Summary

The short story “2BR02B” by Kurt Vonnegut takes place in a futuristic society, where people no longer grow old. Death (aside from accidents) is voluntary. To ensure population control, no children can be born without someone dying. Those willing to die call the number 2BR02B to schedule an appointment at the gas chambers of the Federal Bureau of Termination. 

Edward Wehling sits in the Chicago Lying-In Hospital, where his wife is due to give birth to triplets. According to the law, if he wants his children to live, he has to find three people who are willing to die. However, he could only find one: his grandfather. 

In the same waiting room, a painter works on a mural depicting a well-tended garden, symbolic of the supposedly ideal society they are liv...