Part Twelve

(The Ben Strand Chapter)

Sydney isn't quite sure what to do after she hangs up with Kerri. She needs to talk to someone, but it is too early to think about calling her friends in LA. Eventually, she decides to call Michael.

"Hey, it's me," she says when he answers his cell.

"Hey, Syd," he says, surprise evident in his voice. "Is everything okay?"

"I just got the strangest call from Kerri Weiss, Michael," she tells him. "She's getting married."

"Kerri Weiss?" he repeats unbelievingly. "You're kidding! Did you even know she was seeing anyone?"

"No, I haven't talked to her for a few months," Sydney admits guiltily. "What about Eric? He hasn't said anything?"

"I haven't talked to him in awhile, either," Michael says. "What did she tell you about the guy she's marrying?"

"It was the most bizarre thing," Sydney responds, twisting the phone cord around her finger. "She calls and tells me in a rush that she's getting married and her fiance is out getting groceries, then he comes back and she practically hangs up on me."

"She probably would have been embarrassed for him to catch her spreading the word, like, seconds after he popped the question," Michael guesses.

"Probably," Sydney agrees. "Anyway, so all I found out about the whole thing is that she's marrying a wonderful TV producer named Ben."

"Ben?" Michael practically yelps. "She's marrying Ben Strand?"

"She didn't say his last name," Sydney says, bewildered. "What, so you know the guy?"

"Not well," Michael says. He's laughing now. "Eric had a crush on Kerri, like, forever, in college, but he couldn't ask her out for the longest time because she was dating this guy named Ben Strand. It was this big joke between Eric and me-- I'll bet she'd go out with you if you were as good-looking as Ben Strand. Or, like, if Eric did something stupid at a party, or whatever, it was, Ben Strand would never do anything like that. Even after they started going out, like, if Eric and Kerri were arguing over which movie to see, I'd say, I'll bet Ben Strand would see whatever movie she wanted, Eric."

"Sounds hilarious," Sydney says, rolling her eyes. "So whatever happened to Ben Strand?"

"Oh, he transferred to film school in New York, or something. He and Kerri tried to keep things going for awhile, but you know how long distance things go."

"Yeah," Sydney says, leaning against the refrigerator. "Especially when Eric Weiss is doing everything he can to move in on your woman."

"Ben Strand," Michael marvels. "I can't believe Kerri's marrying Ben Strand."

"Mike, we don't even know if it's Ben Strand she's marrying."

"Oh, it is," Michael assures her. "How inappropriate would it be for me to call Eric and give him shit about his ex-wife marrying Ben Strand?"

"Extremely," Sydney says, rolling her eyes. "But I'm more than a little relieved that she's at least marrying someone she already knew, that she's not just jumping into a new marriage because she's afraid to be alone."

"What, you think Kerri would do that?"

"I don't know," Sydney sighs. "She wasn't in the best shape the last time we talked. I--" She is interrupted by the sound of Grace wailing over the baby monitor. "I've got to go, baby. Call me later?"

"Absolutely. Love you."

"Love you, too."

She hangs up and goes upstairs to take care of her baby. Michael's words put her a bit more at ease about Kerri's situation. She hopes that her friend will finally have some happiness.

God knows she deserves it.