The Gathering 01.53 – The Gathering ReDux – Pt. 1

            The Planet, their
gathering place of old today was like any other day.  Except, today wasn’t like every other day, it
was a month after all ***** had broken loose. 
No one had been to the Planet in weeks, each of them picking up the
scattered remains of their lives.  No one
sure as how to approach each other.

            Alice sat at one of
the tables outside, quietly sipping her coffee; the repercussions of having
kissed Dana had yet to come to life.  Dana
refused to return her calls and Alice
had finally given up calling.  It was
hard for her to admit that she had any romantic feelings for a close friend
like Dana but she’d put little thought into what she’d done, until she’d done
it.  She’d sat in her apartment, sullen
and missing her best friend.  She’d had
the company of Tina, who’d run away from Bette after their debacle of a break
up.  Neither of the women were sure of
anything at the moment, much less comfortable talking about it.

            Shane‘s
duplicity had been found out and she’d been in a sort of hiding.  They hadn’t been able to find the woman for
weeks.  It worried Alice and the rest of
the girls to no ends.  They’d all taken
turns looking for her, and no to avail, it was scary.

            Tina had moved in with
Alice having found Bette with another woman. 
She refused to speak of it and refused speak of her it was as if they
had never had a relationship.  She’d been
working constantly at the Center, keeping herself busy.

            Bette had become a
recluse, and no one spoke with her, since she didn’t seem to want to speak to
them.  She knew she’d been the betrayer,
and had yet to be able to face any of them, much less Tina.  She had done one thing of good; she’d raised
the money for Kit to buy half of the Planet from
Francesca, though she’d yet to have raised the other
half.  Once they had the other half, Marina
and Kit would be full partners in the Planet.

            Dana
was on the east coast at a tennis tournament, they’d seen her on TV, and the
announcers were saying that they’d never seen Dana
hitting so hard, and playing so well. 
Possessed was a word that they used, and rather often.