I aM tHe WaLrUs

[KERFUFFLE]

Well, I gotta head off. I'll talk to you tomorrow! <3

Asher's parents, on the other hand, had marveled at their quick glimpse of the big city. The biggest town they'd ever been to was barely big enough to be considered a town, really. Things had changed a lot since then, too. They were amazed by all the buildings. And the noise! They couldn't believe it. If this was where their son had to come to make it, they understood why he never could have stayed in Paradise Valley.

They also smiled when they entered the apartment. Here, so many things just screamed Asher to them. Bill wrapped a comforting arm around hhs wife as she tried to hold back the tears. Their son had really gotten a life together for him and Lucy.

They shook hands with Eric when they met. Bill did the talking for now. "I'm Bill, and this is my wife, Sarah. Good to meet you, Eric."

 

[Bunny_grl07]

The sun has gone to bed and so must... you? xD

Goodnight!

Eric said, "It's good to meet you too. I'm so sorry about your loss. I understand completely, because Lucy's first boyfriend, Richard, was my best friend."

"You're welcome to stay here as long as you like," Lucy said, changing the subject, trying her best to smile. "Asher and I did the best with what we had... we put up a lot of his paintings and drawings. I remember when I helped him move in, it was so much fun. And we celebrated the holidays together and everything..." She picked up the framed picture of her and Asher at the plaza the previous winter.

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Haha, I love that xD

Goood morning! <3

Sarah said, "Really, this is your home, and we're here because you brought us here for the.. the burial. We wouldn't want to overstay that. I'm sure there's a lot for you to deal with right now." That was still a few days, until the burial. And it would be good time to really get to know the girl their son loved so much. He would have wanted them to meet and to get along. It was amazing how everything they all appeared to be doing was purely as a last respect to him. Death changed things in ways unimaginable.

On the subject of Asher's paintings, Bill, observed some of them that had been put up. "He got better.. A lot better." He studied them and pictured the one in their living room. It was difficult to really imagine how he could have gotten better. But he had, so much so, his parents were almost shocked by it. "He always objected to them being put up where he could see them, though, didn't he? He would say, 'That looks very modest to guests when they walk in, doesn't it? Oh yes! Just look at my paintings! It doesn't look self centered and bigheaded in the least!'."

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Good morning! (Although, it's barely morning for you now xD )

The little girl who played gretl was the most adorable child I have met. She could be completely crazy one minute, then super sweet the next

Lucy said, "He wasn't too happy when I first proposed the idea. It really took a lot of convincing, because he just wasn't used to people observing his talents so openly. But I told him that locking away his paintings wouldn't do them any good. I asked him don't you love art? Isn't the point of it to make people feel, to make them see what you see? I remember the way he smiled at me when I said that, and it made me smile too. So, he let me hang up the paintings I really liked. He always put me first... I wish he had put himself first, sometimes. I always told him I wasn't worth it, I was somehow defective... I didn't deserve him. But he never believed it." She walked over to one of the paintings and stared up at it, smiling sadly. "I helped him with this one. I wasn't much help, really, but he never gave up on me."

 

[Bunny_grl07]

I'll be back in a bit. I gotta go to work =)

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Pretty much xD

Am I missing something..?

Bill and Sarah smiled at each other, just one that was between them like they were sharing a private joke or something. Only, it wasn't a joke at all. They both saw, in the way that Lucy talked about things, about feelings and people, exactly why Asher had loved her. Both of them seemed way beyond their years whenever they expressed something. They could never have seen Asher with a girl his age who really acted her age, he had been just too reserved and mature, they thought, for that.

They looked at the painting she was talking about and Sarah said, "You say you weren't much help. But, I'm sure if we could ask him, he'd say it was one of his favourites, wouldn't he?"

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Well, NOW it's afternoon, so GOOD AFTERNOON!

I was linking my So Long, Farewell reference to the girl who sings the last line xD

Lucy looked back at Sarah and smiled. "Anything I did seemed to be wonderful to him. He appreciated anything someone did for him, or even just around him. He made this apartment feel like home. It wasn't much when we moved in together, he told me he hadn't done much with the place yet. But we did what we could, and we had each other. That was the most important thing." She sat down on the couch. "We used to sit right here, late at night, and just talk. About our fears, our dreams... anything, really. Your son was so vibrant, good hearted, and loving. And I loved him, more than anything. I still do."

