“What the hell was that?” Heather demanded as Trent came back to where he’d left her standing in the doorway of the convenience store.

“That was a fist bump,” he explained. “Now… if you’ll excuse me… I need a Gatorade.”

“But… did you just stop here because you saw her car?” Heather followed him, the tone of her voice grating on his last nerve.

“No, I stopped here to get a Gatorade.” He pulled his beverage of choice out of the refrigerated section. “Would you like something?”

“But we’re almost to your parents' house. Couldn’t you have waited?”

“Dude, I’ve never seen you drink so fast,” Hank said, coming over and dropping down next to her on a log on the perimeter of Christy’s parents’ large back yard.

“Sorry. I’m just… missing Sam, that’s all.”

‘“Oh, your man?”

“Yeah.” Hank had had a few too many to drink as well.

“I hear you. I like this chick at school, but she won’t date me. She says I’m a fun guy, but I’m not the sort of guy she sees in her future. She wants a professional. Man, she’s so damn hot. And the s*x….”

“Okay….”

“Sorry. It’s just… I hate that she doesn’t want me, you know? But personal training is my life! That’s what I wanna do. I’m so passionate about it. Just because it’s not one of those jobs you tell your dad about doesn’t mean that I’m not gonna make a good living.”

“I get it. People say the same thing about my music. They say I should get my teaching degree, teach music to high schoolers, instead of playing it myself.”

“Can’t you do both?”

“Sure, I could. But… I don’t want to. I want to make a living from my music. To move to Nashville and become a recording artist.”

“That would be so cool. I could tell everyone I knew you back when you weren’t famous yet. Hey, you could post about my personal training gigs. Maybe I can drum up some business.”

“Sure. Anything I can do to help a friend.”

“You’re awesome, Bree. I love you.”

She giggled. “I love you, too, Hank. Boy are you drunk. I really hope everything works out between you and that chick, too.”

“Thanks. Me, too. Mon is the best. She’s so pretty…. Maybe someday she’ll come to her senses and realize we’re just meant to be.”

Bree smiled at him and decided not to drink any more that night. Hank was wasted--his head was going to hurt tomorrow. She’d just as soon hers didn’t.

“Anything for a friend….” she mumbled again. It was unfortunate that friends seemed to come and go pretty easily. She knew the second she’d bumped Trent’s fist their friendship, and anything else they might’ve ever had, was over.

Part of her wanted to sob uncontrollably at losing him for good, but the rest of her knew it was a long time coming. At least seeing him had allowed her to find a bit of closure, and that was better than nothing.