“My God, it’s annoying!”

  “What is man?”

  “You don’t hear that thump, thump, thump?”

  “No. Are you okay?”

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  “It follows me around. I thought my hovercraft audio was broken. It sounds just like that, but I hear it everywhere.”

  “Oh, ha! You’re experiencing an infraction.”

  “Huh?”

  “You’re chipped, aren’t you?”

  “Who isn’t?”

  “Right. The Enforcers must have rated your decibels, and now you’re getting a reminder.”

  “For how long?”

  “Mine was for a year.”

  “Shit. How did you not want to end it all?”

  “I was getting there, but so were others, I imagine.”