A Kiss At Midnight (Delilah and Caelum) novel Chapter 145

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A Kiss At Midnight

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had been here before, in this exact place inside myself. Three years ago, I’d stood in front of a mirror dressed in black, preparing to say goodbye to someone I loved.

Daisy

And now, years later, I was standing in almost the same position, staring at my own reflection and preparing to attend another funeral.

It had been a week since Jace’s mother died, a week since I’d found him sitting on that hospital floor, completely broken. Since that night, Jace had barely been himself.

He barely spoke, barely cried. It was almost as if he’d used up every tear he had that night and had nothing left.

I clenched my hands at my sides then slowly unclenched them when a knock sounded against the door.

Taking a deep breath, I say, “Come in,” the door opens and my father steps inside, dressed in a black suit, his expression solemn.

His eyes immediately found mine through the mirror. “Are you ready?”

I swallowed, then nodded. “Yeah.”

He didn’t move immediately as his gaze searched my eyes for a second, then another. “Are you okay?” I looked down, as my father’s voice softened. “I know how much you cherished her.”

Bitting the inside of my cheek, “It would be crazy if I said I was okay.”

The words came out quietly but even as I said them, I found myself questioning whether my pain was anywhere close to what Jace was feeling.

He was the one who had lost a parent, his mother. I had lost someone I loved too, but she had been his mother. The woman who had been there his entire life.

My father steps fully into the room and reachs for my hand, then squeezes it gently. “Losing someone you care about is excruciating,” he said, “There isn’t some rule that says you have to recover from it quickly. You don’t just wake up one morning and stop hurting. Your feelings aren’t any less valid because someone else is hurting too.”

I stared at him for a moment and suddenly, I wondered if this was how he had felt when they told him Daisy was gone. Had his heart felt like it was being torn apart because mine had.

I remembered the moment they had told me, then moment everything inside me had shattered. I had always thought about it as losing my sister, but to my father..he had lost his child.

His little princess

And somehow, he had still managed to stand there, still managed to be strong for the rest of us. Even when I was certain his heart had been ripped apart by the same unbearable truth that he would never see his little girl again.

He had lost a part of himself too and had just hidden the wound better than I ever could. Beforee I could think about it, I closed the distance between us, wrapping my arms around him.

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10:30 Fri, Sep 25 M

A Kis At Midnight

My father stiffened slightly, clearly caught off guard, “What is this for?”

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eld him tighter. “Just because..” my voice was muffled against his chest and I stay there for another moment before speaking again, “I’m sorry.”

His hand moved slowly over my back, “For what?”

“For the vacation,” I pulled back just enough to look at him, “We were supposed to go, and now..”

Shaking his head, “That can wait,” his hand gently rubs my back, “I understand. We can always reschedule everything, but right now, you need to be there with your friend.”

My throat tightens and I nodded. “Thank you.”

He gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze, “Always.”

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10:56 Fri, Sep 25 M

A Kis At Midnight

FUNERAL

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cemetery was quieter than I had expected, I mean it was the cemetery, what other noise was I suppose to hear other than the occasional rustle of leaves and the low murmur of people speaking in hush voices.

Everyone was dressed in black. my father stood beside me, one hand resting gently against his arm, while my mother stood on his other side. Kaia, Elias, and Landon stood a few feet away with some of the jocks, all of them unusually quiet.

Jace’s extended family stood closer to the front and then there was Jace. I couldn’t stop looking at him as he stood beside his family in a black suit, his hands folded loosely in front of him, expression unreadable.

There was no tears or trembling lips, nothing. It had been a week since his mother died, and somehow, the boy who had cried in my arms that night had disappeared, and now he looked almost numb.

The priest stepped forward, “We gather today to remember a woman who was deeply loved..” his voice carried gently across the cemetery and I listened as he spoke about Jacquelin, about her life, the people she had touched, and the memories she had left behind.

