Chapter Five | All The Reunions

"the best medicine is the one where we are together"

...

FIVE-YEAR-OLD IVY sprinted to the tiny community park, the chill breeze surrounding her as she ran. Her two personally braided pigtails, completed with pieces of grass as ribbons, bounced after her. But the bouncing did not match the heavy load in her heart. Her breathing grew heavy as she finally caught sight of her friends. She longed for them, an exhausting sob escaping her. They would all meet here every night by the creaky swings. In normal towns, five year olds walking around at midnight wouldn't be ideal but at the compact town of Weathering Peaks, it was safe as could be. The moon was at its gibbous stage, almost complete but not fully.

The flickering light of the streetlamp finally lit, revealing Ivy to her huddled up friends. Their tiny voices and hand signs came to a halt. Their faces morphed into shock and then concern. Ivy's face was blotchy and her normally bright eyes were red, lined with tears. She removed her hand off her stinging cheek to reveal a red hand print, arched onto her face.

"T-they h-hit me." This was by far the worst foster home Ivy had stayed in. Smoke filled the broken down house daily and Ivy was stuck doing all the house chores. Interactions with her foster parents were a minimum but when they did occur, it somehow always ended up with a handprint.

The five boys and girls ran up to their friend and engulfed her in a hug. Ivy flung herself on them, her sobs growing louder in the empty park. "It'll be okay, Iv. It'll be okay." These were the nights they all hated. Those horrible, evil nights when one of them got hurt.

They tried their best to comfort her. They all took off their jackets and wrapped layers around the shivering girl. Holding her hand and cuddling up near her, the children sat on the colorful slides in a bundle. Adam swiped at Ivy's tears, hating to see his best friend upset. Wesley continued to trace circles on Ivy's back trying to calm her tears down, Lucas creating a barrier around his friends, and the girls murmuring soothing words to Ivy.

They would do anything in the world to protect Ivy from the evils of the world, infact protect all of their friends, but nothing came to mind. After all, what more could a group of five year olds do. 

"These lockers are way too gray," Adam groaned. Only half the day had passed, but Adam was exhausted. He couldn't be any more thankful for lunch break. Savannah leaned out of her locker, dropping her World History book in the process, to give Adam a strange look.

"Way too gray?! What type of description is that," she threw her hands up in the air in exasperation. She was irritable from being sleep deprived, and all she wanted to do was go snuggle up on her bed. She was woken up this morning to screaming downstairs, a typical wakeup call these days. The sight in the kitchen was of Wesley with a cigarette in his hand and her mother, yelling at him to 'stop acting rowdy.' Wesley didn't seem to hear his mother's high pitched voice for he just leaned on the kitchen counter with an usual smirk.

"Scientifically... they are actually not gray lockers because gray is the only color that is reflected but-" Ivy was the only one out of the trio who was having a great day. She had gotten a hundred on her history test and was voted president of the newest club on campus, Young Scientists. It was crystal clear what that club was about.

"Fine, genius. The lockers are too every color besides gray." Savannah snickered at her friend's antics. No matter what mood she was in, they always managed to make her laugh.

All of a sudden, Wesley came barreling towards them and the light mood was washed away. He seemed out of breath like he had just run a mile. Savannah's immediate reaction was to look left and right to see if there was someone else nearby. No one besides the few lingering passerbyers, who curiously watched the group, wondering why one of the popularest kids at the school was talking to those three. Why would Wesley come to them at school?

"Lucas and Adelyn are here." Wesley's eyes were wild. None of them comprehended the words that had just come out of Wesley's mouth.

Adam was the first one to recover from the trance. "Lucas and Adelyn are- what?" His blue eyes, that had caught the attention of many girls, widened another octave. "Are you sure?" Wesley frantically nodded.

The hallway had cleared out completely by now. Everyone was seated in the cafeteria, oblivious to the bombshell that had been dropped. And if it weren't for talking to the boy that never even glanced at them at school, the group would be there as well. As if on cue, the two hazel eyed students turned the left wing's corner and entered the hallway.

