Hometown Girls: Reunion

by Tressa Messenger

  “Come on, let’s dance,” Becca said, standing up and pulling on Marissa’s arm.

  “Okay, okay,” Marissa said, letting Becca pull her to her feet. She turned to the other girls and grabbed Katie’s arm. “Come on, let’s dance.”

  Katie grabbed Jess’s arm. All four women stumbled to the dance floor and giddily danced in the middle surrounded by sweaty bodies, feeling like teenagers again. Despite the number of people on the dance floor, it didn’t take long for others to notice them. One by one, each girl found a dance partner, turning their group of four into eight. And by the time the song got good and going, it became ten when an extra guy found both Marissa and Katie.

  Katie was stunned at first, not knowing what to do, but when she saw Marissa’s pleasure from being sandwiched between two hot guys who appeared to be having just as much fun swaying close to her, she quickly relaxed and danced along with them. The man in front of her was tall and lean, muscles taut under his tight t-shirt. Katie tried not to notice his looks, to keep as detached as possible, but every time she looked up she met his dark eyes. He danced close to her, his arm wrapped tightly around her back to add to the motion, his hips bumping into her stomach as he did. The man behind her, near her rear, breathed heavily in her ear. Chills coursed through her. She never got a look at him to see what he looked like, but she didn’t care. Whatever it was he was doing didn’t matter because they were only dancing. The man behind her kissed her neck and grabbed her hips and pulled her close to him. She had never been with two guys at one time before in any form or fashion, and at first her instincts told her to walk away, but the more she danced the more she didn’t want to leave. It was thrilling and quickly becoming wrong, but it was electrifying. By the time the song ended she was so hot and sweaty she could hardly stand herself. She turned to look for Marissa, but she was nowhere to be found, nor were the guys Marissa had been dancing with, so she went back to the table to join Becca and Jess.

  “Where’s Marissa?” Jess asked, looking around as soon as Katie sat down.

  Katie picked up her glass and downed the rest of her cocktail to wash away the memory of what she’d just done. “I don’t know. I’m going to the bar. Does anyone want anything?”

  “I’ll take another,” Becca said happily.

  “Do you want me to come with you?” Jess asked.

  “No, I’m good,” she said. She stood up and made her way to the bar, which wasn’t easy. She was already feeling tipsy and there were so many people there who were as bad off as she was, if not worse.

  As she waited for the drinks, an arm went around her shoulder. She looked at the small feminine hand quizzically, then turned to see Marissa leaning against her. “We were looking for you,” Katie said, smiling.

  “I was over there making out with those guys,” she said, pointing to the two hunky men she had been dancing with a few minutes ago, who were now dancing solo.

  “Both of them?” Katie asked, shocked.

  “Hey, don’t judge. I’m single and ready to mingle,” she said drunkenly.

  Katie blushed, but laughed despite herself. “No judging here. I had two of my own.”

  With that, both girls burst out laughing.

  “God, I’ve missed this,” Marissa said, staring at Katie.

  “So have I, and I needed this. I didn’t realize how much until just now.”

  Once they got their drinks they walked, or more like danced, back to the table to join their friends to finish the long-awaited reunion of the inseparable foursome.

  By one in the morning, the club was in full swing and all pretenses of being ladylike or proper had gone out the window.

  “Do you remember when our lovely Becca here talked us into sneaking into Melissa Mark’s party?” Marissa asked, laughing.

  “Of course. She was the high and mighty senior everything, and we were messy sophomores. She had no clue we were even there for the longest time,” Katie said. “She probably would have never even noticed either.”

  “Oh my God, that was the one we got kicked out of, when this one right here,” Jess said, pointing at Marissa, “got caught making out with Melissa’s boyfriend.”

  “Well, someone had to knock her down from her throne,” Marissa said smugly.

  Katie burst out laughing, a piggy snort escaping. She said, when she composed herself enough to speak, “And it worked too.”

  “Damn right it did! See, I always have a method to my madness,” Becca said, laughing.

  “Except for the night you tried to get us arrested,” Jess said, rolling her eyes at Becca.

