Hi. Here's the next chapter. Thanks for the reviews.
What I still couldn't believe was how Raimundo's mom died. Even if a marriage isn't working out, there's always divorce. You would have to be pretty sick to kill your spouse. I tried to imagine my dad kill my mom, but I couldn't no matter how wild my imagination went. My parents loved each other too much even if things weren't working out. According to the newspaper Raimundo got after he stopped crying, after he killed his wife, he was found sitting on the front steps of his house saying he was going to shoot himself and now he was in jail. Raimundo cried some more after reading this, thinking over and over 'I hate him!' until he cried himself to sleep.
Later Miranda and his grandparents came over. There was Grandpa Eric, his dad's father, and Gramp and Gran, his mom's parents. A lot of neighbors and other people Raimundo didn't know came later and kept telling Raimundo how sorry they were.
'Not half as sorry as I am,"
After everyone left but the grandparents and Miranda, Raimundo went into the kitchen and heated up some leftover pizza, while the adults talked in the living room. For awhile he just sat at the counter eating, then he heard what the grandparents were talking about. They were arguing over who Raimundo should stay with. The nerve of them talking about such an important issue without him! Raimundo ran in the living room so fast, I found myself on the living room floor in a second. "I'm not going to live in Brasilia OR Salvador!" Raimundo screamed. "I'm going to live in my mom's studio!"
"You can't Raimundo," said Gran. "There would be no one take care of you,"
"I'll take care of myself! The studio is the only part of Mom I have left! I'm staying here and that's final!"
Grandpa Eric opens his mouth to argue, but Miranda stops him. "You can stay in the studio until we decide where you're going to live, but only as long as your grandparents are here. We can't make you stay somewhere against your will, but you know you can't live here."
Raimundo hung his head and whispered "How long are you guys staying?"
"I'm staying until Eric's trial is over," Grandpa Eric said "I can stay in the house and take care of things,"
"What trial?" Gramp says angrily. "He shot my daughter. You're not going to tell me he's going to plead temporary insanity or some crap like that," and then he started crying.
Then the room dissolved and I started falling again. I landed on the couch in the studio, where Raimundo and Miranda were talking.
"I don't want to go to the funeral home," Raimundo whined. "I want to remember how she was when she was alive, not have her dead image burned on my brain! Why does the casket have to be open?"
I can imagine how Raimundo must feel. I wouldn't want my mom's dead body on my memory either.
"Raimundo, you have to go. Not just for yourself, but for your grandparents,"
"I wish they would just butt out! I know she was their daughter, but she was my mother! They act like my feelings are nothing compared to theirs.
The room dissolved again and this time I landed on a hard concrete floor. I was in the funeral home. Raimundo was standing beside me looking at an open casket a few feet away. I hoped Raimundo didn't look into it. The grandparents were talking by the refreshments table and Miranda was talking to the funeral director. Raimundo walked over to the casket. I didn't really want to look, but I wanted to try to understand how Raimundo felt. She looked like she did in Raimundo's drawing, only in the drawing she wore a T-shirt and jeans. Now she was wearing a dark blue suit and make-up. She also looked cold and .....well, dead.
' Mom has never worn a suit or make-up in her life! She hated getting dressed up! I'll bet Gram did this. Mom's spirit must be pissed!
Then he noticed something shiny on her face. Since I was in his memory, I had to notice it too. There was a small, shiny, round spot on her forehead that looked like plastic wrap, and another spot under her right eye. Suddenly we both realized what those were. I screamed and Raimundo stuffed his entire fist in his mouth to keep himself from screaming. Then he went limp, staggered back a bit, and started to fall. Then everything went black.
Sorry to stop here of all places, but I have school tomorrow and I have to get to bed. I'll update as soon as I can. Until next time!