"So let me get this straight. You're in med school to become a heart surgeon, you're in med school to become a pediatrics doctor, and you're in school for nuclear fission along with Russian studies," Gerard said not so much in awe but in utter disbelief.

Though he did a good job of hiding said feelings, at least good enough that my old friends didn't pick up on it. They merely nodded their heads again at his statement, for he had said it twice so far since my friends had talked about what they did in college. I had tried warning him that my majors of Poli-Sci and Chemistry were nothing compared to my friends majors. But he hadn't listened, and now he knew.

We were all sitting in a giant booth with chairs stuck on the end to accommodate all of us. Because while the booths here were large, and the back booth the biggest yet, we still did have ten people all in all, as K.C. had joined us at the restaurant. Actually she had been waiting outside for us when we got there and she greeted us in her normal fashion, which was just like Frankie would have done. And to my utter amazement it was Bob who had puffed up all protective like when Mark had gone to make a comment about how Frankie and K.C. were acting over something before we had gone in. Maybe the giant lug loved the crazy, now two, people he was fatefully meant to watch over. Who knows.

"Do any of you have majors besides Jayden?" Steve asked.

There was a silence that spread over the table. Well not a total silence as Frankie was stuffed in the corner and was currently singing aimlessly while in his own world.

"Oh I'm Skippyjon Jones and I bounce all around. One to six times I land on my hea- What?" Frankie asked when he realized that no one else was making any sound.

K.C., the guys and I all tried to hide our laughter at Frankie's sudden halt to his singing. I thought I even caught sight of a half smile ghost across Cecile's face but it was gone in a flash.

"Well Gerard went to college for Art," Mikey said rather proudly.

"Well that's something I guess," Steve said trying to sound nice.

And not totally failing this time but still sounding strained.

"K.C.'s smart too!" Frankie said pleasantly from his corner where I had purposefully stuck him to keep him far away from Mark.

And as it was my three old friends, Mark leading them all, gave Frankie a skeptical look as they then quickly cast their eyes K.C.'s direction. K.C. happened to be currently wearing a paper napkin flower that Frankie had made her out of his first napkin of the night and happily not paying the animosity in the air any mind. And while it was suppose to be a flower intricately folded it was more or less a typical Frankie creation which meant it was just mashed and crashed into a shape somewhat resembling a flower. Though all of us saw it for the flower it was suppose to be, whether or not my old friends did was still to be seen. From their initial looks at it they more than likely didn't see it for the flower it really was.

"Really now? What are your majors, uh, K.C.?" Mark asked skeptically.

"Bio Engineering and Environmental studies," K.C. said without skipping a beat as she folded her paper napkin into a tiny oragami creature.

I could have sworn I heard my friends jaws hit the table top with a thud, and I could have cried I was so proud of my new friends right then and there.
-xXx-
"But you can't be serious Jayden! There's nothing here for you but a dead end lower class job that will more then likely lead you right to a dead end life," Mark said in utter disbelief and disgust as we were all outside after eating.

Over food I had explained to my old friends why I had done what I had done, why I had up and left them with nothing more than a sticky note of an explanation. I had told them why I had done it, what I had felt I had been lacking. I explained to them about my trip across the country, about my need to find myself and how I failed in every state before Jersey. I explained to them what I liked, no loved, about Jersey and her people. And after I had finished explaining everything, after I had given my side of the story, it seemed like I might as well have said nothing at all. They still didn't get it and looked as if they were never going to get it. Oh well, not a big loss as I was starting to figure out.

"I can and I am. I'm staying Mark, I'm staying in Jersey. It's the one place so far that's called out to me, that's felt like any type of home to me, the first place that's allowed me to find myself. Even if a little bit. I don't care what kind of life being here brings me because at least I know I'll be happy in it and I'll be with people who make me happy. Can't you see that?" I pleaded, wanting them to understand.

Mark made a sound of disgust. And I felt like crying.

"Look at what has become of you Jayden," Mark literally spat at me.

"Excuse me, can we just have a word over here for a minute?" a strange voice asked very politely from behind me.

Startled I watched as familiar body walked out from behind me and with one hand pointing off towards a direction a few feet away placed the other on Mark's shoulder and directed him. The body was familiar but the gesture and the voice seemed strange. And when it registered who it was I nearly jumped out of skin to try and stop him, to try and get between them.

"Hold on," a voice said as they placed hands on my shoulders to hold me still.

Gerard.

"But, but," I tried to fight back with words.

"Shh, just watch," Gerard whispered into my ear.

And watch I did. I watched as the person I had come to know and love so dearly transformed into another person all together. He seemed to stand straighter and gain three feet in height, he seemed calm and all knowing. He seemed very adult like. And it was so odd.

I watched as Mark followed this newly formed person over a few feet, as Cecile and Steve followed close behind. I watched as the newly transformed person then opened his mouth and looked like he gave a very stern talking to to my old friends. Wow, talk about being dressed down, I literally watched Mark's eyes expand as he shrunk in on himself.

"Do you remember once how you said you'd not only trust him with your camera but with your life?" Gerard whispered in my ear.

