Who is the loneliest character in Of Mice and Men?

I would say
Crooks is the loneliest person in the novel. He is black amid a white culture, and, because of
his race, he is not allowed to live in the bunkhouse. He lives in a room off the stable, almost
as if he is an animal. While the men in the bunkhouses have straw pallets to sleep on, Crooks
doesn't even get a pallet:

Crooks' bunk was a long box
filled with straw, on which his blankets were flung.

Crooks is a "cripple" in addition to being black, and unlike the other men,
who are seasonal, he has become a permanent resident at the ranch. All of this divides him from
the others. He is described as holding himself "aloof," and he does spend much time
alone, so one might think he chooses his fate. But his palpable longing to become part ofand 's
dreamed-of farm shows how deeply lonely he really is:

"I seen guys nearly crazy with loneliness for land, but ever' time a whore house or a
blackjack game took what it takes." He hesitated. "...If you... guys would want a hand
to work...