I hope this is the last time that I will have to re-edit this chapter, but you never know. I have made some changes. For the benefit of not bogging the story down with too many characters (and my own sanity), I have taken Aisha and Rocky out of the picture. I love the characters but have absolutely no room for them. Also, this is pretty much an AU story since I decided to take a lot of liberties with the characters since they got out of high school. That being said, the story is pretty much the same (I did get my head out of my ass long enough to run a spell check) with just a few minor changes in dialogue. Thanks for your patience.

Chapter Two: Goodbye and Hello

Billy bolted up in bed, struggling to catch his breath. Despite the cool fall air drifting through his window, sweat poured down his face. He glanced at the clock next to his bed. Even without his glasses, he could read the large, red numbers. 3:33, they seemed to scream at him. He untangled himself from his comforter and flung his legs over the side of the bed. Forgetting his glasses altogether, he walked on wobbly legs to the bathroom. He didn't bother with the light but went straight to sink and flipped on the cold water. The icy water stung his face as he tried to make sense of the horrific sensation that had torn him from sleep. He looked in the mirror as he turned on the light. He stared at himself for a moment as he tried to calm the churning in his stomach. Taking deep breaths, he closed his eyes and focused his mind.

As the wave of nausea subsided, he made his way back into his bedroom and quickly picked up his cell phone. Without having to look, he pushed the speed dial. He had called her many times in the middle of the night, and he knew that she would take his call even at the ungodly hour.

"Hello." her soothing voice came through. The voice that had calmed him when he woke up from his terrible nightmares. Nightmares that had been steadily increasing in frequency and intensity.

He closed his eyes as the nausea threatened to overcome him once more. "Something terrible has happened."

The drizzling rain made for the appropriate backdrop for the most somber of days. The Park's two story house seemed to sink in on itself under the weight of grief that hung over the once lively and bright home. Many of Kat and Adam's friends came to pay their respects. Most stayed only for a bit, while others lingered, finding comfort in the various plates of food that had been arriving since the day before, and reminiscing about Katherine. Adam walked stiffly about the house, only talking when greeting someone or thanking them for their condolences.

Tommy and Jason stood side by side, as usual, by the door greeting the many guests that had come and gone. They had been by his side since Adam had called them with the news. The pair had immediately taken up residence at the Park's house, helping with funeral arrangements, making phone calls, and desperately trying to hold their friend together.

Jason shifted uncomfortably in his dress shoes, apparently feeling very out of sorts in his suit and tie. Tommy, while feeling his pain, stayed ever stoic, giving a brief grin to his friend.

"Would you stop fidgeting?"

Jason nodded at a somber couple as they passed by, thanking them for coming. When they were alone again, Jason grimaced aloud. "Gimme a break, would you? You know I hate these monkey suits." To make his point, he tugged severely at his collar.

"Easy, killer. You'll have the whole thing shredded before the service tomorrow." A familiar female voice lilted into the doorway.

The two men perked up at the lovely sound. "Trini!" Jason yelped as he swept the petite brunette into a massive bear hug.

"Wow, it's good to see you, too, Jason." She could barely get the words out while he practically crushed her ribcage.

He finally set her down, and she turned to Tommy. He stooped down lithely to wrap his arms around her. "Hi, Trini."

"I just wish the circumstances didn't suck so much." A sudden sadness fell over the trio. "How's he doing?"

Jason unconsciously rubbed the back of his neck. "Not too good. He just kinda walks around like a zombie. I'm not entirely sure that he knows what's going on? He's barely said two words since we got here two days ago."

Trini furrowed her brow. She knew that they were as close to Adam as brothers. Hell, the three of them had even roomed together in college, and for a brief period after until Adam and Kat got married. "Do they know what happened?"

The men shook their heads. "She went to bed alive as a person can be, and when Adam woke up in the morning..." Tommy's voice trailed off.

"Oh my god, that's horrible. I can't even imagine." Trini sighed audibly. "Well, I didn't know her that well, but I know that she was special to him."

"You got that right." Tommy said quietly. He was all too acquainted with the phrase, "to have loved and lost."

"Speaking of somebody special, where's that man of yours?" Jason attempted to lighten the mood.

Trini beamed at the mention of her husband, Gustav. "Gus is with the kids, mom and dad are out of town and we couldn't find a sitter on such short notice."

"How are the little monsters?"

"Terrific, as always. Robert is learning guitar, and Missy has taken up karate."

Tommy chuckled. "The apple doesn't fall far, does it?"

Trini smiled at him. "Not far enough." Her reverie faded as she spotted Adam emerging from another room amidst the crowd of people.

He walked listlessly to a nearby table where pictures of Katherine were displayed in a beautiful tribute to the young woman's life. He stared at the pictures barely noticing the various friends who tried to give their condolences.

"Excuse me guys."

Tommy and Jason nodded as she made her way to Adam, speaking softly to him. They watched as the grieving widower turned his friend and fell into her supportive embrace.

Jason ran a hand through his short locks. "Man, this is gonna be rough."

Tommy nodded empathetically. Adam was going to need all the support they could give him right now.

Later in the day, Billy finally arrived. He was greeted by Tommy and Jason. Tommy frowned as he gave his friend a pat on the pack. "Hey man, you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm just...well; it's been a stressful couple of days." Billy ran a hand through his short hair and adjusted his glasses.

Tommy recognized the nervous habit of Billy's. While he tried to appear as put together as usual, Tommy noticed that he looked uncharacteristically disheveled. His face was pale and the bags under his eyes told Tommy that Billy hadn't had a good night sleep in a while. Tommy was convinced that something else was going on under that cool exterior.

