The Seeker and the Annihilation of the Underland: A Gregor the Overlander Fanfic

Chapter 5

Previously...

When she had pulled herself all together, Stella wiped her eyes and pulled away from Blake. She looked over to where Leo was; he had his arms crossed over his chest and was looking down.

She went over to him and touched his arm, "What are we going to do now?"

Leo looked up, his eyes red from crying, his face stained with tears. "I don't know." He wrapped his arms around Stella. "I don't know, sis."

.

.

.

When Stella awoke, she had no idea where she was. It was only until she saw the TV, that she realised she was in her living room.

Yesterday, Nora had died in hospital. The nurse had come in soon after and there had been a lot of orders being yelled between the hospital staff as they took Nora's body away. And — mostly — confusion. Sandra and Blake had left, then, finally, Leo had driven Stella — who was heartbroken — home. He had spent the whole night booking and checking in with nearby funeral services. Stella hadn't helped much; apart from when she had helped him contact and deliver messages of Nora's death to all her friends and people who knew her.

Stella rubbed her eyes at the light that splintered through the sides of the blinds and into the living room, splashing against the walls and giving the room a yellow glow. She glanced at the clock, it read: 12:37. She had slept over noon. The funeral was going to be in approximately one hour.

Stella gingerly sat up on the couch that she had fallen asleep on last night. Her head felt heavy, like lead. Slowly, she got up from the couch and made her way upstairs to her room.

When she had finished with her morning routine, she checked her phone. It was Sunday. Her notifications were clogged with people she knew giving their condolences to Nora. Stella switched off her phone; she wasn't in the mood for reading them.

Stella glanced at the scroll on her desk. She'd kept it there last night since she had had no idea what to do with it. She paced to her desk and picked up the scroll, putting it into one of the drawers in the desk and closing it shut.

As Stella made her way downstairs, the smell of something cooking wafted up her nostrils. Stella walked into the kitchen to see Leo dividing four slices of French toast into two plates.

"You're up," said Leo, trying to sound energetic.

"Mhm," was all Stella could say.

There was an awkward silence. The atmosphere in the house had a huge, gaping hole that Nora usually filled. Stella sighed. Leo filled two glasses with fresh, cold milk from the refrigerator, and placed them on the dinner table. "Eat up," he said. "The funeral's in less than an hour."

Stella loved French toast. It was one of her favourite breakfast foods. But now, she didn't care how it tasted or how it looked like; she ate her two slices — oblivious of her eating. She silently gulped down the glass of milk and went back upstairs to get ready for the funeral.

They had decided it was best to bury Nora the day after she had died; Stella just couldn't bear keeping her any longer. Arranging the funeral had kept them so busy that afternoon and night. Luckily, there were people who would offer their services at Nora's funeral, even if the request was so sudden.

In around half-an-hour, Stella found herself next to Leo, in front of a crowd at the local church. They each said a few things about how Nora had affected their life. When it came to Stella, she wasn't able to speak for a full minute. When she found her voice, she shared some of the beautiful memories that she had cherished and shared with Nora. Through her whole speech, Stella had been staring at the floor. Leo was right next to her, his arm around her in support.