Like the first eighteen years of his life that he had spent in Shermer, the twenty-five years after that lived outside Illinois state lines had been both kind and relentless. There had been amazing highs like meeting his wife, having his first child and starting a successful business. There had been devastating losses like losing his family and nearly losing the rest of his life after he cozied up with a bottle of scotch for more weeks than he could count. John had lived up to the Bender name, only to overcome it all. Sure, he might have lost it there for awhile again, but he was doing a good job of climbing out of the darkness now. To say that things had been complicated would be an understatement, but as he looked around at the rest of the now infamous Breakfast Club, he knew that this wasn't isolated to only him.

If he looked at each of them as an individuals, he could see the struggles and the battles that had haunted them at sixteen and seventeen were still very much alive inside them today. In many ways, they were still bound by the definitions that had haunted them in their adolescence. They had tried to overcome the convenient labels that had been put on them in high school, but it was hard to shed a skin that had some truth to it. John wasn't any different than the other fours; he was and would always be known in Shermer as Bender and as The Criminal.

Take Brian for instance. He was still the same do-gooder that he had been in high school. From the perfect wife to the good job to the beautiful home in the city, he had done everything that was expected of him. He still worked hard, make the smart choices and did his best to never let anyone down. One look at his slick suit and shiny shoes didn't fool Bender for a minute. Brian was still very much The Brain that had agreed to write their compilation essay during that day in detention.

Andrew was still the Sporto that Bender had both openly despised and secretly admired when he was all of seventeen. He had the shiny life that guys dream about when they are kids, a career in sports and a beautiful wife to go with it. He'd made the money, had the perfect kids and become well known for doing something he had loved since he was a child. However, few people would ever see him as anything more than The Athlete that he had been during high school. Sure, there was more to him than that, but for the most part, Andrew Clark truly was every bit that stereotype.

The same thing could be said about his wife. Now known as Claire Clark, the resident Princess was living the charmed life anyone could have predicted for her at sixteen. She still had her nose in the air, though she would never admit to it. She wore designer labels, went on expensive spa retreats with her fellow housewife friends, adored being known as the coach's wife at faculty cocktail parties and reveled in the spotlight she shared with her superstar kids. She was still the same girl who was afraid to go against her friends but would fight openly for the people that she loved most. With her long red curls and sizable diamond ring, Claire was everything they would have expected her to be and probably a whole lot more.

Allison, on the other hand, seemed a little more complex. She did a better job than the others at suppressing her inner Basket Case, but Bender could still see it there hidden among her stacks of pretentious indie bands and stamped passport pages. Allison never stayed in any one place for too long because she was afraid of being found out. She didn't want anyone to see how some stupid relationship in high school had impacted the next three decades of her life. John didn't think that too many people probably picked up on that but it didn't escape him. She might be better at putting on a show for the rest of the world, but the girl that just needed to be accepted was still very much alive in her eyes. He just hoped that she knew that there were people out there who accepted her many years ago.

And he knew that he was no different. He had been a rebel in those days, and his past behavior dictated that would likely always be part of him. In varying degrees, he shared that with all the others. He would never want to lose The Criminal altogether because he figured that was when life got boring. He never wanted to be plain vanilla, even when he settled down and had a kid. When life happened and circumstances changed, that part of him didn't change.

Seeing them all now, lounging together on the floor like they had as kids, he saw the ghosts of teenagers past and the images of adult present. They came together, ebbing and flowing like the course of a river against a shore. It might slightly take a different path over the years, but it would still stay true to its core in the end. For better or worse, they would always be The Breakfast Club. They would always be a brain and an athlete and a basket case, a princess and a criminal.

"Alright, Johnson, spill it," Bender finally said, still rubbing little circles on Allison's ankle. She was relaxed, and it made him happy to see her at ease and comfortable for the first time all day. She was at peace with Andrew, just as he had made peace with his past with Claire. "What's this last trick?"

