That was the day.

I invited people from her nursing home, a few of the nurses and the elders. I asked around the place to see if she had any outside friends. She didn't. So I invited Gavin and reluctantly Ellie. Nora was coming for sure. I invited Chasity, promising to skype her through the whole thing. That was it.

Nick woke me up and said, " unless you have a black dress, we're going to have to go shopping."

In the mustang, I was having troubles breathing, so I made him keep the hood up. Air conditioning blasted me, and despite my shivers I still felt hot. It would make the fact solid, concrete. She would be gone, and I would be the last person in my family. By blood, I reminded myself. He pulled up to what looked like a mildly fancy place, and even opened my door for me. I had the decency to thank him but couldn't brave a smile. I felt like I was five again.

Inside the store was beautiful. Finding black dresses wasn't hard, but finding one I felt suitable was. The dress I liked most was partially lace, the arms and shoulders of it all somewhat transparent through black patterns. The lace wrapped around my wrists and tappered off on the back of my hands just slightly.

It hugged my ribcage and upper back firmly, and because loose close to my hips, where it fanned out gently down to my knees. When I walked out in it, Nick's eyes widened a little, " You look.."

" Black's a flattering color." I said, watching the floor. I wasn't a self concious person, but suddenly my cheeks got hot and the air felt heavy. It was like I was nervous, but about his thoughts. Things like, did he like the dress? was it too simple? was it too much? ran through my head.

He arched a brow slightly. The way his eyes took in the dress wasn't sexually, not hungerly, but he had the eye of an artist. His eyes met mine, " you look beautiful."

I smiled faintly, and said, " thanks... so this one works then?"

" definitely." He gave a nod, and stood.

I changed out of the dress, got simple black heels that covered my toe and heel and had a strap around my ankle, and bought a black bow for my hair. Nick insisted on it, not a large on but just a minor detail. Then he bought me a necklace.

It was a simple white silver chain, slim and bright, with a beautiful charm. It was a white silver bird, hung on the necklace by it's side with it's wings extended. It was a fine bird, with wings that tapered out to a point and a tail that thined on each end tail feather. If I got close to it, I could see all the fine details of the bird, the eyes, the beak, a highlight of feathers. It was, as said before, beautiful.

Nick had insisted. I fought, not hard, but tried. He didn't have to do that, but once he placed it around my neck, I didn't want to take it off.

Finding him clothes was a different matter. Everything he put on he looked good in. I had decided he should have an all black suit. Black dress shirt, black coat, black dress pants. Buttoned once on the coat, polished black oxford dress shoes. black vest between the black pressed shirt and coat, black tie done around his neck.

In his full attire, he was stunning. Arresting, was a good word to describe him. Nick put his hands in his pockets nonchalantly. Without thinking, I grabbed his wrists and pulled them out of his pockets, " stop. Stop being so attractive. Like, magically become unattractive, okay?"

Nick tilted his head back and laughed. His rich voice cupped the sound of his laughter too well, and I gritted my teeth. I didn't think he even realized it. The lady working behind the desk looked up to see where the sudden sound was from and went a little wide eyed. She quickly looked back down at her magazine. I narrowed my eyes in her direction, my eyebrows drawing together, and turned him around, " Go back to your normal clothes please."

He did, and when he came back I was glad to see just jeans, t-shirt, and a beanie. Still attractive, just less impactful.

We purchased his items, then hit the road. Keeping the roof on the car, we stopped at a cafe for brunch then went to the church to set up. Her ashes were placed under a flat t.v, where a picture slide show would play and music would follow in time with the pictures. Around her, I arranged the flowers. Anything Nick saw unfit, he fixed. He slightly rearranged the flowers, centered her herself, and even rearranged the food options.

We both got changed in the bathrooms. People started to show up. Gavin had on a black suit with a white dress shirt and a grey tie. His hair was generally done, but Ellie had a habbit of ruffling it. Ellie was dressed, kind of. Her black dress covered her chest and her ass, but it barely came down her thighs and was strapless. She wore an array of silver braceless on one hand, and one the other she had a thick strap of metal. Her shoes were strappy, toe showing pumps. Her hair was done in in a waterfall of thick ringlet curls and had a silver and black smokey eye that covered her whole eyelid.

Nora's hair was done where in was half pulled back and half done, and she wore a really nice black sundress and black cardigan. She hugged me when she saw me, but we didn't really talk after that.

Some of the workers from her nursing home showed up. They wore long black dresses, or black shirts and black pants with heavy flairs. the guys wore black pants of some sort and polos or dress shirts, but not many went as far out as Gavin or Nick. There weren't many people to begin with.

I mentally invited my parents, but without any idea of where they were, I could ask them. I called mom's cellphone once, but it went straight to a robot voice going on about leave a voicemail. I did. It wouldn't get anywhere.

Nick had invited Jericho. It was my idea over his. Jerry said he'd try, but I didn't expect him to show. Other elders from her home came too, dressing quite fairly. They teared up, some full on cried. She had done wondered with these people. I took a shaky breath, felt the pressure of tears behind my eyes. I hadn't really done anything with my hair, I didn't know what to do. Nick had parted his at the his left temple, and smoothed it back rather fashionably.