All I could do was nod my head as I was speechless as I watched the scene unfold in front of me.

"And do you remember how I agreed with you?" Gerard asked softly still.

Again all I could do was nod yes.

"Well this is why. He's not always so carefree and childlike, he's not always so scatterbrained and off in the clouds. Sometimes he comes back down to earth and scares the living bee-jesus out of anyone who happens to do wrong to those he loves. It's why we can have him in the band, from time to time he knows how to be responsible," Gerard explained in a soft voice, hands still heavy on my shoulders.

Though if he had lifted them I wouldn't have moved, I was too in shock. I watched as Frankie, no at this moment in time he was not Frankie he was straight up Frank, finished talking to my old friends. Frank seemed to wait for a response from my stunned friends and when they nodded dumbly at him he seemed to take that as the response he needed. That accomplished he turned around to face the rest of us. And almost as if it was a visible transformation, like with Transformer toys, I watched Frank turn back into Frankie. A giant goofy grin broke out across his face, he shrunk back down to his normal short height and a bounce was put back into his step as he walked back towards us. He was even miming dusting off his hands.

"All better now!" Frankie said cheerfully.

All I could do was stare dumbly at him.

"Do I have something on my face?" Frankie asked worriedly as he frantically went about wiping all around his face.

"No," I whispered softly, still in shock.

"Oh thank goodness," Frankie said with a sigh as he pat the top of my head and then walked back passed me to the back of the group.

At this point my old friends had come back to stand in front of all of us, only this time they looked different. They looked humbled, they looked, well they looked like they had been brought down a notch or two. Or seventeen as the case may be.

"Ah, um, so it seems we were a little out of line," Steve said softly.

"We're glad you're happy here," Cecile said very quickly.

"Sorry," Mark said sounding very unlike his earlier self.

I nodded my head curtly as I tried to hide the smile that was trying to force it's way out onto my face.

"I think it's best if we leave our worlds temporarily separated for the time being. At least until we can keep civil tongues in our heads," I said very diplomatically.

And with that my old friends nodded in agreement and ever so quickly turned on their heels and walked away, fading into the busy Jersey city. And it wasn't until I heard someone let out a loud "hoorah" that I remembered to start breathing again.

"You did it!" a very loud Mikey said joyfully as he wrapped his arms around me and picked me up, spinning me in a circle.

I smiled when he finally set me back down again and placed a quick kiss on my lips before letting me go.

"I told you they looked like they robbed a Gap, I've never seen so much neutral plaid in my entire life!" Frankie said with a look of horror on his face.

I laughed at him and then did the same to him that Mikey had done to me, though unlike me Frankie let out a loud squeal as I spun him in circles.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you," I repeated over and over again as I spun him.

Finally I slowed down and placed a very dizzy Frankie back on his feet to watch him wobble from side to side. I even managed to place a hard kiss to the side of his head.

"Whoa there's three of you," Frankie said dizzily.

I grinned at him and ruffled his always ruffled looking hair and he grinned lopsidedly back at me.

At this point everyone had crowded in around Frankie and I, almost like a group hug but without the actual hugging part. In it's place everyone put out a hand and rested it on me, almost like reconnecting.

"So we're not losing you to the world of stethoscopes and over priced beige three piece sets?" Bob asked.

"Nope, definitely not," I said.

And it was almost as if we all let out of a collective sigh that we hadn't known we all had been holding in the entire time. And then we just stood there in silence, letting it all kind of sink in.

"Who wants a pretzel?" Frankie asked all of a sudden, breaking the silence.

A collective loud shout of "me" went up from my gathered friends. And with that we all seemed to break apart and head towards the hot pretzel stand like a hundred feet away down the street. But I stayed for a moment and watched them walk down the street all laughing and pushing one another, wrapped in their Fall clothing. Poor Frankie's head barely showed above his scarf that was wrapped a zillion times around his neck and Bob's mittens gave him even more of a bear like appearance.

"So Jersey claims another victim," Gerard said from beside me.

Guess I had become so use to him always being beside me that I hadn't noticed immediately that he hadn't gone running after pretzels with the rest of them.

"It's looks that way," I replied as I watched my friends, my real friends, skip around in the cold Fall air.

And then I went to join them.
-xXx-
That night, long after I had gone back to work to finish the work day at the diner and long after I had convinced the gang to go home, I found myself crawling into my bed and reaching for my journal.

"I watched a friend grow three feet today. Guitarists and Transformer figurines have more in common than I previously thought. I tried to mesh two worlds together but gravity got in the way. Bob can be protective and Frankie stern. I've found more of myself in this tiny state than I had previously realized. Jersey is speaking to me, breathing stability into me, with every puff of cold Fall air, reassuring touch and nose spurting milk story. I am strong here in Jersey and no one can take that from me."

And with that I closed my journal and snuggled down into my blankets. I fell asleep feeling accomplished and like the richest person in the entire world.

Notes

I LOVE Frankie's transition!!!
It's one of my favorite pieces I've ever written.
There's just something about it. . .

Hope you all enjoyed!