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Roger had shown up early to the meeting place, and sat calmly on a bench, scrolling through his phone as his eyes flickered upwards every once in a while to check if his friends had arrived. They had all planned to meet at the train station at 2:00pm, and it was currently around 1:55pm, with nobody else but him. The group had been planning a fun trip for a while now, and Roger had actually gotten fairly excited for it.
He looked upwards once more as he heard a familiar voice approaching, apologizing profusely to anyone and anything they bumped into. Simon made his way through the bustling crowd, a hot chocolate steaming in his hand and a suitcase trailing behind him in the other. He smiled brightly as he caught sight of Roger, trying to wave with his cup in his hand but spilling a little on his wool sweater. He frowned, looking at the small stain now on his clothes, and sighing.
"Oh, am I late? Nobody else is here. Did I miss it?" Simon said, slightly out of breath and looking around nervously. His eyes finally rested on Roger, and he smiled once more, sliding into the seat next to him on the bench.
"You're on time. About 5 minutes until the time we agreed upon, actually." Roger responded, tapping his foot ever so slightly against the light grey concrete that made up the floor. Simon's shoulders fell a bit, and he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness, didn't want to hold anyone up. I think I saw Sam and Eric on my way over, they should be arriving soon."
As if on queue, the two twin heads were seen pushing through the crowd, chattering eagerly to one another like a pair of chipmunks. Sam was laughing at something Eric had said, and both of them had matching brown suitcases, rolling behind them as they walked, steps synchronized. When they arrived, they were smiling widely, as they always seemed to be, their eyes filled with eagerness and excitement.
"Hey Simon!"
"And Roger!"
They waved and plopped down into their own places on the bench, pulling their suitcases tight against their legs to prevent anyone who may be walking by from tripping. There was barely time for Simon to respond before a much louder voice was heard, and Piggy appeared soon after, his suitcase wildly swinging as he walked.
Roger checked his phone, and as usual, Piggy was perfectly on time. 2:00pm flashed on his screen, and Piggy joined them on the bench, pausing to shake Simon's hand and reluctantly give the twins a high-five. He missed the high-fives, and was promptly taught proper 'high-five etiquette'.
"Look at the elbow-"
"Not the hand." The twins instructed, and as Piggy finally succeeded, they erupted into a cheer. Around five minutes passed, and everybody perked up as they heard a discussion coming closer and closer.
"You're late too, so shut up."
"I was less late than you."
"No, you were not."
"I was the most late, I think I should get an award for that."
"No, you should not, Maurice."
Ralph, Jack, and Maurice approached, Jack and Ralph glaring at each other and Maurice happily walking between the two of them, as though he was immune to their bickering. They stopped arguing as they came to a halt in front of the group, greeting everyone with a smile and a wave.
"When's the train coming?" Maurice asked, popping a bubble he had formed with the horrifically strong scented bubblegum he was chewing. He brought out his phone, and read the time, which was now 2:05pm. He was slightly surprised they had all managed to actually be somewhat near the proper time of arrival.
"2:30, we're gonna be waiting here for a while." Jack piped in, and took the last available place on the bench, squeezing in tightly between Piggy and the arm rest. He gave the other boy a quick angry look, which Piggy gladly returned.
"I just felt rain." Ralph commented, looking around at the others.
"It's not raining."
"Yes, I just felt it." Ralph held his hands out, looking up at the sky as though he was asking for an answer. It was indeed cloudy, but the clouds were mixed within a bright blue sky.
"Ralph, there's no rain on the forecast for today." Simon, too, was holding his hands out, but didn't feel anything.
"When is the forecast ever right? How do they even decide what the forecast is? That's not reliable." Ralph hissed.
"Actually-"
"Shut up." Roger barely looked up, rolling his eyes so hard he felt as though they may retreat into his skull.
Everyone was silent for a few moments, a few of them swinging their feet as they sat on the bench or having short conversations that only lasted a few seconds. Simon sat, watching everybody as they focused on their own things, scrolling through their phones or fiddling with their hands, before he noticed four very frail, elderly people, standing to the side nearby. A small frown grew on his face, and he gently nudged Roger with his elbow.
Roger glanced up, looking over at the other boy curiously. Simon nodded his head toward the group of people, and Roger followed his gaze until he reached the senior citizens, who were looking quite wobbly and shaky where they stood. He sighed, looking at Simon once more, before turning toward the group.
