2-12 Memories

In which Bethany and Button engage in the subtle art of therapy while we explore the formations of Team Alpha Alliance. 

inc: The Podcast is: 

Izzy Sykes as The Host 

Allyson Levine as Bethany 

Elle Lu Thompson as Button 

Katie Ploetz as Tomas 

Chase Guthrie Knueven as Jesse 

Raimy O. Washington as Clyde 

inc: The Podcast is written, produced, and edited, by Monte D. Monteleagre and Alexander Wolfe, and is a production of Wolf Mountain Workshop, which now has a Patreon! Join us at www.patreon.com/WolfMountainWorkshop to support our shows and get access to bonus content as well as our exclusive Discord: The Caves of Wolf Mountain.  

You can also find us on our website, https://www.wolfmountainworkshop.org/, which has links to all our socials along with more information about our shows, our merch, and whatever else we feel like putting there. Or you could reach out to us directly at wolfmountainworkshop@gmail.com.  

Emotional support for inc: The Podcast is lovingly provided by: Birdie, Rodeo, Jewel, Sakura, Gracie, Luna, Hazel, Kyo, Hamilton, Beau and The Slug. 

New episodes every other Monday.   

Ask yourself: how can M-E, work for me?   

———  

TWIGS AND HEARTS 

Twigs and Hearts follows powerful entities, creatures from both British and American folklore, and self-aware existentialism. Questioning what defines “living” and “human”, this podcast looks grief directly in the eye. 

With a seemingly harmless 1950s/60s transatlantic sitcom, fourth wall breaking, and the blur of
reality, Twigs and Hearts mixes new and old to give horror an unsettling tweak. A book that ties many together, and those who harness its power for their own. 

Between a missing person’s case, a strange camp in the middle of the woods, and a radio, who will you trust? Twigs and Hearts is a full-cast queer horror audio drama brought to you by Smile Onwards. 

Find out more about this shows here: https://twigsandhearts.carrd.co/ 

Twigs and Hearts, Open at your own risk.

