where do we begin?, -colton-

Scott was out and about that afternoon on a mission to find comic books, but came up short. Sometimes he lucked out and found an old one behind some used books, but he seemed to be depleting Everbooks of any comic book that ever graced its shelves. Instead he decided to settle with a graphic novel he found on one of the top shelves. One of the few perks of being tall – finding hidden treasures. He grabbed a couple other books that looked interesting, maybe Jane would get a kick out of them, too, who knows. He walked slowly towards the checkout counter while skimming through the backs of one of the books. Scott waited behind another customer while he got more and more interested in the back cover. He read on and let out a tiny little scoff to himself while he flipped the book back to the front. When he glanced up, he noticed the clerk had been waiting for him to approach the counter. He quickly took a step forward, slightly blushing, and hoping no one was waiting behind him, which, to his dismay, there was. Scott gave and apologetic grin to both the customer and poor worker he had kept waiting and proceeded to pay for his books as quickly as possible.

Scott rushed out of the store with his bag and made a quick route to his car. He fiddled with his phone to look like he was texting someone, when really he just pushed the arrows around. It was sometimes easier than making awkward eye contact with strangers or clients. As he got to his car, he put his phone in his pocket and opened the door, throwing the bag in the passenger seat. He walked around his car to the driver’s side and opened the door while glancing up vaguely. He wasn’t really looking at anything in particular, but someone caught his eye. He had a double take and even a triple take. He narrowed his eyes a little bit while standing between his car and the door. There’s no way it can be him.

Scott thought he saw his childhood friend, Colton Fisher. Were his eyes playing tricks on him? Maybe his eyes were seeing what they wanted to see, but that just confused him even more. The last time him and Colt had seen each other was senior year of high school. They both went to the same private school and practically grew up together. But everything changed when there was a car crash. Another good friend of theirs, kind of the third musketeer of the group, had passed away due to injuries. They had been drinking that night and Colt happened to be driving the car that crashed and took their friend’s life. Nothing was the same after that. They both went to different colleges and led different lives, never really speaking of the incident or speaking to each other at all. Scott never blamed him solely, but he knew they were doing something dangerously wrong when they got into that car. Before that night, everything with Colt (or Fish as Scott liked to call him) was normal. They joked around, could tell all to each other and just generally had a picture perfect bromance.

Scott could always be himself around Colt. He never found anyone else that made him feel normal, until he was matched with Jane. It was hard for Scott to open up and make friends with his shyness, but when you know someone for most of your life, there wasn’t much to be shy about. They knew your faults and didn’t like you any less for them. The more Scott stared at the guy across the parking lot, the more he was convinced it was actually him. The guy finally turned around and it was confirmed. It was him. ”Colt!” It more slipped out as a reaction, and Scott had some second thoughts on whether it was him or not. Hopefully he didn’t just yell at a stranger.

January 2, 2011
2:37 p.m.

Having no plans for that afternoon, Colton decided to walk around and check out the town. He was still considered new and would admit to only knowing the way to his house, the grocery store, and the hospital. Kind of pathetic for a grown man, so he walked out his door and decided to turn left. He would let fate take him wherever it wanted to. Fate can play cruel tricks, though, and within minutes Colt was walking past Everbooks. His name was shouted somewhere to his left and, on instinct, Colt jolted around to face whoever called him. Surprise overcame him when he saw the face of someone he hadn't seen in about ten years. It was his old buddy Rain-man, or Scott as people probably now called him. Colt stared for a second, wondering if it was really him. After deciding it was he couldn't help but have a flashback of the nightmare that was his past.

He was taken back to a country road in Wisconsin. Three teenagers had just gotten in their car and were heading home after attending one of the most killer field parties of the entire year. One of those teenagers was Colton Fischer (Fish), and the other two were his best friends Scott Reynolds (Reyn-man) and Donny Stevens (Steve-o). The three of them had been inseparable since freshman year at Philmont College Prepatory school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Livin' On a Prayer was blaring and all three of them were singing at the top of their lungs. They were laughing and cracking jokes about one another. Speech slurred and reflexes slowed it was obvious that they had been drinking, and Colton was in no state to be driving. During the chorus he took his hands off the wheel and spun around to say something to Scott who was in the backseat. The words never came out, though, because in the next instant he felt a jolt and then only black surrounded him.

He woke up in the hospital two days later, surrounded by his other friends and family. The looks on their faces told him that something was horribly wrong. Within the next few minutes he had found out what happened. Their car crashed head on to a telephone pole then spun around and tumbled down a hill. Scott had already woken up, but Don died instantly. Remorse and guilt filled young Colt instantly and he became distant from everyone for awhile, especially Scott. They had talked a little bit for the first couple of days after, but conversations drifted into sentences, and sentences drifted into words until they eventually didn't speak at all.

Now Colton faced Scott as an adult, and his feelings were not what one would have expected. Instead of sorrow and guilt he actually felt happy. Colt had never found anyone who could come even close to taking Scott's place in his heart, and there were many days Colt longed to call Scott or just find out what was happening in his life. He walked over to where Scott was standing and quickly embraced him in a hug, for he didn't know what else to do. After releasing him he gingerly smiled. "Hey, Scott."

