Abed isn't quite sure how he ended up here, in the back of a rented RV with five sixths of his former study group, but here he is. He's sitting a few feet away from Troy and isn't quite sure how to breach the gap between them. Annie and Shirley are up front, with Shirley driving and Annie consulting the road map - "I don't trust GPSes. The only voice that can tell me what to do while I'm driving is God's," Shirley had said. On the couch across from them, Britta's fallen asleep on Jeff's shoulder, softly snoring with her mouth slightly open.
Abed is taking it all in. Annie keeps looking over her shoulder, exchanging glances with Jeff and Troy. Jeff is visibly uncomfortable and keeps shifting his shoulder to try and shove Britta off. He also seems concerned, though, and looks from Annie to Troy and Abed, as if wondering what's going to play out.
It had only been a few hours since the group showed up to his apartment. Annie had explained their plan, and asked him to take some time to pack so he could come with them on their trip.
"I don't know. Reboots rarely hold up when compared to the originals. It's either a shot-for-shot remake, or they tend to deviate too far from the source material."
Annie frowned. "Don't think of it as a remake. Think of it as... a movie."
Abed considered this. "A cast of familiar characters put in an improbable scenario for the purpose of hijinks? I'm in." He was about to go in and start packing when he had remembered something. "Wait. I have to go to work on Monday. I can't go on a road trip."
"Just call in sick," Jeff suggested. Already, he'd pulled out his phone and was leaning against the side of the taxi to text someone.
"I don't know, I've never missed a day before." As he said this, Troy's smile immediately fell, leaving him crestfallen. "But... I guess I could, just this once."
Back in the present, Jeff is jumping out of his seat across from Troy and Abed. "Ew! Jesus!" Britta jolts awake and his exclamation causes Shirley to abruptly turn her head back, accidentally swerving the RV in the process. Annie shrieks and grabs onto her chair.
"You *drooled* on me!" Jeff says in disgust.
"Well, you didn't have to shout like that! You almost got us killed!" Britta retorts, trying to casually wipe the trail of drool off of her chin. "And for the record, I don't need a man for a pillow. I am totally capable -"
Jeff cuts her off. "I wouldn't have jumped if you hadn't gotten drool on my new shirt! You even Britta'd sleeping!"
Abed leans over to Troy. "We've fallen back into our old patterns."
Troy chuckles. "Yup."
They've decided to take the driving in shifts. Now, Troy and Abed are sitting up front, with Abed at the wheel and Troy attempting to navigate for him. Abed can hear the low hum of conversation from their friends in the back, but the words are too quiet and muffled for him to make out.
"I can't figure out this map," Troy says. "Why do there have to be so many lines?"
Abed glances over. "That's the wrong side," he says. "You're holding it upside down."
Troy rights the map and quickly finds the route Annie traced in bright pink pen. "Oh, thanks. LeVar always handled the map stuff when we were on the boat."
They fall quiet again, for a few moments. Abed isn't sure how to break the silence between them. He'd always assumed that if Troy ever showed up again, they'd fall immediately back into their old dynamic, but apparently he'd failed to take into account that one or both of them might have changed. Troy, for one, seems more grounded and mature. It's not just the beard, which, in Abed's opinion, is attractive on him. Troy still smiles and laughs, but it's heavier somehow, as if shaped by his experiences.
But Abed is now realizing that he's changed too. He's independent and self-assured and throws himself into his work. They'll always be best friends, but something is missing. They don't need each other anymore.
"I guess we have a lot to catch up on," Troy says.
"Yeah." Abed takes a quick look at him. He's studying Abed's expression intently, clearly fumbling for the right words to say. Abed wishes he could help him, but he isn't sure what words he wants to hear.
"They made a new Star Wars movie while you were gone," Abed says.
"What? They already had two trilogies. Why would you mess with perfection?"
"I know." Abed swallows a retort about the prequel trilogy, which he thinks are far from perfect.
"Damn, what else did I miss?"
Abed starts to fill him in on the movies and pop culture that he's missed while on his boat. He takes intermittent looks over at Troy, who's been staring at him the whole time. As he's telling Troy about the Independence Day reboot - boring and messy in his opinion - his phone, which is sitting on the dashboard, starts buzzing.
Troy picks it up. "It's someone named... Is-la?"
"Oh, Isla. I should take this."
"Who's Isla?" Troy asks, seemingly nervous.