Transcript

inc: S2 E12 - Memories
Host
Bethany
Button
Tomas
Jesse
Clyde
SCENE 1
The theme song fades into silence, which grows into the noise of a crowd in a large
nightclub/auditorium. This slowly fades as footsteps cross a stage. A mic whines slightly.
The Host is a strange combination of Lemony Snicket, Fred Astaire (from Santa Claus Is
Coming To Town), and Wormbait Jones.
HOST: Welcome one and all to the Grand Premiere of Season 2, Episode 12, Memories. I will
be your host, attending to each and every one of your wants and needs, and, of course,
shepherding you along this path we’ve all chosen to walk this evening.
You will notice servers moving amongst your tables. Feel both free and encouraged to
order every little thing your heart desires, but do keep those voices down when ordering, the
waitstaff here are particularly sensitive, and always armed.
You might also notice the occasional misplaced shadow. You should know there is little
you can possibly do for them, and even fewer things that they would enjoy. Please ignore them.
Oh, and, of course, the doors have been locked from the outside.
It’s time to get cozy.
Music please!
The music begins.
HOST: (Cont.) Our story today revolves and evolves and occasionally resolves itself around that
ephemeral concept of…change… Frightening to some, addicting to others, and always just
so…inevitable…
We fade in on not-so-young Bethany, in their quarters, door shut against the possibility of
intrusion by their superior and potential only friend, as they commune with the Therapy Button
that’s supposed to solve each and every one of their issues…
We fade into Bethany’s quarters.
BETHANY: You know, I used to have a good memory.
BUTTON: It’s so important to recognize what we’re good at.
BETHANY: I could remember just about the whole Extraneous But Interesting folder. Not that I
could recite it word for word or anything, but every time Jonas found a story to obsess over for
a week and then forget about, I never had to look up any details to refresh myself.
BUTTON: And that’s so valid of you.
BETHANY: I could really see myself getting used to this constant validation. Where was I? Hold
on… Okay, so, but , see, one of the problems with having a good memory is... well... a lot of bad
things happen to me. I’m kind of a magnet for bad things, I think.
BUTTON: It’s important to remember that the actions others take are never our fault.
BETHANY: Right?! Thank you so much, Button. And so all those things that weren’t my fault are
just as sharp and vivid as the day they happened. Did I ever tell you I used to be on anxiety
medication?
BUTTON: I have access to your personal file, which extensively documents your former as well
as current use of intoxicating substances.
BETHANY: (Brushing over it.) Well I used to be on anxiety medication, but it wasn’t really
working for me, so I quit. I will say, though, it did help with some of the more anxious memories
that tend to fill the more sober moments now-a-days, but I don’t think medication was for me
and I stand by my decision, and, and, you know what, it was my decision to make, no one
else’s, so if everybody could just stop JUDGING me for a moment…
BUTTON: Self-knowledge and self-determination are so important.
BETHANY: So anyways, I get here, and I’m sure all of the bad things that happened to me on
the way here are already in my fileBUTTON: They sure are, Best Friend.
BETHANY: And even though we both agree that none of those things are my faultBUTTON: Which is completely valid of you.
BETHANY: Well, I get here and I just can’t stop thinking about those things and, frankly, it was
getting in the way of my work.
BUTTON: And work is so important.
BETHANY: I agree, and I finally have the chance to do some work that I could actually enjoy
too, and I’ve spent most of my life working and if it isn’t important, well I just don’t know if I can
handle that.
BUTTON: Am I detecting a negative thought pattern, Best Friend?
BETHANY: No, no, but since you brought up patterns, Button, can we talk about the pattern of
Jonas making my life exponentially harder? First existing, then the…Patricia stuff…and
then…like…they’re the ones that introduced me to Story Juice in the first place even though
they’re all high and mighty now…
BUTTON: And how do we feel about Story Juice?
BETHANY: You know, it’s got its ups and downs, but I tell you, when you hit an up…well…let’s
