Puzzles and Pieces ✔

Chapter 3

Chapter 3

It was a while since I wore a blazer, but it wasn't the most uncomfortable part of attending a funeral.

A small gathering of people loitered the area for the funeral reception. The conversations were low whispers either because it was too painful to speak any louder or the fact that nobody was comfortable enough to speak while Caleb's dad was there. I instantly averted my gaze hoping that Mr. Matthews wouldn't notice me. As if he could feel my nervous energy, Kyle hid behind my legs seeming to be intimidated by the number of people present.

The room was decorated with photos of him. I couldn't move an inch without seeing his photographed smile invading my line of vision. Kyle followed my gaze to see the photo and pointed at the picture with wide eyes.

"Who's that?" His voice pierced the quiet atmosphere. Heads turned towards the commotion and I gave an apologetic wave before giving my attention back to Kyle.

I lowered my voice, trying to avoid disrupting the reception even more. "That's Caleb. He used to be really close to me and now... he's gone."

"He's ugly."

My lips parted in shock and I struggled to think of a reply. I remembered Caleb never really liked himself, but I didn't expect that.

"Kyle, that's not how we talk about people. It's very rude to call people ugly." I gave him a stern look. Suddenly, Kyle had a newfound interest in the patterns of the carpet.

There were faces there that I had recognized. A lot of them were friends of Caleb and I since we would always go to the club to have late nights of drinking and laughter. Kyle grabbed my hand and lowered his head shyly. I patted his head in reassurance and we walked towards the group. Before I could say anything, a head turned towards my direction and I was greeted with a sad smile.

"Oh, my lord. If it isn't Josh," Amira said. She greeted me with a hug and a kiss on my cheek.

Amira was always a lively spirit and was like a mother to Caleb. She was part of the family he had found, one of the few supportive people in his life. Caleb always loved watching Amira perform as she had this larger than life persona whenever she was on stage. It was no surprise that she showed up to the funeral knowing how much they cared for each other. Even less of a surprise that she wore a glittery black dress for the occasion.

"How have you been? Actually, don't answer that. I know you've been miserable. It's written all over your face."

"I could never sneak anything past you," I joked. "I love the dress. But... I don't know how exactly his dad would feel about a dress like that though."

"It was either this or my Beyoncé dressed as the Madonna outfit, so he better be glad I'm at least wearing black." Her hand casually flipped a loose curl of hair over her shoulder. "I wish he didn't even come but he was the one that had enough money to pay for this whole arrangement."

"I didn't know that he paid for it." My voice drifted away, and I found myself staring at one of Caleb's photos again. Amira's mouth formed into a sad smile and I looked away from the photo.

"It's a shame," Amira said. She swirled her glass of water while staring at it sadly. "Caleb really was a good man."

"It's been really tough," I said. "I don't know what to do anymore."

"Baby, you ain't alone. The group doesn't feel right anymore. He wasn't talkative but he was that rock." She sucked the air from between her teeth and blinked rapidly to rid of her misty eyes.

I put a firm hand on her back and rubbed it to comfort her. "Hey. If you start crying, I'm going to start crying."

She gave a dejected laugh. "We don't want that, now do we?"