A Somber Service

The clock struck noon as Harvey and Bridget drove through the entrance to Sunset Oaks Cemetery. Having been to Cassandra's grave numerous times, Bridget directed him where to go in the maze of one-lane roads. As they pulled off to the grassy side, she saw a decent-sized gathering off in the distance.

"There are more people than I expected for the service," the blonde admitted. "I figured with the charity ball in her honor tomorrow night, this would be strictly close friends and family."

"Perhaps some of these people can't make it tomorrow night. Or the weather helped," Harvey commented, the cold, crisp air hitting him as he opened the car door. While cold out, the next round of moisture in the air wasn't expected until tomorrow. "It would've been more depressing if it was icy today."

"Yes, it would've," Bridget agreed.

Crossing the single lane, they made their way toward a small path between the headstones. Bridget scanned to see who had all shown up. She recognized parents of Cassie's friends, their children, and even a small group of young adults that she assumed were former students of her old friend.

Near the front, she saw Cassie's mother hugging Peyton, then pulling back to appraise the young woman. Bridget smiled at Mrs. Bank's happy face. She's always loved Peyton. It's good to see happiness before the tears start a little later.

"Harvey," greeted a middle-aged man with a handshake. Bridget couldn't quite place him, but the black-haired man looked somewhat familiar. Leaving them behind as they chatted, Bridget saw an older couple looking nervously at their watches.

"Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Day," she greeted her parents' next-door neighbors, who also happened to be her other best friend's parents.

"Bridget!" Mrs. Day cheerfully greeted her with a hug. "How is Sean?"

"He's okay. Acting a little out of character at the moment due to his pain medicine. I left him at Harvey's. He shouldn't be on his injured foot, and I wanted to avoid any incidents with the stuff he's spewing."

"Harvey's, you say? Hmmm..." Mrs. Day let her comment remain unspoken.

"I take it you've seen or heard about my scandal?" Bridget inquired.

"Oh, my goodness. How are you handling it? Peyton seemed annoyed, but that Lana...I never expected one like her to pop out of Rachel," Mrs. Day remarked, shaking her head as she recalled the comment the mouthy redhead made.

"I'm fine. I haven't had a chance to speak to Peyton about it, but Sean knew it wasn't true. I hope most people feel the same as him," Bridget explained.

"Oh, your parents are going to be crushed, dear."

"Virginia, now don't go there," Mr. Day warned his wife, glancing at his watch again and out toward the maze of roads.

"Your parents always hoped for Harvey as a son. Goodness, I think they would've been thrilled with either Diamond boy, to be honest. Although, we always expected little Graham to have a better shot with you. Now, those hopes will be raised again and dashed," Virginia Day recalled.

"Yeah, I'm sure they're thrilled at this moment. They're visiting Beverly," Bridget said.

"Oh, dear. Your sister can't be taking this story very well. Beverly was always a little...fussy. At least Brandy is having a ball with it," Mrs. Day remarked, gesturing to where Brandy and Fawn Graff laughed amongst a small group around their age.

"Yes, Brandy's going to love teasing me about this for the next decade or so. She's almost as bad as Tinny," Bridget said, rolling her eyes. "Crap, I better call Tinny before she finds out. At least, it's so early in Hawaii that she likely doesn't know."

"Oh, dear, oh, my."

"She knows, doesn't she?" Bridget asked, sighing.

"Yes, Tinsley already knows. In fact, she wanted me to pass on a message."

"Virginia, don't even think about repeating what your daughter said," Mr. Day warned his wife.

"You ever notice that Theo likes to call her my daughter when he's mad at Tinsley?"

"I noticed that when I was about five," Bridget replied with a chuckle.

"I would prefer not to repeat her words. That girl has always had a wicked mouth on--"

"Then, don't repeat it. Let her tell Bridget herself."

"Dear, you know how your little girl gets. If I don't, she'll get some form of **** on me," Mrs. Day reminded her husband. Grumbling, he took a few steps away before she carried on. "Tinsley wanted me to tell you that she always knew you were the bigger slut and that she wants details."

"That sounds like Tinny," Bridget responded, rolling her eyes at her oldest friend never changing.

"I don't know where we went wrong with that girl," Mr. Day continued to grumble. "Teddy didn't turn out like that; he's polite and responsible."

"How is Teddy?" Bridget inquired over Tinsley's younger brother.

"Late, that's what he is," Mr. Day said, glancing at his watch again.

"Yes, Teddy is running late. We expected him and his family to be here by now," Mrs. Day revealed. "Their flight should've arrived in plenty of time."

"I didn't know his whole family was coming too. That's wonderful; I haven't seen his children in a few years," Bridget recalled. "I bet they're getting big."