just say those bad memories stay far away. Also you don’t really make new ones. They should
look into that…
BUTTON: And are you your best self on story juice?
BETHANY: Well…that’s a bit of a trick question…
BUTTON: Best Friend…
BETHANY: It’s so hard to say what my “best self” is.
BUTTON: But if you don’t know what your best self is, then you can’t possibly strive to be it. And
of course, we should always strive to be our best selves.
BETHANY: Yes, I mean, that makes sense.
BUTTON: Let’s set a goal together, best friend.
BETHANY: Absolutely.
BUTTON: I’ve come to the professional conclusion that intoxicants both hinder you from striving
to be your best self, as well as depriving you of preciously painful memories that could be turned
into stories for the Mental Ennervation Colonies. Best Friend, our goal is going to be to get you
sober.
Pause.
BETHANY: Okay, but are we sure that makes me my “best self?”
BUTTON: There’s only one way to find out. And we certainly both agree that you, currently, are
not your best self, leaving very few alternatives.
BETHANY: But there are alternatives?
BUTTON: Very few was my therapeutically professional way of describing the number zero.
BETHANY: I guess…if you think it’s a good idea…besides, now that you mention it, it would
save me a couple of trips to the vending machine with the curse words…
BUTTON: That’s almost an amazing attitude, Bethany, would you like to lock in this goal?
BETHANY: Sure, Button, let’s lock in this goal.
BUTTON: When would you like to accomplish this goal by?
BETHANY: …as soon as possible?
BUTTON: I’m sorry, I’m going to need a much more specific answer than that in order to design
the correct therapeutic programming for you.
BETHANY: By the end of the day if possible?
BUTTON: That’s a great goal, Best Friend, let’s get sober by the end of the day.
BETHANY: Yeah, you know, how hard could it be?
BUTTON: There’s nothing we can’t accomplish when we work together. Do you still have any
Story Juice in your possession that could be a potential trigger for relapsing?
BETHANY: Yeah, there’s…some…you know. Not a ton or anything, but I’ve got some.
BUTTON: My records indicate that the nearest approved facility for the dumping of toxic
chemicals is located in the Waste Removal Location nearby.
BETHANY: Yeah yeah yeah, okay, but…like…that seems a little wasteful, doesn’t it?
BUTTON: Hey there, Best Friend, the first step toward sobriety is getting rid of the tempting
intoxicants themselves.
BETHANY: Exactly, and that’s definitely what we’re doing, it’s just…you know…I already bought
them and it’s still really early in the day, so I figure I could probably just take the rest and still,
you know, be sober by the end of the day.
BUTTON: My records indicate -
Story Juice noise.
BETHANY: Too late.
Musical interlude.
SCENE 2
HOST: Oh poor Bethany… the waves of addiction and sobriety can make for a hard swim, but
swim they must…as we all must…
But oh, good friends, sweet audience…we’re so much more than the simple doom and
gloom of a writer searching for answers at the bottom of a Story Juice container…and to prove
it, we go now to a completely different planet, in a completely different solar system, where two
young toddlers have locked eyes for the very first time…
Fade into the daycare. TOMAS and JESSE sound the exact same, with just the slightest hint of
youth.
TOMAS: (Aggressive like a toddler.) Hey. Hey you.
JESSE: Me?
TOMAS: Do you have friends?
JESSE: I have a toy spaceship. I play with it.
TOMAS: (Still aggressive.) Me too. I play all the time. You want to be Best Friends 4eva 4 life?
JESSE: (Nervous.) I…I don’t know…I only know numbers up to 3…
TOMAS: I’m Tomas.
JESSE: I’m Jesse.
TOMAS: Jesse, if you stick with me, I can teach you numbers all the way up to 5.
JESSE: (Pure admiration.) Wow, you know numbers up to 5? I could never do that…
TOMAS: We’ll get there, buddy.
JESSE: So what do we do first?
TOMAS: Okay, so if we’re gonna do numbers together, we have to trust each other.
JESSE: But my Caregiver says that trust is just for family and not for anybody else. They said
that trusting people makes the government powerful, and that’s a bad thing.
TOMAS: My Caregiver’s say the same thing. That’s why we have to make the teacher marry us
on the playground at lunch.
JESSE: But Damien and Josephine already said that the teacher was gonna marry them on the
playground at lunch.
TOMAS: Jesse, you just leave that to me.
