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Claire and Kevin call within five minutes of each other so Amelia and Linda are currently on the phone with their respective children, Amelia in the upstairs guest room, Linda pacing on the screen porch. Jody watches Linda’s head go in and out of frame of the kitchen window.
“Good thing Ben called earlier.”
Lisa is standing at the counter prodding at the picked-over cheese plate with a silver knife, trying to coax a last sliver of Brie from its rind. Jody is perched in one of the tall chairs on the opposite side of Lisa. The four women have been up for hours drinking champagne and talking, waiting for the digital clock to show them when the new year begins.
11:17 pm.
Jody feels an ache of long buried grief through the pleasant champagne-induced haze. Her wife’s son is a Princeton junior, Amelia’s daughter is on her first year of college now, too, and Ben is teaching English in Budapest. But Owen- Owen is in the ground.
Jody hasn’t told Lisa about her losses. Only Linda knows. Jody doesn’t want to dwell right now so she changes the subject.
“Yeah, good thing. Hey, Lisa, are there any more crackers?”
Lisa shakes the empty box in response, an apologetic look on her face.
“Oh, that’s fine, I’ll just open up the Wheat Thins.”
The clock reads 11:23 when Linda comes back inside, flushed and bright-eyed. Jody hurriedly finishes chewing, swallows.
“How’s Kevin doing?”
“He’s doing fine.”
Linda is happy, but brief. She can see how this is affecting Jody and Jody loves her all the more for it. Jody kisses Linda on the cheek as the shorter woman sits in the chair beside her and reaches into the proffered yellow box.
They wait about twenty more minutes before Amelia comes back downstairs, 11:48. The Wheat Thins have disappeared between the three of them and Linda has just popped open a third bottle of champagne. Amelia moves behind Lisa, wrapping her arms around her waist. Lisa spins around to give Amelia a full hug.
“Claire?”
“She’s great! 3.7 GPA this last semester, met someone, thinking about an Art major.”
Amelia speaks rapidly, glowing with pride.
“I’m so happy for her.”
Lisa leans down, beaming, and kisses Amelia on the mouth. When they finally break apart Jody offers Amelia another glass of champagne. Amelia accepts.
11:50.
They are all pleasantly tipsy now, the warmth of the alcohol blushing their cheeks and slurring their speech. Amelia thanks Jody and Linda once again for hosting this year. Lisa giggles as she animatedly tells them her New Year’s resolutions. Jody smiles indulgently. Linda showed Jody her list of resolutions earlier in the evening as they waited for their friends to arrive, but Jody has decided not to bother this year. She can’t really think of anything she wants to change.
11:55.
Lisa and Amelia are holding hands, using the counter for support. Linda places her chin on Jody’s shoulder and Jody rests her head on Linda’s. The last five minutes are mostly silent as each woman watches the numbers change, contemplating the coming year.