I tried to focus on his words but my eyes kept drifting toward Jace, watching as he didn’t move, not once, there had only been a subtle clench of his jaw only when the priest spoke about grief. It was the smallest reaction, then his face went blank again.

My father squeezes my arm, causing my attention to drift to him, and he gave me a small, knowing look but didn’t say anything.

The ceremony continued, eventually, the priest steps aside and people began approaching the grave one by one. flowers were placed gently beside the coffin before it was lowered.

When it was my turn, I took a step forward with a flower in my hand, my fingers trembling slightly. When I got closer, my gaze rested there for a second before letting it fall,, taking a step back and returning back to where my father was.

More people followed, some cried openly and other stood silently. Jace remained completely still, even when his turn came. He walked forward, placed his flower down, and stood there for a moment.

I wasn’t the only one watching, as he had the attention of everyone. I could tell they were waiting for tear or a crack in his expression, but he gave them nothing. He wasn’t obligated to, and simply turned around, walking back toward his family.

My stomach twisted watching him like this, knowing the amount of pain he felt can’t be consolabel.

“He hasn’t cried,” Kaia says in a soft whisper, standing close to me.

My gaze drifted briefly at her, “I know.”

“Is that normal?” she looked toward him, the concern evident in her voice.

“Everyone grieves differently, but I’m also worried at the same time.”I lowered my voice even more,” he was completely broken when I found him at the hospital and now he hasn’t cried once.”

Landon joined us, his hands tucked into the pockets of his black trousers, “I’ve barely heard him speak all

week.”

10:56 Fri, Sep 25 # M

A KI A Midnight

Elias stood beside him, “He might just be numb.”

know,” I said, my fingers curled around each other, “But what if he’s holding everything in?”

“You think he’ll eventually break?” Kaia frowned.

“I don’t know,” I looked at his again, “grief doesn’t just disappear because you refuse to show it

Landon nodded slowly, “She has a point.”

“I hope so,” Elias glanced toward his, “maybe he needs time.”

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I took a slow breath, “I just don’t want him to keep everything inside until he can’t handle it anymore.”

Kaia reached for my hand and squeezed it. “He has us,” she gave me a small smile, “We’re not letting him go through this alone.”

I looked back toward Jace and he was standing beside his family, staring at the grave.. The funeral slowly coming to an end. People slowly began making their way toward their cars, offering him and his family quiet condolences before leaving the cemetery.

My father came to stand beside me. “Sweetie, we should probably head home.”

“I want to stay,” I turned toward him, watching as his brows lifted slightly. I glanced toward Kaia, Elias, Landon, and the others, who were still watching him, “I want to be here for him, we all do. Is that okay?”

My father followed my gaze, looking at my friends, then at him, “Of course, sweetie.”

Relief washed over me, “Thank you.”

“Call me if you need anything, okay?”

Nodding. “I will,” he then leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss against my forehead, then he walked away with my mother. I watched them for a moment, my mother hadn’t said much the entire time.

We weren’t close enough for her to know exactly what was going through my head, and I wasn’t close enough to ask what was going through hers, but I knew she was hurting too.

Jacquelin had been her dear friend, so even though she hadn’t said it, I knew this funeral wasn’t easy for her either. I turned away and walked back toward the others.

We gathered together several feet behind him, nobody spoke or tried to pull him away and simply stayed as he stood there, staring at the grave. Minutes passed by, then an hour, till it was two hours, before he finally took a step backward.

Everyone straightened as he turned away from the grave and started walking. We followed but he didn’t head toward the parking lot and just kept walking, aimlessly. His eyes remained fixed ahead, his steps carrying him farther from the cemetery without any clear destination.

I exchanged a worried look with Kaia. Landon noticed too. “I’ll get the car,” he said quietly, turning and heading toward the parking lot while the rest of us continued after Jace.

“Jace,” he didn’t respond so I hurried a little to catch up, “hey, where are you going?” He still didn’t say anything so I moved closer to him, grabbing his arms, “Come with us, okay..there’s a car waiting.”

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