One second passed, then two and finally five. That was when John turned in on himself, pulled his mouth from side to side, and looked to the side, panting, before walking into the kitchen.

To be honest, John hadn't expected this reunion. After all these years, no one would expect to see certain people again. Not by any stretch of the imagination. People grow apart over time, especially those who were away at school or college.

After opening the refrigerator, John held out a bottle to his old school friend, but Devon raised her hand in refusal and shook her head. She hadn't come to drink, just as she hadn't come so they could both have a cozy evening catching up on old times.

"Do you miss him?" John asked in a strained voice after opening a bottle of beer and leaning against the doorframe.

"Don't you?" Devon looked at the dark-haired man in amazement and disbelief at the same time, "You can't tell me that you don't?"

"Missing would be the wrong word. His death was a loss. He did a lot for us," more than that, and John knew that as well as Devon, "They left. Because of him. It was..."

"Eric is dead," the firebug was interrupted by Devon's harsh tone, "For years. So it doesn't matter anymore. Any loss is hard. And Fisk makes sure there's plenty of them."

What once was no longer mattered. A new era had begun, and it was not a good one.