𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐘 → original

one

Two years earlier

It was a Friday night. The first Friday night in a little over a month where they all were able to go out together. It was harder now, with Marc having graduated early, Vallie spending all of her time texting and FaceTiming Tyler, and Lou spending time with Topher. It seemed as though none of them had time for each other anymore. Ophelia was the one who kept trying, though. She kept reminding herself that in a few months, they would all truly be pulled in different directions, so she needed to make it count now.

A week earlier, Ophelia had texted them all and told them they needed to clear their schedule, because no matter what plans they had, they were all going to Callahans, their favorite dive bar, for karaoke night. Caspar grumbled, having no desire to go, but Ophelia wasn't having any of it. It was March, which meant in two months, they wouldn't have these opportunities anymore. She analyzed the situation, and found that the problem was that they were growing apart. The solution was for her to be the glue pulling them all back together.

Vallie already had plans that week, because Tyler's college was on spring break. Rather than go on a trip with his friends, he was choosing to come visit her and stay in her tiny of campus apartment. He was a dream, really. She was filled with butterflies and disbelief, that someone could truly care for her so much that they'd choose to spend their week off in dreary Pennsylvania just to be near her. She figured that they could still go to Callahans, and that way he could finally meet her friends properly, in person.

When Vallie told the others that she would be bringing him along, they were less than ecstatic. No one could quite put a finger on why they just didn't like him. Perhaps it was the way he always sounded less than enthused when they heard her speaking with him on the phone, or maybe it was just the simple fact that he was stealing her away. None of them had expected Vallie to act so differently when in love.

Caspar and Lou were the first to arrive at the bar. Lou stuck out like a sore thumb there; the walls were scattered with sharpie writing or carved with initials, sports and beer posters filled any blank spaces, and it always smelled kind of stale. Lou was pristine, as she always was, dressed in  a pair of dark wash jeans and a black shirt, a plaid pea coat keeping her warm. Caspar didn't look nearly as put together as her (but really, who ever does?), but he was warm in a maroon sweater and jeans.

The two of them took a seat at the designated booth the group had claimed two years earlier. On the wall just above the table, Vallie and Ophelia had carved the initials of all of their first names; V, O, M, A, A, C, N. They had used a nail file, which took forever, so the carving wasn't super pronounced unless you knew to look for it.

Amory and Marc were the next two to arrive. Marc had driven in from the city and parked his car at Amory's place, which used to be their shared place, so that he could drink tonight and have a DD to drive him back. 

Ophelia showed up alone, a bright smile lit on her face when she saw the others gathered around her the table. She pulled up a chair and sat at the end, resting her elbows down and placing her head in her hands.

"Oh my god, you guys, it has been way too long." She sighed. She then sat up and stretched out her arms, leaning over to pull Marc into a hug. Sure, he used to grate on all of them sometimes, but that didn't mean they loved him any less. Plus, Ophelia could see when someone was putting on a facade, because she had been doing it for years. The dark circles under his eyes told her that he was tired, and that he needed this night away perhaps more than the rest of them.

"Anyone know if Nadia is actually coming tonight?" Caspar asked, leaning back in the booth. Everyone simply shrugged, because of course they didn't know. She hadn't responded in the group chat, which wasn't uncommon for her. Most of the time, Nadia either just showed up or she didn't. No one ever knew what to really expect.