The Institute for Mianite Arts

Chapter 98- Izzy's Funeral

(Haha me again deal with it :P)
It had taken a lot of persuading, a lot of trips to Dianite and Ianite and even caused Greg's parents to come in and ask why he wanted to switch houses; Izzy had been waiting outside the room waiting for him to come out, and she had comforted him when he walked out saying his parents had disowned him. But finally, it had worked. Greg was now an Ianitee. And a close friend of Izzy's.
And now it was his turn to comfort her.
Today was Eddie's funeral.

Izzy adjusted her black dress in the mirror. She looked pale and scared, her reflection staring back at her like a ghost. Maybe she was a ghost. A ghost of the girl who she was when she came here. One thing was for sure, and that was that her dead friend was now a genuine ghost.

As Izzy sorted out her dress and applied some more waterproof mascara she heard a faint knock on the door and a familiar voice say "Izzy, are you almost ready?"
Greg.
"Yeah, give me two seconds." Izzy called back, pulling her (now ginger, the dye had faded slightly) hair into a plait to the side of her head. She took a deep breath and went outside...
To see a very good-looking and very hot Greg standing there in black jeans, a white T-shirt and black blazer. His red, dyed hair hung washed, but still messy around his jaw and Izzy could see dark brown roots starting to show. He gasped slightly when he saw her.
"You look amazing!" He said too her, smiling.
"As do you!" Izzy said, also giving a small smile, before remembering why they were here. Izzy sighed.
"I'm not sure about this..." Izzy started, feeling tears prick in her eyes.
Great, She had only just walked out the door and already the waterworks were threatening.
"Come here" Greg said, holding out his arms, and inviting her for a hug. She gladly accepted. Greg was very good at giving hugs.
Izzy buried her already-damp face into his T-shirt, hoping and praying for the T-shirt's sake that her mascara was waterproof. His T-shirt smelt just like him, and it calmed Izzy right down. When they finally pulled away, Greg looked down at her (why did he have to be so tall holy crap) and, smiling slightly, said "we need to get going, just tell me if you need another hug, okay?"

.: Time skip bought to you by the good ol' Wang Gang :.

The service seemed slow and mechanical, but maybe that was just due to the heavy atmosphere that hung in the air, or the fact that it was Izzy's friend and ex that they were commemorating. The whole school turned up for the funeral (partly because Dianite had forced them to, though some came of their own accord) plus a lot of Eddie's relatives. Eddie's mum and dad gave long and heartfelt eulogies that sent most of the church into tears. Izzy had been asked a few days before if she wanted to write a eulogy but she refused. The last thing she wanted was to have to stand up in front of lots of people and talk about her ex.
Izzy ended up needing plenty of hugs throughout the service, to the point when Greg just put his arm around her permanently to avoid getting his T-shirt any damper. Or maybe...

The service ended and they all went into the graveyard to bury the coffin. Izzy couldn't watch that bit so she ended up hiding in Greg's T-shirt again. Luckily he didn't complain about the fact his T-shirt was now quite wet and had black smudges all over it (Izzy's mascara obviously wasn't as waterproof as it needed to be). He just put a comforting arm around her as he held her tight towards him.
Yup, he had definitely paid back for the times she'd had to comfort him.

After the funeral, Izzy and Greg followed the Ianitees back to the common room. Most students went to the Dine-at-nite or to the arena for a pick-me-up after the depressing day, until only Greg and Izzy remained.
"You feeling okay?" Greg asked with a slightly concerned look on his face.
"Yeah" Izzy said in a very small voice. Greg held out his arms again and gave her a massive bear hug.
"I should do a tally of how many times I've had to hug you today." Greg smiled. Izzy could feel his voice vibrate in his chest, like the soft growl of a bear, possibly. Or a pussy cat.
"You give very good hugs, maybe you should start charging for them" Izzy replied.
"Yeah," Greg whispered, and, just loud enough so Izzy could hear, said "One kiss for every hug..."
One kiss for every hug...
Maybe Greg really does like me? Izzy thought. Or rather, she hoped.

Greg pulled away, before saying "I'm gonna have to change my T-shirt I think, it looks like a squid has exploded over me."
Izzy laughed as Greg gestured to his (now slightly grey and black-smudged) T-shirt.
"Sorry" She said, still smiling. Greg smiled back.
"You may want to look away" Greg said, smirking ever so slightly. Izzy laughed and covered her eyes.
"No peeking!"
Izzy laughed again and turned around.
A moment later, Izzy heard Greg say "Hmm, didn't think this one through..."
Thinking he was changed, Izzy turned around...
To see a topless Greg standing there.
Izzy gasped and Greg looked around. Seeing her he did a comedic-style girly scream and covered his bare top half with his arms and a comical expression on his face. Izzy stared at his body in amazement and also shock; it had been a long time since she had seen anyone topless, let alone a very toned guy, who also happened to be her friend. The two stared at each other for a while, both in shock before Izzy broke and fell into a fit of hysterics, falling into the sofa. Greg joined her in her laughter shortly after, completely forgetting about his lack of shirt and collapsing next to her on the couch. Izzy was too busy laughing to realise, and care, that he was currently half naked and only inches away from her.
She only realised how close they were once they had both calmed down.
Greg looked at her, and Izzy looked back, his hazel eyes making contact with her green ones. Greg started leaning forward, slowly but surely, and Izzy found herself leaning forwards as well. She closed her eyes, her heart thumping inside her chest, anticipating the moment...
Suddenly they were interrupted by Alee and Andor walking into the common room, giggling with each other. That is until they saw Greg on the sofa, topless, and only inches away from kissing Izzy. They all just looked at each other, no one quite sure what to say. Izzy was bright red and looking at her feet awkwardly; Alee was looking at Greg, then Izzy, then Greg again; Andor was looking confused and a bit embarrassed; and Greg, well, humiliated was an understatement.
Greg got up, crossing his arms across his chest. He looked at Izzy before saying "I'll, um, see you tomorrow then, yeah?"
"Um, yeah, see you later." Izzy replied, not making eye contact.