Change is a odd thing. Sometimes, we hate it because it means the demise of the comfortable and familiar. In other instances, it is welcome because there is that beautiful, naïve hope that our lives are evolving for the better.

As I dangle my feet into the tepid water of the pool, laughter rings across the candle lit haven of Bette’s deck. I smile when I realize the source of the laugh is Dana and it is a deep, full bodied chuckle I haven’t heard in months. The more things change, the more they stay the same, I think. We have been through unwelcome change, which was Dana getting sick to come full circle back to a good change; her remission. I don’t choose to ponder too deeply, simply because then I would have to remember how close I came to losing her. I chose instead to enjoy the simply beauty of this exact moment; the gentle breeze that sends little ripples through the water, how I’m working up a healthy buzz with my third Corona, the noisy chaotic chatter, punctuated with giggles that is our tight knit group and most of all, the way Dana looks, her face illuminated by candlelight, the most at peace I’ve seen her since this whole ordeal began. This is what makes me happy, right now, at this very moment.

I’m aware that Shane’s left the group to join me by the pool. She sits down next to me, nudging me slightly with her elbow.

“Dana looks great,” she says, sipping her beer. “I mean, I know I just saw her last week, but she seems really good.”

“Yeah,” I nod. “She does look good.” I turn to her, abashed. “Hey, you guys don’t think I’ve been holding her hostage, right? It isn’t that she didn’t want to see you, she just needed some time, you know, to re-adjust. She almost died.”

“Al,” Shane replies, staring at me like I just said I wanted her to marry a man and move to the south. “No one thinks that. This was a big thing. Obviously, she’s going to need time.” Her gaze bores through me. “Everyone’s glad you’re there for her.”

There is a knowing lilt to her tone and I shift uneasily. “She asked me to stay with her for a little bit until she got back on her feet. I—”