Friends Forever

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"I just thought..." We were all waiting on Track to explain. I could tell walking in that he had something in mind. The rain moved out quick — Track must have checked the weather and known it would — so we got together after my shift was done. All six of us. And now we're at Big Bend, and Track's telling us what he has in mind. "I just thought we could... Be honest," he says. "Like, with each other I mean." Everyone moved a little where they sat, maybe thinking of things they'd have to be honest about.

"I mean, look," Track continued. "We're best friends, right?" We all nodded a little, but that wasn't good enough for Track. "Right?" We nodded harder.

"You're my only friends," said Archie. Some 'yeah's and 'same's and other words like that.

"Right," said Track "Right." He looked at each of us. "Well, it's not turning out like I thought it would this summer." He looked a little confused. "Like my dad said... So I was helping frame a roof, and he was watching me, and he said, 'Good man,' to me. 'Good man.' I looked down at him and said, 'Man?' and he looked at me all serious and said, 'Yes, son. Good man. You're a young man now. Boy no more,' he said. So I keep working, but I keep thinking about that. Boy no more. Boy no more. And...

"Well it's not lame!" he snapped. "And this whole summer so far has been shit, because... Because I'm not taking care of business." He went quiet. We weren't all that clear what he was talking about.

"...Uh, taking care of business?" Kara prodded.

"Dad always says that," Track said. "'A man takes care of business."

We let that one sit for a long time. The afternoon was beautiful. Hot, but not scorching, and the air was crystal clear, like it gets when it's not humid. Little puffy white clouds. No one was sweating, but it was still a perfect day for a swim. Later maybe. But now we just sat around on the bank, thinking.

Dara finally said something. "My grandma said, 'Becoming an adult can be surprising.'" We looked at her.

"I'm not a man." ...Oh. That was me. I almost took it back, but didn't. That seemed to stop the train, so we stay quiet again.

Track got irritated. "Look, I just wanted to tell stuff, okay? Just because you're my best friends — like Archie said. My only friends, and I just think we should say stuff to each other. So we know — so we know each other. I want you to know me and... Well so we can stay friends, and—"

"Take care of each other," Kara interrupted. "So we can take care of each other!"

Track looked at her. "Yeah," he said. "I think that's what I mean."

Kara kept on. "Because we have secrets, now, and we didn't used to. And the more secrets we have, the more we split apart," she said. "I don't want to split apart."

"Me neither," Celeste added. "I've been worried we were splitting apart." Dara nodded.

"I'm not splitting," Archie said. "I'm not. I don't know what you're talking about."

"Am I gay?" Track asked hard. "You should know is what I mean. Am I? Am I gay?" A very scared feeling came over me. Archie and Celeste answered at the same time:

"I don't know." Archie.

"No." Celeste.

Then the quiet just hung there like death. A small cloud covered the sun. The wind died, and a little chill came over us. Track stared straight at me, way hard. Fierce almost. I swallowed. Now I'm terrified, and I don't know why.

At last, "You were so drunk," he said to me, but he was telling it to all of us. Now I know why I'm terrified. "You were so drunk. I'd never seen you that drunk."

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