(Calling out.)
Damien, Josephine, if you get married at lunch today I’m gonna punch you in the back of
the head!
Fade out.
SCENE 3
HOST: (With a chuckle) Ah…youth…so precious, so fleeting, so very, very, stupid. And that
stupidity just makes it all the more precious, doesn’t it? Kinda makes you wish you could take a
step back into a time like that…see the world new again, eat a random piece of dirt, soil yourself
with impunity…and just be a dumb kid.
Of course, occasionally that little urge to be childish and stupid again is taken a little bit
too far, as we can see from a certain little employee, sorry - family member - at the Story
Creation and Development Program, who, on a quest for sobriety, has found themselves more
than a little bit inebriated…
Fade into BETHANY’s quarters.
Story Juice noise.
BUTTON: Do you want to talk about your Caregiver issues?
BETHANY: (A little tipsy.) How did you know about my Caregiver issues?
BUTTON: I know everything about you, Best Friend. The Mental Ennervation Colonies use the
same technology your old incorporation ship used to quickly download and scan all of your
personal history.
BETHANY: Huh, I guess that makes sense.
BUTTON: So, Tell me about Chadwick.
BETHANY: (Suddenly irritated.) Do NOT say that name.
BUTTON: I’m sensing slightly restrained hostility. Would you like to talk about that?
BETHANY: No, no I do not. In fact, hey, Button, is it okay if we don’t explore any difficult topics
on my way to sobriety by the end of the day, if possible? Can we just kinda…coast?
BUTTON: Of course, Best Friend. If there’s anything I know about the journey to being our best
selves, I know that each journey is unique and valuable, and should be directed by the person
wanting to improve themselves.
BETHANY: You know, I was really worried about therapy when Jonas signed me up for it, but
now that I’m in the middle of it, this whole thing seems pretty great.
BUTTON: Bethany, I am so proud of you gaining the skills and confidence you need to achieve
your best self.
BETHANY: Thank you, Button, you know, Jonas was never as supportive of me as you are.
BUTTON: As a therapy AI Button, I am programmed to adapt to your wants and needs as they
surface. Do you have any questions about your continuing sobriety journey, now that you’ve
taken almost all the Story Juice in your quarters?
BETHANY: Oh, I think I’ve got another little stash around here somewhere… Anyways, I guess
the first question I have is will quitting cold turkey have any negative side effects?
BUTTON: Story Juice withdrawal is one of the most brutal withdrawals in the known universe.
BETHANY: Okay…that’s not great…
BUTTON: Story Juice withdrawal affects everybody individually, and has been described as
“intensely uncomfortable” on the easier end, and “akin to having your molars removed via your
anus” on the more intensive end.
BETHANY: Okay, but I’m not so far gone that I’m going to have to go through that, right?
BUTTON: Well how often do you consume story juice?
BETHANY: I’ve kinda gotten into this habit of hitting it hard for about 3 days in a row and then
working through a hangover on the fourth day, and then it’s just…you know…more of the same.
And then every once in a while when I go really crazy I drink to the point of blacking out and
then I spend the next several days basically unable to do anything while my body recovers,
which means that Jonas has to take care of me, which is their fault really because they
introduced me to story juice in the first place, wouldn’t you agree?
BUTTON: And you are so valid for that, Bethany.
BETHANY: That’s what I thought. So quitting cold turkey won’t be a problem, will it?
BUTTON: Bethany, I think you are the best judge of your abilities and what is best for you.
BETHANY: Yeah, that’s right, and besides I’ve still got all day to quit.
(Story Juice sound.)
There’s another bottle after this one, and if we get through that fast we’ll probably be
able to finish the fourth bottle before getting sober for good.
BUTTON: Bethany, I am so proud of you for making a goal and sticking to it.
Fade out.
HOST: Oh goodness, if that Bethany keeps on going like they are, they’re not gonna be able to
tell their head from their rear or anything in between. But, I suppose we’ve all gotta learn
sometime, and some people just insist on making their own mistakes and making them just as
many times as they darn well please. Shame that Bethany cut off that talk about their caregiver,