  “Hey, they shouldn’t have left the keys in the ignition if they didn’t want someone to take that car.”

  “God, those were fun times,” Katie said dreamily.

  They lapsed into silence, each remembering the fun times they had in their past, each longing to be back there again.

  “Do ya’ll ever feel sad?” Katie asked no one in particular.

  “Sad? What do you mean?” Marissa asked.

  “Like sad,” Katie said. “I feel sad.”

  “Aww, why are you sad?” Jess asked, concern breaking through her drunkenness.

  Katie took another sip of her drink. “I don’t know. I guess I’m just bored. Bored with life and bored with this town. Well not this town, but our town. You know what I mean?”

  Marissa sat back listening, obviously shocked at what Katie was saying. “What are you talking about, Katie? You have it all: the kids, the husband, the cozy house, a stable job. What else could you want?”

  “Eduardo,” she mumbled, before taking another sip of her drink.

  “Who?” all three girls asked at once, their curiosity piqued.

  “He is a friend I met online a while back and he is perfect.” Katie had never intended to tell anyone about Eduardo. Maybe it was the immense amount of alcohol she had consumed, or maybe the nostalgia from being with her childhood friends, but she couldn’t stop herself and it was freeing.

  “Oh my God. Does Daniel know?” Jess asked.

  “Of course not. I never intended for it to go as far as it has, and now I can’t stop it.”

  “Wow, Katie, I’m shocked. Does he live close by?” Jess asked again.

  “Nope, he lives in New York City.” She tipped back her glass and drank the rest of the sweet fiery liquid. “I wish I were in New York too.”

  ***

  Marissa continued to sit back, quietly listening. She felt conflicted: annoyance that Katie didn’t appreciate all she had, anger because she gave up everything she wanted all those years ago to give her best friend what she wanted, gladness because that meant she may have a chance of salvaging what she wanted, and guilt for thinking the former. She gave Daniel up because she loved him and Katie more than anything. She knew that one day, although she thought it would have been much sooner, the universe or fate or Cupid or God would be on her side and bring them back together. Maybe the time had finally come.

  “What are you saying, Katie?” Jess asked her.

  “I’m not really sure. I’ve been conflicted for a long time. My marriage has stalled. It’s been stagnant for a long time. I can’t help but to feel like I am living a life which wasn’t meant for me,” Katie said, turning to look at Marissa.

  Marissa’s eyes grew wider with each word. “What are you saying?”

  Katie pried her gaze away from Marissa’s and fidgeted with her empty glass. “I don’t know. I love my children, they are my world, but I can’t help but think I made a mistake along the way.” She looked back up at Marissa, her eyes filling with tears. “I’m so sorry about what I did to you all those years ago. I know it was so hard for you. You were such a great friend for doing what you did, but if I could go back I would. I swear things would turn out differently.”

  Marissa blinked rapidly, trying to stop the tears threatening to come. “I- I don’t know what to say.”

  Katie took a deep breath and sat up straight, seeming to try to compose herself. “There isn’t r
eally anything to say. It happened and at the time it was perfect, but now I feel differently. I feel stuck.”

  “Well, that’s just bullshit,” Becca said quickly. Everyone turned to look at her. “What? You know you’re all thinking it too. I’m just the only one who has the balls to say it. There’s no such thing as ‘being stuck’. It’s your life, and you are the one who dictates what happens.”

  Everyone stared at Becca, stunned into silence. Marissa finally spoke up. “She’s right. I have felt such a huge weight off my shoulders after Stan and I split up, and had we stayed together I wouldn’t be here now.”

  “But…”

  Marissa stopped Katie before she could continue. One look at Katie’s face and Marissa knew exactly what the problem was. Well, the problem right now anyway. Who knew what the real issue was? “No, there’s no ‘but’. I’m the one who let Daniel go and no matter how hard it was for me, I forgave you for what happened back then. I just never forgave myself. It’s the reason why I decided to go into cardiology. I wanted to know the ins and outs of the heart to keep mine from aching, so I should really be thanking you.”

