Friends... Plus a little extra (Lams)

Need

John cried harder than he had ever cried before that night.

He couldn't believe his mother was gone.

He didn't understand why God took such a kind soul.

He stayed with her dead body holding him for a while, feeling to numb to move.

He walked up to his fathers office and knocked on his door, still sobbing his heart out.

Soon, his father answered, looking down on his son.

"Is she...?" Henry Laurens whispered, earning a nod, followed by a loud and broken sob.

Henry started to cry. His heart was broken.

He wasn't the best at showing it, but he did truly love his wife and children.

John looked down, knowing his father wouldn't want him to hug him.

He had never seen his father cry until that day.

John looked up to him after a few moments. "We should probably tell the youngers..." he whispered.

Henry nodded a bit. "I just need... I need to sit down for a while..." he said, closing his door and sitting in his office chair.

John woke up his siblings. He told the two boys what happened, but not little Martha yet.

He would wait to tell her until the morning.

He took Martha to his room though and allowed her to sleep with him. He knew this would probably be routine for a while.

He held her gently, crying softly.

It was a terrible night and it took John a while to fall asleep, though he eventually did.

————

In the morning, Henry called to have Eleanor's body taken. The funeral would be in a week.

Martha, as expected, clinged to John. She couldn't seem to stop crying.

Little Henry seemed to be a mixture of anger and disbelief.

James just shut out everyone.

And big Henry just locked himself in his office, working.

None of the children went to school and the house was almost completely silent.

It was as if the spirit of the house had died too.

————

[like a couple days later, we will say Saturday night]

Martha was asleep in John's bed. It was hard to get her to move away from him.

John remained strong for her, knowing she needed it.

She was just so young and John hated her going through all of this.

Though he really hated it all happened.

He decided it was best to actually answer his friends.

They had been texting him nonstop since he hadn't shown up to school, though John didn't really answer them.

Tonight though, John needed to be held.

He needed comfort and no one in this house was willing to give it to him.

He cried as he opened his phone, calling Alexander.

And as soon as he answered, John simply whispered

"I need you..."