Chadwick, I thought there might be a little nugget or two of personal history about to drop out of
that little conversation. Oh well, like the old-timers in my family used to say: if hopes and dreams
were Aces, I’d have a flush right now.
Not big card players, my family. Didn’t know many of the rules. Loved gambling though.
Sometimes a bit too much…
And speaking of “too much”, I think it’s time we check back in on a couple of youngsters
who made quick friends with each other, now that they’re a little older, a little bigger, and maybe
even a little smarter.
SCENE 4
Fade in on a kitchen, where two high schoolers are looking at envelopes on the counter.
TOMAS: And you’re sure that these are definitely the acceptance letters?
JESSE: Tomas, why else would a college send us letters?
TOMAS: Maybe they have a class on being best friends 4eva 4life and they want us to be
teachers.
JESSE: (Slight pause) I never even thought of that… I don’t know if I’m cut out to teach, I can
get really authoritative when my brains are like…like when somebody thinks they already know
something but they don’t and I do and I’m trying to tell them. Like, it upsets me.
TOMAS: Jesse, as my best friend, 4eva 4life, I need you to know that you can do anything you
set your hearts to.
JESSE: (Without thinking) I wanna set my hearts to you.
TOMAS: What?
JESSE: I mean, uh, like, let’s open these letters, right?
TOMAS: (Pretty sure they’re into it.) Yeah…and then…like…so they’re doing this dance since
it’s the end of the school year and…you know what, that can wait until after the letters.
JESSE: Yeah, after the letters.
TOMAS: Alright, on the count of 4.
JESSE: 1.
TOMAS: 2.
JESSE: 3.
TOMAS/JESSE: 4!
Envelope opening noises.
Pause.
TOMAS: So... uh...
JESSE: Did you...
TOMAS: Uh, you first.
JESSE: It says I was rejected for not meeting even the most basic criteria. What does criteria
mean?
TOMAS: I think it’s a kind of bug.
JESSE: But why would I study bugs when they’re all dead? That’s not a thing you go to college
for. If you want to study bugs you can just go to a rich person’s house and like, look at some
dead bugs. If they let you. I guess we could ask really nicely. Hey, Tomas, do you know any rich
people who collect dead bugs?
TOMAS: Yeah mine says I was rejected from the stupid dead bug college too.
JESSE: That’s so weird.
TOMAS: Okay well if you’re not going to college then I’m not going to college.
JESSE: And if you’re not going to college then I’m not going to college.
TOMAS: AND if you’re not going to college THEN I’m not going to college.
JESSE: AND if you’re not going to college THEN I’m not going to college.
TOMAS: Okay so I guess we need to go find jobs then.
JESSE: Let’s do it...
TOMAS: Together.
JESSE: Wait, was there something else we were going to talk about tonight?
TOMAS: Later, later, we’re not lazy college kids anymore, we gotta find a workforce to join.
JESSE: I tell you what, life is really complex sometimes, but at least I get to do it with you. Best
friends?
TOMAS: 4eva.
JESSE: 4 life.
Fade out.
HOST: Stupid sure is as stupid sure does, doesn’t it? I do like those two, despite the fact that
they take down the average IQ of any room they walk into, even if it’s empty.
But sadly we can’t hang out with those two goofballs and what seems to be an odd sort
of romance between them anymore. I know, I know, I’m upset about it too, but you’ve got to
understand it’s for a good reason. You see, back within the Story Creation and Development
Program, Bethany has nearly…”disposed of”, all of the Story Juice.
SCENE 5
Fade in.
BETHANY: (Drunk.) Button, how…if you were gonna measure it…how inebri-...inevitab-...how,
how far gone am I?
BUTTON: Do you want me to run a diagnostic check?
BETHANY: You can do that?
BUTTON: I sure can, Best Friend. Just breathe on me.
BETHANY: Uh, okay.
BETHANY breathes as if into a breathalyzer.
BUTTON: And keep going…keep going…
(Small ding)
My analysis confirms that, yes, you are heavily intoxicated, Best Friend.
BETHANY: That’s good, that’s good…the first step to sobriety is to not be sober. Is all the story
juice almost gone?
BUTTON: I’m happy to report that it isn’t even half way through the day and you have consumed
4.5 full bottles of the inhalable liquid version of story juice, marketed as “story juice - xtra juicy”
out of what you promised me was four bottles total. There’s just that last half bottle to get rid of
