A New Generation: A ZoroMiku Story

23: Deep Grief

Miku

An hour later, after the group had gathered and said their final goodbyes to their friend, she died, surrounded by all of them while Jasper held her hand. Miku had seen death before, obviously, back when she'd been a pilot to Argentea, but she hadn't expected to witness such a painful death ever again after having been freed from the grasp of VIRM. 

But now one of her new close friends was dead, gone to the world forever...again. 

Miku buried her face in her hands and cried. Jasper and a few of the others were crying now too. 

It was only when Zorome put a gentle hand on her shoulder that she was able to pull herself out of her misery for a few seconds and collect her thoughts. She stood up, rubbed her eyes, then pulled him into an embrace, sobbing into his shoulder. To her relief, he held her there, gently wrapping his arms around her for a while. They stood like that until Jasper asked everyone to leave so that he could say his goodbyes to his now-dead partner once more alone. 

Miku felt numb with grief as she and Zorome walked through the paths of the housing facility until they arrived at their tiny house. She pushed the door open and practically stumbled into the room over to her bed. She heard footsteps as Zorome closed the door and followed her. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him hovering awkwardly by her, looking at her with concern and sorrow in his own purple gaze. 

"You okay?" He asked after a long moment.

"I...I just didn't think we'd lose one of our groupmates," Miku admitted, her voice shaking from how she'd been crying. "Not so soon. Bella...she was supposed to teach with us! We...we hadn't even done any of the practice sessions yet!"

Zorome sat beside her on the edge of her bed. "Yeah...I don't know what to say," He admitted with a long and shaky sigh. "I mean...damn...it's a lot to process. She was doin' just fine till yesterday, right? Shit, man, why did this have to happen?" Sorrow was seeping into the sandy-haired boy's voice.

"I don't know," Miku whispered. "But I wish it didn't..."

That night, the two of them fell asleep leaning against each other, keeping each other comfortable while they dealt with their grief. 

***

Bella's funeral was the next day. Well, the next evening, actually. Jasper had chosen to do it in the evening because Bella had been a huge fan of gazing at the sunset with him. He had come over to announce it to them with the help of a former squadmate of his who Miku and Zorome hadn't met, one who lived closer to the edge of the houses near the beach, apparently, and had arranged for her to be buried there. 

Everyone was dressed in the attire that parasites had once worn for formal events. It still appeared to be a tradition to them. This included Bella's corpse, which was also adorned with flowers and pearls.

Miku had hugged many of her new friends and cried with them. Everyone from their teacher's group was present. However, Miku noticed that Hyaku was keeping his distance, as well as keeping to himself toward the back of the group during that funeral. She guessed that was just how the silver-haired boy grieved.

Miku stood by Zorome's side when the burial came around, watching as Jasper gently set his deceased partner into her grave forever. 

Zorome 

The next meeting took place at the usual time and place, though nobody appeared to have fully gotten over their grief for their former groupmate. That included Zorome, who had also been worrying for Miku ever since her death a couple of days ago. The red-headed girl had been awfully quiet, barely even eating the food she cooked for them. She'd gone out to the bathing facility once but that was it, which was unlike her, seeing as she loved her daily baths.  

Jasper came to the meeting, though he didn't seem to be paying attention to the others, who were simply finalizing the plans for the building before sending it off to the people who were in charge of...well, building places. Zorome wasn't sure if he could help him and he felt a pang in his chest every time he noticed Jasper's mournful expression. He didn't want to know what he'd do or how he'd feel if he lost Miku. He remembered how Jasper had sobbed beside Bella's bed, nearly refusing to believe she was gone. 

They decided that Sevy and Bani could be the ones to bring the blueprints to someone that week. After that, they'd have to wait until they got told that the building could begin being built, though it would have to be looked and checked over by someone who knew more about architecture and how the hell that worked because none of them sure did. Despite the fact they'd still made a decision, the atmosphere was full of grief and sorrow, as nobody was done grieving for the loss of their shy friend who had been one of the top contributors to their cause. 

As the meeting came to a close, Zorome noticed that Jasper was the only one who wasn't leaving and turned to Miku. "He isn't looking too hot. Maybe we should tell him he can take a break if he wants to."

Miku nodded. "I don't blame him. He probably should rest. Let's tell him."

The two of them walked over to Jasper just as he got to his feet. "What is it?" He asked as they approached. There was a distant look of sadness in his gaze. 

"Hey, dude," Zorome said to him. "You can take a break if you want, honestly. From these stupid meetings."

Miku cleared his throat as he said the word "stupid" and spoke up. "What he means is, we understand if you'd like some time to yourself. It must be hard to lose a partner."

Jasper looked at them. "Oh, it is," He told them bitterly. "I...I can't believe Bella is gone forever. Damnit, we had so many plans for the future!" Tears glistened in his eyes. "But I won't take a break. Being here helps me. Besides, Bella wanted nothing more than to see the new teachers thrive. I'll make sure she can see that from wherever she may be right now. I want her to see that I'm helping, that I will make her dream a reality with you guys."

Miku's eyes were also beginning to water. "Yes, you're right! We'll never forget Bella. I promise that I'll work hard in her honour too!" 

Aw, crap, now I'm gonna cry! Zorome thought, feeling as though his heart was about to melt.