A/N: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed. You've been very encouraging, and I'm glad you're enjoying the story. This chapter is dedicated you all of you. Enjoy!

Chapter Nine: Homecoming

Andy pulled into the parking lot at Union Station at about 8:30 on Monday morning, just ten minutes before Brian's train was scheduled to pull into the station, and cut the engine. He didn't move for a couple of minutes, just sat there staring out of the windshield at the building in front of him. He may have been tired and cold and bored during the trip from Columbus, but there was something very peaceful about the solitude and the darkness. The feeling disappeared rather quickly when he arrived in Chicago and the reason for his journey grew closer with every passing mile. He was home.

He sat there in the parking lot for ten minutes, not moving, just staring out at the station and fogging up the window every time he breathed. He wasn't even inside yet, but already Andy could feel himself getting swept into the crowd and sucked back into the real world, which wanted things from him that he wasn't ready to give. He thought about Brian and what the hell they were going to say to each other after three years of not speaking. Was he supposed to hug him, to shake hands, to greet him enthusiastically? Was he supposed to ask how college was treating him, what he was planning on doing with his life when he graduated? And when Brian turned the tables on him and started asking how his life was going, what was he supposed to say then?

Andy looked down at the clock on his dashboard. 8:38 A.M. He took a deep breath, unbuckled his seatbelt, and climbed out of the truck.

Brian's train arrived at 8:55 A.M., fifteen minutes late. He waited for his fellow passengers to clear the aisle before gathering his bags and exiting the train. He walked from the platform into the main building, not entirely sure where he was supposed to go.

After wandering around for a few minutes, he finally spotted Andy near the front entrance, leaning against the brick wall with his arms crossed over his chest, glancing around him at the people walking by. He looked about the same as the last time Brian saw him, maybe an inch or two taller, a little thinner.

"Andy!"

Andy looked up and nodded, his expression unreadable. "Hey."

"Uh, hey." Brian stopped when he was a couple of feet away and let his duffel bag drop to the floor next to his feet. "It's, uh…thanks for picking me up."

Andy nodded and opened his mouth to say something else, then stopped himself. He ran a hand through his short blonde hair and looked down at Brian's bag. "Do you need help carrying that?"

Brian shook his head quickly and went to pick it up again. "No, I can get it."

Andy nodded and looked at the front door, then back at Brian. "So, uh, should we go ahead and go or…"

"Maybe we should call first."

"Oh." Andy glanced around, then nodded at a row of phone booths set up near the restrooms on the far side of the room. "There."

Brian carried his bag across the room and set it down under one of the payphones, then pulled a piece of paper from the pocket in his denim jacket.

"Standish residence."

"Um, hi. This is Brian Johnson, a friend of Claire's. Could I speak with her please?"

"I'm sorry, but she's not home at the moment. Can I take a message?"

"Um, just a second." Brian glanced over at Andy, who was standing a few feet away, watching people rush past him. "She's not home."

Andy looked over. "What?"

"She isn't home."

Andy stared at him blankly for a moment. "When will she be back?"

"Uh, ma'am? Do you know when she'll be back?"

"Well, I don't know for sure, but probably pretty soon. Thirty minutes maybe."

Brian turned back to Andy. "Thirty minutes maybe."

Andy sighed and looked down at his watch. "Okay, we'll just…we'll just go get something to eat and call back later."

Brian nodded and turned back to the phone. "Thank you, ma'am."

"You're welcome. Goodbye."

"Bye." Brian hung up the phone and turned back to Andy. "So, um, where are we…"

Andy shrugged. "Let's just get out of here and we'll decide in the car."

Brian nodded and picked up his duffel bag again, following Andy out to his truck. He tossed his duffel bag into the back and climbed into the passenger side. Andy pulled out of the space and started driving through the parking lot, eventually ending up back on the main street leading out to the suburbs, towards Shermer.

"What do you like?"

Brian shrugged. "Doesn't matter."

Andy didn't say anything. A few minutes later, he pulled into the parking lot of a Jack in the Box and turned off the ignition.

When they got inside, each of them ordered a hamburger combo meal and seat in a booth next to the window facing out to the parking lot. Brian kept sneaking nervous glances at Andy, wondering what he should say to jump start the conversation.

"So, uh, how's school?"

Andy looked up, a soggy fry in one hand. "It's fine." He paused. "What about you?"

"It's fine. Good, actually. It's…it's good."

Andy nodded. "That's good."

"Yeah." Brian took another bite of his hamburger and swallowed. "So, uh, are you graduating this semester?"

"Yeah, in June."

"Are you going to grad school?"

Andy shook his head.

"So, you're gonna get a job?"

Andy shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

"What do you want to do?"

Andy wiped his mouth with a napkin. "I don't know. Work for some company, I guess."

That wasn't very informative. "What kind of company?"

Again, Andy shrugged. "Whoever will hire me."

"What are you studying?"

"Business."

"You know, you can do a lot with a major like that. Anything almost. You could work for a non-profit organization or a bank or an insurance company. There are so many places you could go."

Andy nodded. "Yeah, probably. What are…I mean, are you still doing English?"

