Of Mice and Men Extension

Chapter 7

Tick. Tick. Tick. The grandfather clock in the corner of the boss's office gets louder and more intimidating with every second. George sits alone in the musty and uncomfortable office. Wondering if he will forever be wandering alone in this cruel and harsh world, now that Lennie's gone. He hopes to god that won't be the case. He's been here for about ten minutes now. Awaiting his verdict. But not from a jury of his peers, yet from the jury of an arrogant boy and his bastard of a father. The way the boss sees it, George is also at fault for Curley's wife's death. Everything was fine and dandy until George and Lennie showed up. And George vouched for Lennie. He wouldn't be surprised if he was fired on that premise alone. And if the boss were to listen to his son, George might even be lynched.

Tick. Tick. Tick. George needs this job. He wouldn't know where else to go. He ain't as good of a worker as Lennie. Nobody wants a small man like him. They want a strong guy like Lennie. Strong as a bull. He needs this job. He only has 10 dollars to his name, and Candy doesn't have enough either. He needs this job so he can get the ranch. The ranch. It was all George could think about. About the vegetable patch and the rabbit hutch and the chickens. With the cow and the pigs and the stove to keep them warm in the winter. And maybe he can name one of the rabbits. Lennie. That would be nice. George catches himself with a big smile on his face and wipes it away. He couldn't have the boss walking while he's got a grin from ear to ear.

Tick. Tick. Tick. And what about Lennie's body. Maybe George could ask the boss if he can give the guy a proper burial. Although he highly doubts that will happen. Curley might want to hang Lennie from a tree and have him rot up there. Or send him down the river, or maybe even feed him to the dogs. George will not let that happen. He will kill the boss and his son before he lets that happen. Lennie deserves better. George was the one to kill him, so he has to finish it by putting him to rest. He would bury him under a willow tree along the Salinas River. It's quiet and beautiful there. Especially when the sun sets over the Gabilan Mountains. A good place for Lennie's soul to be at peace.

George was in deep thought when the boss swung open the door with rude and vigorous force. It startled George, making him jump a few inches out of his seat. "I shouldn't have let you and that retard take one step on my ranch!" Bellows the boss as he walks past George and sits behind his desk. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't send you on your god damn way!"

"Because I'm not him sir. Because I'm a hard worker. And I wasn't kicked in the head by a horse when I was younger," said George while he nervously twiddled his thumbs. "I am truly sorry about your daughter in law, but it wasn't my fault. It was Lennie. And I took care of him. He won't cause no more trouble."

The boss hesitates for a moment, "If it were up to Curley he would have me hang you. And that's a good thing it's not up to him. I couldn't kill you. Word would spread and farmhands wouldn't wanna work on my ranch because I killed the one before them.

They both sat in silence for a couple minutes. The boss thinking it over and George waiting desperately for an answer. The boss looks over at his clock realizing that it's time to get to work.

"I'll tell you what, this is your first and second strike. One more, and I will make sure you never work on a farm in this state again. Go find Slim and get to work. You're on thin ice, I hope you know that. Now get out of my office!" George gets up without saying a word and walks to the door. He is about to leave when he remembers to ask the boss about burying Lennie.

"Sir, may I bury Lennie? I know that..."

"I don't care as long as you do it on your own time! I'm not payin ya to bury murderers! Now get to work!" George left the office with great haste. He hopes he will never have to step in that office ever again.

George worked hard that day. Even when everyone else went for a water or smoke break he kept on going. He wanted to prove that he was worth keeping there. It was one of the longest days of that summer. One of the hottest too. When they had finished working it was still light outside. It wouldn't be dark for a few more hours. George decided he would bury Lennie tonight.

George grabbed a shovel and a lantern and his sleeping bag. He decided that it would be too dangerous to come back so late at night. He's going to spend one last night with Lennie. He put all of his things in a wheelbarrow and went on his way to the place that they left Lennie. When he got to the murky green pool, the spot where George fired the gun, the sun had just begun to set. George tried with all his strength to put Lennie in the wheelbarrow but he wasn't strong enough. He decides to bury him where they had spent that night not so long ago.

First, George built a fire. Then, he started digging. The grave took longer than he thought to dig because of how big Lennie was. The moon was high above the sky; watching over the tormented man while he digs a grave for his best friend. No. For his brother.

A couple more hours had passed and Lennie lay silent and still in his grave. George took off his hat and knelt down on his knees. "I'm sorry, Lennie. I'm sorry you'll never get to tend the rabbits. I'm sorry you won't be helping me with the vegetable garden. I'm sorry you won't be able to see the cows and pigs or chickens. I'm sorry you won't get to see how thick the cream is on the milk and how you can hardly cut it." Georges voice began to shake. "I'm sorry you'll never get to feed alfalfa to the rabbits. I'm sorry you won't be there with me on those cold and rainy winter nights." George wiped away his tears and began shoveling the dirt over Lennie's enormous body.

When George awoke the next morning, he saw two large brown eyes identical to Lennie's. Except they didn't belong to Lennie. They belonged to a big white rabbit. The rabbit sat about half a foot from Georges face. George sat up and stared at the rabbit. And it stared right back at him. George was hit overwhelmingly with a rush of emotions and he started to weep. The rabbit went over to him and hopped in George's lap. It was in that moment that George realized that he would never be alone.

TheEnd.