The Degenerates - Under Edit

f o r t y

There was not a dry eye in the hall once Lila and Brad's closest friends had spoken. They remembered him as the nice boy, the boy who followed the rules and was kind to everyone. Not one person spoke of the dark path he followed toward the end of his life.

Lila did her best to remain composed; but the numbness she had created wore off and her body was racked with hard sobs after each person who came on stage.

I missed Trey dearly and I ached for his comfort. But amongst that, I wished he were here consoling Lila, a job that was taken by Sasha.

"We can release balloons later if you like?" Sasha asked her, but Lila's eyes were empty.

The speech and remembrance part of the memorial was over. It was time for people to mingle and reflect on Brad's life, talking to one another about their happy memories of him. The grazing table was nearly never not occupied, which was one positive.

"How did you know him?" an older female's voice appeared beside me.

I faced her, slightly startled, "I'm Lila's roommate at the university, I had only briefly met him..."

She had blonde, yet greying hair. It was coiled in a twist and clipped with a crème hair brooch, "I was his sixth grade teacher,"

I smiled warmly, "Did you enjoy teaching him?"

The woman smiled softly, nodding, "He was always the nice boy,"

I agreed with her, but she crossed her arms, one hand cuffing a handkerchief, "Where's his brother?"

I ignored the icy feeling in my veins and the plummeting in my chest, "We don't know..."

"Bradley always looked out for him, would try to stop him fighting the other boys all the time. He didn't like the fighting,"

Half an hour goes by and some people have filtered out by now. I had been meaning to find Lila but people had kept stopping me on the way there.

I finally find her seated at the front row again, a jacket over her legs, staring off into the space ahead. Sasha sat by her with a tissue in her hand.

"How are you going?" I asked Lila, sitting down next to her.

"She's mourning, Neijla." Sasha quipped.

I bristled, "Like you would know,"

Sasha glared at me, and Lila did not react, "You were off playing housewife, what would you know?"

Her voice had no heat, only ice. Malice coated her words and I could do nothing but sit and glare.

Not the time.

Sasha cocked an eyebrow at my silence and scrunched the tissue in her hand, flicking her wrist toward a nearby bin, the tissue, whilst in the shape of a ball, curved off to the side, hitting the lip of the can. She uttered a frustrated noise, picking up the tissue and dropping it in the bin.

Nice aim, I thought to myself.

"I'm going to get her a cup of tea," Sasha told no one in particular, and left her seat.

I am mentally laughing at my sneer when I suddenly stop laughing. Sasha's sucky aim was no longer funny, but deadly serious. The voices drown out and my mouth fell open. I felt the blood drain from my skin, moving out of my veins and suddenly halting. A cold sweat breaks out on my hands.

I immediately stand from my chair, hurrying into the aisle. Sasha had disappeared and was not near the catering table. I saw a flicker of maroon amongst a sea of black and grey, and I darted toward the doorway.