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Good afternoon =D

Ah, I see xD

Sarah and Bill smiled sadly at Lucy's words. It seemed as though, even as parents, they could never know or understand Asher the way Lucy did. The fact was, he could be just as shy around them as he could around total strangers. Lucy was the only person he'd ever truly opened up to in his whole life. And he would have been a different person now, they were sure, if he were still here to be stood in this room with him.

"Well, we don't know too much about him anymore. He was a different, happier man after he met you. But we do know he loved you more than he'd ever loved anyone, with any kind of love. And we can only thank you, for everything you did for him. Because we know the time he spent with you were the best days of his life," Bill said to her.

 

[Bunny_grl07]

I tend to make irrelevant references to things. xD It's in my nature?

Lucy's smile widened, although it didn't exactly show in her eyes. The rest of her face could put on a happy facade, but her eyes were the windows into her heart and soul. And she was obviously very grieved. "I have some things you might like to see. Wait here." She went into the room she and Asher had shared, and pulled out a box from under the bed. After removing the lid and carefully setting it aside, she pulled out a few of the letters that seemed to show off his personality the best. She didn't bring out the more romantic, intimate ones, because some of them were a bit inappropriate for the parents to see. There was a period, soon after he left, that her hormones were going crazy, and she had confessed how much she missed sleeping with him. For most people, it probably would have been an awkward subject, but they were very open with each other, and it felt right to talk about it. Sighing, she got up and took the letters she had chosen to Asher's parents. "Here. I think you'll see more of the man I love in these."

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Hey, why not? It's cool xD

Asher's parents shared the letters between them. The most obvious thing to first notice about them was the way they were decorated. No two were in any way similar, and as one read what he had written to his beloved, the mood of what he wrote was perfectly reflected in what he drew.

In his letters, he forever talked about things that had happened that reminded him of when he and Lucy had done this or that together, one someone in camp shared a habit of one of theirs that sometimes amused the other or drove them crazy.

And he never once forgot the little paragraph at the end, the one that always told her how much he missed her, how much he loved her, how he couldn't wait to see her again. He also wrote down the exact number of days left from the date when he'd written that specific letter until he could come home.

The parents' eyes filled, but they tried their best not to let the tears fall. "These are beautiful," Sarah whispered.

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Heck yeah it is!

You know what else is cool? Popsicles. They are really cool!

Lucy said, "And every time I sent him a letter, he demanded I spray it with this rose perfume I have. He said it made him feel closer to me, although it wasn't the same as actually being with me. But, I swear, every letter he sent to me was like a gift. I would wait by the postal boxes downstairs, just to see if there was a letter for me. In time, I realized the waiting downstairs thing annoyed the landlord, so I asked that my mail be delivered through the mail slot on my door. The first time I got a letter, I was so excited I ended up crying so hard I could barely read the letter. He would have laughed if he had seen me like that, crying with so much happiness."

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Popsicles. I love how you guys have that word. We call them Ice Lollys. It sucks!

And, my apologies for the random lunch break xD

Asher's parents swapped their piles of letters and read over what they said.

Sarah smiled at one of them and said, "It looks like he was the same." She read a part of his letter aloud:

"Lucy,

I finally got your first letter! They say it always takes the longest to get here, because they're still trying to work out where they can actually find who it was meant for. For the two weeks, I waited and waited each day for the mail truck to come and ask them, 'Any for a Mr. Scott?' and when they said no, I made them check every bag again, check inside the truck, in case it had fallen out. And now it's here, and suddenly, all my worries are forgotten for a while."

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Ice Lollys? xD I think it's adorable!

I figured you went to get lunch! All is well.

Lucy smiled, then said, "The guest room is through that door near the upper right corner of the living room. I hope I don't seem rude, but it's getting late, and... well, I really should get some sleep. If you're hungry or thirsty, help yourself to whatever is in the fridge. The bathroom is through the door that's in the upper left corner of the room." With that, she walked into her and Asher's room, shutting the door behind her. She sighed, the melancholy feeling creeping to the front of her mind. She wished Asher were there, to hold her, to smile at her and tell her he loved her. But he would never do it again. She slipped into bed, then reached out and touched the spot next to her, lonely beyond belief.