  “Come on, Marissa, I hurt you. I betrayed your trust and your friendship and stole your boyfriend. You were the one he was supposed to marry and have a family with. Be mad. Hate me. Yell at me. Something. I deserve it. I can’t be let off the hook,” Katie said, the tears in her eyes finally falling. “I’ve felt so guilty for so long, and sitting here with you now, Marissa, drunk off our asses, it has all finally boiled over and hit the fan.”

  “I have cancer.”

  Everyone whipped their heads around to look at Jess, who looked around at all of the eyes staring at her and felt like a weight had been lifted.

  “What did you just say?” Katie asked, obviously hoping it wasn’t what she thought she heard.

  “I have cancer,” she said again, matter of fact.

  “Since when?” Katie asked, looking stunned, her alcohol-addled brain sobering rapidly.

  “I only found out a month ago. I didn’t want to say anything until I got a second opinion.”

  “Oh my God, Jess, I’m so sorry,” Becca said.

  “I said it, now I want y’all to forget about it.”

  “Then why the hell did you blurt it out like that?” Becca said, looking dumbfounded.

  “To shut these two up,” Jess said, looking between Marissa and Katie.

  “Fat chance,” Katie blurted out.

  “What type of cancer do you have?” Marissa asked, her inner doctor emerging.

  “Cervical. My doctor did a pap smear. When it came back abnormal, he ran more tests. The ultrasound showed substantial shadows on my cervix.” She looked around the table. “Seriously, I don’t want to talk about it anymore. I’m trying to stay positive until I get a second opinion, and talking about it only makes it real.”

  “When will that be?” Katie asked through the lump in her throat.

  “In a month, so until then mum’s the word.”

  “Okay, Jess,” Marissa said, staring at her. She was a cardiac doctor. Give her a heart and she could tell you anything you needed to know. Cancer, on the other hand, went to the oncologists, a field she knew very little about.

  “That’s it. We’re going on a trip!” Becca, who had been silently listening to the conversation, said loudly.

  “A trip? What kind of a trip?” Jess asked curiously.

  “How about to New York?” Becca said, looking at Katie.

  Katie coughed, choking. “New York?”

  “Yup, life is proving to be too short to be unhappy. Who knows? Maybe there is another life meant for you. You’ll never know unless you look.”

  “But I can’t,” Katie said quickly, looking down at her glass as if wishing it weren’t empty.

  “Give me one good reason why you can’t,” Becca challenged.

  “Daniel,” Katie said, holding up a finger.

  “You’re unhappy with Daniel. Give me another one.”

  “My kids,” she said, holding up two fingers.

  “Daniel can watch them, and your parents live next door. Plus, they are old enough to take care of themselves.”

  Katie put up a third finger. “My job.”

  “Daniel can handle the business for a little while too. Besides, it’s not like he’ll fire you. You got anything else?”

  “Daniel!” she screeched.

  “I know he is your husband, but why would you stay with someone you don’t want to be with? Y’all got into it so early you never had a chance to live life and experience different things. You never had a chance to see if you were meant for another life. Don’t be sad and settle like that, married or not.”

  Katie stared at Becca, a comeback brewing in her eyes, but she couldn’t think of anything to say.

  “What if he isn’t real?” Katie asked. Even saying it made her sick to her stomach, but it was a logical concern. Everyone would be dense if they didn’t think so too.

  “What do you mean?” Jess asked.

  Katie shrugged. “What if he is only pretending to be the Eduardo I know?” She looked around the table. “I’ve been doing it this whole time. Who’s to say he isn’t too? He’s probably old, fat, and bald with a wife and kids.”

  “Well, you never know until you find out,” Becca said simply.

  Katie turned to Jess, her best friend for as long as she could remember. Jess may have a deadly cancer, yet she was worried about small insignificant things in her life; things she had the power to change. “Do you want to go on this trip?” she asked Jess pointedly.

  It didn’t take Jess long to answer. “Yes, I would. As long as we all go together.”

  Katie sighed and looked around the table. “Well, are you girls in?”

  They each looked at one another and all inevitably agreed.