"We should all stand up and let them sit down. They're weaker than us."
Simon was slightly taken aback by Roger's phrasing, but seemed appreciative that he said something. Everyone looked toward Roger, and Sam, Eric and Piggy were already on their feet before Jack begrudgingly joined them. They all moved away from the bench, standing around a nearby pole. Simon watched as the group of elderly people took their place, and thanked Roger, who shrugged and seemed more focused on something else.
"I felt rain again!" Ralph exclaimed, and pointed at his arm, where a singular drop of rain sat. Everyone looked over at him, and he crossed his arms.
"See? Rain."
"You faked it."
"How on earth would I fake-"
"I felt it too!" Simon said, and Ralph gestured wildly towards the smaller boy, happy that somebody supported him. Slowly, all of them began to feel the spitting of rain that the clouds had decided to deliver.
"Anyone have an umbrella?" Piggy asked, looking around as he searched his own suitcase. Roger wordlessly pulled one from out of nowhere and popped it open, and immediately everybody crowded around him, trying to get as close as possible. He narrowed his eyes, backing away from the group with his hand out.
"Go away, you all need your own umbrellas." He looked up at his own, and spun it, sending the raindrops that littered it flying through the air. The rain was getting heavier by the minute, and the sky had faded into a dark grey.
"I swear I brought my own umbrella! I just don't know where it went." Piggy explained, but to no avail.
"I don't have my own umbrella, move." Jack pushed past everyone and slipped underneath the umbrella, next to a slightly disappointed but accepting Roger. He smirked at the rest of them, enjoying the cover it provided. Maurice slid towards them, and the umbrella was quickly swung away as Maurice was hit in the nose by a raindrop.
"Jeez, I'm feeling kind of dizzy-" Simon stuttered in a very weak tone, wobbling miserably on his feet and frowning. He looked toward Jack and Roger, closing his eyes and twitching slightly.
"Okay, we all know you're faking, you're an awful liar and a horrible person for lying about that. Come on under the umbrella, we're proud." Jack invited, and Simon smiled widely, quickly skipping toward the two of them and slipping under the umbrella. They were squished together, but still at a comfortable distance.
"So what? I have to fake an asthma attack to get in?" Piggy asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, we'd just laugh at you for that." Jack said with a grin, and Roger nodded in agreement.
"If you let me under the umbrella, I'll let you have some of the snacks in my suitcase." Ralph offered, placing a hand on top of his suitcase like he was showing it on a television shopping network.
"What snacks?"
"I've got candy and those nasty beef jerky things you all like."
"Come on in, welcome to the club."
Ralph smiled and joined the ranks of those under the umbrella, sticking out his tongue at Maurice, Sam, Eric, and Piggy. Sam and Eric looked over at Maurice, who was now devising his own umbrella plan.
"If Ralph's allowed in, you have to let me in."
"Why's that, exactly? Do you also have snacks?"
"No, because then you're saying Ralph is better than me."
"He's right-" Sam began.
"It'll go to Ralph's head. You should let us under too-" Eric continued.
"Keep him humble."
Roger lifted the umbrella and shifted over, Simon and Jack following. Ralph stood still for a moment, then followed their lead.
"Traitors." He hissed at Sam and Eric, who simply shrugged and squeezed tightly into the umbrella group.
"I'm the only one here with a map of where we're going." Piggy pointed out, and was quickly squeezed within the umbrella too, although reluctantly.
The boys were now clustered together, allowing nobody to have any personal space, and the holder of the umbrella himself, Roger, could not be less pleased. He was squished directly in the middle, surrounded by people pushing to get closer as the rain aggressively pounded against the umbrella, spraying down around them. Everybody was already wet of course, the late-joiners much more so, which somehow made it even more uncomfortable.
"What time is it?"
"There is literally no way I would be able to grab my phone right now." Roger growled, trying his best to have personal space but to no avail.
"Wow-"
"This is like a group hug!" Sam and Eric said happily.
"Group hugs are for those who accomplish things, a way of celebrating. This group has literally never accomplished anything. Ever." Ralph responded, trying to get even closer to the center than he already was.
As the rain poured around them, as uncomfortable as it was, Roger couldn't help feeling a little bit happy to be surrounded by friends. It was nice, really, although it was wet and he felt like he was packed in a can of sardines. It was warm. Maybe stealing Piggy's umbrella wasn't that bad of an idea.