Who is Lucas, Aaron from The Graduation of Jake Moon and what is their importance?

Lucas is Jake's friend in late elementary school. Aaron is a new arrival at school with whom Jake tries to make friends. Jake finds himself distanced from both Lucas and Aaron as the result of Skelly's illness and behavior; rather, he deliberately distances himself from Lucas as the result of his embarrassment at Skelly's behavior and he becomes distanced from Aaron by his betrayal of trust when Aaron spreads the word about Skelly's behavior after promising he wouldn't. Jake's difficulties with these relationships are, on one level, examples of how difficult it is for him to sustain the kind of "normal" life his mother wants him to sustain. On a more representational level, Jake's difficulties with his friends dramatize the difficulties experienced by many people struggling to sustain outside relationships while coping with difficult life situations or circumstances.