I hadn't noticed my fingers had been digging into my palms during that conversation until I realised just how numb they felt. Before anyone else could try approaching me, I reached for the front door and walked out. I couldn't stay in that room.

The warmth of the sun immediately hit my face when I stepped outside. Davis was sat upon the front steps leading up to the church. His arms rested on his legs and his gaze was fixed on an old oak tree towering over the nearby lawn.

"You did a good thing for Mrs Wright," he said, offering a small smile as I took a seat beside him.

“You don’t even know what I did.”

“I know it must’ve been something good just by how she thanked you.”

I snapped my eyes towards him, knitting my eyebrows. "You heard that?"

“Well, it's not like I was trying to eavesdrop, but she did sound rather thankful. I definitely didn't expect you to run off to Mrs Wright after the whole memory-seeing fiasco."

I hadn’t planned on telling him, but of course, he found out what happened anyway—as if he didn’t already know enough.

“I just needed to confirm if those visions were real.”

“Seems like you did a lot more than just confirming.”

My fingers dug into my palms again, deeper this time. “I didn’t do anything, they resolved the issue themselves.”

“You might see it that way, but I’m sure you helped them much more than you think.”

I couldn’t understand why these people believed I’d ‘helped’ to settle this matter when I clearly hadn’t. I hardly spoke at all during Mrs Wright and Mister Collin’s reunion, only forcing the latter to take action.

“You know, people usually assume that funerals are supposed to be for the dead,” Davis suddenly said with a tinge of melancholy in his voice. "But they're wrong. Funerals are meant for the living; the ones who survived and were left behind by the deceased."

I shifted my gaze to the ground as my fingers finally began to relax. “And is grief something so overwhelming that it requires this much to overcome?”

“It is, and it needs even more than that. The funeral is only a small part of the grieving process. That’s the reason why I continued my brother’s business. With the reburying of soldiers, I wanted to help people find closure after the war.”

I'd never bothered to ask or even cared to know his reasoning for why he chose this business venture specifically, only accepting the situation at face value.

So why did it interest me now?

“And do you find it fulfilling?” I asked, glancing at him from the corner of my eyes, seeing that same melancholy reaching his smile.

“I do.”

A faint breeze echoed through the air between us. It didn't seem like he wanted to say anything else, and I didn't need to know any more. So he stood up and made his way down the stairs. Alright, Let’s head back now.”

—

It was silent as Davis drove us back to the funeral home. It reminded me of when he first brought me to Haaften. We passed by the same buildings, travelled down the same roads and watched as the same crowds walked by.

And yet, the noticeable tension that was there previously now seemed lighter. The distance between our seats, though unchanged physically, didn’t seem as wide as before. His company, I found, was more tolerable.

But as we drove into a street littered with numerous stores, ranging from boutiques and tailors, I felt the automobile slow down. When Davis pulled over to the side of the road, I gave him a questioning look. I was fairly sure the funeral home wasn't sandwiched between a shoe and jewellery store, so I didn't know why we'd stopped so soon.

“I hope you don’t mind if I quickly stop to pick up something,” he said, turning off the engine.

“Not at all, sir.”

It wasn’t my place to dictate when he could do his errands.

He shot me a thankful smile before the door and got out. “I’ll be back in just a moment.”

My eyes followed him as he made his way into the store. I flickered between the displays in the window. The mannequins wore an assortment of clothing, ranging from dresses of vibrant colours to coats featuring bold patterns.

What would a man like him need from what appeared to be a woman’s clothing store? I wasn't sure. Perhaps one of the staff inside had unexpectedly passed away. That or the funeral home was in need of a mannequin.

But, I continued in my seat anyway. About ten minutes or so passed as I stared blankly out the window, counting the number of people walking by when I heard the door open again.

"Sorry, that took a while. The lady inside wouldn't stop trying to sell me on their new summer collection of dresses,” Davis said with a slight weariness before sitting back down.

I noticed there was a package in his hands. It was on the larger side and wrapped in kraft paper. I figured it must’ve been something he ordered, but I didn’t expect him to hold it out to me.

“What is this?” I asked, narrowing my eyes down at the package. I didn't reach for it but he kept holding it out to me.

“I thought you needed some nicer clothes than whatever we had lying around at the funeral home,” he explained, placing the package on my lap without waiting for me to take it myself. “Besides, Francesca wouldn’t stop berating me for it so I ordered some things for you.”

I kept staring at it. The paper created friction against my thumb as I traced the edge. The noise of the engine roaring awake vibrated through the car as Davis turned the ignition.

“I tried choosing some things I thought might suit you, but if you don’t like it, we can always return it for something else.”

“There’s no need for that,” I quickly said before he could get any more ideas, "but thank you.”

The corners of his mouth curved upwards as his eyes softened. That look didn't leave his face for a good while even after he resumed the drive back.

“It was the least I could do.”

