Eric froze. "No. No…that can't be right, he's got a wife and a kid," he stammered, "this has to be some kind of sick…no, it just can't be right."
"We need to call people, um, Hyde and Fez in New York, and um Jackie…oh my god Jackie…and Laurie will be there and…the kids…" Donna's hands shook as she picked up the phone to dial the numbers, but Eric pulled the receiver aside and pulled her into his arms as she began to weep in earnest. He could see her brilliant mind working on overdrive, trying to process everything. He stroked her hair gently as her hands clutched at his shoulders, as the tears began to well up in his eyes.
"Who called?"
"What?"
"Donna, who told you?"
"Oh, um Casey. Brooke called him and then he called here to tell us so we could tell everyone."
Eric dragged a hand over his face. "Okay, we have to think. We call my parents first and we organize the troops at their house in Point Place."
"You think so?"
"It's Kelso's hometown and he always said he wanted to come back here after he died and be buried under the water tower."
"You think they'll do that?"
"He's a decorated officer who died in the line of duty. I think it just might get through."
Donna let out a sharp laugh, thought of all the times Kelso had gone ass over teakettle off the ledge of the gang's getaway place. The tears began to fall again; she laid her head on Eric's shoulder.
"How are we going to do this? How can we say good bye to our oldest friend like this?"
"I don't know, Donna," Eric sighed. "I just don't know."
Three hours later, phone calls had been made, anguished cries of denial heard over the telephone lines and Eric and Donna found themselves pulling into the driveway of his childhood home. Shutting off the engine of his Corolla, Eric looked at the sliding doors, saw that Hyde was already there. He took off his seat belt but made no sign he was getting out of the car. Donna looked at him.
"Hey. We're going to get through this."
"I know. It's just so…surreal. Normally we need Kelso to get us through these things by saying something completely inappropriate."
Donna leaned over at kissed his cheek, then helped the kids get out of the car. Eric followed suit, but stopped short of going inside with them. He needed a moment to collect himself before facing his family.
Kelso. Man, what the hell? In all the times they'd had goofed around, done stupid things together as teenagers, Kelso had rebounded like a rubber band. Now with just two stray bullets into his shoulder, he was gone. It still sounded like the stupidest possible thing in the world and yet…and yet…
The sound of the sliding doors had Eric turning around and seeing his second oldest friend in the world. Though he was well into his thirties, Hyde still had a youthful, almost baby face that he'd always tried to toughen up with the beard or the moustache, and Eric was thankful he'd left both of those things in the eighties. His Packers sweater was one Eric recognized as Kelso and Brooke's gift to him when he'd turned twenty-five; Hyde refused to part with it. But the look on Hyde's face was one Eric hadn't seen since his first break-up with Jackie: it was one of utter despair and loss.
"Hey man." His voice was low and gruff as he embraced Eric tightly. "Sucks, huh?"
"You can say that again. How are my parents?"
"Red's being Red, and your mother, well…you'll see."
The two men went inside to the kitchen that was nearly like being in a time warp. The appliances were modern, there was even a dishwasher, but the décor was still the same chocolate and gold and orange patterns that Eric remembered as a kid. At the kitchen table sat Red with a beer and Kitty was manning the stove, furiously mixing batter of some kind. Through the swinging door of the kitchen, Eric could hear the sounds of Donna's voice and his children's. The air smelled of sizzling bacon and coffee.
Kitty looked up saw her son come through the doors. Immediately she dropped her spoon and wrapped her arms around him, squeezing tighter than a python.
"Oh, Eric, I'm so glad you're here." Kitty rocked back and forth. "How are you doing?"
"It's…I'm…well…"
"Oh, for God's sake, Eric, are you high? Your mother asked you a question!" Red barked from the table, earning scathing glares from both Hyde and Kitty.
"This is no time for raised voices, Red; it's just…awful, awful news. Do you know what time everything is arranged for?" Kitty asked, going back to the stove and heaping food onto a plate.
"Um, no, Brooke said she'd call when she got to Kelso's mother's house so we can make arrangements. Fez will be getting here sometime soon, I think. He said he'd get a car at the airport."
"What about Jackie? Does she know yet?"
Hyde coughed lightly. "I took care of it. She's on her way in from California. She said her plane lands tonight around eight."
Eric pursed his lips but said nothing. This was not the time to be reading into any possible signs that there was still some glimmer of hope for Jackie and Hyde to get back together. Instead he took the plate of hash browns and bacon his mother offered and sat down across from Red.
"Mom, are you going to go nuts again with the cooking like when Grandma Foreman died?"
"Well, of course not." Kitty laughed in her usual way. "But I think that if all my kids are going to be back in the house it couldn't hurt to have a couple dozen cookies on hand."
The phone rang, making everyone in the kitchen jump a foot out of their skins. Kitty set her spoon down once again and picked it up. "Hello? Oh hello Brooke, you poor girl I'm so sorry…yes…okay…they're on their way."
Kitty replaced the receiver. "They're here."
