Her mom found her brother

Then she found the container wrapped up in a newspaper

Stuffed in a duffel bag with hockey pads

And seven grand in rubber bands

We didn't speak at the service

But then later a message from a number that wasn't familiar said

"Hey it's Charlie's sister, would you do me a favor?

There's unfinished business

It's roughly the size of a baseball"

I said I wasn't totally sure, but yeah I could probably call someone

I knew this kid from my dorm when I went to school in Wisconsin

My two semesters were a total disaster and he was part of the problem

Hadn't talked in forever

But Wayne from Winnetka picked up on the first ring

I explained the situation

He said he'd be interested, but we'd have to come to him

We said lunch time on Wednesday

A Mexican restaurant a mile north of Midway

He worked for his father's shipping company out west of the city

Right now I’m not working

She said we could split it

Just glad to be finished and not even tempted

But it's so goddamn sad in her house right now

He’s still here in everything

She just needs a break from it

Said she wants to come with

We left really early

Went from St. Paul to Cicero in my Chevrolet that didn’t have any radio

Had a boombox in the back seat that was running on batteries

Played 1999 and Led Zeppelin III

When the tape deck got all wobbly, she still sang the harmonies

The transaction was easy

My buddy looked similar, just a little bit heavier

And counting all the money in front of him seemed silly

This isn’t the movies

It was over so quickly

Wayne got in his car

Drove into the sunset, turned left onto Cermak

And she turned to me and said:

"I’ve never been to Chicago

I've got nothing going on tomorrow

Maybe we could stay here tonight

Lose ourselves in the glass and light

I've never been to Chicago

I’ve got nothing going on tomorrow

Maybe we could stay here tonight

Lose ourselves in the glass and light"

We got a room at the Hyatt

Michigan Avenue, I can still picture you

We each got a toothbrush at Walgreens

We drank in the taverns, we ate somewhere Italian

Then she’s on the sidewalk trying to ask for a cigarette from oncoming traffic

I felt God in the buildings

The light from the skyscrapers showing up in the river

And four years didn’t seem like much anymore

We both want the same things

We kiss on the corner

We kiss in the corridors

We fumbled with clothing

We all want the same things

And then it was morning

We drove back all hungover

And all the way to Eau Claire, she played with her hair

Came up on St. Paul and she was sobbing