Scott felt weird calling him by his actual name and then hearing "Scott" come out of his mouth was just a foreign. Their whole lives it was nothing but Fish, Reyn-man and Steve-O. If it wasn't Reyn-man, it was Reynolds or just Reyn. First names just seemed out of their vocabulary. At a moment like this, though, calling him by his first name seemed to make sense. They were adults now, hadn't seen each other for ten years, and were, for all intents and purposes, strangers. He didn't know the old Fish anymore. It was as if their old persona's and lifelong friendship died right along with Steve-O.

Scott was in the back seat during the crash. He didn't get as much of the impact that the guys in the front did. It wasn't like he was uninjured, but he was the least injured of all of them. Waiting in that hospital for two days straight after finding out that Steve-O was gone forever was easily the worst experience of his life. When Fish finally woke up, Scott was sleeping in the waiting room for the first time since the accident. His parents didn't want to wake him because he needed the sleep, so he entered Fish's room after everyone had already welcomed and talked to him. Scott was never great with words, but this was Fish and he had almost died. Still, Scott couldn't find anything to say. Scott still blamed himself slightly for their friendship diminishing slowly into mere acquaintances. Although, most of the distance was from Fish himself.

Scott patted Colt's back as they embraced in a good man hug. "Hey, man, I thought that was you." Scott shoved his hands in his pockets as they pulled away. "How the hell are ya, Fish? How... Why are you in Evergreen?" He almost couldn't believe he was actually there. Strangely enough, he could talk to him like they were sixteen again. He wanted everything to be like that again. Scott could say anything to Fish back in the day. Fish didn't know shy Scott, unless of course they were at the mall trying to pick up chicks. Then Scott was always hanging back while Steve-O always seemed to steal the show. Colt had missed so much of Scott's life, and Scott had missed so much of Colt's life. He got the occasional update from his mom who heard through the grapevine of parents what Colt was up to, but Scott just usually nodded and went on with life. Maybe he should have listened to his mom. Maybe he should have given him a call earlier. "Last I heard you were... in Missouri?"

April 16, 2011
12:46 p.m.

Colt could not believe it. It had been just shy of decade since he last saw Reyn-man, or Scott. He had certainly gotten older, but then again they both had. Reyn no longer had that boyish softness to his face, and his voice had descended a good half-octave. They had outgrown their teenage fantasies of passing all the levels of Mario-Kart on the Nintendo sixty-four and marrying six foot twins at a double wedding in Las Vegas. It seemed as if all of that had disappeared within a matter of seconds, and that this meeting was a dream. He closed his eyes for a second, wondering if everything would disappear. When he opened them Scott was still standing in front of him. Good; he didn't want this to be some kind of mirage.

"I'm great, Scott. How about you? What have you been up to?" Colt felt awkward making small-talk with his childhood best friend. They used to be able to talk about anything at any given time. He supposed the years had mellowed them out, but this was Scott. Reyn-man. Reyn. Colt wanted everything to be exactly as it was nine years ago. Alas, though, that could not be. Colt was about to ask Scott was he was doing in Evergreen but he beat him to the punch. "I originally came because I'd been hired at Evergreen Memorial; orthopedic surgeon. Wow. Orthopedic surgeon. Nothing could have been further from his teenage dream of playing rugby professionally in Ireland. "Now it seems as if I've conformed to what everyone else seems to be doing in this town. I registered with The Vow., got my letter today."

He'd never thought about how much his life had changed in the last few weeks, and telling Scott about it made it seem even more unreal. New city, new job, new wife, and an old best friend? It didn't exactly fit, but Colt could get used to it. "How about you? What are you doing in Evergreen?" He smiled and nodded as he genuinely listened to his answer. Then Scott asked him about Missouri. "I was." He laughed a little bit as he realized just how out of touch they'd gotten. "I graduated from Mizzou about five years ago. Then I went east to Johns Hopkins for my doctorate. What about you, Reyn? Tell me about your schooling."

Scott remembered how he imagined the both of them as the men that they are now. He imagined they would still be best friends, the best of the best, their wives would be super models and also best friends. Maybe even twins. Then they'd be family. He figured he would have kids by now, always wanting to kind of be a young dad, but knowing that he would have to, like, actually talk to girls and have confidence for that. And that whole having sex thing, too. Sure, him and his friends talked a big game in high school, who didn't? But, it was all talk, nothing more. And now, the past was the past. He wouldn't have to be all talk now, not that he would even talk about his bedroom acts. He simply blushes and changes the subject.

