𝑬𝑼𝑷𝑯𝑶𝑹𝑰𝑨 [ being rewritten, please read notice ]

chapter twenty-eight ° bitter goodbyes

^^ Please listen to the song as you read, it complements the reading and adds to the setting of this chapter

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'-all the clouds in me are raining..'
-r.h.sin

Edmund's pov

Alten's funeral was perhaps the most painful our pack had witnessed.

The service was held just the next day at 6 in the morning and he was lowered into a grave right next to Darna's since that was his final request. To be put to eternal sleep next to his beloved.

Alten's family wasn't the only ones who were affected by his death, the entire pack grieved with them. Out of all the members of his family, Itsuki stood out to me the most.

He looked so small, so very vulnerable as he stood next to Saiki, dressed in the same suit he'd worn on Darna's funeral. Suki looked as if his life was stripped of all light and happiness, that there was nothing more that could keep him going on and it was painful to witness him giving the eulogy.

He didn't even get to complete it. He broke down into sobs a few words in and Saiki had to escort his trembling body back to his seat while Joshua took over. I sat a few rows back, with mom, dad, and Briar, not wanting to intrude since I knew he needed his family at the moment.

It was a gloomy day after that, almost as though the sky was weeping and grieving with us.

After the funeral, everyone was directed to the packhouse to grieve in silence and while dad went to console Erina, I made my way out the back door to the porch to find Itsuki. He was seated on the steps, body curled into himself as it leaned against a wooden beam.

I sat down next to him. Nothing was said as the sound of the thundering rain drowned out his heart-breaking sobs. I reached out to gently rub his back and he flung himself into me, hiding into my side as his sobs grew louder. I simply hugged him to my chest, knowing no words could bring back what had been lost, nor could they ever be enough to fill the void that now grew in place of his heart.

Itsuki was never truly himself after that. In the weeks ensuing Alten's death, he'd locked himself in his room and I would always find him buried under the covers with his sweater, his soft sobs reaching my ears and twisting the knife in my heart.

Arden and Ilya both tried reaching out to Ito, but the wolf too was in grievance, not talking nor responding as he cut himself away from everybody. Even his family.

Though Alten's death affected his entire family, it broke Itsuki the most. He'd lost what seemed to be the most crucial element in his functioning, and without it, he didn't know what to do. Finding it impossible to fill the gaping emptiness Alten's absence left behind.

We tried bringing him out eventually, trying to get him to eat, bathe, maybe listen to music but he didn't seem to want to do anything. He simply lay in bed, clutching Alten's aged sweater as he sobbed. Even when sleeping, he'd wake up in a fit of wails and pained shrieks, reaching out blindly before he'd be hit with the realization of the painful reality.

Itsuki looked pale now, paler than before. The damaging effects of the rejection process mixing with the consequences of his loss took a big toll on him. He looked so small, so frail and so...broken. It broke my heart every time he'd raise his head to look at me with dull, lifeless eyes. His cheeks seemed hollowed, his eyes sunken in with gray bags lining the underside. His frame was hunger-pang, bones showing clearly, but he preferred to dwarf himself in Alten's sweater and all his hoodies that had been left behind, holding onto whatever piece of him he could.

Itsuki looked different now, and it was the worse possible different. He was now a shell of the person he once was, nothing but a shriveled soul and a perpetual void left behind of what once used to be Itsuki Yamamoto.

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Hi guys! Here's chapter 28, and truth be said, I kinda hate this chapter and the one after this but I felt as though these needed to be written for a little more insight into the other characters. It's pretty short too, that's also why I don't like it as much.

What'd you guys think? What're your thoughts? I for one am kinda upset with Alten's death since he's such a great character and was such a prominent figure in Itsuki's life but I feel as though his death was kind of inevitable, it was sort of the preface of why Itsuki came back in the first place. He came back because Alten wanted to spend time with him before he left and I guess that sort of fulfilled it.

With that being said, I think this is the only death in the entire book, the only death of a significant character that is.

But yeah, moving onto today's question, we have: What are some of your favorite musical artists?
- Mine would probably be Queen, Conan Gray, Harry Styles, BTS, Red Velvet and NCT.

With that aside, if you liked this chapter then please don't forget to vote/like, comment, and share! I'd love to hear what's on your mind!

p.s. I wrote the author's note for chapter 27 and 28 after I wrote all the other chapters because I was too upset and emotional when I wrote these two particular chapters to be able to be cheerful while talking to you guys through here 😔👌

Well, that is all for now,
Stay safe, and stay healthy,
Until next time,
Your sleep-deprived queer, Arlo!