𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐖𝐀𝐈𝐓 𝐔𝐏 // 𝐑𝐎𝐁𝐈𝐍 𝐁𝐔𝐂𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐘

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓: 𝐅𝐔𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋

✲꘏ ꘏ ꘏ ꘏ ꘏ ꘏ ꘏✲

"We are gathered here today to celebrate the short life of Kristen Wilson, who died on July 4th, 1985," the pastor spoke.

Amber couldn't believe those words were real. She'd already been to two other funerals before this one—those funerals being her parents because they got flayed and died—and she definitely hated them.

She always hated the idea of being dead. Sometimes she would think of the idea, though. Mostly when she came face-to-face with the Demogorgon or when she got her powers from the Mind Flayer in the Upside Down. Most recently, though, was when Steve broke the news to her about Kristen being dead and that her parents were one of the 30 people who died.

Her younger sister had been declared missing when police showed up to the Wilson household and no one was there. They had asked every family friend, which was almost everyone in town.

Amber sat in the first pew of the church with Robin Buckley and Max Mayfield by her side. Max has been to Amber's parents funeral and Billy's. Now she was at Kristen's.
Ever since Amber came out to Kristen and revealed that she and Max were dating, Max felt that Kristen was sort of a bigger sister to her. But here she was, at yet another funeral.

It hasn't even been two weeks since everything happened.

No one in the Wilson family—and I mean no one—had their funeral planned out. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson had small, minor details planned out. But not the whole thing.

And, of course, only being 17, Kristen hadn't even thought of planning her funeral. She was only thinking about her summer job at Scoops Ahoy, graduating high school, and where to go to college.

But, here we are, at a funeral planned by Amber's 84 year old grandmother. She insisted it be at a church for all funerals, saying that this way they'd be "closer to God." Amber thought it was bullshit, but given that she's only 14, she had no say.

The casket was closed, like at the other funerals, due to her perishing in the fire. There was no body in the casket, which Amber honestly hated. She was hoping that this was all a dream and that'd she wake up and see Kristen in her room.

But it wasn't.

"Our first speaker will be Dorothy Wilson, Kristen's grandmother."

Dorothy went up to where the pastor was, lightly nodding her head at him. She was wearing the same black dress she wore at her daughter and son-in-law's funerals. She sniffled a little, wiping her nose and looked at the crowd.

"My little Kristen. She was my first grandchild, followed by Amber and then Callie. She was the best little girl. I would always ask her when she would get a boyfriend when I saw her. She'll never be able to continue the Wilson legacy. She'll never be able to get a husband and have kids," she paused, sniffling and letting a small sob escape.

Every time Dorothy mentioned a boyfriend or a husband, Robin closed her eyes a little bit. She wanted to stand up and tell everyone that Kristen wasn't 100% straight. Tell everyone that Kristen was with Robin. But she couldn't.

"Kristen worked at this small little ice cream shop at the mall that burned down. She barely made any money, but I guess she was just saving up to leave Hawkins. She deserves to be here today. My grandchild deserved to be here today. Amber's big sister deserves to be here today.
I will love her and miss her forever."

"Beautiful speech," the pastor complimented. "Our next speaker will be Robin Buckley, Kristen's best friend."

Robin stood up, passing Dorothy who was making her way to the pew that Amber was in. Robin was wearing this super uncomfortable black dress that her mother made her wear. The dress had pockets, and in the right pocket was the note Kristen wrote to Amber. She smiled lightly at the pastor, taking his spot.

"Um... Hi. I'm Robin Buckley," she started, her voice wavering a little. Not from sadness, well, a little from sadness. But mostly from nervousness. She didn't want to accidentally slip up and tell the people that they were dating.

"Kristen was my best friend. She has been since our freshman year. And now that I have to go through our senior year without her... it hurts. She cared more about me than she did herself. She always told me how she'd care for me no matter what. She told me... She told me that one day, we'd get out of Hawkins together. And I always believed her."

She put her hand in her right pocket, her fingers brushing against the folded up paper. She was thinking about grabbing it, reading from it. She decided against it, putting her hand back on the stand with her other hand.

"Kristen was my favorite person in the world. I cared about her more than I cared about myself. I was in the mall when it burned down. We were in the same space, but I didn't get to say goodbye. Like all of us. And, so, I guess this is my goodbye," she finished, some tears escaping her eyes.

She went back to sit next to Amber who was holding Max's hand. Down the row, she could see Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Erica, and Steve. Next to Steve was Dorothy. She had made sure she sat far away from Amber and Max.

"Again, beautiful speech," the pastor complimented again. "Our final speaker will be Amber Wilson, Kristen's younger sister."

Max squeezed Amber's hand reassuringly. Amber got up, wiping her sweaty hands on her dress. She wore a black one that went down to her knees.

She went up and smiled at the pastor, taking his place. She let out a shaky breath, looking at Max for comfort.

"I'm Amber Wilson. I'm only 14 years old and I've lost almost my whole family. I lost my mom, I lost my dad, I lost my big sister, and I lost my little sister. Only one of them can come home. I thought... I thought that by the time I got to high school, my sister would be there, too. But she isn't. Which sucks."

She looked at Max who gave her a reassuring smile.

"I was at the mall when it burned down. Like Robin, I didn't get to say goodbye. We were in different places, but we were in the mall. I just wanted to say goodbye. So, I guess this is my goodbye."

She bent her head down, closing her eyes, trying to not let tears escape.

"My sister, Kristen Wilson. We didn't have a good relationship a few years ago, but we grew closer over the summer. Kristen, if you can hear this from wherever you are, I'm sorry. For everything that happened between us. I love you. Goodbye."