  “That settles it. Girls, get your affairs in order. Monday morning we are leaving on our journey,” Becca said, holding her glass up to the others’.

  Chapter Eight

  Monday morning all four girls met at Katie’s house to begin their journey, figuring Katie’s SUV would be the biggest of the four to fit them and their luggage.

  “So, when are y’all coming back?” Daniel asked, staring at all four women curiously.

  “We’re figuring in about a week,” Marissa told him.

  “Or longer,” Becca said, snickering.

  Katie looked at her, her eyes wide.

  “With you in tow, I may never see any of you again,” Daniel said to Becca, shaking his head.

  “You know how we roll. We’ll call you if we need bail money,” she replied sarcastically.

  “Great, thanks.”

  “Okay, we’d better get going. We have a long ride ahead of us,” Marissa said, looking antsy.

  Becca and Marissa got in the back of the SUV and let Jess sit in the front seat as they waited for Katie to say her goodbyes. Of course this moment was hard for Katie. When she came back from this trip she might be a completely different person. It scared and thrilled her at the same time.

  Marissa couldn’t help but watch Daniel hug Katie from the corner of her eye. His strong arms were wrapped around her. Her heart sank a little more when he bent down and kissed her lightly on the lips. She finally looked away, not wanting to see anymore. She hadn’t felt such jealousy since she’d moved away, but being back here, watching it all over again, was proving to be difficult, just as she predicted.

  “All right, girls, are we ready?” Katie asked, getting into the SUV.

  They all buckled their seatbelts and waved goodbye to Daniel as they pulled away, everyone except for Marissa that is—not that anyone noticed.

  ***

  Ten hours later, they made it to New York City. Thankfully traffic had been fairly light and uneventful. As they exited the massive Holland Tunnel, leaving New Jersey and entering New York, the whole skyline sparkled with city lights. Traffic slowed down drastically. The girls stared out of their windows, watching the city arou
nd them as if transfixed.

  “Okay, ladies, it’s only six o’clock and according to the GPS the hotel is right up the road. Let’s go to the hotel first and freshen up, then go out for dinner and explore. How does that sound?” Katie asked, keeping her eyes on the hectic road.

  “Sounds like a plan, Stan,” Becca said. She quickly turned to look at Marissa. “Sorry.”

  Marissa laughed. “For what? It was funny!”

  They pulled up to the Downtown Marriott between West Street and Albany Street and got out and stretched their legs. Instantly, a young Hispanic bellhop appeared and helped them get their luggage out of the back. A valet soon whisked the SUV away. They followed the bellhop into the hotel and stopped at the massive mahogany check-in counter. While Marissa spoke to the receptionist behind the desk, the other girls looked around the lobby. There was marble all over, from the shiny white floor to the tall columns throughout the room.

  “All right, girls, here you go,” Marissa said, handing them all a room key. “There are only two beds to a room, so I reserved two rooms. I’m not sure if anyone had a preference for who they bunk with, but I kind of assumed you two would want to room together,” she said to Katie and Jess.

  “I’m okay with that,” Katie said, smiling and wrapping an arm around Jess’s shoulder.

  “Sweet, that means you’re bunking with me,” Becca said with a mischievous smile.

  They walked toward the elevator with the bellhop on their heels, pushing their loaded luggage rack. When Jess sat down in one of the red antique-looking wingback chairs in the sitting area close to the elevators, they stopped.

  The group turned to look at her. “Do you need to rest?” Katie asked, concerned.

  “No, I just wanted to see what it felt like,” Jess said, running her hand over the soft fabric. “You should try it. It’s wonderful.”

  “Oh.”

  The other girls followed suit and each sat on a piece of old prestigious furniture in the lobby. Each piece looked like something straight from the Titanic the day it made its ostentatious entrance into the world—fancy and grand. Katie sat on a wingback chair like Jess’s while Marissa and Becca sat on a loveseat which matched the chairs perfectly with red velvet fabric and wooden clawed feet. The bellhop stood by the elevator with their luggage rack and stared at them patiently, obviously having been through this many times before.