Until that point, I’d been content with the clothing I received so far. I hadn't said anything about how some of the sleeves of my shirts extended far over my hands or how the hem of my trousers would drag along the floor when I walked. I would just roll up the excess fabric and didn’t give it a second thought.

But being given clothes that were bought brand new specifically for me was needlessly unnecessary. It stirred an uncomfortable feeling in my chest, so I made a mental reminder to repay him someday. I wouldn’t fall into a habit of letting myself become indebted to him.

We soon arrived back at the funeral home, and the package was still in my arms as I followed him inside. But after we walked through the front door, I stopped.

“Is there something wrong?” Davis asked, noticing my sudden stopping. His eyes scanned my face for any sign that something might’ve been wrong.

“Director, is it alright if I ask you for something?”

He seemed even more confused but nodded anyway. “Yes, of course. What is it?”

I hesitated for a moment. The ticking of the nearby clock only became more evident as I tried to collect my thoughts.

“I think I’d like to continue working at the funeral home.”

“W-What? Are you serious?” he stuttered, his eyes almost bulging out his head incredulously. “What made you change your mind?”

I lowered my gaze to the floor. I wasn’t entirely sure myself. This matter had been gnawing at me ever since I met Mister Collins, Mrs Wright, and in a strange way, Anthony Wright.

“Anthony Wright.”

“What about him?”

“Well, he was the reason I learnt about this new… ability of mine, the reason I met those people and saw just how much they cared about his death to the point of self-destructive tendencies. Neither of those things makes sense to me. I don’t understand why any of this is happening or even the logic behind their actions, and that bothers me.”

My fingers tightened around the fabric of my dress. Being ignorant about something had never bothered me until now. I took a deep breath before finally raising my head and meeting Davis’ eyes.

“So I’d like to stay and keep working for you, at least until I can understand. That is, if you’d still let me.”

Davis remained completely silent as I spoke, quietly taking in my words. His eyes were carefully studying my expression, and after a few moments, he let out a heavy sigh.

“Honestly, I’m not sure if you’d find an answer to those things,” he admitted, but his tone gradually shifted to something softer. “But I’d like to help you try, so you’re welcome to stay here for as long as you need.”

There was this odd feeling of relief when he said that. I assumed he would’ve become reluctant to agree or at least annoyed due to my previous adamance to leave. But, I was glad he wasn’t.

“Thank you, director. I won’t make you regret this.” I said earnestly, bowing my head slightly to him.

“Hold on now, there’s no need for that,” he said with a nervous smile. When I raised my head again, I could see how he was biting his bottom lip in a poor attempt to suppress his joy. “Honestly, I’m just glad you decided to stay.”

“Hey boss, why do you look like that?”

We both turned to the voice that had suddenly entered the room and saw Alfred walking in. His face was scrunched up slightly and he raised an eyebrow as he gave Davis a look.

Davis's smile widened even more, almost too enthusiasically. “That’s because we now have a new permanent member joining the team."

“Huh, so you decided to stay after all?” Alfred shifted his eyes towards me, crossing his arms. “I guess it won’t be too bad having you around. You are pretty useful.”

“Stop being so mean to her, Alfred.”

“I wasn’t even being mean that time. And stop looking like that unless you want to scare her off.”

Alfred was already grimacing at how wide Davis’ smile was. Meanwhile, I was already silently wondering if I’d made the right decision. Seeing just how Davis was practically beaming with elation was concerning.

But then, another pair of footsteps echoed into the room.

“What’s this about a new member?” Francesca asked, raising an eyebrow at the scene she’d just walked into.

“Golden eyes over here decided to stay,” Alfred explained before pointing his thumb at me.

I narrowed my eyebrows at the sobriquet he’d just assigned to me, unsure if that was to be my permanent name. While I couldn’t claim to be proficient in naming conventions, I suspected that wouldn’t fit in too well.

She turned towards me, offering that polite smile she always wore. “Then I suppose I should welcome you. It’d be nice to have another woman around here."

“Thank you, Ms Rossi.”

“Well at least one of you is nice about it,” Davis remarked which made Alfred shoot him a look.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means exactly what it sounds like.”

“And you just said not to be rude.”

Francesca quickly cleared her throat before the pair’s bickering could escalate. “I think this calls for a celebration. How about we have a company dinner tonight, so we can properly welcome her.”

That sounded like an awful idea. A night of forced conversation wasn’t going to be pleasant. I was about to refuse, but Davis unfortunately cut in before I could.

“We should do that. I think it’s a great idea to give her a proper welcome.”

“Since when did we have company dinners?” Alfred questioned, about to loudly express his opinions on the matter. But, he quickly stopped when both Francesca and Davis shot him a glare. He pressed his lips together before forcing a strained smile. “You know what, dinner sounds good.”

“Great!” Francesca clasped her hands together, looking far too pleased with herself. “I know this lovely restaurant just up the street.”

“Wait boss, you’re going to pay for this, right?”

“Stop sounding like you just want to leach off company money.”

“Hey! I just want to know if we’re going to get a free meal or not.”