Brian popped another fry into his mouth. "Yeah. I think I want to teach. You know, high school or something."

Andy nodded. "You graduate next year?"

"No, December. I took some extra classes last summer, so I'm ahead."

"Oh. That's good."

Brian nodded and looked over at Andy's tray, which was still almost full. "Are you not hungry?"

Andy shook his head. "Not really. Do you want my fries?"

"Yeah, okay." Brian took a handful of the greasy sticks from Andy's tray and put them onto his. He ate for a few minutes while Andy stared out the window. When he finished, he looked across the table nervously.

"So, how about this weather, huh?"

Claire and her father arrived back at the house from the funeral home at about 9:30 that morning. There hadn't been much left to do. Her father cut a couple of checks and signed off on some papers that Claire hadn't been authorized to sign the day before. They also finished planning the service itself, which was much easier with her father there to make decisions that Claire couldn't make. The two of them were in and out within thirty minutes…which made Claire wonder how long it would have taken the day before if she'd had someone there with her.

"Irene is coming in today. Late tonight probably."

Claire nodded and settled back into her seat, staring out at the road ahead. "When does her flight land?"

"7:00. Daniel said that he would pick her up."

This wasn't surprising. Claire knew her father didn't get along very well with her mother's sister Irene, who was very protective of her younger sister Catherine. Irene and Claire's father managed to get into it every time she came to visit, caused in part by her father's pride and in part by her aunt's raging temper. Claire had always been fond of Irene, who doted on her niece as the daughter she never had.

Claire's father pulled into the driveway and parked the car along the circular driveway, right next to the front porch. When she got inside the house, she went straight up to her room and collapsed onto her bed. She hadn't ever considered how hard it was to plan a funeral. When she was younger, she'd loved planning parties and celebrations. She was so good at it that she'd even considered becoming a wedding planner or event coordinator when she graduated. Somehow, it was a lot less fun when it was her mother's death that she was "celebrating".

About twenty minutes later, there was a sharp knock on the door. Claire, who had accidentally fallen asleep, sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. "Yes?" she asked irritably.

"Miss Standish, there are some guests here to see you."

"Guests?" Suddenly, Claire realized who she was talking about and yanked open the door, sweeping past Sandra, the maid, and running down the stairs as quickly as she could in her heels.

"They called a few minutes ago. and I knew you were home, but I didn't know where you were, so I couldn't-"

"It's fine."

Claire ran to the front hallway, where Brian and Andy were standing, sneaking glances at the furniture and wall coverings. When he saw her, Brian smiled. "Hi, Claire."

Claire grinned and hugged him. "Thanks for coming," she whispered into his ear.

"No problem." He released her. "I like your hair."

Claire laughed and tucked a strand behind her ear. She'd let it grow out a bit over the years so that it hung just past her shoulders. "Thanks. You look…" She stood back to get a better look. "Bigger," she concluded.

Brian blushed and nodded. "Freshman fifteen."

It looked like a lot more than fifteen to her. She turned to Andy, who was standing off to the side looking slightly uncomfortable. "Hi, Andy."

"Hi." He gave her a stiff, but friendly, hug. "You look nice."

"Thanks." She glanced back and forth between them. "So, are you staying here or…"

Both of them nodded. "If that's okay," said Brian.

"Of course."

There was a moment of awkward silence as they just stood there staring at each other, smiling nervously. "So, um, did you ever talk to Allison?"

Brian shook his head. "I left messages, but I'm not sure if she'll get it or not."

Claire nodded and glanced back over at Andy, who was frowning thoughtfully as he stared at his shoes. She looked back at Brian. "What about…"

He shook his head again. "Same thing. I didn't have his new number, so…"

Claire nodded again, trying not to look disappointed. After a moment, she forced a smile onto her face. "So, are you hungry?"

Bender caught a break in his schedule at around 11:00 on Monday morning. After finishing up a job fixing a broken water heater, he went back to the office at the electrical repair company and used the phone in his boss's office. After a couple of rings, a very sleepy C.J. answered.

"Hello?"

"C.J., it's Bender."

Pause. "Oh, hey, man."

"You called last night and left a message on my machine."

"Uh, yeah."

"I need to know if he said anything else."

"Who?"

Bender rolled his eyes. "The guy you talked to. Brian."

"Oh." Bender heard some more rustling on C.J.'s end, then the sound of a bed creaking. "Uh, he called at, like, 9:00, maybe 10:00. Sounded kind of tense or worried or something."

Typical Brian. "What did he say about Claire?"

"Just that her mom died and that the funeral was on…"

"Wednesday."

"Right."

"And?"

C.J. paused. "And she wanted you to come."

Bender stared at the wall a few feet away. "Just me or…"

"I don't know. He said everyone. I didn't ask him what that meant because I figured you would know."

Of course he knew. "Okay." He paused. "You sure there wasn't anything else?"

"Yeah, pretty sure. You need a place to stay, man? 'Cause you can stay on the couch like last time if you need to."

"No." Bender let out an angry sigh and looked away from the wall. "No, I don't."

A/N: Thanks for reading! I'd love to hear from you if you've got the time.