From the Shadows | PETER PARKER [2]

| 27 |

Eloise has been to one other funeral before. She was twelve, and it was for her great grandfather whom she had only met once before. He was ninety-two when he died in his sleep. At the funeral service, his children and family friends told stories with tears in their eyes and bittersweet smiles on their faces. They retold the stories of how he was a troublemaker, how he was a successful man, and how he was the best father a child could ask for. The church was packed of people who had the privilege to know the old man. They laughed at memories and prayed to God that they would all get to see him again in Heaven one day. It was a celebration of his long, fulfilling life.

At Cliff's funeral, there are no smiles. No one laughs, no one is celebrating. Eloise sits in a church pew as she stares at the open casket at the front, glad that she's far enough away so she can't see the body that lies inside. Peter, Ned, Elena, Alev, Luis, and Lucy are seated in the same pew. Unlike them, Eloise isn't crying, just staring numbly at the casket. Not many people have showed up, and the church is deadly silent. People blowing their noses into tissues and sniffles are the only noises anyone dares to make.

The black attire at her great grandfather's funeral was almost nonexistent. At Cliff's funeral, every single person is wearing the gloomy color.

Eloise's eyes shift to the man and woman sitting in the front pew. Her numbness morphs into anger as she recognizes them as Cliff's parents. Suddenly, Eloise doesn't want them here. She doesn't think they deserve to mourn their son whom they never showed an ounce of love towards.

She looks down at her hands lying limply on the black material of her dress covering her thighs and shakes her head. Even though they weren't the best parents, they still lost their only child.

When it's time for the viewing, Eloise feels frozen. She doesn't want to see Cliff, embalmed and all dressed up in a suit he'd never willingly put on if he was still alive. But, when her friends stand to go pay their respects and see him just one last time, she feels herself stand and follow them. Her legs carry her towards the front, every step harder than the last as she nears the casket.

In no time, it's Eloise's turn. Lucy, Elena, Luis, Alev, and Ned have all taken their seats again. Peter stays a few feet away as Eloise hesitantly steps up to the open casket. Her breath is caught in her throat at the sight. She doesn't see the boy she went to high school with, the boy who was simultaneously as tough as nails and a complete softy. As she looks down at the person in the coffin, she sees the boy that died in her arms. Flashes of Cliff choking on his own blood, blood dripping from his lips, blood pouring from the hole in his chest, the life draining from his eyes, his chest stilling. Eloise doesn't realize how long she has been staring at Cliff's embalmed body until she feels a gentle hand fall on her shoulder.

She spins around. Her wild eyes find Peter's concerned, sad ones. Eloise glances back at Cliff and gulps when she realizes it was all in her head, that he's not dying in front of her again. She tucks her hair behind her ear with a shaky hand and brushes past Peter.

"El—"

She ignores him and brushes his hand off of her arm when he tries to keep her from running out of the church sanctuary. Eloise passes multiple people waiting in line to see Cliff. Pushing the heavy double doors, Eloise finds herself outside the church. She sits down on the stairs of the front of the church and sets her head in her hands.

Outside, she can finally breathe. She rubs her eyes and looks up at the sky, the blue obnoxiously bright.

She is deep in thought when the doors open behind her. She doesn't turn, assuming it's Peter, but when she feels someone sit next to her and she turns, her eyes fall on the last person she'd expect to follow her.