Adults used to joke that they all had mastered a secret language. One where they talked with their eyes. It used to be unintentional. The things spending twenty-four hours a day with a group of people could do to you. The silent communication still seemed to hold true. The four exchanged glances before making a split second decision to run around the corner. They all grew quiet, peeking behind the wall. The twins' voice echoed through the empty hallway. The steel lockers made even the tiniest of noises bounce all around the room.

"-and it was so hard. Ade, I have no idea how I'm gonna do the rest of this year," Lucas groaned, throwing his head onto Adelyn's shoulder. Unaware of their audience, Adelyn was quick to come to her brother's support.

"Come on, Lucas. You're literally the smartest, you big dumbo."

"Seriously, Ade? A dumbo? Not helping," he whined.

"What? You're big and a dumbo for thinking your dumb." The only thing missing by the tone of her voice was the 'duh' at the end. Lucas playfully glared, shoving her shoulder.

"Excuse you? Who do you think you're calling big?" Savannah's heart clenched at seeing the two bicker. It was these types of sibling moments she longed for. Wesley was oblivious to her sister's thoughts, though he himself swallowed at their sibling bond. He and Adam faced each other, both of their eyes filled with regret.

Each bit of Ivy's attention was directed towards something entirely different. She shook her head rapidly, trying to stop the fly that was buzzing right beneath her nose. Her nose twitched. All conversation, both silent and outloud, stopped as Ivy let out a huge sneeze. Savannah squeezed her eyes together tightly. They were all hoping for a miracle now.

"Hello?" Lucas called out. No such luck. They both whipped their heads towards the corner the noise had come from. Lucas put a protective hand on his sister's elbow. He subconsciously pushed him behind her.

Without much choice, the four stepped out of their hiding spot. The tension was high enough to be split by a knife. A pointed edged one. "Hey," Ivy sheepishly gave a short wave. Adelyn, taking pity of her friend, stepped into view from behind Lucas and gave her a quick smile.

"So... you guys are back?" Savannah didn't know the reunion she had been hoping for. She didn't even consider a reunion in the first place, yet there they were in the middle of the hallway, as the characters of a bittersweet reunion.

Lucas gave a grim nod in response. His eyes traveled between all of his friends, people he hadn't seen in years. They all looked different than the five year olds he had known years ago. His heart clenched thinking of all the moments they weren't able to spend together. Their first two-digit birthday, first day of highschool, first evidence of puebetry. Ivy specifically sparked his attention though.

"There's an elephant in the room, so I'm gonna cut to the chase. Screw these formalities. Where the heck have you guys been and I missed you both freaking loads." With that, Adam threw himself at the twins for a hug. Adelyn laughed, catching him just in time. Lucas grinned, for once appreciating the straightforwardness of his friend. The tension was approaching too much for him to bear.

"Missed you too, you weirdo." Savannah and Ivy both held their hard stare facade for a whole ten seconds before crashing into Lucas and bringing down Adelyn in the process. They dog-piled on top of each other, grins on their faces and smiles dancing their lips.

"I will literally kill you guys if you leave us again," Ivy frowned, with a supposedly menacing glare. She slapped Adelyn's shoulder from beside her. Her threat didn't stand it's effect though, as her shaky laugh portrayed the opposite effect.

Lucas grabbed Ivy's wrist before she could slap him for the second time. "Geez woman, you hit hard. And we won't. Don't worry." Ivy scrunched up her nose.

Wesley was the only one who had yet to say anything. He stood by the side, observing. He had a cold look on his face. Adelyn was the first one who untangled herself from the group, still sprawled on the floor. She swallowed, meeting Wesley's gaze. She knew this was a long overdue confrontation. Her feet inched closer to him. Wesley's eyes betrayed his cold posture and softened an inch, though he made no move to approach Adelyn. Nevertheless, Adelyn was unaffected by his glare. She may have been the only person in the entire school that didn't submit to that famous glare. She took his hand in hers, knowing fair well that they had an audience. Ivy, Adam, Savannah, and Lucas were all lingering in the background Their eyes were all trained on the scene in front of them. Lucas knew how devastated Adelyn had been to leave, and the rest of the group knew how broken Wesley had been... is. "Wes, I..."