"Yes, they are growing like weeds. They certainly don't take after Teddy's side," she said in reference to Tinsley and Teddy's short stature. "We're concerned since Tinsley sent a speech she wanted read, and we don't have it."

"That damn boy probably got lost," Mr. Day remarked, his grumbling turning into fuming.

"Teddy wouldn't get lost in Honey Hollow. I'm sure they'll be here soon," Bridget said, noticing Rachel motioning to her. "I better see what else is happening."

Leaving the Days, Bridget met Rachel and Clive, who were walking over toward her with Gabriela right behind. Harvey appeared out of nowhere at Bridget's side too.

"About time, you two got here. Having a quickie in the backseat of his jeep?"

"Gabby!" Rachel hissed over her shoulder. "We don't even know if--"

"We know," Bridget revealed.

"That's a relief! We didn't know how to break it to you," Rachel admitted. "Are you alright?"

"Annoyed and a little pissed off, but we understand there are more important things than bullshit gossip," Bridget stated, motioning to the cemetery.

"I'm pretty much used to this stuff," Harvey admitted with a shrug.

"I bet you are," Gabby teased.

"How are Sean and Whitney?" Rachel asked, ignoring her BFF's comment.

"Sean's been discharged from the hospital. We left him at Harvey's for now," Bridget explained. "Whitney's still there. Her body temperature has risen to safer levels, and her oxygen levels are strong. Still, I'd fully expect her to be held over another night for observation."

"Can we see her?" Lacey asked, popping up out of nowhere, startling the adults. Ramsey and JoJo stood at each of her sides.

"I know you girls are concerned, but Whitney needs her rest. The doctors have stressed that. Her uncle is with her, but her mother will be arriving this afternoon," Harvey explained, letting their hopes down gently. "So she'll have plenty of company already."

"Her mom's coming?!" Lacey exclaimed, looking at Ramsey. Both girls showed distress at the news.

"That means she needs us even more, Mr. Diamond. We have to be there!" Ramsey pleaded.

"Girls, Willow is her mother. She has every right to visit." Harvey paused as he saw their worried faces. "I know why you're concerned, but trust me, I'll be there as well. You'll be able to see Whitney once she's discharged."

"This is not good; not good at all," Lacey remarked, shaking her head. "Can we at least call her?"

"How about I have her call you this evening, okay?"

"Okay," the two redheads replied in disappointment before walking away. JoJo lingered, wanting to know more about Sean.

"You'll get to see him once we get back to the cabin. I know he'll be happy to see you," Bridget informed her.

"JoJo," Rachel prodded before the brunette could walk away.

"Oh, yeah. Can I talk to you after the service?"

"Sure, you can always talk to me." Bridget turned to Rachel as JoJo walked off, but the older redhead motioned for her to wait for the teen to explain.

"We have another problem," Clive announced after waiting for the teens to leave. "Fred either had a mental breakdown or was just drunker than usual and nearly killed himself last night."

"What?!" Harvey shouted.

"We found him out on Wasp Lake, attempting to chop a hole through the ice. Fortunately, for him, he did a poor job in his condition," Clive recounted.

"Why the hell would he do that?"

"From what Newt could understand--he and Austin discovered Fred first--Fred kept on saying that the ice needed a life to replace Whitney escaping from it. This did happen after midnight, so we assume the anniversary of Cassie's **** played a significant role," Clive continued.

"Shit, where is Fred now?" Harvey asked, scanning the cemetery for him.

"We don't know," Rachel revealed. "Finn woke up this morning, and both Fred and his car were gone."

"Fuck! Why didn't anyone call me?"

"You have enough to worry about with Whitney," Rachel replied.

"Fred's one of my oldest friends. He needs me," Harvey responded. "Fucking shit, I should've never punched him yesterday for what he did to Skye."

"You punched him?"

"Look, I'm going to need to find him. Someone needs to be there for him," Harvey declared, growing increasingly agitated.

"And someone will be here for him. Kimberly called Larry. He should be here soon," Rachel explained.

"She called Larry?" Bridget asked in disbelief.

"Yes, let Larry help find Fred and deal with him. Harvey, you need to be there for Whitney," Clive said.

"Yeah, alright, Larry's always been better than me at keeping Fred in line anyway. But I want to help however I can," Harvey insisted. "Damn, how's Finn handling this?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Rachel admitted, fighting off tears. "Peyton and Lana might have a better idea, but I think he's barely holding it together. Today was going to be hard enough without his father's antics."

