"All right." It came out as a very quiet croak. He tried not to put too much weight on Cindy and put one foot in front of another, but it seemed to involve a lot more effort than usual.

"You tell a story first." He didn't think the energy to manage speaking and walking. As it was, as they went along he got heavier as he put more of his weight on Cindy, and his steps got slower, his legs shaking as the effort wore him out.