In a diner not far from Adamsville High School, four friends sat at their usual table, strategically positioned to see and be seen, yet remain isolated should they prefer a private conversation. With their heads close together over the usual basket of fries and glasses of coke, they were an island of relative calm amidst students shooting straw papers, bouncing from table to table and speaking in voices that would make a drill sergeant proud.

Friends since early childhood, the four shared little mo...