Always Mine {Book 3}| Completed

Part II: Chapter Eight

The sky was very gray and cloudy which was very unusual for Santa Monica. And I had pulled up to the church in my car and I had just cried, but my grief was getting in the way quite a bit that I couldn't be distracted from anything else. But there was already so many people coming into the church. Colleen, mom and I had arrived early and Victoria and Christopher came along with me to help set up the church a bit. And obviously the casket was sitting right there on the church's podium stage.

  Inside the church, there were over million of flowers and there were pamphlets of the service. Of course, mom suggested this church because mom's dad's funeral was held here and dad made a funny comment about this church back then that he wanted to have his funeral in this church. And Colleen was perfectly okay with this. It's the most Catholic Church you'd find in sight. And I was actually trying to find it perfectly okay where I can feel blessed about being here.

  I seen Colleen pulling out a tissue every second to actually wipe her eyes from crying. But I was actually not convinced she was that sad, due to her just wanting this day to be mainly about her because she lost her husband. Why else did she make most of the funeral arrangements without asking me too? After all, he was my dad and I deserved some opinions about his funeral. Just like I would prefer the casket closed. And I would have preferred him to have white roses and not yellow. Because he loved white. And Colleen is already discussing about what she wanted to hear from my dad's will. And she wants me to stop at the house whenever I feel comfortable to go through my dad's things and decide what to save or what to keep.

I can't actually say a lot of things didn't bother me because it did. A lot of people started to arrive, and there was the Pastor and a choir and I knew they'd all sound so beautiful when they sing. And I had cried the whole time, and of course, I was crying once I saw everyone who my dad knew and I knew. Mom was with Gavin and Alex. Mom greeted them once they stepped into the church. Mom had at least three bouquets of white roses because she knew that's the kind dad liked. And a few of dad's friends he knew from work that showed was Dave Del Rey, he was a general surgeon and he and my dad met in their first year of interning at the Saint Mercy Angels Hospital. Dave arrived with his wife and two sons that were my age.

Dave looked sad and stuck in his grief. He came to mom and me and he hugged us, giving me the best hug. Dave used to watch me all the time when I was little and he was there during my birth, he was the most excited when my parents had me. And immediately I wanted to cry because I was being surrounded by someone closest to my dad.

  Christopher stayed with Colleen the whole time, I greeted with someone who came in. All of my dad's friends were more greeting my mom than her, and I could see that this wasn't about my dad to her. But about her being the center piece of the service. My grandma came along with my Aunt Maggie and her children, my cousins. And of course, Mandy and Aaron arrived with so much flowers that I was actually surprised and shocked. Mandy and I had hugged and we just embraced, lost in each other. But then I looked down and was reminded that Mandy is pregnant and her four month pregnant belly having a bump and she was dressed in a black dress that was flowing. And obviously, I adored Mandy so much. And it's true that Mandy and I haven't talked so much. She's been busy with her wedding that is literally in a few days. And I don't know how else to be grateful when I'm in grief.

  And also, my dad's parents arrived to the funeral. And my grandma was sobbing and she had on a black dress wearing a black hat and a black net that went in front of her face. Mom did greet with Grandma Barbara and my grandpa looked sad, and I knew he was hurt that his son was dead, in spite the things he said a few days ago.

  I had looked at the church entrance and at first it looked like a silhouette coming in and then, I saw Matt walking in and I had never ran to someone so fast in all my life. And the second I had arrived into his arms, I wailed out crying to him. And he cupped both of my cheeks and he wiped my falling tears that fell from beneath my eyes. I noticed eyes were glued on us, and the second I was with Matt, I felt content. But he wasn't the person I wanted this comfort from. I needed Christopher. But he was more focused on Colleen and I guess it sort of pissed me off. And then Ty and Lara Jean showed up and they passed by me and they went to greet Christopher and Colleen while I was stuck in the embrace of Matt.