My Mystery Girl

Chapter 36

Niall’s Point of View

That was probably the most depressing funeral I’ve ever been to. Not just because it was the girl I loved and my best friend’s funeral.

We decided to have an open, shared casket. The only people who were allowed to go was me, my family, the rest of the lads and their families, Princess Echoe and her selected family and Liam’s family. Alyx didn’t have anyone to go.

This was a special funeral. We tried our best to keep things happy. The setting was where Liam and Alyx had their first date, right by where Liam died. The first thing that happened after everyone showed up was a big screen was brought out with a slideshow of all of the pictures that the lads, Echoe and I chose.

Everyone sitting out there, whether they knew Alyx or not, were crying. Crying because they both had to die. First Alyx and then Liam. Some cried for Liam and his loss, some cried for both of them. But no one was just crying for Alyx. Why did this have to upset me so much?

After the slideshow, a man talked about the both of them, one after the other. We all wrote a little something for the man to say. Alyx was first.

The speaker gathered up some papers and started to read them at random. “Although I didn’t know Alyx long, she made me happy. The minute I first met her, I smiled. Not my normal ‘I’m meeting a fan’ smile, but an actual smile. She has a way of showing people what they mean to her without saying or doing anything. She looks at you and she sees your faults but that doesn’t change how she feels about you. I’ll never forget her or how she made me feel.”

He left the names anonymous. But you can always tell who wrote what. They always cry a little bit harder, a little bit louder than everyone else. In this case, it’s Zayn who stands out. His head is down, head pillowed in his hands. I can hear his sobs and I can see him shaking.

“When Liam first introduced me to Alyx, I honestly didn’t know how to act. At first I was afraid that I wouldn’t like her or she wouldn’t like me. What if she was just another fan that would scream in my face? Well, she wasn’t like that at all. She was really quiet and shy at first, well, she always was quiet. But that was nice. We’re so used to screaming fans that it was nice to come home to a quiet Alyx sitting around our flat, waiting for us to watch something on the telly with her. She cooked for us a few times too. She could cook. I’m going to miss her to bits and I don’t know how I could ever forget her. She was beautiful and I could see it in the way that she looked at Liam that she was truly in love with him. She didn’t deserve to leave like that. I don’t think it was her time. A secret that she shared with me long ago was that she wanted to be a writer. I found her old work and I’m going to publish it for her. It’s the least I can do.” A few heads turn towards me but I just stare at them weirdly. I didn’t write that. Although it does sound like something I would say. No, now it’s Harry’s turn to sob loudly. He clasps his hand over his mouth quickly to try to keep quiet.

“Oh goodness where to start? Alyx may seem shy but really she’s just a laughing volcano waiting to explode. She laughs almost as much as my good friend Niall does. She’s actually a very cheeky girl. Before Liam moved in with Alyx, she called me a few times, times when Liam was already asleep of course. I remember one particular night when she was crying on the other end. I was close to tears myself. Just hearing her cry made me want to cry. No one has had that effect on me before. She was like a sister to me and I remember thinking to myself, ‘I have to protect her. She’s my little sister now and big brothers protect their younger sisters.’ I’m crying as I write this because now everyone knows that I have failed to protect my younger sister. I know that she has forgiven me though, that’s just the person she was. She would forgive you without a single blink of her eyes. I think I’ll miss her smile the most. She had such a lovely smile....Liam was a lucky man. Alyx will be greatly missed.” That only leaves Louis. That definitely sounds like something he would write. My heart quickens its pace as I realize that mine is next.