Trust Your Instincts

-25- Grieving Processes

It was Thursday. Almost six days had passed since Josh's death, and the school had almost already forgot about him. They held a memorial service for him during class hours on Tuesday, and then most of the staff and students seemed to forget that he even existed.

Jack and Isaac hadn't been in school on Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday, and so Mark didn't have any hopes of seeing them today.

He had received his invitation to Josh's funeral, it was taking place on Saturday. Mark assumed his family wanted to get it done as soon as possible, they didn't like him being in the morgue for too long.

Will and Eli had confessed to killing Josh. It was the two of them who made up the plan, and they obviously felt terribly guilty for what they had done. Perhaps they thought that taking all the blame would be some way to repay, some way to balance out their karma, but Mark knew that was bullshit. They were essentially the ones who killed Josh, and the blood would be on their hands until the day they died.

He still felt guilty. He did nothing to stop it, but he didn't kill Josh. He didn't hold his arms behind his back, or kick his head into the edge of the brick wall. They were in jail now, where they belonged, waiting to be transferred to either juvenile hall, or prison. Mark didn't pity either of them.

Pete, Blake and Slim Jim had been incredibly quiet the past three days. Slim Jim didn't make jokes anymore, and Pete hardly ever opened his mouth to swear. Blake spent the days staring blankly at the walls.

As for Mark, he had sat with Felix at lunch, they didn't talk much, but he was glad to have some company. He really liked Felix anyway. Even in times like these, he tried to remain optimistic.

--- (Back to Thursday)

Mark walked into the school, the masses of students shooting him occasional sympathetic glances as they passed by. This should've made him feel better, knowing that people cared about him, but it only made it harder. He kept his eyes on his feet as he headed to his locker.

He took his books out and silently shuffled to his first class of the day, History. He took his seat next to Will's, which was obviously not occupied, and lay his head on the desk for the whole lesson.

He checked his phone after class was dismissed, and sighed. Jack still hadn't replied to the messages he had been sending over the past week, but he understood that he was grieving, and so he kept his cool. Maybe Jack needed space.

Mark reached the table he and Felix always sat at during their break and lunch. Well, he didn't quite reach it. He was stopped in his tracks when he saw that Isaac and Jack were already sitting there, talking to Felix. They must've came to school today, Mark thought to himself, the corners of his lips tugging upwards ever so slightly.

Well... duh, they're here aren't they?

As he neared the table more, he had caught Jack's attention, who shot up from his seat, tears forming in his already bloodshot eyes. He ran to Mark, wrapping his arms around his neck.

"Thank you. For all the texts asking how I was." Jack whispered to him. "I'm sorry I didn't answer them, I didn't know how. But I appreciate them so much Mark."

Jack released him, blushing slightly, and took his seat beside Isaac again, who in turn got up and gave Mark a brief hug. He was obviously trying to stay strong, as he hid his face for most of their break time, and did his best to keep the conversation off of Josh.

Mark had no problem with that.

He was happy to talk about other things, he even managed to get the other three to smile and giggle at one point, a feat he only thought Felix was capable of achieving.

He was doing his best to stay enthusiastic, energised. To an extent he was succeeding, he was cheering the others up a little, taking their minds off Josh's death, but grief still loomed over the group, it was like there was a piece missing, and Mark couldn't shake the thought that he was the reason the atmosphere was so sad.

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A/N Hello again guys!

Just a short chapter there, but I added it in just to clear a few stuff up and make the story flow a little better, so hopefully it wasn't too boring for you!!

I was going to make Mark's hair red at some point during this story, but since he's back to black I think I might just keep it his natural colour!

Anyway, thank you for reading, and like I always end these A/Ns with, I'll see you all in the next chapter! :D