It's just asthma.  Gets worse with allergies. [None of that's true.  He's still in denial about his anxiety attacks.]  There must be something here I'm allergic to.  That's another reason I thought I could be allergic to the tattoo. Do you know any pulmonologists or internists or allergist-immunologists?

My world was mostly normal.  There was a killer clown monster.  But my mom didn't know about that.   She would have had a heart attack if she did,so we didn't tell her.  [Plus, none of the adults would have believed them.]  My mom just worries 'cause I'm weak and cause she doesn't wanna lose me like she lost my dad.

[He returns the smile.]

That's awesome.  I can send Richie all kinds of stuff.  Oh!  And I can send doctors a picture of an allergy rash or hives instead of having to see them.

Do kids get bullied at school here too? For being imports and for the usual shit?