"Woah, woah, woah." I grab ahold of Tommy when he tosses both bottles to the side and bumps his chest against Wyatt's.
"You wanna fucking go. Let's go," Tommy bellows. Wyatt brushes him off then turns to walk away. "Yeah, that's what I thought."
"Dude. Chill the fuck out. What's your problem?"
He points over the fire where Wyatt stands with his love interest, Shane. "He's my fucking problem."
"Whatever it is, just let it go. Has anyone heard from Zed?" I look from Tommy to Talon who both shake their heads simultaneously.
Tommy looks at his Apple Watch. "He should be here soon. Did you guys bring your repentance?"
"Got mine." I pat at my front pocket. Every year at this annual party, we have a little ceremony. We all bring something—or write it out on paper—that has weighed heavily on us this year. It's usually something we either want kept a secret or left in the past. We burn that bitch and let the smoke carry the burden of it away. We walk into the new year with a fresh start and clear head, even if it's only that one problem we're stepping away from, every bit of reprieve helps.
"Yep.
Tommy staggers away and I'm really starting to worry about him. He's been distant. Drinking heavily and slacking in school. It's not like him. "I sure hope he's able to walk away from whatever's weighing him down lately."
Talon stuffs his hands in his front pockets and looks over his shoulder. "Yeah. Something is going on with him. He won't talk about it. Gets all defensive."
"He'll come around eventually. Maybe after this mess with Josh is behind us, we can all breathe a little easier."
Tommy returns with two fresh drinks in his hands. “He’s here.”
I turn around and look over my shoulder and see Zed strolling up to the fire. His hands are stuffed in the pockets of his black jeans and he’s sporting a shit-eating grin. People clear his path and chicks snicker while whispering into each other’s ears. I’ll never understand why girls are so drawn to his bad boy persona. Then again, I could say the same for Willa.
Zed points a finger at a few stragglers around the fire. “You and you. Leave.” The guy and girl walk away immediately, leaving just the four of us around it. “Let’s get this shit over with. Talon, you start.”
Normally we’d all be laughing and reminiscing about the year. This time it’s different. We’re miles apart, even though we’re standing right next to each other.
Without even questioning him, Talon reaches into his pocket and pulls out a box of matches. He doesn’t have to say anything, but he does. Looking through the fire, he glances at all of us and holds up a small box. “This box is one match short. We all know where the missing one went. I got my revenge with the help of you all and I sleep better at night because of it. Don’t let anyone tell you that it’s not worth it. Inner peace is worth every strike you have to make.” He tosses the box in the fire.
Zed side-steps to the left toward Talon and holds his fist out. “Happy for you, man.” They bump fists and Zed returns to where he was standing. “Tommy. Go.”
Tommy pulls something else out of his pocket. It’s not a piece of paper; it’s something small and black. He doesn’t hold it up, he just tosses it directly in the fire and keeps his eyes on the blaze. He doesn’t have to say anything, but we’re all curious.
“Do you have anything to say about that?” I ask him.
“It’s a card from a camera. It doesn’t matter what's on it because it's gone.”
We all share a look, all but Tommy, who is watching intently as the plastic melts on top of a smoldering log.
“Alright then. Lars, you’re up.”
Reaching into my pocket, my fingers grip the folded-up paper. I pull it out and unfold it. Looking one last time at the results before I let it float over the flames. “Congratulations boys, you’re gonna be uncles.” The guys don’t know the truth. No one does and no one ever will.
They don’t question it. Even if they had their suspicions, they’d never share them.
“Alright, Zed. Looks like you’re the last one,” Tommy says as he tips back his bottle.
Zed pulls something out from his back pocket. It looks like some old pictures—three, maybe four— but he makes it a point to hide whatever is on them.
He steps up to the fire and tears them in half. Again and again. Dropping piece by piece into the burning flame. One stray square picks up in the wind and blows over to my foot. Zed throws the remaining pieces into the fire and his eyes shoot to mine. A look I’ve never seen before holds tightly to his gaze.
Fear. Shame. Humiliation. I bend down and pick up the puzzle piece that holds his ten-year-old face and walk over to the fire and drop that son of a bitch in. “Alright. Let’s get a drink.” I beam, giving Zed an out from questions. He cracks a half-smile and nods. It’s his asshole way of saying thanks.
“You boys enjoy. I’m leaving town for a while, maybe forever. Who the fuck knows.” Zed peaces us out with two fingers then turns to walk away.
“Woah. Wait a minute. We had a fucking deal.” Talon jogs over to his side and grabs his shoulder. “Where is he?”
Zed’s hands hit his chest. “Hey, now. I’m a man of my word. In time, you’ll get what you want.” He smirks, before continuing on his way.
“Motherfucker,” Talon shouts from the other side of the fire. “I say we kill his ass right now. Toss him in the fire and let the smoke carry his
