JIMONE : The Fond Farewell

Part 3

The morning of JJ's funeral, a flock of ravens flew overhead. The black birds circled the church steeple in a synchronized loop before landing, one by one, on the edge of the roof.

If anyone has bothered to look up, they might have noticed, wondered, or even marveled at the sight. But the swelling crowd that formed below was laser-focused on the invite-only attendees, as they tried to catch a glimpse at even one of the A-listers whom JJ called friends.

The paparazzi swarmed every entrance of the building, getting as close as security would allow and then trusting their lenses to do the rest.

Click! Whirrr! Pop! The sounds of their cameras added to the cacophony of noise outside. The chatter and angling for position behind the barricades was more befitting a movie premiere than a funeral, but as JJ's friends looked down on the fray from inside the church, they knew he wouldn't mind. So they pushed down their own feelings and focused on saying farewell to their friend.

The air inside the church was thick with tension; the silence heavy with both sadness and remorse. They had arrived much earlier than expected to avoid as much of the circus as they could. Wearing dark shades to cover their eyes, they wore white instead of black, to honor their friend's light.

The old Beverly crew turned out to be quite the draw - an All Star running back, an elite NFL quarterback, a world renowned tennis champ, an award-winning journalist, a Grammy nominated pop star, a producer to the stars, and a civil rights lawyer with a huge social media following. They would be on the blogs before lunchtime as commenters dissected what they wore and how they behaved. The news would mention their unlikely success stories and scandals.

But at that moment, they were just seven kids from Beverly who were missing the fuse that kept the parties and the friendship lit. They couldn't imagine back then how their lives would turn out or how their friendships would change. How they had drifted apart.

Everyone agreed to put their issues aside for the services, grateful for another day to bicker with one another because they knew it wasn't promised. At least that's what an early morning group text from Olivia reminded them of and they agreed.

Each person was in their own world that morning, consumed with thoughts of their own lives and their sadness over losing JJ.

Jordan paced nervously, unsure if his eulogy was good enough. I should have had Liv write it, he thought. She's the writer.

Liv was worried about Jordan and nudged Spencer to go check on him. "Careful," he warned Jordan as he approached. "You about to wear a hole in the floor. You know that charge extra for that."

Jordan cracked a smile, grateful for the distraction.

"Get any sleep last night," Spencer probed. "That dinner party was kind of wild."

"Yeah," Jordan agreed, scratching the back of his head and involuntarily looking over to where Simone stood. "I think there's alot still unresolved in our group. Leave it to JJ to bring us together and make us fix it."

"So, are we alright?" Spencer questioned his brother and friend.

"We will be," Jordan responded honestly, after a pause. "You're over here checking on me," he observed, hitting Spencer lightly in the chest. "What's up with you and Liv?"

Jordan listened as Spencer explained things from him point of view. Eventhough he moved to Beverly in high school and had a successful career, you never fully get over being poor. He wanted to make sure his family was set up for generations while he was still relatively young and healthy. He didn't want to take Liv away from her dreams but dreams are a luxury he never much indulged in - he planned for his future so the past wouldn't repeat itself.