the broken | dallas winston

(12) the funeral

Scarlett Curtis:

I stand in front of the mirror in our bathroom and stare at my reflection, cringing at how awful I look. My dark undereye bags are still somewhat showing even though Avery put makeup on me, I look so thin that it's unhealthy, my eyes are tired, my stitches might make me look tough but they add on to the broken and unhealthy state it looks like I'm living in. Today is the day I have been dreading since I talked to Matt, today is the day of my best friend's funeral.

I truly never thought that I would have to attend Mikey's funeral. Between the two of us, I always thought I'd be the first to go. I'm careless and reckless at times when I'm with the right people. I usually don't give a shit about anything or anyone besides my brothers and the gang.

Mikey was different though.

Yeah, he was tough when he had to be and he was hard. He never had it good but that never changed him or turned him cold. He still felt things, he used to feel everything so deeply it overwhelmed him. He was good like that, he enjoyed helping people no matter who they were. Mikey was too good for this world, his heart was too pure.

He was a greaser, a hood, a delinquent, he stole things, he got into fights often, he would get drunk, he was thrown in the cooler many times.

That was the Mikey Devereaux the world around us got to see, that wasn't the Mikey I knew.

He was my best friend, someone I considered my brother, he protected me from the scary world we live in, he kept me going after every hardship, he was my partner-in-crime, he never failed to make me feel safe and happy.

That was my Mikey and I'll always remember him in that way.

A soft knock on the door pulls me out of my thoughts. I quickly wipe away the tears that fell which I didn't even know were there. I pull the door open, revealing my twin brother standing on the other side.

I smile at his appearance. He's wearing a bottom up, a tie, and khaki pants. This is something way out of our comfort zone, we almost never dress up in anything other than a shirt and jeans.

"You look like a teacher," I say with a small laugh, trying my hardest to make light in this shitty situation. He gives me a look before he rolls his eyes at me.

"Wait till you see the rest of the gang," He replies as he points out toward the hallway. I laugh and shake my head at the thought of those hard-looking boys all dressed up nice.

"I think this will be the first time I see them without jeans on," I say which makes Soda laugh as he nods his head in agreement.

"You look just like her," He whispers to me. I swallow hard and nod my head. I'm wearing my mom's black dress along with her black flats. I usually look just like my head, we had the same face, eyes, basically everything. Yet I can see where Soda is coming from. In her dress with my now curly brown hair, thanks to Avery, I do kinda look like her.

I don't say anything, instead I hug my twin tightly. He doesn't hesitate to wrap his arms around me. I wish I could stay like this for awhile, not have to worry about the funeral. I sigh at my stupid thoughts, I have to go. I have to do this for Mikey.

We pull away at each other and smile softly.

"I just wanted to check on ya," He admits as he jams his fists into his pant pockets.

"Thanks, Soda," I say with a nod before I lean up and kiss his cheek. He smiles back and turns around, leaving me in the bathroom by himself. I sigh and take one last look at my body. I might not be broken but my body defineltly is. I push my thoughts away before walking out of the bathroom and down the stairs.

The second I reach the bottom of the stairs, people are whispering and hollering. I roll my eyes and softly smile, knowing they're all trying to make me feel better about today. I look up and see all of the boys dressed up and I can't help but laugh a little.

"Look at you!" Steve says as he comes over to me and tightly wraps an arm around my shoulder. "She's growing up guys! I'm getting emotional!"

I roll my eyes at his sarcasm, "We're the same age, you idiot!" He laughs before he playfully shoves me. I shake my head at him just as Two is pulling me into a tight hug, pulling me off the ground.

"It's best if you put me down, Keith!" I yell as he holds me over his shoulder. He scoffs playfully before he places me back down on the floor.

"You know she's mad at you when she calls you by your first name," Steve says in a teasing tone that makes Two pull him into a headlock.

"I honestly forgot that Keith was his name," Soda says with a shrug as he enters the room and plops down on the couch right next to Johnny. I laugh but I nod my head in agreement, so do I honestly.

Avery and Lizzie both come into the living room from the kitchen in their black dresses with Pony following close behind.

"Okay but I really did a good job," Avery says as she twirls a piece of my curly brown hair between her fingers, making me laugh. "You look so cute!"

She pinches my cheek and I groan instantly, swatting her hand away as I back up. Darry jogs down the stairs which makes all of us turn to see him. He always looks just like our dad but with his clothes on, it's almost scary.

"Everyone ready?" Darry asks. We all nod as Soda and Jonny get up from the couch. I furrow my eyebrows in confusion as I don't seem Dally anywhere. I sigh sadly to myself, thinking he's not going to come with us.

I'm proven wrong as I step out onto the front porch. Dally stands by the gate with a cigarette hanging loosely from his mouth wearing a black plain shirt and jeans. I smile automatically when our eyes meet. His lips form into a smile as he blows the smoke out of his mouth.

Dally and I haven't talked about what happened yet.