"Oh, Sandy is here, I see," Bridget noted as the other four adults turned to watch as Finn hugged a middle-aged man. Sandy was Sander Bank, Cassandra's younger brother. The story in the Bank family goes that Mrs. Bank wanted the nickname Sandy for her daughter, but the toddler would only answer to Cassie. So, when the next child came, he was named Sander to fulfill Mrs. Bank's desire for a Sandy.

"I don't think I've seen him since we were last here for this five years ago," Harvey recalled. "Are those his girls?"

"They are, and they look like mini-versions of Cassie more and more," Bridget stated about the two auburn-haired teenagers.

"And they're so pretty," Rachel commented. "It's a shame they live on the other side of the country. Having his uncle and cousins around more would've helped Finn."

"I better say hello before we start," Bridget told the others. However, when she made it about halfway to the Bank family, Peyton met her. After a brief hug, Bridget filled her daughter in on Sean's condition.

"He's really saying stuff like that? Wow, that's so not Sean," Peyton remarked with a small grin. "I know this sounds bad, but I totally need to see this."

"It gets old in a hurry. Although Harvey seems to find it more and more amusing."

"Is Dad coming, or did you bring my real father?" Peyton asked, exaggerating her search of the cemetery for her father.

"So both my kids find this to be hilarious. I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment or a sign that my parenting failed."

"If you think that comment was funny, then wait until you hear Lana's thoughts on the matter," Peyton informed, jerking her thumb over her shoulder.

"I'll have to ready my arsenal of comebacks." Seeing Peyton's confusion, Bridget added, "Honey, Rachel's kept me informed for years about Lana's antics. I know stuff you couldn't imagine. Keep that in mind the next time you cross me."

"Gee, I don't know, Mom. You sound a little defensive. Maybe I should do one of those mail-in DNA tests," Peyton teased. "Aunt Brandy already offered to pick one up."

"Please, put it to rest. I hope your grandparents will just let it drop, but your aunt might be an issue."

"Oh, Aunt Beverly is probably bitching at Grandma right now. Brandy's been practically giddy thinking over all the ways that Aunt Bev has freaked out over the news. She already spent all Christmas harping over us staying at the cabin. If it was any other reason than Aunt Cassie, I bet she would've ordered you not to go."

"Believe me; I know how bossy my sister can get. Now, I want to say hi to Finn and his family before they start," Bridget said.

"Too late, Mom. I came over because Mrs. Bank said they were starting," Peyton disclosed. "And there she goes."

Conversations died out as the older woman stepped over to the headstone, surrounded by flowers. The happy face that Bridget saw before on the face of Cassie's mother had vanished. Instead, a look of weariness replaced it.

"I want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for coming here today. You can not imagine what this means to my family. It's a bittersweet feeling to mourn my daughter while seeing the many people she left a positive impact on. It cheers me to see her formers students who will never forget their first-grade teacher, but it saddens me to think of all the little boys and girls that never had an opportunity to be taught by her." Mrs. Bank paused a moment to wipe away tears.

"I promised myself that I wouldn't cry today. I've spent enough days doing that. But maybe for one last day, I'll allow myself to. For starting tomorrow, I want to stop focusing on Cassandra's memory and start focusing on her legacy. In case any of you aren't aware, Cassie's friends have done an amazing act for their friend. They've started a literary charity that will spread my little girl's love of reading to the next generation. The charity will initially promote reading by providing books and events for grade school children. Our hope is that in the future, we can expand the program to the next school level." Pausing longer to wipe more tears, Mrs. Bank held up her hand to keep her son back.

"I can feel my control slipping, and several others want to speak, so I'll keep this short. Rachel Stratton, I can never thank you enough for not only this idea for the charity but even more for stepping in and being the mother figure that Finn needed. Cassie couldn't have picked a better person for the job if she had needed to," Mrs. Bank said. The grieving mother went on to thank multiple friends and former students of her daughter. "And I've saved the best for last. Bridget and Tinsley, you two little troublemakers, often drove me nuts. Your adventures, exploits, or whatever you want to call them, would've caused many other parents to forbid their child from being friends with you. But I never, ever for once thought you would lead Cassie astray. You were the very best friends a girl could hope for, and I knew Cassie saw you as more. I will never forget the time Cassie was asked if she regretted having a brother and not a sister. My daughter, only thirteen at the time, corrected the person. Cassie informed them that she had not one sister but two. I know she still believed that up until the day of her accident. Thank you both."

Tears flowed around the cemetery as Mr. Bank helped his distraught wife away from their daughter's grave. Bridget could feel Peyton tense up beside her. She immediately realized why as Finn stepped forward to take his grandmother's place. Gulping in a deep breath of air, it was clear to most that he mouthed, "You can do this" to himself. Clenching his fists, Finn began his speech.