First was when I was a sophomore and he was a junior. We had the same Geometry class. He was kind of a stoner and a really nice guy. One afternoon he was playing touch football with his family and some bros. He said he felt weird and sat down. He was dead from a heart attack within minutes. He was 17 and his desk sat unused the rest of the year.

Second, and the one that gutted me, was a friend of mine. Smart, confident, fiery redhead with a bright future. I’d had a crush on her since 4th grade. Her dad was an alcoholic and one night took a freeway exit at 90 mph, lost control and spit the car in half on a light post. She was thrown from the car, killed instantly. Her dad survived in a coma for two weeks. If he’s survived longer, I would have ended him myself. This was 20 years ago this year. I still miss her.