“And visually creative,” adds Charlene.

“And hysterically funny,” Juliet adds as she, Allie, and Taylor return.

Allie gives Jeannie a hug as she sits next to her.

“Look, Alice’s cookies. What cute bags! So feminine,” Laurie says.

“And delicious,” Charlene adds.

“Hey, it’s cookie time.” Jeannie grins. Her smile is too bright and fizzles away as everyone returns to her seat. Rosie enters last and sits quietly.

Jeannie looks at Rosie’s tightly folded hands and slightly downcast eyes and melancholy expression. When Rosie looks up, Jeannie’s eyes dart away. She’s testing the waters. It’s fleeting, and foreign, but naked in the thickened air between them.

I relax into my chair as Jeannie stands, holding a Chinese takeout box decorated with hand-stenciled green and red hearts and trees. Ribbons are tied on the wire handles. It looks like a happy seasonal package.

I wonder if she’ll be able to pull this off. I wonder if she’ll be able to switch from pissed off and sad to cheerful, if she’ll reach down inside herself and grab optimism. Allie and I both know about the situation. And Rosie, of course. Maybe that’s why Allie sat next to her, as though her presence would be extra support. Allie looks up at her and grins. And winks.

“Okay. Well, I couldn’t figure out what kind of cookie to do this year. It seems a year where the future is all up for grabs and anything can happen.” Her eyes meet Charlene’s and then mine. “I mean, there’s so much big change going on for all of us. For the whole world, really.”

She looks at each of us and says, “Marnie’s going to be a grandmother, and now Laurie is leaving, and Alice is flying back and forth, and Taylor, well, the company closed its plant. Charlene, she’s recovering from a tragedy. And who knows, who ever knows what’s going to happen to any of us?” Her voice trembles a little.

I place my hand on my phone, but it remains quiet and still. I check my watch. It’s almost nine-thirty. Sky should have called by now.

“I thought about making the lemon drops I made last year that everyone liked, but decided to try this instead.”

Jeannie stops and meets my eyes, Charlene’s, Vera’s. “I love you guys.” She spreads her arms wide. “My girlfriends.”

My eyes moisten at her bravery, at how hard she tries in spite of the maelstrom.

“Like I said, I started thinking about the future, and you know how I’ve gotten into yoga. Before each class we chant, and I find myself thinking about the various phrases throughout the day. And I thought with everything that’s going on, we all needed positive fortunes.”

“Om,” teases Juliet, her palms pressed together, her gold chain catching glimmers from the flickering candles.

“You’re studying Sanskrit?” Laurie asks.