Dinner Together

"I will miss everyone here," Jessica sobs as she gives Fiona and Christina a close embrace, grabbing them.

Jorge, Mark, and Jon exchanged knowing eye glances. They all understand the good wishes for each other and that this is all a part of life, happiness, and memories.

"Honey, it is okay; the memories we had here will always be with us no matter where we go," Jorge said, patting Jessica softly on the back in a reassuring manner.

"Alright, come on, let's eat the food that Jon specially made for us right now, or otherwise it will get cold in a moment," Christina said as she led the both of them to the kitchen table filled with plate after plate of unique cuisines sparkling with life.

"Wow! This looks amazing," Jessica said with praise as she sat down with everyone else, observing the sculpture made from the radish with amazement.

"I can't wait to dig into the food," Jorge said as he also took the utensils on the table and started to take the thin noodles into his plate and taste a bite.

Watching their happy expressions as they taste his creation made Jon feel satisfied. 'This must be the friendship thing that Death asked me to experience before,' Jon thought inside.

A window in the middle of the kitchen shines the evening light directly on the plates from the table, lighting the dishes with light.

Jon also takes a bite of his food and finds himself amazed at the professional degree his cooking has improved with the help of the system.

Throughout the dinner, he mostly listened and, at times, joined in their chit-chat; it was only small things like a strange thing that they saw that day or what happened at work.

But Jon enjoys these conversations and loses in them like everyone else sitting at the table. It is so simple and every day, but there is a special meaning in being with friends; it makes life different. And this is happiness. He is simply watching their smiles and hearing their cheerful waves of laughter.

"So where will you guys be moving to," Mark asked while eating a portion of food from his plate, looking at his buddy Jorge.

Jorge looked at Jessica before saying to the guests at the table, awaiting their answer, "We have decided to travel around the country."

"An extended honeymoon," Jessica added in.

"But Jessica and I had an exciting job opportunity presented to us, we were offered to work remotely while we travel, and our salary was raised higher than before," Jorge said to them, "Jessica and I had always wanted to live in the central area and travel around during a large part of the year."

"Congratulations, buddy," Mark added because he had known for a long time that this was the dream of his two friends. And he wants to support both of them in the direction they want to go, knowing that they won't be seeing each other as often anymore.

"Alright, you two, if you keep saying more, I will cry too," Fiona said, "just remember to send as many postcards wherever you go."

"And pictures too," Christina said, "we will put it all over the wall."

Everyone at the table, including Jon, smiled and laughed happily that night with everyone else, and he congratulated both of them.

"Next week, my brother will also move in with us," Fiona said to everyone at the dinner, "he finished his college graduation and lived with my mother, and my mother decided to push him over here to learn some independence."

"I can't wait to meet your brother; he must be an interesting person like you, Fiona," Christina said with curiosity in her eyes.

She doesn't mind having more people join them in this friendship. She would much prefer having more people together. It would be like one big family.

Hearing this also interested Jon; according to his memory, Fiona's brother is an IT prodigy with a high IQ but a low EQ. But he seems like an exciting friend to know, according to the memories that he has currently.

In the upcoming week, Jon would cook for everyone in the morning and dinner; he liked to share such a beautiful creation with everyone and see everyone happy like that.

Because he cooks so frequently for his friends, they have all become addicted to eating his food and his food only. Of course, Jon doesn't have anything else to do in his life, so he is primarily idle throughout the day.

He would play pool with Mark at the bar since Mark has a pretty free schedule because his radio show is at Midnight.

On the days that Christina didn't have a busy schedule, they would go to different places in the city to explore and take pictures. She freelances as a beauty consultant.

Last week they went to a popular park set up on the riverside of the city...

"So, how are you getting used to the life at the apartment?" Christina asked, walking next to him slowly while observing the different tree species gathered around the park's garden.

There are different kinds of trees around them; some species are from different countries like Japan, China, and other places.

They stopped together on the wooden branch that had a small river stream flowing through, just leaning against the bridge while being a part of the couples enjoying themselves on a fantastic day.

"I'm liking it more and more each day," Jon answered, putting his arm on the bridge and watching the river stream carrying pieces of green leaves.

"When I first moved into the apartment one year ago, I was also not familiar with the city," Christina told him, "but everyone there made me feel so involved in the city life and shared their life with me. It was the first time that I knew the importance of friendship."

"The importance of friendship?"

"It comes into your life, and before you know it...you can't live without it," she told him, "I love all of them; they make my life more meaningful and give me a place called home."