."
"Am I gonna die?"
"I don't know."
"Please, don't cry."
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry either. I always knew I was gonna die somewhere where no one knew me. Got a sweetheart?"
"I don't know that either."
"Pity for them. You seem nice."
"You seem nice too."
"I'm parched. Can I get a glass of water?"
"All right."
The patient died as she was getting that glass of water. He didn't want her to see something so terrible. But he was comfortable in those last moments and felt no regrets as he slipped away.