Matthew froze as he saw
Deborah cross the street towards them, then girded himself against
any impending emotional outcry. She stood at the bottom of the
stairs of the patio, looking up at them, questions uncertain in her
eyes. James stood at the top of the stairs looking down at her and
Matthew sat behind him, watching. They all waited, the tension of
raw emotion and something akin to love, hung in the air. At last,
Deborah took a long breath and said,
“I'm not here to fight or
rub salt in any one's wounds, I'm here because...because I can't stay
away...from...any of you. I realize now that we are...we
are...family, I guess, yeah. And, I'm here, and unless you tell me
too, I'm never leaving you. So...?”
She waited then, looking
over each of their faces, imploring, begging, for some reaction, some
hopeful answer of acceptance. She looked over the rugged face of
Shaggy, his floppy brown hair falling in his eyes, eyes peering out
at her with amusement at this spectacle, she looked over at Ray, his
long red dreads criss-crossing down his back under his snow-cap, at
Thomas, buttoned up in his suit for work, his eyes darting back and
forth cautiously between James and Matthew, at James, whose eyes, as
usual, bore into her soul, searchingly, and then, finally,
hesitatingly at Matthew, whose blue eyes, full of emotional longing
and sadness, would not look into hers. Finally, Shaggy, looking
around at all of them, shrugged and said,
“Well, its fine with me,
but you've got to be initiated, that's all.”
“Initiated?” came
Deborah's reply, full of curiosity about what that initiation could
in fact be.
“Yeah, down at the plaza,
there is the Lithium fountains,” Shaggy began to explain. “Let's
all go down there and you'll have to drink from it.”
“Um, I've done it before,”
but no one answered. Shaggy and Ray jumped up with enthusiasm, Ray
not just because of the lithium drinking event but because of the
prospect of heading to the convenient store for some alcoholic
beverage. Thomas eyeing James and Matthew for some sort of response
got up to follow them. James headed down the stairs towards Deborah,
taking her in his arms, he whispered,
“Let's just be friends, I
guess, all right?”
Deborah nodded, pinching
back the tears in her eyes, as she hugged and released him from her
grasp. He turned and followed Shaggy up the hill. Lastly, Matthew
got up and crossed down to her, looking her over tentatively,but not
catching her eyes. He passed by her and only said,
“Come on then.”
She followed them, as usual,
letting them lead, up the hill towards the town plaza.
The plaza small and centered
in the middle of town was in possession of two types of water
fountains. One full of regular clean water and the other full of
lithium water which flowed down from the mountains surrounding the
water. The five boys and the one girl approached this particular
fountain. Deborah walked up to one spignot and turned to them.
“Its not like I haven't
tried,” she began to explain. Shaggy waved her off, with “Just
drink!”
She put her lips to the
fountain, pressed the button, and the salty water flowed into her
mouth. She took a big gulp down, then felt the familiar gagging
response. Her five boys gathered around her and began to chant.
“One of us, one of us, one
of us,” they continued until she could take it no longer. The
water came out in spurts as she burst into laughter.
“Well, all right then, I'm
one of the gang now,” was all she could say between her giggles.
The others laughed, even Matthew, found some enjoyment in that.
Perhaps a friendship could emerge between he and Deborah after all,
after the effects of the heartbreak were lessened through time.
Perhaps. Although at this moment, he felt that he would never cease
to have this longing for her, this ache for her touch once more full
of curiosity and desire for more. “Now what?” she was asking
to the group of them.
“Now we drink,” Shaggy
began and Ray coupled it with, “Here, here!”
“In celebration,” Shaggy
continued not noticing Ray's response. They moved, then, down the
street to the local bar and grill, to their usual perch, the bird's
nest view, of the rest of the deck and bar. Clutching their
Guinness's, wine, and gin and tonics respectively, they drank, rolled
cigarettes, and let the night's darkness envelope them in the warmth
of youthful exuberance and friendship.
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