Scott looked at Colt with a grin he couldn't wipe off of his face while he listened to Colt's story. Scott didn't even know where to begin, "Wow, Fish, Orthopedic surgeon, huh? Fancy shit." Honestly, he wasn't surprised. Colt was always a pretty determined guy, and smart to boot. Scott hit him on the side of his arm a little bit when he heard him say he got his letter from the Vow. "That's great! I will say, it may be the best thing you ever do." He held up his left hand, showing his ring. "Little past seven months and still going strong." Scott shoved his hands in his pockets again, feeling suddenly bashful as all hell. He could feel his heart flutter a little bit and felt ridiculous feeling this way in front of Colt. He hadn't seen the guy in ages, but being shy or bashful or anything but their usual guy selves around each other was just unheard of. Whenever they seemed to get together, all their insecurities vanished and they were all loud, funny, guys. But, when it came to Jane, Scott was just a puddle. "She's... so fantastic. I can't even begin to describe how amazing she is and how amazing everything is now that she's in my life. I really hope you get the same." Maybe they could still have that dream life of being best friends with wives that are best friends. Who knows.

Scott really couldn't deny that he was extremely happy. "Oh, I'm one of the local veterinarians here." In the beginning, he was one of few vets, but as the word of Vow got out and people moved to Evergreen, he wasn't so alone anymore. It was kind of nice being about to actually take an early day or a few days off without having to shut the whole clinic down. "After, uh... " He was going to say 'after the accident' but decided to dodge it a little late. "Um, I started at a private college close to home, hated it, needed to get away from all the... snootiness? Either way, I transferred down here to a University where no one knew me and it was much better. Then got a job here, joined Vow on a whim and viola. Here I am."

Scott nodded a little bit before glancing down. Why was it suddenly awkward? Well, Scott felt like every conversation he ever had with anyone was awkward because he was, well, awkward. He felt like he was back in that hospital room, alone with Colt after he had woken up and everyone else had left. He thought it would be easy to talk to him, like old times, but it really wasn't. His shy awkwardness was back. Colt may have been just another stranger on the street, a new neighbor, anyone besides his old childhood best friend. It was fine at first, but now, suddenly, that weird, distant feeling was back. Then it dawned on him, it was his fault. He brought up the accident. In a way. He didn't actually say it, but he was sure Colt caught it. Scott breathed in a little bit. Maybe he didn't catch it, maybe they could skim right over that. He cleared his throat, "How's the fam? How's Jamie?" Oddly, Scott had almost forgot about his gigantic crush on Colt's younger sister. Secretly, his vision for the future involved him marrying Jamie and him and Colt being brothers-in-law, but always went along with the twin supermodel plan while talking to Colt.

There had been so much that Colt had wanted to tell Scott over the years. He wished most of the time that he could just pick up the phone and things would magically be better between the two. Alas, though, time played cruel tricks and some things weren't meant to be messed with. Colt may have been wrong, though, thinking that his loss of Scott was one of them. He wasn't even sure what had caused the break between them in the first place, and it was a subject that had plagued him for many years. It must have been the death of Donny. Yet, they had been the best of friends before he came into their lives, so it couldn't be that. Was it the way Colt felt after the accident? He became overwhelmed by a sense of grief that could only be designed by guilt. Deciding that that was it, he continued to live his life, avoiding the only tie he had left to that night, and the nightmare it had caused: Scott.

He smiled as Scott complimented his profession, and ran a hand through the back of his hair. He loved his job, he really did. It's just that losing lives and seeing all of the pain and suffering became a bit, well, overwhelming and he needed a break every now and then. He wasn't, and would never become, one of those people who spent days on end sleeping at the hospital just to work more. It just wasn't him. Colt rubbed the side of his arm as he listened to Scott talk about The Vow. "That's awesome, Scott. I'm happy for you." He commented on Reyn's marriage with a smile on his face. Sure, the woman may not be the supermodel they dreamed of as immature teenager's, but if Scott loved her then she must be pretty damn great. "I hope I get the same outcome."

He thought about why he'd signed up for The Vow after he did it, which was typical of Colton. He had always been a "do first, think later" kind of guy, and that didn't always work out in his favor. The best reason he'd been able to come up with was maturity. He was getting older, and he thought in his soul that he was ready to marry. He wanted a wife, a companion that he could forever call his own. He wanted kids, a lot of them, that he could still run with and play with before he grew too much older. "All I know is that her name's Eve, and she's an actress." Colt wasn't sure how he felt about that. Ginny had always been the serious one in their relationship and he wasn't sure if this Eve person could fill that same role.

He laughed gingerly at Scott's profession. He couldn't say it was unexpected. Scott had always been so compassionate and giving as a teenager, that Colt was positive he would go into some field of medicine. Technically he was right! "Oh wow, Reyn-man. That's great." Animals. Somehow Colt thought about how amusing it would be to see Scott handling dogs and kittens, the vertically blessed friend of his was almost the exact opposite of what he would expect a vet to be. Colton nodded as Scott talked about his school experiences, and a brief explanation of how he ended up in Evergreen. It really was a serendipitous moment that brought them here today.

"The family's great. John is still a douche-wad, but his wife is pregnant again. Can you believe he's already expecting his fourth kid?" Colt loved talking about his family, as he grew up in a rather large one. Though he wasn't close to all of siblings personally, he knew was each one of them was up to. "Gabe's playing minor league down in Florida for awhile and drum-roll please... Jamie's moving to Evergreen!" He'd always been closest to Jamie, but Gabe came in a close second. He really was excited for her to move, and hoped that Gabe would make it eventually.