 

[KERFUFFLE]

No, it's not. I like popsicles better xD

"Of course. You go ahead and get some sleep," Bill said. With that, he picked up his and Sarah's suitcases and took them to the guest room. Changing and getting into the bed, they smiled sadly at each other, at what a wonderful girl Lucy was, how much they all missed Asher. It was a sad thought that here they were, in the apartment he'd spent ages looking for, for the first time, andhe would never be there to show them around or to ask their opinion on something about the placement of furniture.

They were tired, and managed to sleep eventually. Having dealt with the loss of one child, their hearts had hardened a little in trying to let go. They had cried, but soon, it really would have to stop.

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Lollies is a fun word. xD llllooooooooolllllllliiiiies. Plus, it has 'lol' in it.

Lucy slept, dreaming about Asher coming home, the happiest dream she'd had in a long time. But when the morning came, Lucy opened her eyes, and realized that it had only been in her mind. He wasn't there, and he wasn't coming back. She sighed, cuddling down into her covers, crying silently. She just wanted to get the burial over with. She wanted to see him one last time, then tell him goodbye. She hated thinking about the ceremony, how soon it was. Wiping her eyes, she got up and went to the kitchen, to make breakfast for everyone. It was the least she could do for Asher's parents.

Do you want to skip to the whole burial deal, or what? or when the body gets there.

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Fair enough xD Popsicles just sounds funnier to me

Yeah, lets skip to the burial.

Asher's parents had woken up and gotten dressed into smart, predominantly black, clothes. Sarah had a few things in her bag. She didn't know if she would get the chance to bury these things with her son, if she would be allowed, but the thought was there. Her and Bill appeared in the living room, waiting for everyone to be ready to go.

 

[Bunny_grl07]

Well, if you watch Family Guy... suddenly popsicles become creepy.

Be back in a little bit. Me and the kids will be taking mail to the mailbox (which is quite a walk)

Eric walked into the apartment dressed in a black suit with a black tie and a white dress shirt. His hair was still a little bit unkempt, as it normally was, but he made an effort to get it to look presentable. He didn't want to embarrass Asher's parents or Lucy. He nodded at Bill and Sarah, then gave each of them a hug, trying to be comforting.

Then, Lucy walked out of her room, dressed in a classy black dress that she hadn't worn in about three years. It had been her mourning dress for Richard. For some reason, she'd held onto it, unable to get the courage to throw it away. But now, she was making use of it again, and, terrible enough, she looked good in black. "Morning," she whispered, holding a small piece of paper in her hand. She wanted to speak at the burial, to say her last farewell to Asher. Maybe it would help her heal, she couldn't be sure. Over a month... over a month since he died. This seems so wrong to me, it feels like it was just yesterday...

 

[Bunny_grl07]

(I'm back. the kids decided to stay inside, so I ran to the mailbox and back.)

 

[KERFUFFLE]

Mkay I'm taking forever to post anyways. I'm going outside, reading a few chapters of my book, and then coming in to post, and repeating it all xD

Bill and Sarah had returned the hugs, having received them from Eric gratefully. When Lucy appeared, it must have been a lot like when Asher had returned to Lucy wearing his army uniform. She looked beautiful, he had looked handsome, and it seemed horrible in such circumstances.

So today was the day that they would really say their goodbyes to their son. The thought was difficult to cope with, but they were glad that they could at last pay their respects.

 

[Bunny_grl07]

xD Niiiiiice. I'm trying to get the kids to just relax, since they're going on a big trip.

Lucy said to them, "Thank you for... for letting me be there with both of you. I think it would have meant a lot to him, for us to be together, like a family. I'm so grateful that I have you in my life. I really feel like it'll help me to not be so sad as time goes on." She smiled weakly, then led them down to the car, her arm linked through Eric's. She looked up at him, her eyes full of gratitude; she really felt like she was going to fall over or faint from the insanity of it all.

Eric got in the driver's seat after opening the doors for the rest of the family. Once they were all in, he drove to the funeral home, so they could see Asher before the actual procession and burial began. With one hand, he gripped the steering wheel. With his other hand, he gripped one of Lucy's hands, trying to be reassuring.