Their Days of Nights

16 : Invite

January 2011

Benjamin

"So, next weekend," Diego says halfway through our so-called lunch. "We're all set, right?"

Dominic quietly affirms, and I give them a nod.

It's an out-of-the-office slash out-of-the-Metro weekend thing. We did this once last year, but just the guys from the team and Lee. Then again last summer, with Kristina and Belinda from HR and her plus-one. Before last year ended, they planned to upscale it to a house party during the last weekend of January. And Diego is insistent that everyone should bring a tag-along who may or may not be from the office. It's one of the only ways where we can get to socialize or meet other people, he said, to widen one's social sphere, so to speak.

"You should bring your sister," Dominic says to me.

"She's twelve," I say, putting down my coffee tumbler on the table.

"I mean your older sister," he says.

"I don't think so." I shake my head. "She's out of town again that week."

Besides, I doubt my friends will mind if I come to the party alone because I'll be driving them to the place. Kristina and Dominic arranged the thing and reserved a rental house in a southern city two hours outside of the Metro. I know the area because I passed by it when I went to NSU's satellite campus.

"Just surprise us, Golden Boy," Diego tells me with a mocking grin as he stands up and walks away from the table.

He started calling me that after they found out I'm accelerating one level up. He even made it clear that he doesn't mean it sarcastically or negatively, but as a compliment. I just shrugged and said, "whatever."

Surprisingly, I have no qualms about my work and the relatively fast pace of climbing up the corporate ladder. But I can't say the same with other imperative parts of my life.

I have twenty more minutes of break time. I'm reading through the thread of private Facebook messages my high school friends and I started earlier, which they continued after I get to work. It concludes with an agreed-upon meet-up tomorrow, Saturday. I just confirm my attendance.

***

"I'm not sure how I'm going to take it," Jay says. "Maybe I'll wait for their next record and see if I'd still like it or not."

We're talking about the recent controversy surrounding Paramore; about the departure of the Farro brothers.

"I don't like what happened, but I sort of saw it coming," I say with a shrug. "I'd still listen to their music, though." Then I take a sip from my large cup of mocha latte.

He continues stirring his hot non-coffee drink. He doesn't like caffeine, especially at night, and it's almost eight-thirty.

I receive a text message. It's from Steve. He's already somewhere in the mall. I reply that we're at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf.

After those awful months in 2006, I also lost connection with my old friends, but I reacquainted with them once I went back to school the following year. They're the only other people, aside from my family and Kim, whom I can talk to about anything.

Before Steve started law school, the three of us saw each other more frequently. It was the summer, so Jay's schedule was more flexible. He stayed with his sister, who's also based here in the Metro. After that, we only met once and very quickly.

"Hey, Cap," Jay greets Steve, who just pulls the empty chair to my right.

"Hey, guys. Sorry, I'm late."