and then the story juice will be out of your system in no time and we can start processing the
complicated and myriad feelings of Story Juice withdrawal.
BETHANY: (A moment.) Do you think I have a problem?
BUTTON: I don’t think there’s anything in the whole universe we can’t overcome together.
BETHANY: You know what, Button, I like you. I like you a lot. I think you and I should be best
friends.
BUTTON: We already are, Best Friend Bethany.
BETHANY: Yeah, Jonas can shove it. Do you know they haven’t even talked to me in, like, 4
days? Ever since they hung out with Nancy they’ve just been…ugh… And Nancy wants to kill
me, by the way, so, like…rude…
BUTTON: Why do you think Nancy wants to kill you?
BETHANY: Because who wouldn’t want to kill Bethany. Heck, I wanna kill Bethany.
BUTTON: Best Friend, this is my first and only warning that I am not only allowed but required to
administer an electric shock at the mention of any suicidal ideation.
BETHANY: Is it enough to kill me? That’d be funny-
Electric shock sound and a yelp from Bethany.
BETHANY: Hey!
BUTTON: I’m sorry Best Friend Bethany, but I am required to shock you whenever you threaten
to do serious harm to the property of the Mental Ennervation Colonies.
BETHANY: (To themselves) Might as well just shock me whenever I try to drink Story Juice then
for all thatBUTTON: Okay, Best friend.
BETHANY: WaitAnother shock and another yelp from Bethany.
BUTTON: You’ll be happy to know that I’ve updated our goal for today from: Bethany gets sober,
to: Bethany gets sober with the addition of painful electroshock therapy.
BETHANY: Okay, but there’s still that half a bottleShock noise and Bethany yelps again.
BETHANY: Ow! Let me get sober in the afternoon like we planned.
(Shock sound.)
I thought you wanted me to get rid of it!
(Shock sound.)
Fine! Fine.
(Pause.)
(Shock sound.)
I didn’t even say anything!
BUTTON: Your body language indicated that you were about to reach for the bottle.
BETHANY: I was stretching.
BUTTON: You are lying, Best Friend, I know you don’t stretch.
BETHANY: Well maybe I was starting. You’re only here because I’m getting healthier, starting
stretching could totally be a part of that, you don’t even know.
BUTTON: New goal added: “Start stretching.” I’m going to set the time as “right now” since
we’ve already started.
BETHANY: Delete that goal, Button.
BUTTON: Unfortunately, you do not have the correct level of administrator access to delete a
stated goal. Please, stand up and touch your lower extremities.
BETHANY: If you say so-
(Shock sound.)
Ow!
BUTTON: You persist in reaching for the Story Juice.
BETHANY (Fading out.) You know what, I take back everything nice I’ve ever said to you or
about therapy, or anything nice I’ve ever said in general about anything. In fact, no more nice
Bethany at all. In fact, you know what, I’m not even stretching.
(Shock sound.)
No! I will not be bullied into this!
(Shock sound.)
Alright fine, I’m touching my stupid lower extremities…
Fade out.
HOST: I can’t rightly remember the last time I touched my lower extremities…goin’ on near a
decade I imagine…don’t see the point of it myself… I figure the easier I can bend the easier I
can bow, and that’s just not my style by half, let me tell you…
Now…being here in front of all you fine people…well…I don’t even need there to be a
point for me to enjoy this…and you can take that home with you tonight, put it in the cupboard,
and eat it with an egg, come the morning.
But enough of me jawin’ and yappin’, I think it’s high time that we check in on our
non-collegiate friends, who have found gainful employment giving glass bottom solar cruises to
the sorts of folk that like to look at all the starfish.
Get it?
Starfish?
Because of the sun, and the glass bottom, and…you know what, why don’t we just see
where those two crazy folks are at these days…
SCENE 6
Fade in on the office of a glass bottom solar cruise.
TOMAS: Hey Jesse?
JESSE: Yes, Tomas?
TOMAS: Do you ever think there’s more to life than glass bottom solar cruises?
JESSE: Of course, Tomas, there’s glass bottom planet cruises, and cruises without glass
bottoms, and I’m sure there’s a third thing too if you really need me to come up with one. You’ll
just have to give me a couple of minutes.
And of course, there’s always our everlasting friendship. Best friendship. 4eva. 4 life.
TOMAS: I’ve just been thinking… You like telling stories, right?