From across the room, he shot me a look. Next thing I knew, one of his hands was on the small of my back, the other opening doors. He led us straight into the girl's bathroom. I wiped my eyes while he grabbed a tissue. Removing my hand from my face, he gently dabbed at my cheeks, light under my eyes. His thumb brushed across my cheek, and my eyes met his.

He sighed softly through his nose, and pulled me into his arms, kissing my forhead gently. There weren't any words.

I hugged him back, careful not to push my face into his suit, and pulled back. I looked in the mirror, and used a wet tissue to patch back together my mascara. While I worked on my face, Nick stood behind my and mindlessly worked with my hair. He pulled it into a messy bun near my neck, the hair loose, some strands free around my face. A swish of hair gently swayed across my forehead, not in my eyes. Once it was in place, you couldn't even see the hair tie.

I smiled, and shook my head at him. He looked at me innocently, " what?"

I only smiled more. We walked back, and found a very dashing Jericho standing near the doorway. Nick grinned, because even though his best friend was an ass, they were basically best friends. Jericho smiled, let out a laugh, and they hugged. Jerry sighed, " i'm sorry i'm such an ass man... Talked to my girlfriend, yeah. Nope, we're done. Not even friends."

" and?" Nick asked, raising a brow.

Jerry shrugged, " nothing. I'm fine with it, we weren't working out. Thanks to this asshole," He said to me, " i'm trying to be a better person. Kind of failing, but it's the thought that counts."

I snickered, and hugged him, " yeah yeah. Nice to see you too."

He hugged me back, " oh, pretty girl is nice? How interesting." He winked, and I punched him in the arm, " yep, there she is." He said, rubbing his bicep.

Jericho wore a dark grey suit with a light grey dress shirt and a dark grey tie. His shoes were a burgendy and black, very nice and an accent of color against his greyscale self. His hair was tousled but it was messy in a polished way. I couldn't believe he actually showed up.

A pastor spoke, using her -my grandmother's- favorite passages from the bible, while the music filtered through the background softly.

I was asked to speak.

It took me seeing everybody to realize that I had nothing to say. I knew grandma when I was little very well, and got to know her again in the time I had with her during my visit. But I couldn't put her into words. All eyes watched me expectantly, Nick's eyebrows were faintly creased, but something about him gave off an air of reassurance.

I sighed softly, " My grandma, she was the kind of woman that you couldn't stop talking to after saying hello. She could talk to anyone, and she would. She loved people. When I was younger, I spent a lot of time with her. I used to come down and visit and just listening to her be her was magical." My gaze drifted to each pair of eyes, landing on Nick's just a second longer, " For a few years, I didn't talk to her. She asked me to come down and take her back to New York. Arson here," I motioned to Nick, who smiled slightly, " drove my sorry... self," A giggle echoed through the small group, " all the way down here to her. When I found out she was in the hospital, I was, well, I guess I was done. I knew she was sick, or at least old. but I thought I could get her home.

" Spending a few days with her was more than I could have asked for though. She will always be a magnificant woman to me, and probably to a lot of you that knew her. She was a very positive person, She could always find the good in a situation, and I can honestly say i'll miss her, with everything I am. I love her. I'm sorry she's gone. But I'm glad she got to live the life she did, and I'm glad she met a bunch of wonderful people in her time here. Um.... I guess thanks for being here. She would be really happy to see you all."

I felt my eyes get watery and I sat back down next to Nick. No one clapped, but I didn't want them too. You didn't clap to death. A few hands rubbed my shoulder, arms, and backs gently. They liked it, I knew that, but they were sad too. I could feel it in the air, like a weight that didn't let up. It just pushed hard down on my shoulders, harder, till it was hard to stand. Hard to breath.

Nick's arm looped around me, and I rested my head on his shoulder. The pastor talked some, the video played, and people ate and said their goodbyes.

I decided funerals were both for the dead and the living. It was a time to say goodbye, for both parties. Funerals let the dead go, and let the living move on. They were about releasing, not about reliving the past.

People said their goodbyes to Nick and I too. Nick ended up shaking a lot of hands that were connected to people he had never met before, and I ended up hugging people I would probably never see again. Jericho, Nora, Gavin, and Ellie were the last to leave. Ellie, surprisingly, gave me a tight hug. When she pulled back she demanded for my cellphone and a promise that we would talk. I nodded. I probably would text her. El waited for Gavin at the door.

Nora hugged me too, gentler, and said, " we're gonna keep in touch, and be like besties or something. I'll tell you about my fitness plan with Cacknee and you can tell me about Nick." She gave a suggestive eyebrow wiggle, and I shook my head smiling, " not like that, Nora."

She said, " mmhmm." Then added, " your grandma was a beautiful woman, she seemed wonderful."

I smiled faintly, " She was."

With a final wave, she left.