As the day wore on, guests came and went and as the sun finally began to sink behind the houses, the last of the visitors finally departed. Adam had disappeared into his room at some point, while Jason, Tommy, Billy, and Trini began to clean up the food that had been brought by friends. Trini loaded a plate with food before it disappeared and made her way down the hall to the master bedroom. From where she stood, she could hear the racking sobs of the man inside. Her heart broke for him.

She knocked lightly on the door. "Adam, I brought you some food." There was no answer. "I'm going to leave it here by the door." Still nothing. "Listen, you know we're all here for you if you wanna talk."

With that, she bowed her head, willing her own tears not to fall, and walked silently back into the kitchen.

"Did you get anything out of him?" Jason asked as he dropped his hands back into the sink of soapy water.

Trini smiled, in spite of herself, at the sight in the kitchen. Jason, Tommy, and Billy had all donned Kat's aprons, rolled up their dress shirt sleeves and were up to their eyeballs in dirty dishes and leftovers.

"It's gonna take time." She lowered her voice.

Tommy smiled at her. "I got nothing but time."

"No kidding." Jason shot back. "When was the last time you had a real job, Oliver?"

His roommate scowled at him from across the room. "Can it, Scott."

It was well known that after high school Tommy had never been able to settle down. Everyone else seemed to have it all figured out. Jason did a brief stint in the military before going on to law school. Trini met her husband in the Peace Corps and settled down with their two beautiful children, and Billy was teaching advanced Physics at UCLA. Tommy just couldn't follow suit. He was too restless to finish his degree (even though he only had one semester left), and never could decide on a career. As a result, he had bounced from job to job, never finding any fulfillment in anything that he attempted.

Once the kitchen was finished, the group of friends raided the liquor cabinet and made their way into the living room to relax. Trini made one more trip to the master bedroom. When she only heard silence, she cracked the door enough to see Adam, sprawled across the bed, sleeping soundly. She quietly shut the door and made it back into the living room to hear Jason telling the story of how they first met Katherine.

"We all thought she was smokin', but Adam had it the worst. It almost killed him when you hooked up with her, Tommy."

"That's right, you guys dated," Billy said, "I forgot about that. She was your rebound from..." He trailed off, and tried to avoid the various stares aimed in his direction. "Oops..."

Tommy, for his part, brushed it off. "It's okay, guys. Jesus, that was so long ago, I'm totally over it."

Jason snickered. "Yeah, well, Kat never did get over the fact that you could never get over Kim. She always complained that she was the reason that you guys broke up."

Tommy leaned forward in her chair. "First of all, she broke up with me. Secondly, she loved Adam way more than she could have ever loved me." He sat back and took another sip of his drink. "My loss was his gain, I suppose."

Suddenly, Jason raised his glass. "To Kat and Adam, may we be able to find as great a love as they did."

The friends all raised their glasses to their fallen comrade and the broken hearts she left behind.

The drizzle had turned into an outright downpour sometime during the night. Adam was grateful for rain. While the others had opted for the shelter of umbrellas he had declined, lifting his head to allow the drops of water to wash away his tears. The service had been beautiful. Trini had been gracious enough to give the eulogy. More friends than he knew they were acquainted with had come to the church to bid a fond farewell. Now he stood in the rain, surrounded by his closest and dearest as the reverend gave his final prayer over the casket in the cemetery. When the prayer was finished, the few who had braved the rain to be at the cemetery went their separate ways, save the five friends standing watch over their fallen loved one.

Tommy finally approached Adam, his own eyes red from crying, and gently laid a hand on his shoulder. "We should get out of the rain. You know that Kat would be pissed if she knew that you caught a cold standing out in this weather."

Adam nodded but stared straight ahead. "Yeah, alright. Could you guys just give me a minute?"

"Sure, bud. We'll meet you at the car." He adjusted his umbrella and turned to follow his friends as they made their way back to the limousines that had brought them.

As they turned to leave, the group collectively stopped when they saw a lone person standing alone in the distance. Dressed in a black dress, her hair swept up under a large brimmed black hat, Kimberly stood as straight as her small stature would allow, holding her umbrella as close to her as possible.

"Is that Kim?" Billy asked, making sure that he wasn't imagining his friend standing there.

Before anyone could answer, Trini broke into a sprint in her heels, kicking up mud behind her. Tommy hung back for a moment, not knowing what the exact protocol for this particular situation was. They had not seen each other since she left for Florida and sent that god forsaken note that nobody could seem to get over. There had been other group gatherings: Adam and Kat's wedding, Trini's wedding...For some reason or another, they had never been able to make it to the events at the same time. Tommy was beginning to think that they were simply destined not to cross paths again. How very wrong he was.

"Dude," Jason slung an arm over his shoulder, breaking his train of thought. "Aren't you even going say 'hi'?"

Tommy watched as Trini barreled into Kim, both girls smiling and laughing. He shrugged.

"What happened to 'I am so over it?'?" Jason's mocking tone made Tommy want to smack him. Instead he nodded his head.

"You're right."

Jason seemed dazed for a moment at the admission, but quickly recovered with a cocky smile. "Of course I am, bro. Come on."

Billy began to follow Jason but stopped as he walked by Tommy. He leaned closer and lowered his voice. "I know she will want to see you."

Ending the conversation, Jason and Billy started down the muddy path to where Kim stood, followed by a still uncertain Tommy.