She was cut off by a loud echoing voice. "Well, this sure seems like a party." They all faced the three jocks who had uninvitedly joined their circle. Jack was the one at the front of the crowd, followed by his two unofficial guards. They wore school spirited jackets and each held a football under their arm. Jack carelessly twirled the ball on his pointer. Wesley's eyes were back cold. "Hey, new girl. He hates it when anyone calls him that. Don't mind his grouchiness. I'm Jack, and why you're hanging out with these losers is beyond my knowledge. Care to catch a drink, gorgeous?"

Lucas glared at the boy, though it didn't seem to bother Jack very much. Before he could curse Jack a piece of his mind, Adelyn interrupted. A sickly sweet smile etched across her face. "Is this your way of flirting? I'm sure everything else is also "beyond your knowledge." Here's a hint for the future. What you're doing right now is not the way to ask a girl out, so I advise you get the heck away before my brother gives you what you deserve." Her eyes turn to Wesley for a minute. She could swear she saw a short smile lingering on his lips but it disappeared as soon as it got there.

Jack's eyes narrowed, but his smirk stayed intact. "Whatever. Let's see how much fun you will have with this group. Just don't come crying back to me when you're all alone."

"I'll be sure to not to. Boy, I know that would make your poor ego explode," she waved her fingers, shifting her weight to her other foot. "Ta-ta!"

Jack's smirk wavered. Being rejected was not a common occurrence in his world. Girls gravitated towards him, not told him off. But for some strange reason, her words only increased his attraction towards her. He always loved a challenge. To save his remaining dignity, he turned on his heel and took large strolls back the way he came. One of his followers flipped Adelyn the middle finger- which made Lucas growl- and the other quickly scampered to catch up to Jack.

Adam was the first one to break the silence yet again, falling into a fit of laughter. "God Adelyn, watching that was probably the best thing that happened at this school all year." The rest were quick to join in, and even Wesley quirked a smile. Savannah raised her hand towards Adelyn, which she slapped.

Their laughter died down as Lucas caught sight of the lone tear that dripped down Adelyn's cheek. "I missed you guys," she says after a pause, "So, so, so much." Ivy felt herself tear up as well. Savannah put an arm on both her best girlfriends' shoulders and pulled them together. They cried onto each other's shoulders, simply enjoying the presence of each other.

Adam looked around him at all his best friends. Usually being the funny, lighthearted one, he felt lost in the situation. After having been through so much these past years, this reunion meant more to him than any normal friend reunion. It meant more to all of them. "Dude, are you okay?" Lucas's heart hurt to see the people that meant the most in the world to him like they were.

"Yeah," Adam voiced, his voice cracking slightly. "Yeah, I am now." Ivy and Savannah broke the girls' circle apart, making it into a crescent. Without any words being spoken, Lucas, Adam, and Wesley completed the formation of the circle. Each of them holding one another tightly. Everything was forgotten about; The brokenness they felt, put back together. They didn't pay any mind to asking why the twins left, why Wesley ignored them, or why everything fell apart. For this one moment, they would put everything aside- their questions and struggles- and live in the moment. The rest would follow, because for now, all that mattered was that they were together.

All of them shed a tear or two that afternoon, as the sun rose high. The lunch break passed, evaporating the heaviness with it. Because now, all together in a compact hug, they felt lighter than ever.

...

Happy April Fools Day... tell me how your pranks are going? The reunion chapter is finally here, but we still have a long way to go. Sorry for the wait, writers block and editing have gotten to me! Next chapter is written but still needs lots of editing, so my goal is to get that out by next next Friday! 

sahila sahini