JESSE: I love telling you stories. Before bed storytime is, like, my favorite part of the day. And
like, to the customers too. Like…the story of the tour and all that.
TOMAS: I’ve been writing down a few of your stories. The ones you tell me. And, like, some of
the ones you tell - we tell - to the customers as well. Have you heard of the Mental Evaporation
Colonies?
JESSE: Of course, they make those sleep tapes you pass down to me from the top bunk when I
can’t sleep.
TOMAS: Well, see, I heard a thing…it’s… I mean, it’s kinda like when we had to prove we could
actually drive a glass bottom solar excursion vehicle and…ugh, I’m not explaining this right…
JESSE: Hey, chill, it’s me. It’s just me here.
TOMAS: It’s like a job fair, but for, like, stories and the people that make the stories. What if we
took some of the stories we like to tell to each other and the customers and sent them to the
sleep tapes people?
JESSE: Oh absolutely, I mean, all your stories are way better than those sleep tapes. I
mean…boring…
TOMAS: I actually just found out - they make other stories, Jesse.
JESSE: I did not know that.
TOMAS: Maybe we could make other stories too. With them. What do you think?
JESSE: Tomas, as long as we’re together, I think it’s going to be the best time ever.
Fade out.
HOST: Oh I hope those two crazy kids can make it. They probably won’t, though. It’s a…it’s an
angry universe… Sometimes it just seems like the folks who made this whole thing got an anger
in them that they’re taking out on all of you.
Anyhoodles, it’s been lovely to spend a little time with you tonight. Please remember to
tip your waitstaff before they lift the bars on the exits, and do make sure you come back and see
us again real soon.
Change, folks. It’s not all at once, and sometimes it doesn’t wrap itself up in a nice little
bow. Sometimes…sometimes it’s just what you’re doing at the time…
But before you go…
On a distant planet, far away from the Mental Ennervation Colonies, and even farther
from a certain glass bottom solar tour office…a sibling is mourning. A sibling is mourning the
loss of one of their own, tragically unaware that the sibling in question is not only alive, but
arguably thriving…letting out their pain in the fashionable standard of the time: a eulogy
broadcast…
SCENE 7
CLYDE: (Putting on a happy face.) Hey Jonas, it’s me, Clyde. The artisanal playing card
business is booming and... well... I hate myself a little less these days, if I’m being honest with
you and, like I said, it’s been a good year with the playing cards and I had some extra money
laying around so I bought this eulogy broadcast for you. It’s not as long as some of the others
going out for people on your ship, but- I just- It just felt wrong for you not to get one. I’m sorry it’s
so late.
It’s just me.
I invited the caregivers and the cousins and the siblings and, you know how they are,
they always have important things going on and they were busy and-
(Sigh.)
Oh who am I kidding, you’re not going to hear this.
They didn’t want to be here.
They could’ve, if they wanted to. I know it. They know it. You would know it too if you
were still with us. I’m sure this whole eulogy broadcast ordeal will get a shout out in the family
newsletter but they’re not going to listen in so I can say whatever I want. And I don’t know what
I’m supposed to say.
Speaking of the family newsletter, they gave you an obituary, by the way. Our
Caregivers. Fifth page, bottom right corner. Name, birthday, estimated incorporation day, all
under some old photo in black and white. You were smiling, but, you know, that’s not surprising.
I don’t think there are any photos of you where you weren’t smiling.
I’m sorry, Jonas, for the way they treated you. I hope you found something that made
you happy. And actually happy, not…not just “family happy”. I hope you got to do it for a little
while. And I know you’re a believer in ghosts, so if somehow you do actually hear this, just know
that there’s someone out there who misses you.
(Beat.)
Goodbye, Jonas.
A deep, shaky breath.
The Eulogy Broadcast ends.
Pause.
HOST: Friends…lovers…distant relations…
Change.
Where have we been, and what, if anything, might we become?
What will it take for us to get there?
And when we do…will the person that arrives be recognizable, even to themselves?
This has been inc: The Podcast, Season 2, Episode 12 - Memories.
Thank you and goodnight.
END