When It's Time to Move On

Door 3 - Chapter 34 - Choosing to Live

"Noted. But you should consider replacing that plaque of yours, doesn't look professional to have a scratched-out one." He said standing at the door. The revulsion on her face at his comment was such that she might have just slammed the door on him. Harris bowed out.

The next day, he met up with Auden once more as they dived into older times.

"College feels so long ago, doesn't it?" Auden asked, swigging his drink.

"A really long time ago." Harris concurred slightly distantly, he could barely remember them. "Although you should be happy, you can drink now."

"Yeah, no more sneaking around to get it, what a relief." He threw back the bottle. "Didn't make any difference for you, what'd you call it... straight...?"

"Straight edge."

"Yeah, still think it's a boring way of life, though."

"I'm sure you do. Regardless, religion doesn't need to be fun, just needs faith."

"You always had faith in God. But in yourself, how's that going?"

"Always a work in progress," Harris said quietly, with a small wink.

"To works in progress," Auden raised a tankard, downing it quickly.

"You just need a reason to drink," Harris chuckled. "Still, have to say, it's been a while since I sat down and looked back fondly."

"As opposed to...?" Auden asked, when he got a non-committal shrug as a response he continued. "I always told you, bro, you need people. You could climb the top of the world and jump into the deepest of ravines, but if you don't have someone to share it with you'll always be looking back."

"I thought looking back was a good thing."

"It is when you have something to look forward to as well. It's sad when you know there's nothing ahead for you and you reflect back to see what you used to have." Auden spoke in the general sense but those words hit Harris home. Those days when he'd enjoyed being by himself had a new meaning now, and it didn't feel right.

"You are a wise man, after all." He quipped.

"Is he? I always thought his head went to a rambling mess every time he drank." Someone spoke from behind. He was one of the familiar faces, part of Harris's old friends' group to be exact.

"Yeah, yeah," Auden greeted them.

Harris scanned the faces of those present. Hank, the buff and wisecracking gym owner, Sylvia - his wife, and Laarni, Auden's fiancé.

"Look who it is," Hank immediately saw Harris, and before he knew it, he was captured in a bone-cracking hug. "Back among the living?"

"You could say that." Harris smiled toothily, his former habit of overcompensating.

Hank hadn't believed it back when he'd found out about Harris's cancer; it had taken him a while to comprehend it and had ceased his wisecracks, something that had made Harris feel even worse. Having to see people hide their true selves in his presence, and being treated with caution, was dehumanizing in its own way.

"He's on sabbatical," Auden informed them.

"Well, then, you're not going home tonight I'll guarantee you that." Hank laid a strong grip on Harris's shoulder.

Laarni and Sylvia ruffled his hair; they'd always been able to look past his introversion, and he'd always appreciated it.

"How have you been?" Laarni asked. A look of affection amidst those slanted eyes. Harris recalled her visit to him in the hospital. She'd been wracked with grief, calling his illness a tragic fault of nature.