EVERMORE | DEAD POETS SOCIETY

TWENTY!

WHEN REBETTA WOKE UP THE NEXT MORNING, she still couldn't comprehend everything that happened from the night before. Finding out the news of Meeks' death and reuniting with her first love she hadn't seen in the past decade. She wanted to pinch herself, and hoped maybe this was just some kind of sick joke.

But it wasn't. As soon as she walked out of her room to go make herself a cup of coffee, Todd and Neil were sitting with each other at the kitchen table, talking about lord knows what. She had to do a double take, and luckily they didn't notice. She moved slowly into the kitchen and suddenly their attention was on her.

"Good morning," Todd smiled at her. "Uh, Pitts called again this morning while you were asleep. The funeral is going to be in a few days."

There it was.

That reminder that Meeks was dead.

She nodded before grabbing a coffee cup from the shelf. "Good morning Betta," She turned back to see Neil smiling at her. Something in her stomach made her feel warm when he did that. It was the first good morning she's gotten from him in a longtime. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Oh uh... yeah." She stuttered out, as she grabbed the coffee pot. Talking to Neil made her nervous. It's because they weren't kids anymore. They had so many things they had to patch up. As she poured her coffee, Todd spoke again.

"So the funeral is going to be in a few days-"

"Yeah Todd, I heard you." She spoke softly. She didn't want to be mean to him, however the news was like an open wound. It may have stopped bleeding profusely but it still hurts if you put it underneath hot water. Todd understood and wasn't taken aback by Rebetta's sharp comeback. He knew how she was. "I just got to let Richard know that I'm going to be out of town for the next few days."

"Richard?" Neil asked. "Who is Richard?"

"Oh, Betta's stupid boyfriend." Todd told him and Neil's heart sank. He hoped that maybe she wouldn't have anybody in her life when they reunited. But he understood, it had been such a long time. There was always that possibility of them never seeing each other again. Rebetta stared at the two of them awkwardly before breaking the silence.

"Okay, I'm going to call him now." She tells both of them as she leaves the room with her coffee. She sighed loudly walking out and also making sure she didn't spill any hot coffee on her feet. When she finally reached the telephone, she placed her coffee down and dialed Richard's number.

A few rings go by until a familiar groan emerges on the other end. "Hello?" He said with a rusty British tone.

"Richard, it's Betta."

"Hi darling," He said, sitting up. "What's going on?"

"I'm going to be out of town for a few days."

Richard lets out a sigh. "You're going to be out of town? Betta, I thought we were going to go over that paper you wrote this weekend? You were so excited about it and now you're just going to cancel on me?"

This was typical Richard fashion. He always got aggravated if the plans had to change. To be honest, she never was super happy with Richard. He was attractive, yes. He was a smart guy with a good paying job with a great apartment right in the heart of New York City, however he never made her feel like she was on fire. She hadn't felt that way in years.

"Richard, my friend Meeks passed away." She snapped quietly at him and the line went silent. "I found out last night because Todd and I's other friend called. His funeral is in a few days, and that means I have to go back to Vermont with Todd."

"Do you need me to come with you?" He asked.

"No. I'll be fine. Have a good day." She mumbled before hanging up the phone. She didn't want to deal with Richard or get in a fight with him. He already made the start of her day not a good one. She took a big sip of her coffee and walked back into the kitchen, to just see Neil sitting there watching the TV. Todd was probably in the shower.