The graduation ceremony was ordinary. Just like any other. Names were called, diplomas handed out, and everyone went home.
Except for, of course, the cul-de-sac kids.
The troublemakers. Ranging from jock to goth, pothead to geek.
And everything in between.
They were known to show up to school early, for the sake of one of the ten. They would sit in cars ranging from a beat up Volvo to an old farm truck.
And of course, the van.
The Eds had done a complete overhaul on the thing and now it was the headquarters for make-out sessions, listening to rock in the junkyard, and, of course, a little bong-breathing.
You knew they were coming when you heard the screech of motorcycle wheels, the sound of Metallica and Nirvana, and loud, obnoxious laughter.
Obnoxious to everyone else but them.
The kids were absolute contradictions. None of them had criminal records, unless you count two of them who ran away because their stepfather was a sick pedophile.
They all made good grades, granted the group genius helped out a lot.
They were all good kids, volunteers to different causes, ranging from rape recovery to dyslexia management. They never got into fights unless the situation was truly extreme. Extreme to the point that they had tried several different tactics to get people to leave them alone. And these people really had to be hurting one of the group, like beating them up constantly or trying to get in their girls pants.
Eddy had finally put away his scams after his mother, Allie, had passed away. His father, Mike, got him a real job at the car dealership he worked at. Eddy had gone with his father to anger, depression, and alcohol management sessions to get passed the pain of his mother's passing. He truly got to work on his studies, his mother wanting him to be the first one in his family to actually go to college and even finish high school without dropping out to get a GED due to a pregnancy. He and Lee were pregnant, though. They were determined to finish high school and then settle with Eddy's father until Eddy got his Associate's and begin to get into real estate. Lee would go to school online for the same degree, so that she could partner with Eddy and make it a family business.
Lee herself had put away pursuing Eddy at fourteen, when her mother, Adeline, had gone to jail, shoplifting so that the girls had something for dinner, and her father, Louis, came to town. She wasn't violated like Marie or May, so she began to lose relations with her own sisters. She never really quit school, but for two years, had terrible attendance. In her sophmore year, after Marie's father, Markie, came back to town and bailed their mother out and remarried her, she picked up her grades to A's and B's, remaining on the honor role until she graduated. She and Eddy made their mistakes, but took responsibility and prepared for their children, learning it was twins, to come into the world.
Edd had become the center of two psychos' fantasy. They never abused him, rather making him the perfect son. At thirteen, Edd was forced to come to terms that Stephen and Makenzie were not his parents, but his aunt and uncle whose own son died when he was five. The two were arrested for kidnapping and he was reunited with his real parents, Damon and Audra. Damon was a freelance writer and Renaissance historian. Audra was a psychology professor at Penn State. After settling down after his aunt and uncle's strict teaching, Edd actually saw Marie as a potential girlfriend and began to pursue her. Marie quickly took the chance. Now Edd planned to study music and history, after successfully becoming drum major and first trombone in the Peach Creek Marching Band.
Marie stopped pursuing Edd at the same time as her sisters. Adeline's arrest was blamed on her by Lee, because she was getting too thin. She and May were molested, and Marie herself was raped on several occasions by Lee's father. She and May began to pursue their studies earlier than Lee, making sure they'd never be in the situation that their mother was in. After May was forced to watch Marie being raped, they ran away. When Ed and Edd convinced them to come back, Marie settled down with Edd. She plunged into her love of the violin and joined the school's symphonic band. She graduated with honors in high school with her boyfriend's support and tutelage. She planned to pursue music and have a large family with Edd.
Ed began cracking down on his schoolwork with the full support of his parents, Jake and Lucie, for the best he could do. Edd helped him past his dyslexia and helped him get to A/B Honor Role. He began to have a legitimate crush on May when she stopped pursuing him. After keeping her from running away, May stayed with him as much as she could, always clinging to him when she became afraid. Ed planned to go to school for writing, to become a novelist.
May suffered a lot of what Marie suffered, just not as severe. She dove into her studies at the same time as her sister, terrified of this happening to her own children. After being forced to watch her sister raped, she ran off with her, feeling like Marie was the only one that cared about her. When Ed brought her back, she never left his side. She panned to be a stay-at-home mom after she found out she was pregnant just before graduation. But she was happy that she was finally going to be a mom, something she always wanted.
Kevin stopped messing with the Eds when they entered high school. They became good friends. Kevin helped Nazz through bulimia and became her boyfriend. He was the jock of the Group and cared and took care of everyone who joined. The Kankers were no exception. When the two sisters ran away, the whole cul-de-sac went after them. Kevin planned on buying the Candy Store, something steady for he and Nazz to raise a family on.
Nazz was forced to quit cheer leading when her weight was at a normal number for her age and body type. She felt fat and soon became a bulimic, though it never allowed her to get back on the team. Kevin reached out to her and helped her through problem. She felt a connection for Marie because Nazz was the first one outside of her sisters she had opened up to. Nazz planned to Marry Kevin and run the Candy Store.
Johnny let go of Plank after he was fifteen. He was always lonely until the Group came together. His junior year, he met Kara, young hippy-at-heart, and immediately fell in love. He planned to go into pediatric care after high school.
Rolf still remained in the outer circle of things even after the Group came together. Right after graduation, he planned to return to the Ukraine and meet a nice girl. He might just come back if the want ever came.
Sarah and Jimmy were enraged after everyone helped out the Kankers and planned to leave as soon as they were eighteen.
Edd sat near Marie by the bank of the cul-de-sac's favorite creek. Eddy leaned up against a tree, holding Lee close, his hand circling her womb. Ed laid in the sand, May resting her head on his belly. Kevin laid on his stomach, with Nazz on her back atop him, both close to dozing. Johnny and Kara stood side by side, holding hands, staring at the sky full of stars. Rolf was closest to the water, his head in clouds.
"Sockhead,"called Eddy.
"Yes, Eddy?"
"What're the odds?"
"Of what, exactly?"
"Of everything happening the way that it did."
"Feeling philosophical, are we?"
"...The fuck...?"
Edd only chuckled.
"Huh,"chimed in Nazz, sleepily,"that would be neat to know."
Marie and Kara nodded at the same time as Lee gave a sigh of wonder.
"Well, come on, ya poindexter,"said Kevin,"I'm waiting."
Then the uproar began.
After about five minutes of waiting on Edd and his scientific calculator, his head lifted from the screen.
"Well,"said May,"come on!"
Edd made a noise of wonder.
"Do you really want to know?"he asked.
Marie groaned. "I think we've made that pretty damn clear."
"Alright, alright. It's...313,592,979.7234983 to 1."
"...Shit,"whispered Johnny in shock.
"Seriously,"demanded Eddy, for the first time in his life questioning the black-headed genius.
"As serious as a cancerous formation in the alveoli."
"...Heart attack would've worked, too, Muffin,"said Marie.
Edd chuckled as he pulled her close to him.
"I know."
Everyone laughed as midnight rolled around in Peach Creek. Most graduates were out having sex and getting drunk right now.
But, as we all know, those troublemaking cul-de-sac kids, were never part of the most.
They were all of something all their own.