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Part 48: Bereaved

I sat and thought for a few minutes before getting up to go check on Wally. He had been sobbing before falling asleep, so I was worried about him.

I opened the door and quietly walked into the room. Wally was still asleep.

I sighed softly and sat criss-crossed near the edge of the bed, discombobulated. What did I need to do? I wasn't used to comforting those who wept, but I needed to learn quickly.

(Wally opened his eyes slightly. He had only gotten a little bit of sleep, but at least he felt a little better.

He saw you sitting by the edge of the bed. Oh, had he caused you to worry again? Wally felt sad. Why was he always causing others to be upset?)

I turned around. Wally was awake! I quickly wrapped my arms around him and hugged him.

"How are you feeling, dear?" I sighed gently. I was relieved he seemed to be doing a little better, at least!

"...." Wally was silent. He looked at me. He was thinking very, very hard about something, but he wouldn't share the thought with me.

"Sorry if I woke you up! I was just checking in on you."

"It's okay," Wally muttered. "Thank you.. for checking."

"Of course!"

"...Are you happy here?" Wally asked suddenly. I was surprised by that question. Did he mean in Frank and Eddie's house? The neighborhood? In the moment?

"Happy? Well, I'm quite happy here with you! I'm also pretty happy in this neighborhood," I answered. Wally wiggled out of my hug a bit to look at me seriously.

"Would you be unhappy if I left?"

Was Wally planning on leaving? I felt worried.

"Of course! Oh, you aren't planning to leave, are you?!"

Wally chuckled quietly. "Don't worry, dearest. I'm not planning on it..
Anyways, we should go have breakfast with Eddie and Frank, right?"

"Oh, right. Let's go then," I took Wally's hand and skipped out of the room. His sudden switch from such a serious tone to a lighthearted one scared me, but I decided not to pry for now. I'd ask Wally about it later.

We had breakfast with Eddie and Frank. It was very pleasant! We had pancakes. Wally did not enjoy them very much because of the lack of apples, but he accepted them and ate, anyway.

"It's very nice out! Should we have a picnic?" Eddie clasped his hands together and smiled. Frank adjusted Eddie's hat, which was slightly askew.

"That sounds delightful!" I answered.

"I agree," Wally replied quietly. Eddie smiled.

"Great! Picnics are a neighborhood favorite, you know!" Eddie cheered. Frank fidgeted with his bowtie.

"..We can observe the butterflies, too, maybe..." he muttered softly. Wally looked over at Frank.

"Yeah! That will make it even better," Wally backed up Frank's idea. Frank's face lit up a bit.

We set up the picnic just outside the house on the lawn. There was a variety of snacks and books laid out on the blanket.

Frank was busy looking through a field guide, trying to identify a butterfly that had landed on his finger.

Eddie was flipping through a scrapbook he had made to show me his favorite memories.

Wally was busy zoning out while holding a book. It was a little funny because he had probably thought holding a book would make it look like he was reading.