"I'm sorry to do this, Troy, but we need to talk."

Troy looked up at her from under Chad's arm.

"About what?" He asked.

"..the funeral, Troy." She said, coming in to sit on the bed as Chad and Troy sat up. Troy leaned against the wall.

"What about it?" He asked.

"Well, you're their son. You should have a say." She said softly. "I was thinking maybe we should have it on Monday."

"M-monday?" He breathed out. Monday. School. Teachers. Funeral. No school. No teachers. But he wouldn't go anyway. "White roses?"

"Yes, of course Troy." She said. "Do either of you want to speak at it?"

"Yeah." Chad said imediately. Troy's mind was in a far away place. Chad touched him lightly and what was on his mind came pouring out.

"We went on vacation a lot. I remember one time we went to Mexico and they were setting up for Cinco De Meyo. The Day Of The Dead. Mom said if she died she wanted them to play Meet You There by this band called Simple Plan. She said they were a really depressing band. Dad wanted The Day That I Die from Good Charlotte." He said.

"We can play those." She said. Troy stared at his lap.

"I'll talk if I can." Troy said. She nodded.

"The other thing is..do you want them cremated?" She asked. He looked up at her.

"They..found their bodies?" He asked. She nodded. He shook his head. "No. I..I need to see them."

"Alright." She said. "Tell me when you want to go. They won't keep you from seeing them."

"Can we go now?" He asked.

"Right now, Troy?" She asked.

"The anxiety will tear him apart if he had to wait even until tomorrow." Chad said. She nodded.

"Put your shoes on." She said. Troy felt his stomach drop as he pulled on his shoes and followed her out to the car. Chad followed them down to
the car and sat in the back with Troy.

It was a short ride and Troy wasn't sure if that was good or bad. He got out of the car slowly after Chad. They followed Chad's mom into the building and Troy trembled on the way in. He didn't pay attention to the conversation Chad's mom had with the man behind the counter, simply following her down a series of hallways silently. Eventually they stopped at a door and Chad's mom placed a hand on his back. Her voice sounded like it was coming from the end of a tunnel.

"Are you ready, Troy?" She asked.

He nodded slowly and she led him into a room where two tables with sheets over them sat. Chad put a gentle hand on Troy's back. The corener looked at Troy and slowly pulled back the first sheet. His father. He clenched his fists on his shirt and bit his lip. Then his mother was uncovered. There was a loud scream and suddenly Troy was on his knees. Chad was on his knees a moment later, wrapping his arms around Troy.

"Let go!" He shouted, jumping to his feet.

Troy ran out of the room. He ran down the unfamiliar hallways and stumbled into a man covered in blood. He jumped sideways to avoid the man and hit the wall. He pushed himself against the wall, sobbing and panting. The man crouched down beside him.

"Are you alright? Where are your parents?" He asked.

"They're on a fucking table! They're dead!" He screamed. The man's eyes softened more than they already were.

"Give me a moment to change, then we'll get some coffee, eh?" He said. Troy sniffled and nodded.

A few minutes later Troy was following a man with light hair and dark eyes to the staff lounge. He sat in an armchair and pulled his knees up to his chest.

"So what happened?" He asked.

"Plane crash." Troy said quietly. "I didn't want them to go..but they went anyway."

"How much do you know about what killed them?" He asked softly.

"Nothing. I saw them and I..I ran." Troy said.

"The Boltons?" He asked. Troy nodded. "I did the autopsy."

Troy stared at him for a few moments before asking.

"How did they die? Did it..hurt?" He asked.

"Imediate cardiac arrest. They died on impact." He said. "They were dead before they knew they were going to die. They didn't feel it."

Troy looked at him with tears in his eyes. He sniffled and stared at his knees.

"I used to play basketball. I was Team Captain. And I was singing in my high school's musical. Lead role. I thought they'd dissaprove but they supported me. You know, after the initial shock that is." He sighed. "I got diagnosed with an anxiety disorder 6 months ago. Because I was throwing up blood, they brought me to the hospitol. Found out I had an ulcer from all the stress. I had to drop them both. I felt like I was letting them down. I was independant before that. Afterward they were constantly worried about me. It was like they had another baby, but the one that grew up wasn't around to help."

He stayed silent, watching Troy ramble.

"She said she loved me. And she'd see me soon." He said, wiping his eyes.

"Not too soon now, I'd hope." He said. Troy bit his lip.

"I yelled at Chad." He whispered, his chest tightening. "Oh my God. Oh my God."

"Hey, hey, calm down, who's Chad?" He asked.

"He came here to help me and I yelled at him. Oh my fucking GOD. What if something happens to him? And the last thing I said to him was to leave me alone." He was hyperventalating now. "Oh my God."

The man pulled Chad out of the chair and led him down the hall to the front of the building where Chad was waiting. When he saw Troy he ran over and gathered him into a hug.

"Where were you?" He asked. "You scared me. I know it's hard, but please don't do that again."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." Troy said. He gripped Chad's shirt.

"Talk to me." Chad said softly.

"It's real now." Troy whispered. Chad buried his face in Troy's hair.

"I know." He whispered. Troy cried against him silently for several minutes before he felt a wetness on his head and looked up. Chad was crying, too.

"You miss them too." Troy whispered.

"Of course I do, Troy. But this is different than for you. This is like loosing an aunt and uncle that I saw a lot but wasn't particularly close with. You lost your parents. We're going to mourn for the same people in different ways." Chad said. Troy shook his head.

"I don't want to mourn. I want them to come home." Troy said, shaking his head. Chad hugged him close.

"They're not coming home." He said softly.

"Then I want to move on." Troy said. Chad lifted the smaller boy's chin.

"You can move on. After you process everything. But you're not a machine. There's no estimated time frame. There's just you. So take all the time you need." Chad said. Troy pressed his face into Chad's chest. "Baby steps. Funeral. Will. School."

"Fuck school." Troy said.

"Yeah, we've all felt that way." The mortition said.

"No, Troy, I'm sorry. You don't have to go back. It's ok." Chad said. Troy was shaking all over. "I'm sorry."

"Why is school so terrible?" The mortition asked.

"His dad worked at the school. Coach Bolton." Chad said. Troy pulled at Chad's shirt. "What?"

"Can we go home?" Troy asked almost inaudibly. Chad hugged him.

"Of course." He said, leading him out to the car.

A/N: This is on one of my longest FF's. (In terms of word count per chapter)