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The sky was a dark grey, reflecting upon the grief that coated our limbs.
It drenched us like rain; engulfing us underneath the morbid sky. It was hard to explain, but I could feel it in the air. I would never know if it was the cemetery we stood in, or the cold air lapping around us, but I felt the grief in the air. It was an indescribable feeling.
My fingers clung to the material of my black dress, blinking back the tears that clouded my vision. It was the first time in weeks I'd allowed myself the liberty to cry, I didn't think I deserved it. Crying meant you weren't at fault. Crying meant you did not play a part in someones death.
But I had.
Until this very moment, his death hadn't felt real. Despite helping with the funeral preparations and delivering the eulogy in honour of Adam, it had felt like a dream.
Until this moment.
Until I had seen his casket being lowered into the ground, at the exact time the sky began crying; even it mourned his loss. He didn't deserve to die.
"You okay?" I looked up to my brother, and felt his hand find mine. He squeezed, hard. Theo was quite tall and always had a boyish look about him, but over the last few weeks his face had grown more hollow and his eyes appeared blank.
My voice wavered, "No," I choked on a sob and berated myself. "I don't think I've ever been this sad." It almost felt childish for a twenty-three year old, but it was all I could choke out. It was hard to muster out coherent words when your thoughts were scattered.
Theo released my hand and wrapped his arms around my shoulder, pulling my frame against him. "I know," he murmured. "Believe me Cal, I know."
We both glanced up as Adams mother fell to the ground and let out a gut-wrenching cry. The pain in her voice could be heard miles away but the raw despair that danced with it bought out a feeling I could not describe. The rain thundered and the cries of a grieving mother was lost in its music.
Adams father knelt beside his wife and I watched him crumble before me. I watched the family I'd considered my own break as Adam was buried.
"Rest in peace, buddy." Theo murmured and my heart quenched at his words. At the finality that seeped through them. And as he stepped back, with his arm still wrapped around me, I remained rooted in place. My gaze trained on the scene playing out; the sobs around me, my brother's reassuring voice in my ear and the steel, cold fact that he was gone.
That day, as I left the cemetery, I left a little part of myself with Adam. Buried six feet under.
Question: This is very far-fetched, but I'd love to know your theories on how you think Adam might have died. Perhaps, even his relationship with Callista?
