Chapter 2.

Ed rubbed the back of Edd's back, trying to help him stop choking. Eddy, eyebrow raised, waited until the skinny nerd finished being so dramatic. Once he'd finished falsely dying, eyes watering as he cleared his throat, Edd returned his attention to Eddy. He wasn't sure if he'd heard his friend right. Did he actually say-

"K-Kevin is back?" he stammered, sniffling as he wiped away tears. Ed handed him a slightly used napkin. Edd thanked him with a small grimace and folded it to find a clean spot. He used to to wipe away the tears he'd created from swallowing his water wrong. "I… I didn't know-" He paused. He did see a car in the driveway of Kevin's childhood home. He groaned and placed a hand on his forehead, rubbing it. What to do, what to do? Kevin coming back wasn't something he'd ever predicted, or at least not expected.

"Yo, Sockhead," said Eddy. You could hear him rolling his eyes by the tone of his voice. "Chill. Ain't no one said he'd try to get back with ya."

"That's not even…" Edd sighed. He really ought to give up trying to correct anyone's speech. And right now, he had a plethora of other things to worry about. Even if Kevin made no attempts to become involved in Edd's life, there was still the off-chance of running into him and small talk. He rubbed his face. Edd hated small talk. As a younger man and child, he could easily divulge in small talk with no complications. As he grew older, he found it to be rather dull. The only time small talk had been fun was with-

"Double Dee!"

Edd's blue eyes came back into focus and he coughed, trying to cover his embarrassment. He ducked his head a bit before gathering himself and clearing his throat once more. "Forgive me, Eddy… seems I disappeared for a moment." Ed took it the wrong way and began to rapidly touch the second tallest with blatant disregard for his personal space. He rambled on about Edd physically disappearing while Eddy watched Edd's pained expression as he tried to coax Ed.

"You went with her didn't you?"

Both Ed's stopped and Double Dee lowered his eyes. "I didn't get very far," he said after a soft moment. Even though Ed wasn't the brightest, he still knew who they spoke about. He stuck French Fries up his nose and flapped his arms.

"I am a Dino-Chicken!" he exclaimed, "Rawbwack rawbwack!"

"What the hell, Ed?" Eddy exclaimed. Edd laughed a bit, pressing his hands to the bigger ones arm. "Ugh, of course you gotta go and embarrass us." Eddy smirked though, knowing exactly what the bigger lump was trying to do. They both looked at their friend. "Did it work?"

"About as well as a spoon on the nose," Edd said with a sad smile.

"That one always did the trick," said Eddy, grabbing a spoon and doing just that. Ed copied him and then Edd followed suite. "Every time she did it."

Edd carefully removed his hands from the spoon. "I know. I'll never understand why though. It's such a trivial thing, but I loved it when she did it." The three laughed, spoons falling from their noses onto the table.

This was something they did once a week. They'd make time for each other, go out to any place they could to grab a bite to eat, maybe a drink, and just talk. For Edd, it was part of the healing process. His friends knew exactly what to do or say to keep his feet on the ground rather than digress into his grief. It was normal, and they knew, for a husband to grieve the loss of his wife. The two Ed's grieved with their friend after all.

"You remember that story she used to tell?" Eddy asked after a while. "About the ducks?"

Edd laughed. "Which one? She had at least four stories about ducks."

Eddy made a face. "Why so many stories about ducks? Man that's weird."

"E-Eddy," Edd laughed again. "That's not a nice thing to say. She loved ducks. We almost had one, until it bit me. That thing chased me around the yard."

"I hate birds," Eddy laughed. "But I remember that. No, the story about the ducks and the pond."

"Oh yes. You know, she learned that story from a movie she watched, but every time she said it-"

"She added a new detail?"

"Yes," chuckled Edd. Every time.

Ed raised a glass then. "To Julia?"

"Yeah, to Julia," said Eddy.

Edd raised his and they clinked.

"So, Sockhead," Eddy said, spinning his half-emptied glass around on the table top. He was a bit intoxicated, but had many reasons as to why. "You think I can do it?"

"Are you asking me if you're certain you can this next step?" Edd inquired. "Because I do believe you can. You have been together for two years, and you have always liked Nazz."

Eddy lay his head on the table, grinning like a lovesick idiot. "Yeah, I have always liked Nazz." He sat up and looked at his friends. "I can do this!"

"You can, Eddy. If you believe it."

"BELIEVE IT!" Ed announced, standing up and dramatically holding out a fist to the air. "What are we believing?"