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The days had dragged on for years for Johnathan since his father died.

He couldn't bring himself to shed any tears since then. He'd gone about his daily routines of keeping the house clean and cooking dinner, but the boy was amiss - there was none of the usual sparkle in his eyes or hop in his step. There weren't any smiles or any raised voices. Instead he spoke in low, subdued tones and kept his head low, his shoulders feeling like lead. Everything hurt.

Everything hurt.

The laundry was in the washing machine and Johnathan couldn't bring himself to wait there for much longer. He ached. His eyes felt heavy and fogged. The boy dragged himself upstairs and closed the door so only four or so inches of threshold remained open. Quietly he sank into bed and heaved a heavy sigh. He was somewhat thankful he had a reprieve from school due to the death, but did it have to come so soon after the holidays? After their vacation?

Johnny rolled over from his fetal position facing the wall. He had slithered under one of his dark blue blankets but found he couldn't really sleep. He sat up on one elbow. "Hi Lily. Yeah, you can come in."

The blinds were half-drawn, casting an odd eventime shadow in the room when it was still early afternoon. There was a fan in the corner of the room, whirring quietly. Johnny, oddly enough, never did get around to decorating his room. And now he felt he didn't have the gumption to do much of anything. His other tasks seemed to be performed robotically.

"...can I do somethin' for you, Lily?"

"You can sit down. I don't mind. I'm a guest in your house, after all."

Johnny sat up then and curled his legs beneath him. He had taken a few articles from his parent's bedroom as a sort of souvenir. Something to remember them by. The fan in the corner was one such item. Johnny just didn't have the energy to decide what to do with the room yet. "I'm... okay, I guess." he said finally, rubbing his eye with the heel of his hand. "....Alex said to take it easy but I... don't like takin' it easy. I dunno... what to do with myself, really."

He sighed, shoulders shaking with the exhale. "I just... dunno, Lily. I dunno." Crawling out from under the blankets on his side of the bed, Johnny went to sit next to Lily and to lean on her. "I dunno what to do, Lily."

The boy sighed against Lily, his shoulders relaxing just a touch from listening to her speak.

"I... 'ppreciate that a lot, you guys." he started after a long silence spent deliberating on what to say at all. "...Mom's been a wreck since dad died an' she was real mad I wanted to stay here but... I think this is better for me anyway." Johnny nodded to himself as a way of affirming his decision to stay with Alex and Lily as opposed to his mother, who was staying with her side of the family to be out of the house.

Johnny motioned to his rather barren desk where several pieces of brightly colored and patterned origami paper lay strewn about. On top of it was a small bouquet of folded flowers. "I made those for you. I know you said you wanted some so... I guess I made a bunch without realizin' it." The boy was then quiet again, opting not to move from his current perch on the bed.

Johnny looked up at Lily, a curious glint in his eye. What would he like for her to sing? In that moment, he really wasn't sure if he wanted anything. The boy felt so dead inside, so heavy and full of grief. He sighed, his shoulders sagging with weight that kept pressing down on him. The loss of his father was heavy stuff indeed, but being the first on the scene, being the person who had to discover him that way... it weighed heavily on Johnny's psyche.

He was quiet for a while.

"....didn't you say once you had a favorite song?" he asked quietly, regarding Lily through his snow blue bangs. "...can you sing that for me? ...please?"

Johnny's eyes grew heavy with tears. He remembered his mother mentioning the song or humming it sometimes when she was alone. She even had a music box that played the song when wound up. The boy sniffed, curling up into a ball on his bed and pulling the covers about him.

"...I miss dad..." he wheezed, falling over into the pillow to cry. His shoulders shook but he wasn't angry with his father. He was never angry, never asked why he did what he did. Johnny understood the reason all too well when his mother explained it to him. But that didn't make the hurt any less sharpened. "Lily, I miss dad..."

Johnny managed one deep, somewhat ragged breath, pulling the covers closer to him. "No... but thanks, Lily." he wheezed, nestling himself further into the pillow. Somehow, Lily's song made him feel a lot better. Like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. Perhaps it was being given the opportunity to grieve that helped alleviate some of his pain. The boy yawned against his will and he shut his eyes.

"...I gotta..." Another yawn. "....go get the laundry... soon..."

Johnny's eyes drifted shut before he could really finish the thought. He hadn't slept well for days after his father's death and this was a welcome reprieve from the weariness that clung to his bones.