Brian grinned before going back for the bag that he had stashed on the table. He pulled out an manila envelope and came back to the group. He slid out five pieces of paper, handing one to each of his friends. The pages were copies of a handwritten note – the handwritten note – that he had written on March 24, 1984. His handwriting was barely legible, but Bender could make out every word. He still knew most of them by heart.

"But we think you're crazy to make us write an essay telling you who we think we are," Allison read aloud softly to herself, sitting up next to Bender as she read the note. "Brian, how did you get this?"

"I kept the original," he revealed. "Vernon gave it back to me on Monday afterward. He was pretty pissed off because I was the only one who did it."

"You see us as you want to see us," Claire recited, "In the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions."

"Did you guys know that this isn't how it originally started off?" Brian asked them. "I actually told him that we really thought that the definitions, the clinches, were right when the day started off. I think there was even a line about us being brainwashed."

"We weren't brainwashed," Bender disagreed. "We were just kids."

"Exactly," Andrew nodded. "I see my kids now and think about what it was like for me. I didn't want to be like my father. I hated my old man for awhile after high school. I never wanted them to look at me the way that I looked at him."

Claire opened her mouth to say something but it was Allison who chimed in first. "They don't hate you," she proclaimed. "I may not know your kids but I know that."

"She's right," Claire told her husband, looking at the letter and then up at him. "They admire you."

Andrew shared a smile with his wife, and Bender watched as Allison nodded her head resolutely. It was if to say, yeah, this is right, and she had made her peace with it. Bender felt something close to affection flutter in his heart as he watched her. Peace was a very good thing.

"Do you think my essay answered the question?" Brian asked.

Bender nodded his head. "Absolutely, you said it right there. We all have a little bit of those things in us. We all have a little star power like an athlete, a little bit of crazy like a basket case."

"We can all be a little bit of snobby princess when we want to be, even if we don't want to admit it," Allison added. "And I hope that we all have our brainy moments."

"And what about criminal?" Andy asked.

Claire smiled devilishly. "We all rebel under the right circumstances," she pointed out. "And I agree with John, this essay said exactly how we felt at that moment in time and during that part of our lives. You voiced something that we all thought but didn't quite know how to say. If I didn't say it then, I really do appreciate the fact that you wrote that essay for us."

"Yeah, man," Andrew agreed. "And for getting us together today. It was a good idea."

Allison nodded as she reached out and patted Brian's hand warmly. "Thank you for doing this."

"Seriously, what the others said," Bender echoed, bumping his fist against Brian's. He allowed his arm to fall around Allison as he pulled back. She smiled up at him sweetly, and John felt another kind of flutter in his stomach. She certainly was beautiful. "Hey, do you guys remember Carl?"

"Yeah, wasn't he Brian's dad or something?" Claire teased.

Brian rolled his eyes her direction, "Very funny."

"Man, he was creepy," Allison shuddered. "What happened to him?"

"He died a few years before Vernon," Andrew said. "He was part of the lodge with my dad. He got fired a few years after we got out of here because he stole from lockers. Vernon caught him going through some kid's stuff one afternoon. He ended up working at the grocery store until he retired. Kind of a sad story, but Pop said he cleaned up his act later in life."

"Sometimes it takes time to figure some stuff out," Allison said thoughtfully. She looked around the room before her eyes settled on John again. "So are we gonna keep in touch?"

"Yeah, we're gonna keep in touch," Bender promised, little sparks igniting in his eyes. He broke their gaze to look at Brian. "Right?"

"Sure," he agreed. "Of course."

Allison pulled out a notebook and handed out pieces of paper for everyone to write down their contact information. Once they had exchanged phone numbers and email addresses, the five of them looked at each other silently. "Well, we really should be going," Claire said finally. "It's almost time for dinner, and I am sure the boys want something other than your mom's burnt pot pie."

"Yeah, we better head out," Andy agreed. He stood up and stretched before reaching down to help Claire to her feet. The redhead gathered their things before coming back to the group. Allison, John and Brian stood up to say goodbye to the Clarks. Andy turned to Bender first, patting him on the shoulder nonchalantly like they should have been able to do from the very start. "Take care, man, we'll see you at the reunion?"

