The Group

They stood around the open flame in the fire pit talking and laughing. The warm glow from the fire lighting everyone’s faces as the sun set on a long day. Beer bottles and rocks glasses were held securely as stories were told with gestures for emphasis. There were five of them originally, a core group of friends that saw each other through heartbreaks and triumphs, but now there were twelve. Husbands and wives and a couple children had ballooned their small friend group into a full family. While the children slept inside, the adults stood around the crackling fire retelling old stories and getting lost in the nostalgia of days long past. Once and awhile the multiple conversations would die down and a brief moment of quiet would serve to remind them what brought them all together that night.

It was ten years since they had all been together in one place. Adult life proved trickier than any of them had thought to keep friendships alive. Social media and text messages supplanted after school hangs and college bar nights. After high school they spread across the state and after college spread even further. They saw each other at weddings and the occasional holiday back home, but it became more rare as the years went on.

As teenagers they had all the time in the world, or so it seemed. They spent weekends at other people’s houses and walking around parks in the moonlight. After shifts at part time jobs they would meet at diners or chat online. There was always something to talk about, something to say, they all knew each other inside and out. Sharing problems and talking through issues was commonplace and helpful to get through all the high school drama that seemed important at the time. It was rare that any of them were ever truly alone.

After graduation and the following summer the group went their separate ways. Distance divided them, but they stayed in touch. It was easy for most to branch out and make new friends in their new cities while one struggled with the loneliness felt on quiet nights still at home. It was the first time they didn’t see each other everyday and it was a true test of their friendships. Some would eventually become closer while other friendships faded.

In the backyard night had fully descended and the fire now cast harsh shadows on everyone. John and Peter walked into the house to get another round of drinks.

“It’s good to see everyone again,” John said while mixing drinks on the counter.

“When is the last time you saw everyone?” Peter asked while opening beer bottles.

“Probably four or five years since I saw Faye and I haven’t seen Chris or Ryan since your wedding what, eight years ago now? And you I don’t count because we talk all the time.”

“Yeah,” Peter chuckled, “but it’s still been a couple years since I’ve actually seen you.”

“That’s true,” John nodded, “It has been awhile.”

There was a silence then, a silence they had known for a long time, the quiet still air between two people completely comfortable with each other. It was a silence that had prompted Peter’s mom to ask if they were mad at each other in high school.

“Remember,” John said breaking the silence, “how exciting it was to come home from college on breaks and see everyone? Today reminded me of that.”

“It’s just like that,” Peter smiled.

They walked back outside just in time to hear Chris telling the story of the broken turn signal lever. A story that everyone present had heard at least a dozen times before, but still always got a laugh.

Faye noticed John sitting alone on the other side of the fire pit. She knew his tendency to distance himself in group settings when he felt overwhelmed.

“Hey,” she said walking up, “what’re you doing over here?”

“I’m fine,” he said smiling, “just needed a break for a minute.”

“C’mon,” she sat down next to him, “you can’t lie to me, I know you too well.”

“It’s just,” he looked at Peter and Chris laughing through a story, “it’s all a bit overwhelming. Everything that happened today and having all of you here tonight, it’s a lot.”

“I imagine it would be. We’re all here for you though, metaphorically and literally, like we’re all actually here for you.”

“I know,” John sighed, “and it sucks that it took something like this to bring us all together again.”

“Yeah it really does.”

They sat for a few minutes in silence. John had brought up the only thing on his mind and the thing Faye was trying to forget.

It was early afternoon when everyone started arriving at John’s house. John’s wife Jean had encouraged him to do this and was instrumental in organizing everything. While the kids ran around in the backyard with Jean, John let everyone know why they were really there. With his closest friends gathered around him, he found it hard to say the words. His voice shook as the word cancer was said out loud. It hung heavy over the group for a moment that felt like a year. Tears welled up in eyes as people hugged John and asked him questions he could only partially answer. ‘Yes they’re sure it's cancer.’ ‘No the doctor hasn’t said it’s terminal.’ ‘Yes I have to go through chemo.’ ‘No I don’t have a will yet.’

John could feel people looking at him with sideways glances, or maybe he was just imagining it. It was one of the things he knew would happen and he hated it. There was a sadness in those looks, a sadness he knew all too well, and that wasn’t what tonight was supposed to be. Tonight was supposed to be a reunion of sorts. Old friends coming together for the first time in years to drink and laugh and relive the high school nights in Peter’s parents basement one more time. This was a joyous occasion, a celebration of their lifelong friendships, a show of perseverance through all the tough times life through at them. John was there for Faye when she got her heart broken, Peter was there for Chris when he got into a car accident, Ryan was there for Peter when he had issues at school, and Faye was there for John when he really needed someone to talk to. Through it all they encouraged and supported one another. They offered a shoulder to cry on and words of encouragement. Occasionally they argued, sometimes they got mad, but they always apologized and came back together. At the end of the day they were a family.

It was late and the fire had died down to embers. Inside they all stood around the kitchen finishing drinks and conversations. There was a moment of silence that found everyone staring at the drinks in their hands or the ground under their feet and thinking about why they were all there. John looked at Jean next to him and saw tears in her eyes so he pulled her close and kissed her on the head. Peter cleared his throat and broke the silence.

“I want to say thanks,” Peter raised his glass a bit, “to John and Jean for having all of us. I wish it were under better circumstances, but here we are. And to John, this fucking sucks man, but if anyone can get through this its you. We’re all behind you and we’re all here for you-”

“Literally,” Faye chimed in smiling through tears.

“- and we’ll do anything we can to help you.”

With that everyone clinked their glasses and wiped away tears. Another silence followed, no one quite sure what to say next.

“What was that weird penguin poem you guys used to say,” Jean asked suddenly.

Without skipping a beat the group of friends began reciting a poem written about a stuffed penguin in the corner of a teacher’s classroom decades ago. Laughter rang through the house as they finished and began telling the story of how the poem came to be.

2020