I hadn’t realised my fingers were digging into my palms during that conversation until I noticed just how numb they felt. Before anyone else could try making friendly conversation to me, I turned towards the front door, opening it fully. I couldn’t keep staying in that room.
As I stepped outside, the warm heat of the sun immediately hit my face. Davis was sitting on the front steps leading up to the church. His eyes fixed on an oak tree that towered over the front lawn as I took a seat beside him.
“I heard what Mrs Wright said to you just now,” he said, a faint smile on his face. “You did a good thing.”
“You don’t even know what I did.”
“I know it must’ve been something good just by how she thanked you.”
“You heard that?” I asked, narrowing my eyebrows.
“Well it wasn’t as though I was trying to eavesdrop, but she did sound pretty thankful. I certainly didn’t expect you to go off to Mrs Wright after the whole memory-seeing fiasco.”
Of course, he had to find out what happened somehow. As if he didn't know enough already.
“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. “I didn’t do anything, they resolved the issue themselves.”
“You might see it that way, but I’m sure you helped those people a lot 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 started, a certain melancholy in the air around him. “But they’re wrong, funerals are meant for the living; the ones who survived and are left behind by the deceased.”
My eyes shifted to my feet, and my fingers began to relax again. “Is grief really something so overwhelming that it requires this much to overcome?”
Davis turned to me, his eyes studying my expression. “It is, and even then, a funeral is only a small part of the grieving process. That’s the whole reason why I wanted to continue my brother’s business. With the reburying of soldiers, I wanted to help people find closure after the war.”
I glanced at him, that same melancholy now reaching his smile. I’d never bothered to ask or cared to know his reasoning for why he chose this business venture specifically, only accepting the situation at face value.
“And do you find it fulfilling?” I asked.
“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. He stood up before starting to make his way down the stairs. “Alright, Let’s head back now.”
—
Davis and I were silent as he drove us back to the funeral home. It reminded me of when he first brought me to Haaften. We passed by the same buildings, drove on the same roads and watched as the same crowds walked by.
However, 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 car begin to slow down. When Davis pulled over to the side of the street, I gave him a questioning look. I didn’t recall that the funeral home was sandwiched between a shoe and jewellery store.
“I hope you don’t mind if I quickly stop to pick up something,” he said as he turned off the engine.
“Not at all, sir.” It wasn’t my place to dictate when he could do his errands.
He gave me a smile before opening the car and getting 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? Perhaps one of the staff inside had unexpectedly passed away. That or the funeral home was in need of a mannequin.
I continued to wait in my seat, perhaps for another ten minutes, just staring blankly out the window. I was counting the number of people walking by when I heard the door finally open again.
“Sorry that I took so long. The lady in there wouldn’t stop trying to sell me on their new summer collection of dresses,” Davis said with a slight weariness as he sat back down.
I noticed there was a package in his hand. It was on the larger side and wrapped around in some kind of brown paper. I figured it must’ve been something he just ordered, but I didn’t expect him to hold it out to me.
“What is this?” I asked, my eyes narrowing at the package. I hesitated for a moment as he continued holding out towards me.
“I thought you needed some nicer clothes than whatever we had lying around at the funeral home,” he explained, putting 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 stared down at the package, the paper creating friction against my thumb as I ran it along the side. The noise of the engine roaring awake and vibrated through the car as Davis turned the ignition.
“I tried choosing some things I thought would suit you, but if you don’t like it, we can always return it for something else.”
“No, there’s no need,” I quickly said before he could get any ideas. “But thank you.”
The corners of his mouth curved even more, his eyes softening. 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.”
I kept staring down at the package as he drove. Until that point, I’d been content with the clothing I received so far. I didn’t say 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’d 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 all stirred a feeling in my chest. I made a mental reminder to repay him someday. I wouldn’t fall into a habit of letting myself be indebted to him.
We soon arrived back at the funeral home, the package still in my arms as I followed him inside. But as we walked through the front door, I stopped.
“Is there something wrong?” Davis asked when he noticed 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 looked even more confused but nodded anyway. “Yes, of course. What is it?”
I hesitated to respond for a few seconds, the ticking of the nearby clock becoming 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, looking at me with incredulous eyes. “What made you change your mind?”
I sighed as 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 another regard, Anthony Wright.
“Anthony Wright, he was the reason.”
Davis tilted his head, still clearly confused by my response. “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 the reasoning for why any of this is happening or their actions. And that bothers me.”
I gripped the fabric of my dress as I gritted my teeth. 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 had remained completely silent as I spoke, just quietly taking in my words. His eyes were steadily studying my expression as I looked at him. 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 said, his tone initially serious before shifting to something softer. “But I’d like to help you try, so you’re welcome to stay for as long as you need.”
There was this odd feeling of relief in my chest. I’d thought 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. As I raised my head again, I could see how he was biting his bottom lip in a poor attempt to suppress his job. “Honestly, I’m just glad you decided to stay.”
“Hey boss, why do you look like that?”
I turned towards the sudden voice that pervaded the room and saw Alfred walking in. His face was contorted slightly, giving Davis a look as he raised his eyebrow.
“That’s because we now have a new permanent member joining the team,” Davis said, far too enthusiastically.
“So you decided to stay after all?” Alfred said, his eyes shifting toward me. “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 or else you’re going to scare her off.”
Alfred was already grimacing at how wide Davis’ smile was. Meanwhile, I was already beginning to silently wonder 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 said 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 would wouldn’t fit in that well.
“Then I suppose I should welcome you. It’d be nice to have another woman around,” she said, wearing that polite smile she always wore.
“Thank you, Ms Rossi.”
“Well at least one of you is nice about it,” Davis said, making Alfred shoot a look at him.
“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 interject, 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 asked. He seemed as though he were about to loudly express his opinions on the matter, but quickly stopped when both Francesca and Davis shot him a glare. He pressed his lips together before shifting to a more compliant tone. “You know what, dinner sounds good.”
“Great!” Francesca clapped her hands together, looking 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.”
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