Gavin hugged me too, around my shoulders. He kissed my cheek, in a friendly way. We exchanged numbers and he said, " I'm glad I met you, Carter. Keep a good head, we'll talk often I hope."

I nodded, " yeah. Definitely." Then we hugged again.

He left with Ellie, and I smiled when I saw them link arms and bicker playfully.

Jericho practically crushed Nick with his tall slender frame. The two hugged it out in manliness before he turned to me, " I'm sorry about your grandma." He said, looking down at the sleeve he kept playing with, " She sounded great. And you seem to take after her a lot."

I shrugged, " I'm trying and failing, but it's the thought that counts."

We smiled, and hugged. He snickered, " yeah yeah. It was good to see you too."

He left with a solute, " We'll keep in touch pretty girl, and Nick, salutations. We'll be partying later."

The pastor left, and it was just Nick and me and the ashes of my grandma. Nick turned to me, hands in his pockets, and said, " I could use some hand sanitizer now."

I laughed, and even though my lungs felt tight, it was amazing. He wrapped an arm around me and took my grandma in his other hand. I grabbed the flowers and someone had already cleared the food. I also took the disc with the slideshow, and I was in charge of opening all the doors. We placed everything in the back of the car neatly, and kept the hood intact so nothing would fly out.

At the hotel, we packed our bags and I washed my face. we both took showers, cleaning off the polish of our outfits. Nick's hair, wet and tousled, was free of a beanie and damp to the touch. My hair was nearly dry, some parts underneath still wet. Putting it up in a loose bun, I changed into a pair of bleached blue jean shorts and a loose white tank top. Nick ran his fingers through his hair and changed into black jeans and a grey v-neck t-shirt. He pulled on his boots, I put on my converse. He didn't tie his laces, I did. It was all routine now.

Nick checked our keys into the front desk, we had made sure all our stuff was out of the hotel room and we kind of made everything look neater.

The mustang ate up our stuff and we kept the top up while we got in. It wasn't too late when we stopped for dinner. A small grill that had outdoor seating. We used our resources, sat outside under soft orange lamps and ate in light conversation.

I felt lighter, oddly, like walking on the balls of my feet made me even closer to floating away. He had a salad, I had a four meat sandwhich. Nick swallowed a bite and asked, " Can we go see a movie?"

I shrugged, " sure. I have nowhere to be anytime soon."

His lazy lopsided smile was my answer, and he took another bite. After we finished, we hit the nearest movie theatre. He looked at our options, " it's up to you, Angel."

" Unbroken." I said, with a nod.

He agreed, and bought to tickets. We watched previews for movies that seemed amazing, and some that seemed not to wonderful. Then the lights faded out and the show started.

All the while Nick and I shared a cotton candy and sort of tears. it was a sad movie, but in the end your tears were created from the conflicted emotions of a happy ending. That was it, and he got his dream. It was bittersweet, and beautiful.

Nick said, " that, was great."

I nodded, " Preach."

We left the theatre together, not a bite of cotton candy left. We bought three more for the ride home and thanked the people who worked at the theatre. Nick and I laughed at something we were talking about. Inside the mustang, we threw the cotton candy into the back next to the cooler. Nick's hands were loose on the wheel as we backed out of the theatre parking lot and back onto the highway.

Palm Trees filtered past my window, highlights by the fading light of the sunset. The sky was a map of oranges, purples, and rose tones; The skyline was the silhouette of a city. We had put down the hood for the view.

We were a mustang on a highway with very few cars. We past a slugbug, and a prius. I saw a group of tanned blondes, boy and girl, walking with surf boards towards the beach. We passed a mall, a hospital, a collection of palm trees. Nick's black hair caught the wind, the soft light of the sunset highlighted the angle of his nose bridge, the highest part of his cheek bones. On the fullest part of his lips was the orange from the horizon, along with his shoulders and arms and knuckles, his side and thighs. The profile of his face was beautifully angular, all shadows and gently tanned skin.

He arched a brow, and flicked his gaze over to me. The grey in his eyes was crystal clean and rolling with different shades. His smile was slight and tilted. Without asking, he turned up the radio and we listened to Sweater Weather.

The buildings tapered out and the palm trees mingled with other types of trees. The road stretched out in front of us like a ribbon and to the east a filmy overlay of stars started to take over the sky. Then we were the only car on the road.

Nick flicked on the headlights and the sun completely left the sky, bruising the clouds with it's final rays of light. The stars were beautiful. I didn't know a thing on constellations, I just new that there were shapes up there somewhere.

Around ten, Nick pulled over and reclined his chair, " i'm taking a nap."

Car parked in the sand, I reclined too and curled up on the leather chair, " Do you know any constellations?"

Nick raised a brow, and looked up with me. He pointed to a collections of stars that were shaped like an M, " That's Cassiopeia." Then he pointed to a box with six stars around it, " and that's Hercules."

He showed me a few more. Libra. Scorpius. Cepheus. All of them were unique, different. Some were simpler than others. He yawned, " Night Angel."

I replied, " Night Arson."

I turned away from him in my chair, curled closer into myself, and waited for him to wake up.