"The feeling of warmth and shakiness and emptiness fluttering all at the same time. It was so... odd."
Grace Knightwood never liked to follow rules.
Especially when one of her best friends has just gone missing and the sheriff has forbidden her and...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Grace rested her head on the car window as her mother and father mumbled over the radio about how depressing the funeral had been. They'd taken a quick detour for gas and had ended up late to the reception. Delancey was slowly stroking Tabitha's head as the young girl pondered over what her elder sister had said earlier. Will wasn't alive. It couldn't be possible. He was six foot deep in the ground and Tabby was sure he couldn't crawl out of his grave.
When the car came to a halt, Grace was the first to rise from her seat and pull off her seatbelt. The reception was being held in the community centre, a place she had never really visited.
There was a thick tension that filled the air, only visible to the Knightwood's.
How could there not be? A 12 year old had just died.
Everytime she was closed her eyes she saw his body floating in the water. She knew he wasn't really dead but it still haunted her, mocked her, begged her to move on and still she couldn't.
Will Byers was alive and she couldn't give up on him.
She pushed through the doors of the community centre and waited as her mother asked for directions to the reception. Grace could tell Tabby was distressed and grasped onto her hand as she offered a smile at her sister. Her sister returned one but it was cut short but Rich grabbing his youngest child's hand and telling the older girls to follow him and Lizzy. The hallways made Grace feel claustrophobic the closer she got to the reception room. She could tell they were drawing closer and closer from the sound of chattering getting louder as her breathing started drawing shorter.
By the time they arrived into the room her father was greeted by a handshake from Lonnie, who immediately turned and went to hug Lizzy. Grace almost burst out laughing at her mother's response. The woman went immediately still and looked as if she would do anything to get away from the man's grasp. Rich let out a rather loud (and clearly fake) cough which snapped Lonnie away from her. Lizzy clasped onto her husband's arm who comfortingly placed his hand on top of hers. "I'm- We're really glad you could make it. Thank you for everything over the years. Will loved you all." Lonnie offered a sincere smile which Grace could see right though.
It was no secret that Lonnie had mercilessly bullied Will over the years for having a female best friend. Grace would never forgive the man for how horribly he treated Will AND Jon. How could he just walk out on Joyce? She was quite young but she could still remember how hurt Joyce was the first week he left. Her mother had spent the week constantly checking up on her and making sure she was eating properly and took Will and Jon in.
That week was like one massive summer sleepover, they stayed up late and talked about movies and music and Grace's dad had even let them eat ice cream for dinner on more than one occasion.
They weren't gonna tell Lizzy that though.
Coincidentally, that was the week Lance and Jonathan stopped talking as much. Maybe it was because they had spent so much time together and they got bored or annoyed but Grace always thought it was something else. Something that she couldn't put her finger on.
