"It's Posy. She's dead."

That was all that Gale said as he hung up the phone, the entire family hovering next to him. They were all in shock.
Suicide, Hazelle had said. At least, that's what the police had told her. No one believed it, though. Posy was always so happy and care-free. It was insane to think that she had even considered suicide.

Gale was having a hard time functioning before Posy died, so hearing about her death just sent him into a state of constant panic attacks.
One of these times, Gale had just happened to come upstairs at the same time Glory was making herself some breakfast. Normally, this wouldn't have bothered him. But seeing Glory in her pajamas and her hair in braids made him have a serious panic attack. It was so bad that it woke both Chasity and Emerson up. When they came running into the kitchen, Gale was shaking violently and trying to talk to Glory, thinking she was his sister. All the while, their mother was trying to calm him down with the short snippets of truth she always said.
"Your name is Jonathan Gale Hawthorne. You're forty-three years old. You live in District Four. You have three children. Chasity, Emerson and Gloriana. I'm your wife, Velvet. I love you. You're safe here. We're all safe."
It took thirty minutes for him to stop shaking and another fifteen to begin focusing on reality; one of his longest bouts yet.

The days leading up to the funeral were torture for Chasity. On top of having her Aunt's death and her father to deal with, she also had Drew. He was still upset with her. And for good reason. It took her a few days, but Chasity realized how wrong it was for her to say the things that she had said.
Her damn temper had to get in the way of everything and she always got so furious with herself for not being able to keep it in check.
She could always call Drew and ask him to come to the funeral with her. She knew he would do it, even if he was still mad at her, but that wouldn't be fair to him. So she called Everly instead.
After explaining everything, Everly agreed that she'd have her parents drive her to District Two for the funeral. Chasity was so happy that she actually smiled, something she hadn't done for days.
She wouldn't be as alone as she thought.

District Two was only a couple hours away, so it wasn't that bad of a drive. It was difficult to get Gale out of the house, though. His anxiety had managed to get worse after everything that had happened. The only way they got him to get in the car was to have him talking on the phone with his mother the entire ride. It didn't bother anyone, though. Chasity read while Glory and Emerson played on their phones and listened to music.
It was a nice escape, being able to read. Chasity had been so worried these past few days that she hadn't been able to read like she normally did. She hadn't realized she had missed it so much. It allowed her to forget about her problems, even for just a little bit.

District Two was a lot bigger than her father had described. Multistory buildings loomed over the streets and shadowed the people milling about. Lucky for them, Posy's funeral was going to be on the outer edge of town and away from all of the commotion.

When they arrived at the funeral home, everyone piled out of the car. Chasity needed a few moments alone, though. She told everyone to go on inside and that she'd follow in a minute. The air outside was warm, so she didn't mind standing outside in the sun.
She felt bad for not having called Drew and apologized. She knew she messed up, but something inside her just didn't want to own up to her mistakes. She hated it.

Chasity was just about to take out her phone and call Drew, but a car pulled up to the sidewalk in front of her. She smiled because she recognized it. The Kyle's van. Everly was there.

Running across the street, Everly's dark hair bounced around her shoulders. When she reached Chasity, she wrapped in her a tight hug.
"I'm so sorry, Chas!" Everly's brown eyes held so much sadness.
"Thanks."

After walking inside and finding their seats, Chasity turned to Everly.
"Where's your mom?"
Everly smiled sadly. "She's outside in the car." When Chasity raised her eye brows, she added, "She's having one of her headaches and she didn't want to be around people."
Chasity nodded understandingly. Mrs. Kyle got headaches all the time. They were cause by an injury that she had gotten as a child and it flared up often. So often that Chasity hadn't seen her much. Most times when she would go over to the Kyle's house, her and Everly would have to play outside because her mother's head aches were so bad.

None of this made any sense. Posy never would have killed herself. There was just no way. Yes, there had been a note and everything, but it still didn't fit anything. Posy had always seemed so positive, so caring. She had never given the slightest hint that she was suicidal. Not to anyone.

Gale was the original choice to give the eulogy, but for obvious reasons, he declined. His youngest brother, Vick, was asked to deliver it instead. Chasity wasn't sure how her father was going to react to hearing about his sister's death. He practically had mental breakdowns when they were at home alone. Hopefully everything would turn out alright and they could get home, unfazed.

"Life in the Seam was tough," Vick began. "Even though I was 6 and don't remember much, I do remember that my older brothers took care of me and Posy. With our dad gone," Chasity looked over at her father, worried. His eyes were glassed over.

'Please dad,' she thought, 'please don't break down. Not now.' She didn't want to know what he would do in a room full of people.

"Gale and Rory did their best. Without our dad around, they provided for our family with everything that they had. We were all lucky." Vick's voice cracked and he paused to take a breath.

Out of the corner of her eye, Chasity noticed her father lean forward and run his hands through his hair. No, just a little bit longer. She took a deep breath and Everly grabbed her hand. Thankful, Chasity took it and gave it a little squeeze.

"When mama had called me to tell me that Posy had killed herself, needless to say, I was shocked." Vick grabbed onto the podium, his knuckles turning white. "My little sister was always so happy and full of life. And, I know everyone says this, but I just cannot believe that she killed herself. It doesn't make any sense."

Gale's hands started to shake. Chasity tensed up. He wasn't going to last through this, she knew.

"Either way, I can't hide the fact that my baby sister is dead. And neither can you. So, let's all remember Posy the way that she was. A cute, happy girl-"
"GOD!"
Chasity's head snapped up at the shout. Gale had gotten up from his seat and, despite Velvet's quiet protests, walked up to the front.
"Gale? What are you-" Vick blinked, confused. Gale grabbed his shoulders, shaking him hard.
"Don't you see, Vick?! This is all Snow's doing!"
"What the hell are you talking about? Snow's been dead for years."
Gale let go of his brother and started looking around the room, almost surprised to see everyone there.

Chasity gripped Everly's hand tighter.

Velvet slowly got up from her seat. "Do you know where you are, Gale?" The room had fallen into a tense silence. Chasity's voice caught in her throat as her father turned around. He was looking at her mother, but there was no recognition in his eyes.
"How do you know my name?"
Velvet froze. Gale had never slipped this far before. Vick walked up and placed his hand on Gale's shoulder. He jumped.
"She knows your name because she's your wife."
Gale shook his head.
"No, I'm not married." He turned to Vick. "Katniss just got engaged to Peeta, not me." Gale let out a laugh. "Where is your mind right now?" No one said anything as he looked around the room.

Everly sucked in a breath that snapped Chasity's mind to her. She was gripping her hand too hard. Loosening her grip, she stared at her father, not knowing what to do.

"Gale," Vick said, grabbing his shoulders. "Posy is dead." Turning around, Gale looked at the open casket. Instantly, he tensed up.
"No, I just saw-"
Velvet ran up and grabbed his arm. Without a word, she pulled him towards the exit, muttering under her breath the entire time. Chasity knew what she was saying. She'd heard it so much within the last month, that she could say it in her sleep.
Closing her eyes, Chasity took a deep breath, repeating in her head the words that she knew her mother was saying.

"Your name is Jonathan Gale Hawthorne. You're forty-three years old. You live in District Four. You have three children. Chasity, Emerson and Gloriana. I'm your wife, Velvet. I love you. You're safe here. We're all safe."