"I'll be there," he vowed before Andy turned to say goodbye to Brian. John looked at Claire and smiled genuinely. He leaned forward and hugged her lightly, brushing a chaste kiss on her flushed cheek. "You turned out pretty good, Claire Clark. Make sure to give your daughter that gift for me."

Claire patted her pocket and nodded. "I will," she promised. "I'll see you, okay?"

"Okay," he retorted, squeezing her hand before she traded places to say goodbye to Brian.

"Alright, you two, I'll see you tomorrow," Brian said, hugging them both quickly.

Allison hugged Claire tentatively, patting her back as she pulled away. "Hey, I never told you, but thanks for teaching me to put on eyeliner all those years ago."

"It looks like you're an expert," Claire grinned.

"And you," Allison drawled, hugging Andrew for a moment longer than he had hugged anyone else. She stepped a little closer to Andy and bent her head down to whisper in his ear. Claire was busy with Brian, so John knew that he was the only one close enough to hear. "Thank you for what you said earlier and what you said all those years ago. If nothing else, I appreciate those gifts."

Andrew blushed and nodded, hugging her one more time. "Thank you." A look of mutual understanding passed between them. "Alright, honey, we better get."

Claire and Andrew waved once more before making their way out of the library. After a few minutes, Brian glanced at his watch and shook his head. "I should probably head out soon too," he announced. The three remaining walked out together so that Brian could lock up the school after them. Allison and Bender each hugged the man and promised once again that they would see him at the official reunion. As he got into his car, he turned and looked back at them one last time. "You know, I really appreciate you both coming. I know it wasn't easy, and I wasn't sure that you would come. It really means a lot to the three of us that you made it. It wouldn't have been right without you."

John stood next to Allison waving until Brian's car turned the corner. "It's just you and me, Crazy," he declared as they wandered toward their cars. "You ready to hit that bar?"

"I'm right behind you," she laughed, opening the door of her rental SUV and tossing her bag in the passenger seat. She climbed into the seat but left the door open. John came over and stood beside it, leaning against the frame of the vehicle casually. "I'm really glad I got to see you, Bender."

He reached up and tugged on a strand of her hair. "The feeling is mutual, Reynolds."

"Do you really think we will all stay in touch?"

"For awhile at least," he answered truthfully. "Some more than others."

"And us?"

"I think we fall into the 'some more' category. I plan on keeping in touch with you so much that you'll get sick of talking to me," he taunted her. Allison giggled almost girlishly. "Seriously, Allison, I really hope that we don't lose contact. I think, for whatever reason, you were supposed to come back into my life right now."

"Me too. I hear Oklahoma has a pretty burgeoning music scene. Maybe I should take a trip to see it."

"And I could always head up to New York," he offered. "I've never been."

"That would be nice," she smiled shyly. "So I'll meet you over there?"

"Sounds like a plan," he told her before closing her door. Allison started her car and waved before heading down the street toward the appointed bar. Now alone, Bender walked back to his car slowly and kicked his boots along the dusty ground. As he fumbled with his keys, he took one last minute to look back at Shermer. All the memories of that day and now this one were locked in a part of his mind as the piece of high school he wanted to remember. He would finally be able to leave the rest of it here. There wasn't anything left for him in this town, not that there had been in a long time, but today had taught him that there was still a lot left out there in the world for him. He would carry these people with him for all the days of his life, hopefully getting to see them and know them like he wished he could have for all these years.

And when they finally headed to the reunion, the five of them finally provided that united front they should have had back twenty-seven years ago. While the rest of their graduating class might have still gravitated toward their old cliques, The Breakfast Club laughed the night away together at a table in the middle of the rooming, adding in Brian's wife as their sixth and honorary member. They danced and drank, talked and reminisced. They made plans and promises, and at the end of the night, John walked Allison to her car while holding her hand.

Fin.