“Did you see the last marvel movie? It was a total flop wasn’t it?”

James scrubbed at his bearded cheek and shrugged a shoulder.

“Dunno. Never watched any marvel films.”

“Oh.”

I stuff my hands deeper into the small jeans pockets. The autumn chills was definitely there now.

“It’s quite cold isn’t it?”

James looked down at me from the side and I nearly stumbled on a loose tile.

“I guess.”

He went back to looking ahead.

B.B.J. That’s what they called him in our quarter. Big Bald James.

Not menacing or gross just… weird.

I racked my brain for some other topic. The bus station was still a Kilometer away. We could always just walk in silence but somehow it was worse than the pitiful attempts at smalltalk.

Maybe clothes?

“You got a neat jacket. Where did you buy it?”

I didn’t actually think that the jacket was anything except functional. B.B.J. Looked at himself as if sensing that he was wearing a jacket for the first time.

“I got it from my father.”

“Well that’s quite nice of him.”

“Mmm. Don’t know. Got it after he left me mom.”

Great. The social tact of a stone wall eh.

The leaves crunched and dissolved beneath our boots. I looked around the street. The silence was stiffening.

There was a man walking a small wiener dog.

I pointed to it.

“They’re so silly aren’t they?”

James looked at where I was pointing and then back at me. I quickly looked away.

“I guess they are.”

400 meters until the bus stop.

I just have to get to the bus stop.

“You ain’t got no dog ?”

“Had a lab once.”

I waited for an answer. It never came.

“I got a cat. Her named Muddy.”

B.B.J seemed far away.

“ Hmm.”