"My girlfriend. Do you mind if I pull over so I can answer?"
"Totally, yeah. Sure. Go ahead. No problem."
Abed parks the car and answers Isla's call, but not before seeing Troy's clearly disappointed face as he goes to join the rest of the group in the back.
When Abed pulls into the campground at Joshua Tree about half an hour later, Troy has been mostly silent except to give him directions. Abed knows he's done something to hurt him but he's not sure what.
"Did I do something wrong?"
Troy looks up from the map. "What?"
"You've been really quiet. Was it something I did?"
"I..." Troy looks directly in his face for the first time ever since his phone call with Isla. "No, Abed, it's not your fault. I just - I didn't know you had a girlfriend."
Abed's brows furrow. Why would this bother Troy so much? Troy had had plenty of girlfriends back at Greendale and Abed had never been upset by them, even when Troy was with Britta. But now that he thought of it, Troy had been weirdly jealous when Abed met the secret service agent their second year, and when he'd gone to the Sadie Hawkins dance with two dates. Troy was always looking out for him. Abed guesses that Troy just isn't used to being unable to protect him.
"It's okay, Troy. I can take care of myself."
"I know," Troy says.
Jeff ends up getting the group burgers from a restaurant in the park - Britta just eats the onion rings - and they have dinner around the table in the RV. They swap stories from their time at Greendale, they tell jokes and they laugh and they fight. It's nothing like Thursday night drinks on 10th Street. Abed can feel the tension in his shoulders and jaw releasing, because this is ugly and messy and it feels like home. Annie was wrong, he thinks. This isn't a movie, it's a reunion special, and it feels just right.
After dinner, Jeff finds a deck of cards and Troy teaches the group to play blackjack, something he and LeVar Burton had played during their downtime on the boat. They all join in, Shirley a bit reluctantly, and find spare change to use for gambling. Annie gets the hang of it quickly and wins hand after hand.
"In your face, Britta!" she shouts after winning a round.
Britta looks affronted. "Why me?"
Annie ignores her and bets five coins.
Once Troy starts yawning loudly and exaggeratedly, they decide that it's time to put the cards away and figure out their sleeping situation. The RV is divided into two sections, one larger and one smaller, with a partition between the two. Shirley shares the queen bed with Britta, and Jeff and Annie take the pullout beds on either side. The smaller section has a bunk bed and a small coffee table with two chairs. Of course, Troy and Abed will sleep in this one.
Troy and Abed retreat to their section of the RV before putting their pajamas on and getting into bed. Troy says "Good night, Abed," and Abed responds "Good night, Troy," and everything should be perfect and normal but it isn't. Because Abed lies awake, acutely aware of Troy's presence just a few feet above him, and can't quiet his brain.
Finally, Abed gets up and pads silently to the pantry. He finds some hot cocoa mix and decides to make two cups of special drink, the second one in case Troy wakes up. There's a stillness in the atmosphere around him. It's like his friends are all lying there together, breathing in sync, and Abed is the one on the offbeat. With the two cups of special drink in hand, Abed goes back and sits down at his and Troy's coffee table to be alone with his thoughts. They're moving so fast that his brain feels like it's vibrating, which he supposes is understandable, given how much has happened in just one day.
Abed takes a sip. He finds his notebook, which is in a bag near his bunk, and starts jotting down some notes about his project. He's been trying to flesh out his idea some more. It feels more like a concept, a shapeless idea that he needs to convey through film, but nothing he tries feels exactly right.
"What are you working on?"
Instinctively, Abed flips the notebook shut. "Just a personal project."
Troy sits down across from him and grins. "I wasn't gonna look if you didn't want me too."
"I know."
Silently, Abed pushes the second mug of special drink towards Troy. He takes it and stands up.
"Come with me," Troy says, grabbing Abed's arm with his free hand.
There's a door in the back of the RV, just a few feet away from their table, and Troy opens it. He jumps out, careful not to spill, and motions for Abed to follow him. Abed does.
Mugs in hand, they sit side by side and Troy rests his head on Abed's shoulder. "It's hard to see stars like this in the city," Abed says.
"You should try the Pacific sometime," Troy murmurs.
They're quiet, just for a minute.
"We're still best friends, right?"
Troy turns his head to look up at Abed, and the familiar-yet-strange face is full of some emotion beyond Abed's reach. "Always."